How to be fair in prioritizing support in the aftermath of disasters: Pakistan’s housing reconstruction challenges following the 2010 flood disaster

Following the disastrous 2010 floods, where almost one million homes were totally destroyed, Pakistan’s government has had to face $2 billion of reconstruction costs. With a given reconstruction budget, reducing households’ vulnerability to flooding generated difficult decisions, where a greater weight given to the poorest also meant achieving less total protection-a typical case of social equity vs. resource use efficiency. This study shows the hidden complexity of such decision-making when there is urgency in disaster relief. Surprisingly, it turns out that in resource-constrained situations typical of developing countries, the choice of equity or justice norms matter little for how to best use the available budget. The determining factor is the interplay of reconstruction costs with both the government’s and households’ available budgets.