Strategies for Mitigating the Challenges of Post-Disaster Reconstruction Projects: A Systematic Literature Review

The impacts of disasters range from social to physical, which comprise psychological impacts, economic impacts, casualties, damage to buildings and infrastructure, etc. While developing countries like Nigeria and Nepal are prone to suffering more human casualties, the effects of disasters in developed countries like Australia and Japan are felt more in buildings and infrastructure. Disasters leave the affected areas deprived of the capacity to function normally without support. Construction projects constitute the greatest loss component in the event of major disasters and thus render people homeless, insecure, and susceptible to unpleasant conditions. This makes post-disaster reconstruction a must in places hit by disasters to restore housing, which is already limited in supply due to the rising population. Therefore, this study will examine the challenges and the strategies employed to improve the success of post-disaster reconstruction projects through a systematic literature review using the PRISMA model. Journal articles between 2004 and 2024 were obtained from the Scopus and Web of Science databases. The study results revealed that there is a steady increase in the number of publications on post-disaster reconstruction (PDR) projects. The study also discovered Inadequate labour, governance and management issues, logistic and supply issues; funding issues as the popular challenges while building capacities of participants and stakeholders, pre-disaster recovery planning, engagement of affected persons and community in PDR projects as the popular strategies for mitigating the challenges of post-disaster reconstruction. The study aligns with UN Sustainable Development Goal 11 of providing safe, resilient, and inclusive human settlements.