Residents of informal settlements often bear the brunt of extreme weather and associated flooding. This guide is intended to strengthen participatory risk assessment capabilities for a wide range of municipal and development professionals and practitioners. It is also relevant to professionals involved in housing, social development, health, adult education, CBOs and NGOs. Although it was originally produced to help develop the resilience of residents in most vulnerable areas of the Western Cape, South Africa, it contains valuable lessons for other contexts. The guide presents a pragmatic attempt to provide officials and role players with an understanding of how to address the factors contributing to disasters and their impact on vulnerable communities. It emphasizes a number of key principles that need to be considered in forming an integrated and comprehensive approach to tackling hazards in informal settlements. It sets out a participatory approach by all stakeholders and wide consultation of communities at risk, to consolidate risk reduction measures and initiatives that will mitigate the impact of hazards. Keys areas covered include: 

Making risk reduction a priority in informal settlements 
Preparatory steps towards undertaking participatory risk assessments 
Carrying out participatory community risk assessment 
Priority risks for informal settlements and integrated risk management