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Guidelines on Population Preparedness

New preparedness guidelines published for Member States and UCPM Participating States on risk communication, 72 hours self sufficiency, school curricula and disability inclusive preparedness.

Civil Protection truck
Guidelines on Population Preparedness under the EU Preparedness Strategy
Communication from the Commission which sets out population guidelines on four topics. For the implementation of these guidelines, four accompanying Staff Working Documents explain the modalities through which to implement them, including a collection of good practices that build on the EU’s wider work on disaster prevention and preparedness under the Union Civil Protection Mechanism (UCPM), including the 2023 Union Disaster Resilience Goals (DRGs).

New guidance to support implementation of the Guidelines

Front cover of document shows a drawing of a woman speaking to two men, all in uniforms of the Union Civil Protection Mechanism
Effective, accessible and inclusive Risk Communication
This guidance is designed to support European Union (EU) Member States and Union Civil Protection Mechanism (UCPM) Participating States in improving risk communication for their citizens (Action 27 of the EU Preparedness Union Strategy).
Cartoon showing a family preparing the 72 hours kit.
Reaching a Population Self Sufficiency of at least 72 Hours
This guidance is designed to support European Union (EU) Member States and Union Civil Protection Mechanism (UCPM) Participating States in supporting citizens in reaching a population self-sufficiency of at least 72 hours (Action 28 of the EU Preparedness Union Strategy).
A design showcasing two women talking to each other and heading Implementation of Population Preparedness Guidelines on disability
Disability Inclusive Preparedness
This guidance is designed to support European Union (EU) Member States and Union Civil Protection Mechanism (UCPM) Participating States on Disability Inclusive Preparedness.*

Population preparedness is one of the seven building blocks of the Preparedness Union Strategy. This involves strengthening societal resilience by ensuring that citizens are prepared, including children, older people, persons with disabilities and other marginalised groups and/or groups in situations of risk, have access to reliable information and the skills needed to understand risks and take appropriate action before, during and after emergencies. 

The Commission is hereby providing guidelines on four actions of the Strategy:

  • Action 27: risk communication;
  • Action 28: reaching a population self-sufficiency of a minimum of 72 hours;
  • Action 29: preparedness in school education curricula and training of educational staff;*
  • Action 33: disability inclusive emergency preparedness and first response training, a flagship initiative of the Enhanced Disability Strategy.*

The guidelines, while non-binding, are intended to encourage EU Member States (MS) and UCPM Participating States (PS) to develop their preparedness initiatives according to their own national organisation. 

This guidance was drafted together with experts from EU MS and UCPM PS, civil protection authorities, other disaster risk management stakeholders and other relevant stakeholders and builds on the preparEU pilot project and on the recommendations from the European Citizen Panel on Preparedness, organised in March-May 2026 with 150 randomly selected citizens from all 27 Member States.

While EU MS and UCPM PS remain the primary actors in civil protection, preparedness and crisis response, the EU’s support complements national efforts by strengthening the knowledge, skills and practical capacities that enable people and communities to prepare for and respond to emergencies. 

Three civil protection experts wearing his specialized suits during an exercise.
© EU MODEX

*This guidance was informed by analytical work undertaken through the Technical Assistance Financing Facility for Disaster Prevention and Preparedness (TAFF).

See also accompanying TAFF advisory reports.