Question

As part of an organizational Disaster Preparedness Committee,

• What is their purpose?
• How were they formed?

• Who are their stakeholders/partnerships?
• What do they perceive as the biggest threat to safety for the organization?

Answer 1

As part of an organizational Disaster Preparedness Committee,

What is their purpose?

Ministry, agency and disaster management committee, shall ensure budgeting and mainstreaming of their disaster management and contingency plan activities in their annual plans and programs.

Disaster preparedness refers to measures taken to prepare for and reduce the effects of disasters. That is, to predict and, where possible, prevent disasters, mitigate their impact on vulnerable populations, and respond to and effectively cope with their consequences.

Disaster preparedness refers to measures taken to prepare for and reduce the effects of disasters. That is, to predict and, where possible, prevent disasters, mitigate their impact on vulnerable populations, and respond to and effectively cope with their consequences.

Disaster preparedness provides a platform to design effective, realistic and coordinated planning, reduces duplication of efforts and increase the overall effectiveness of National Societies, household and community members disaster preparedness and response efforts. Disaster preparedness activities embedded with risk reduction measures can prevent disaster situations and also result in saving maximum lives and livelihoods during any disaster situation, enabling the affected population to get back to normalcy within a short time period.

Disaster preparedness is a continuous and integrated process resulting from a wide range of risk reduction activities and resources rather than from a distinct sectoral activity by itself. It requires the contributions of many different areas—ranging from training and logistics, to health care, recovery, livelihood to institutional development.

How were they formed?

It was in this background that the Nations General Assembly, in 1989, declared the decade 1990- 2000 as the International Natural Disaster Reduction with the objective to reduce loss of lives and property and restrict economic damage through concerted international action, especially in developing countries.

Who are their stakeholders/partnerships?

According to the United Nations International Strategy for Disaster Reduction (UN/ISDR), there are several key parties that play major roles in the disaster management process. These include communities, particularly those most vulnerable; local governments; national governments, regional institutions; NGOs, Corporations, Media and scientific communities. They have been discussed below:

Various Stakeholders in Disaster Management

According to the United Nations International Strategy for Disaster Reduction (UN/ISDR), there are several key parties that play major roles in the disaster management process. These include communities, particularly those most vulnerable; local governments; national governments, regional institutions; NGOs, Corporations, Media and scientific communities. They have been discussed below:

• Communities
• Local governments
• National governments
• Regional institutions and organizations

Communities

Communities, particularly those most vulnerable are the key stakeholders in disaster management. These are most vital to people-centred early warning systems. Their input into system design and their ability to respond ultimately determine the extent of risk associated with natural hazards.

Local governments

The local governments need to have considerable knowledge of the hazards to which their communities are exposed.   Thus, the local governments must be actively involved in the design and maintenance of early warning systems. It should also have capacity to instruct or engage the local population in a manner that increases their safety and reduces the potential loss of resources on which the community depends.

National governments

The national Government are responsible for policies and frameworks that facilitate early warning. They are also responsible for the technical systems necessary for the preparation and issuance of timely and effective hazard warnings for their respective countries.

Regional institutions and organizations

These should provide specialized knowledge and advice in support of national efforts to develop or sustain the operational capabilities of countries that share a common geographical environment.

International bodies should provide support for national early warning activities and foster the exchange of data and knowledge between individual countries. Support may include the provision of advisory information, technical assistance, and policy and organizational support necessary to ensure the development and operational capabilities of national authorities or agencies responsible for early warning practice.

Non-governmental organizations (NGOs) play a critical role in raising awareness among individuals and organizations involved in early warning and in the implementation of early warning systems, particularly at the community level. In addition, they play an important advocacy role to help ensure that early warning stays on the agenda of government policy makers.

The private sector has a diverse role to play in early warning, including developing early warning capabilities in their own organizations. The private sector is also essential as they are usually better equipped to implement ICT-based solutions. The private sector has a large untapped potential to help provide skilled services in the form of technical manpower, know-how, or donations of goods or services (in-kind and cash), especially for the communication, dissemination and response elements of early warning.

The media plays an important role in improving the disaster consciousness of the general population and in disseminating early warnings. The media can be the critical link between the agency providing the warning and the general public.

The scientific community has a critical role in providing specialized scientific and technical input to assist governments and communities in developing early warning systems. Their expertise is critical to analysing the risks communities face from natural hazards, supporting the design of scientific and systematic monitoring and warning services, fostering data exchange, translating scientific or technical information into comprehensible messages, and disseminating understandable warnings to those at risk.