International Day for Disaster Risk Reduction 2022
13 October marks the International Day for Disaster Risk Reduction. This year, the focus is “Substantially increase the availability of and access to multi-hazard early warning systems and disaster risk information and assessments to people by 2030”.
Early warning systems and preparedness can enable early action to minimize the harm to people, assets and livelihoods and within the PPRD East programme, our experts work to support our partners to strengthen and develop the basis for modern and functional Early Warning Systems. It is the focus for Work package G within the programme.
We are working together with our counterparts in the ENPI EAST region to strengthen the capacities of Civil Protection systems and the management of effective Early Warning to Early Action strategies. We are doing this in several ways, always adapting to the evolving situation in a very complex geopolitical environment.
In Georgia, we have developed the first national wildfire hazard maps and wildfire dynamic models, which will be operational in the renewed Early Warning System. Local and National plans are being updated, including anticipatory actions and pre-emptive measures to be taken in case adverse conditions will be forecasted. In this case, the focus is to move the accent from a response oriented system to a system that prevents and mitigates the effects of natural hazards in an efficient and sustainable way. The system was tested in the summer of 2022 with positive results. The PPRD East 3 consortium provided support to EMS in the analysis of the fires that ravished the Borjomi area, which is one of the pilot areas for the programme. The increased situational awareness allowed EMS to better plan its interventions.
In Ukraine, we needed to change our intervention plan and revise the capacity building scheme to provide quick support for the management of the humanitarian crisis that stemmed from the, still ongoing, conflict. In synergy with the Hydro-meteorological services of Ukraine and Moldova and building synergies with the SEE MHEWS programme in cooperation with the European Center for Medium Weather Forecasting (ECMWF), the PPRD East 3 consortium has developed an impact based forecast which is issued and transmitted to organisations inside and outside of Ukraine involved in the crisis. The bulletin is sent on a daily basis. The Italian Red Cross is currently using the bulletin to determine and adjust its operational strategy. To maintain momentum generated by this action, we are also pursuing the revision of humanitarian interventions towards a more structured and civil protection oriented operational environment.
Since August 2022, we have worked with a series of activities with the Ukrainian Red Cross and with the Ukrainian Hydro-meteorological Service to support with additional information for the winterization actions that will be needed given the effects of the conflict on civilians and the compounding energetic crisis.
Learn more about the International day for Disaster Risk Reduction by visiting UNDRR's webiste: https://iddrr.undrr.org/