UK pledges new focus on disaster preparation
11 Apr 2014 01:02 PM
Justine Greening to
announce new programme which will help improve how developing countries prepare
for humanitarian disasters, at the World Bank Spring
meetings.
The UK will lead a major
improvement in the way developing countries prepare for humanitarian disasters
to avert future crises, International Development Secretary Justine Greening
will announce at the World Bank’s Spring Meeting in
Washington.
The UK’s new Disasters and
Emergencies Preparedness Programme will provide expert training, simulation
drills and new disaster monitoring systems to ensure countries most at risk
from natural disasters - such as Nepal, Bangladesh, Ethiopia or Sudan - can
prepare for future shocks.
Ms. Greening will also call for
greater global preparation and coordination of disaster responses, warning that
the global humanitarian system is being pushed to its limits by crises such as
the conflicts in Syria, Central African Republic and South Sudan or the recent
devastation in the Philippines.
Speaking at the World Bank
Spring Meetings, Justine Greening will say:
There is a growing danger that
while some countries are graduating from aid, the most fragile and vulnerable
countries will be left far behind.
The humanitarian system is
already stretched to breaking point. The reality is that we are facing ever
more demands on the system, as we deal with the effects of a changing climate,
growing population, conflict and extremism.
Our global humanitarian system
does great work but the scale of the challenge means all of us need to up our
game. The global investment in emergency preparedness is extremely low. We
urgently need larger, sustained investment in preparedness and
resilience.
The UK’s new £40
million Disasters and Emergencies Preparedness Programme will award funding on
a competitive basis to projects which will improve the quality and speed of
humanitarian response. This will include:
- Expert training: New training
programmes, disaster simulations and drills for aid workers in vulnerable
countries.
Working with the START
network – previously known as the Consortium of British
Humanitarian Agencies – and the Communicating with
Disaster-affected Communities Network, accredited international training
programmes will be organised and run in the most at risk countries. This could
include vulnerable developing countries such as Bangladesh, Democratic Republic
of Congo, Haiti or South Sudan.
-
Improved early warning: support
will be awarded to innovative new early warning systems which improve the
communications and coordination of disasters. This could include extending
satellite or geographic data monitoring to track disasters, national
communication systems to warn vulnerable communities or more detailed risk
analysis in disaster-prone regions.
-
In addition, DFID will set up a
new £20 million fund for UNICEF and theWorld Food
Programme to improve disaster planning in 11 high risk countries or
regions – where 17 million people are at risk of a disaster, including 14
million women and children in emergencies. This will allow agencies to
preposition relief items and replenish their stocks to so humanitarian
responses can start as soon as a disaster hits. The countries will include
Afghanistan, Burma, Nigeria, Pakistan, Philippines, Chad, Madagascar, Central
America, Central Asia, African Great Lakes and the Syria
region.
Studies show how effective this
approach can be. For example, Bangladesh reduced casualties from 2 very
comparable cyclones from 500,000 in 1972 to 3,400 in 2008.
Justine Greening will also set
out DFID’s 5 key areas for improvement to help ease the demand on
emergency assistance:
* Preparing for
disasters:
Greater investment in
preparedness and resilience is needed so communities at risk of disaster can
better withstand and quickly recover from shocks.
Less than 5% of all humanitarian
funding in 2009 was spent on emergency preparation – or less than 1% of
foreign aid. A recent analysis by theOverseas
Development Institute revealed that 12 low-income countries received
£160,000 humanitarian disaster aid for every £1 invested in
reducing the risk of disasters.
* Supporting national and local
leadership:
More support for local civil
society organisations is needed so that they can lead humanitarian responses
locally and help reduce the burden on the UN.
* Recipients driving
aid:
The people in need of assistance
are best placed to say what they need. Responses need to be better tailored to
emergencies so the specific needs of those affected are met.
* A 21st century
response:
New and innovative approaches to
humanitarian assistance are needed including using mobile phones, making use of
advancements such as more flexible shelter kits and distributing cash instead
of traditional relief supplies so people can make choices on what they urgently
need.
* The development
challenge:
Humanitarian disasters are
increasingly in the places where extreme poverty is focused. Long-term planning
is needed to help prevent or minimise the impact in areas that are vulnerable
to regular or protracted crises such as food shortages.