How the Government Should Manage Natural Disasters
Natural disasters are a difficult reality. Regardless of our beliefs, these disasters such as earthquakes and floods have a huge impact on our lives in every part of the world. Every year, people all over the world face several disasters. The lives of many of these people are completely destroyed as a result of these disasters.
A lot of times, people are simply dissatisfied by the efforts taken by their governments. Many believe that since they have contributed to the government treasury in the form of taxes, the government should now bail them out in their hour of need.
Governments all over the world do not seem to be able to meet these expectations. This has always been the case even if historical records are studied. Governments seldom contribute to any kind of natural calamities. It is private charities and religious institutions that seem to make the most impact when such events occur. This is the reason each time such a disaster occurs, the governments role is brought into question.
In this article, we will have a closer look at what the role of a government should be when it comes to mitigating natural disasters.
Why the Government Cannot Provide Economic Services?
Natural disasters lead to a lot of harm. People lose their homes, their business places and other sources of livelihood. Even the working class faces a severe loss of income. This is because the economic activities take a severe beating during this time.
As a result, several people are left on the streets to fend for themselves. These are the people that expect aid from the government. They want food, shelter, and clothing so that they can sustain themselves until things return back to normal. These provisions are sometimes referred to as economic services related to disaster relief.
However, it is important to understand that the structure of the government is not designed to provide economic services to the affected people.
What the Government Should Do?

The government also has a very specific role when it comes to disaster management. Some actions need to be taken reactively, i.e., after a disaster has occurred whereas others need to be taken proactively.
The bottom line is that it is not economically possible for the government to shoulder all the responsibility in the event of a natural disaster. Hence, the government should continue doing the things that it is good at while letting private charities perform tasks that they have a competitive advantage in.
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