Disaster risk reduction and institutional fragility in transboundary river basins: a systematic review from the Lower Koshi perspective

Disaster Risk Reduction (DRR) governance has received growing academic and policy attention, yet disasters continue to cause major disruptions. This suggests a gap in understanding the factors that make disaster risks enduring, particularly in transboundary river basins with complex governance arrangements, such as the Lower Koshi Basin across India and Nepal. The study conducts a systematic literature review (SLR) of disaster risks in the basin to understand the factors that cause cyclic disasters and their persistence. It assesses 627 publications from the ScienceDirect database, along with grey literature and key policy documents, then screens and refines them to 165 studies based on defined inclusion criteria. The findings show that while the literature focuses extensively on hazards, impacts and socio-economic vulnerabilities, governance remains underdeveloped as an analytical focus. Only 13% of the studies explicitly address governance, while 48% refer to it implicitly and 39% do not engage with governance. In response, the study develops the concept of institutional fragility as a bridging lens linking hazards, socio-economic conditions, ecological processes and financial systems through underlying governance structures. It is further linked with systemic risk and Integrated River Basin Management (IRBM). While centred on the Lower Koshi Basin, the study offers a broader analytical perspective for understanding disaster risk in other transboundary basins, particularly in the Global South.