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Disaster risk management
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Disaster risk management measures
In order to reduce the risk of disasters, cooperation is needed at many different levels. Before anything else can be done, the risk must be identified. Risk analyses therefore examine both the probability of natural disasters and the vulnerability of the population in question. Building on this, measures are identified that are likely to reduce the risk. These can involve disaster prevention, which entails medium- and long-term measures designed to protect the population from disasters, and disaster preparedness. One important instrument is the establishment of early warning systems.
It is important that all parties – organisations, institutions, and civil society at both local and national level – become involved. The more the various elements are woven together to produce an across-the-board system, the more effectively this network can respond when disaster strikes. For this reason Germany coordinates its development cooperation in the field of disaster risk management closely with that of other donor countries. The focus is on the following:
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risk analyses
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disaster prevention
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disaster preparedness.
Risk analyses
The inhabitants of an at-risk area must be prepared to cope with a potential disaster and must know what to do should disaster strike. A risk analysis helps strengthen risk awareness. It is the first step in a disaster risk management strategy and consists of two processes. Firstly, the potential natural disasters in a given area are precisely identified. Secondly, a corresponding vulnerability analysis is conducted, which identifies the groups within society that are potentially exposed to risks, the risks involved, and the frequency with which the risks are likely to occur. Vulnerability is measured on the basis of a number of factors, including environmental circumstances, social environment, economic situation and population density.
Individuals at local level are involved in the process just as much as the responsible policy-makers.
Disaster prevention
Disaster prevention means taking medium- and long-term measures to avoid disasters. Regional and land use planning can help in this. The plans must be drawn up by the communities affected and put into practice at this level. They must also take into account the results of the risk analyses.
By applying appropriate construction codes, it is possible to ensure that buildings will not collapse in areas susceptible to earthquakes. There must also be regulations regarding how certain areas may be used. Flooding is a major risk, for instance, when rivers burst their banks or after prolonged heavy rainfall. Here dams and dykes can be built and open areas left to act as flood plains. In areas at risk from earthquakes, hillsides must be stabilised to reduce the risk of landslides. Other measures, such as re-afforestation and preventive management of water catchment areas, can also significantly reduce the risk of landslides and flooding.
Disaster preparedness
Disaster preparedness measures aim to minimise the number of victims and the scale of damage when disaster strikes. These measures can include putting in place early warning systems, drawing up evacuation and emergency plans, establishing coordination structures, ensuring that emergency supplies are available, and providing training for those in positions of responsibility and for volunteer helpers.
All these measures must be dovetailed as closely as possible, and all sections of the population informed and involved. Special attention must be paid to putting in place early warning systems, which should enable those affected to respond swiftly to unexpected events.
In future it should even be possible to rapidly spot seaquakes. Four years after the devastating tsunami in the Indian Ocean, the Indonesian-German tsunami early warning system GITEWS was launched in November 2008. Now a network of seismological stations, coastal water level measuring stations and warning buoys protects the Indonesian coast. Germany has contributed 45 million euros, a large share of the costs. For a two-year extension and optimisation phase, the early warning system is to be run jointly by Indonesia and Germany; as of 2010 the Indonesian government will operate it independently.
Nevertheless it often remains difficult to get the warning quickly enough along the "last mile" to the people in the front line. That is why it is so important to put in place multidisciplinary communication structures and to ensure that warnings of impending disasters are passed on.
At local level, too, various early warning methods are being used. Highly developed technical systems such as seismographs, which measure any tremors or quakes, are deployed, but at the same time the population at risk can help themselves using simple methods. In areas at risk of flooding, for instance, individuals measure water levels, rainfall and river sediment at set points. They pass on their findings by radio to a central body, where they are analysed. In an emergency, warnings are radioed from here to all downstream settlements.
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