CLMT-1 - Disaster Management
Product Use Case Summary
| ID | CLMT-1 |
|---|---|
Name | Disaster Management |
Sector | Climate |
Version | 1.0 |
Status | Published |
This use case profiles the implementation process of a disaster management system. With the increasing frequency and severity of disasters (both natural and human-made hazards), the international community and country-level disaster management authorities are prioritizing ways to mitigate, prepare for, respond to, and recover from disasters. This process tends to involve a multiplicity of diverse stakeholders (public, private, non-profit organizations) - to respond to disasters and protect people, property, and places.
Thus, implementing a harmonized approach to disaster management requires systematic and clear coordination mechanisms on disaster preparedness within government authorities across sectors, at all levels, between levels, as well as with disaster relief organizations. This process entails how to coordinate once a disaster occurs, to setting up a rapid response disaster relief, delivering information on disaster management activities to the public, and implementing rehabilitation and reconstruction support. Certain countries and organizations are increasingly incorporating the use of digital tools in their disaster management systems to enhance their capabilities for preparedness, detection, mitigation, and response to various types of disasters.
Stakeholders
Ministry of Interior, Ministry of Home Affairs, National Crisis center, and/or national government body responsible for dealing with crises and disasters.
Regional, district and/or provincial level authorities responsible for disaster response in their federal state/municipality.
National and international organizations/ disaster relief agencies.
Disaster managers and case managers working at emergency operation centers, logistic and equipment depots, and/or disaster management organizations.
National or regional weather service.
Affected communities and general local population in the vicinity.
Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs)
SDG 13: Climate Action
Building Blocks
Source Documents
Steps
1 - Outreach Communication
The Ministry of Interior and/or national government body in charge of nationwide disaster-related activities leads the disaster management coordination efforts. Staff from this government body is tasked with producing a unified legal policy framework, comprehensive disaster preparedness framework and guidelines to determine the declaration of a disaster and the operational direction of response at municipal, district, and federal state level. There needs to be clearly defined roles and responsibilities from central and local governments up to village levels, including the role of community, private sectors, and international partners in disaster management. A collaborative process to define roles and responsibilities is recommended to ensure buy-in and ownership by all relevant parties. All this information can be made available on a dashboard to ensure transparency and accessible of this information via different channels on all governmental levels.
In certain countries, disaster management is a task which is shared between all levels of government - national and subnational authorities (federal, district and/or provincial level authorities). Whereas in other countries, voluntary response organizations and international disaster relief organizations (i.e., Red Cross etc.) lead all disaster relief assistance and public service provisions in the event of a disaster.
Workflows
Client Communication to raise awareness amongst citizens and disseminate information of national and regional disaster management system via all relevant government bodies and disaster relief organizations' websites, mobile / social media channel(s)
Content Management for the collaborative development of agreed regulations and guidelines on harmonized coordination and implementation of disaster management - from policy to implementation
Data Collection and Reporting to ensure that all involved stakeholders are appropriately mapped and aware of their roles and responsibilities
Work Planning and Coordination for liaising with all government authorities and disaster relief organizations on new harmonized disaster management system and methods to effectively communicate and coordinate
Building Blocks
2 - Risk Management & Planning
Risk management planning is crucial to achieve disaster risk reduction, mitigation, prevention, and preparednes. This process can help countries set up emergency response and evacuation plans. Risk assessments should be carried out at all governmental levels, documenting disaster risk scenarios (man-made and natural hazards - floods, droughts, landslides, avalanche etc.), and their probability of occurrence - based on disaster history in the country or the region. Unpredictable climate and climate change related disasters should be considered in the risk assessment.
The purpose of this step is to map the identified disaster scenarios/risks and develop precautionary measures of how to mitigate the consequences for each specific disaster. A strong system of structural and non-structural protection methods should be outlined against each identified disaster. Satellites and information portals for specific natural hazards and other risks can be set up to monitor their early warning signs/ elements. Risk monitoring operational lines should be established at the levels of the municipality, district, and federal state. Authorities can install a national warning system through an alarm that can be triggered nationwide or regionally. i.e., sirens that will warn the population in an emergency. *In countries where disaster management are decentralized, appropriate risk management planning can be drawn up at the level of municipalities, districts, and federal states.
Workflows
Client Communication to provide comprehensive information about disaster risks for the public via the internet, information portals and/or through various local channels and regional media. With information about self-protection and adequate behavior in emergency situations
Data Collection and Reporting for capturing, managing, and evaluating identified disaster risks, their likelihood of occurring, and comprehensive mitigation and/or protection methods
Building Blocks
3 - Early Warning Systems
Early warning systems detect and inform signs before a disaster occurs. As part of their early warning systems, government authorities can set up several surveillance systems to monitor the environment and trigger an alert to the relevant authorities when defined thresholds are exceeded. For example, the use of satellites to map and monitor areas that are likely be affected by natural disasters. On the main rivers, there could be fully automatic flood warning and control systems managed by the hydrological services of the provincial governments.
As it is instrumental for people to know what to do during a crisis or disaster, the authorities can use national and regional government websites, radio stations etc., as an information channel during a disaster or crisis. It can contain information on the incident and on ways for people to reach safety. For people in the immediate vicinity of a disaster (or impending emergency), the authorities can provide warning information in the form of a direct 'Alert'. This could be via a mobile app or a text message that people receive on their mobile phones. In some countries, the National Weather Service operates a warning system for extreme weather conditions, which can be used to warn the authorities and response organizations. Weather warnings can also be disseminated to the local population via a mobile app.
Workflows
Client Case Management for population to be able to report disasters, and receive followup correspondences
Client Communication to disseminate unified disaster information broadcasting through different media platforms including social media, media channel(s), and SMS blasts
Data Collection and Reporting for monitoring, capturing, and evaluating disaster warning information and triggers
Identification to easily be able to identify and track people living in the vicinity where impending emergency is expected to occur
Building Blocks
4 - Emergency Response and Assistance Delivery
Disaster response encompasses all measures from the official declaration of a disaster until its end. This refers to all measures taken by authorities, response organizations, enterprises, individuals and affected parties to mitigate the consequences of an emergency or disaster. In the aftermath of a disaster, it is crucial to put in place a rapid response and assistance delivery system. Based on the location, type and scope of the disaster, stakeholders involved in the disaster response process can include various ministries, agencies, civil society organizations, international disaster relief organizations, the fire service, the police, and the medical services to provide rapid assistance and to keep situations from getting worse.
Depending on the location(s) of the disaster, effective cooperation between emergency services and municipalities in the region is crucial. Some countries have a stand-by force for emergency management made up of a combined civil-military forces from various relevant line ministries/agencies. This national stand-by force coordinates very closely with the local authorities in the district/municipalities the disaster occurs in. Their role is to be ready to assist the disaster-affected municipality in undertaking emergency activities in its area in a timely and integrated manner.
Workflows
Client Case Management for disaster support authorities to rescue victims, provide basic services, and respond to all inquiries and support required to help affected population to start early recovery measures
Communication to facilitate collaboration and communication between authorities, response organizations and affected parties prior to and following the occurence of the disaster
Data Collection and Reporting for capturing information on the initial event (type of disaster, when, where number of victims, cause, and capacity)
Financial Services for providing cash transfers and assistance to support affected population
Identification to easily be able to identify and track affected disaster locations and affected households
Building Blocks
5 - Community Engagement
Community engagement is a critical component of emergency management and disaster resilience. It is the process of building the resilience of communities to play an active role before, during and after a disaster occurs. Especially in disaster prone areas, local volunteers can respond quicker and provide aid due to their close proximity - assisting their fellow community members directly impacted by the disaster - disseminating real time information, evacuation coordination support, emergency first aid etc. Thus, this step recommends for government authorities to coordinate closely with local community groups in the disaster management process.
Workflows
Coordination for liaising with local emergency agencies and their workers involved in supporting disaster relief
Data Collection and Reporting for collecting real time data and disseminating with relevant parties
Building Blocks
6 - International Cooperation
Since most municipalities are too small to handle major hazards, and certain countries might not have the resources to handle all disasters, international cooperation with disaster relief organizations is the norm. The Ministry of the Interior and/or Ministry of Foreign Affairs coordinates support request from international disaster relief organizations. Coordination between national and international emergency agencies and their workers is crucial for any disaster response effort to run smoothly and enable a quicker and better response in crises. Certain countries have digital systems and platforms in place to facilitate asynchronous coordination and communication with international actors on registering the affected population, evacuating people, providing medical assistance, first aid, food, and temporary shelter.
Workflows
Coordination for liaising with all emergency agencies and their workers involved in supporting disaster relief. Onboarding their usage of a platform or system to communicate with each other, provide updates and flag support needs
Building Blocks
7 - Ongoing Case Management
Depending on the country context and the systems used in a country's disaster management system, case management is crucial in the disaster recovery phase. Thus, in certain countries, each municipality has a unit in place with case managers to support case management services during disaster relief efforts. For instance, case managers supporting affected population to have access to public services - housing, medical needs, food etc. These case managers respond, track and monitor urgent support requests from citizens, displaced people etc. Depending on the resources available, certain countries follow a “one-to-one” approach - assigning one case manager per household affected by the disaster.
Workflows
Client Case Management - for identifying and recording affected households’ interaction with case managers and capturing reported cases on grievances
Data Collection and Reporting - for capturing information of affected households and any changes regarding their assistance needs
Work Planning and Coordination - to potentially suggest and connect with departments / agencies offering other social benefits and services to affected households
Building Blocks
8 - Ongoing Monitoring and Evaluation
Monitoring insights are essential to facilitate learning and continuous improvements. Ongoing monitoring and evaluation entails tracking performance of a service all throughout its implementation cycle. All remote sensing and geodata collected and monitored can be assesed to identify ways to improve support during a national disaster situation. A process should be in place to implement learnings as quickly as possible, and method to collect, asses and incorporate feedback from all stakeholders. I.e., this could mean having a system in place that learns and improves its algorithms for subsequent climate events.
Workflows
Client Case Management for ongoing monitoring and tracking of support services provided to affected population
Data Analysis and Business Intelligence / Decision Support / Data Collection and Reporting to analyze, update, and evaluate disaster response performances
Data Collection and Reporting - for capturing feedback received, and data collected
Building Blocks
Contributors
Wesley Brown, GovStack Product Owner, Digital Impact Alliance
Sarah Farooqi, The Exchange Product Owner, Digital Impact Alliance
Sainabou Jallow, Business Analyst, Digital Impact Alliance
Nico Lück, GovStack Advisor, GIZ
Ayush Shukla, Technical Officer, International Telecommunication Union (ITU)
Meelis Zujev, Project Manager, Govstack Sandbox, Gofore
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