Three months on: Myanmar communities lead earthquake recovery

“Out of 1,700 households in our ward, 1,400 were affected by the earthquake.”

This is how Daw Aye Nyein Thu, a camp volunteer from Mandalay’s Chan Mya Tharzi Township, sums up the impact on her community. Three months after the quake shook central Myanmar, many families are still living in makeshift camps – exposed to heat, heavy rains, and uncertain shelter. Daw Aye Nyein Thu says there are around 550 makeshift camps spread out across different areas.

The earthquake that struck Myanmar on 28 March 2025, measuring 7.7 in magnitude, brought widespread destruction. Over 3,700 lives were lost, nearly 5,000 people injured, and dozens remain missing. Hospitals, schools, highways, and even cultural heritage sites suffered heavy damage.

As the rainy season approaches, many displaced families face growing risks from inadequate shelter and limited access to clean water and sanitation. Vulnerable groups – such as people with disabilities, the elderly, and pregnant or breastfeeding women – are especially exposed.

In response, UN-Habitat has been on the ground, initially delivering immediate relief, like food supplies and non-food items in places such as Inle Lake, Mandalay and Sagaing. At the same time, UN-Habitat worked closely with partners to assess the damage and initiate recovery efforts that reflect what communities truly need.

With support from the private sector, UN-Habitat’s “Water for Life initiative” will be providing Water, Sanitation and Hygiene (WASH) assistance to the most vulnerable communities. A Myanmar volunteer, Daw Cherry, stresses the urgent need to also rebuild homes and livelihoods. “Both cash and in-kind assistance are necessary to help our community recover and restore dignity.”

Catarina Camarinhas, Acting Country Programme Manager for UN-Habitat Myanmar, says: “Myanmar people are very resourceful. But after this level of devastation, the risks for the most vulnerable are high. We should not just rebuild infrastructure; we want to work with those most at risk to build back better, ensuring every decision is driven by the priorities of local communities.”

Alongside OCHA and other partners, UN-Habitat supported local needs assessments. Using satellite imagery provided by UNOSAT combined with on-the-ground surveys by trained local engineers, over 25,000 building damage assessments have been completed.

Khaled Mashfiq, Regional Liaison Officer at UNOSAT Asia and the Pacific, explains: “The collaboration between UN-Habitat and UNOSAT combined satellite-based damage assessments with real-time engineering evaluations through accessible data dashboards, clearly showing the scale of building damage and recovery needs. By bringing together our respective expertise, we have a unique opportunity to use spatial technology not only to support efficient rebuilding, but also to enable community-led, risk-informed planning that truly reflects local needs.”

These detailed maps are crucial for planning reconstruction in a way that is both safe and fair. They help identify vulnerable areas, clarify land and property rights, and guide decisions about where and how to rebuild. The satellite-based assessments support evidence-based and inclusive recovery planning with due consideration for future disaster risks.   

To build local capacity for future emergencies, UN-Habitat has launched training programmes for volunteer engineers and supported setting up Earthquake Technical Offices with local partners. These centres provide expertise in seismology and resilient reconstruction, guiding local communities as they transition from temporary or transitional shelter to more permanent solutions.

Working with the Myanmar Engineering Society, Myanmar Earthquake Committee, and the International Institute of Earthquake Engineering and Seismology, an online training was held for over 80 volunteer engineers. In-person trainings and daily feedback sessions further improved local engineers’ knowledge and capacity to respond. These assessments not only supported structural evaluations but also created an opportunity for local communities to better understand building safety, enabling informed decisions about returning to their homes and restarting their livelihoods. This process plays a critical role in helping affected populations recover safely and rebuild stronger in the aftermath of disaster.

“Our focus is on resilience building,” Camarinhas says. “As we reconstruct, we want to strengthen communities’ ability to withstand future shocks.”

*This article was originally published on the UN-Habitat website.