Assessment and appraisal of local governance on urban flood resilience in Bangkok Metropolitan Region: perspectives of SDGs 11 and 13

Abstract

Purpose The purpose of this study is to understand through the qualitative assessment, how the current strategy plans are geared toward reducing urban flood risks and achieving Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs) 11 and 13. Design/methodology/approach The Bangkok Metropolitan Region (BMR) plays a major role in Thailand’s economic development. Thus, when the 2011 Thailand flood disaster occurred, BMR suffered major economic and social losses, which impacted the rest of the country. This mega disaster prompted policymakers, the academe and other relevant stakeholders to reevaluate and amend the current urban flood risk reduction measures and governance. The present study attempts to evaluate and compare the post-2011 Thailand flood disaster strategy and master plans, policies and reports that directly and indirectly reduce urban flood risks in the provinces of BMR. Basing on SDGs 11 and 13 targets that impact urban flood risk and resilience, a set of criteria was developed to screen, score and asses the selected documents. A screening process of three levels are conducted to limit the documents to be reviewed, and subsequent content analysis for scoring also has been done. Findings The projected results indicate the need for improved and increased number of localized strategic plans and policies, which are more comprehensive and integrated as risk governance documents. Research limitations/implications Furthermore, it is projected that there is need to integrate measures to increase adaptive capacity for BMR. Originality/value This study is original, and methodology can be replicated for other urban areas for flood risks and resilience assessment.