To address the increasing threats posed by natural disasters, the Aga Khan Agency for Habitat (AKAH) works to ensure that low-income communities live in physical environments that are as safe as possible from the impacts of natural hazards; that residents living in high-risk areas are able to cope with disasters through preparedness and response measures; and that these environments provide access to social and financial services, enhancing opportunities and improving quality of life.

In this context, the consulting firms VestA and Protek Yapi were contracted by AKAH to conduct a building vulnerability and risk assessment in Faizabad city, based on an appropriate sampling of the building stock across different sub-districts. The objective of this study was to develop a comprehensive “Building Vulnerability and Risk Assessment for Faizabad City” using state-of-the-art methodologies and tools to support risk-sensitive land-use planning and contingency planning.

Services Provided

• Collection of building data and definition of building typologies in Faizabad
• Collection of information on building quality
• Development of building vulnerability relationships based on global knowledge and expert judgment
• Preparation of the OpenQuake platform for physical building vulnerability analysis and loss estimation
• Vulnerability analysis of buildings for all potential seismic hazard levels and earthquake scenarios
• Preparation of risk and loss maps for expected building damages
• Development of a GIS-based database incorporating socio-economic data of Faizabad
• Development of an economic loss analysis model