PPRD East 3 continues from the first phases of the programme; strengthening prevention, preparedness and response to natural and man-made disasters in Eastern Partnership countries. An exercise in Georgia tested response to forest fire, a major risk in partner countries.
The EU-funded programme on Prevention, Preparedness and Response to natural and man-made disasters in Eastern Partnership countries phase 3 (PPRD East 3) aims to increase resilience to disasters in Armenia, Azerbaijan, Georgia, the Republic of Moldova and Ukraine.
PPRD East 3 supports the establishment of an early warning early action-based civil protection approach. This approach was practiced during a full-scale exercise on forest fires in Tbilisi, Georgia in May and June, aiming to strengthen inter-institutional and regional coordination. Forest fire is a prominent risk in all partner countries and we are stronger together. Leading up to the exercise, there was extensive work with early warning early action trainings, such as active monitoring and early detections of fires to trigger anticipatory actions. Drones have been used to practice detecting fire risks, start rapid mapping action, to support rapid assessment and to understand fire behaviour, for example near buildings and the urban interface of fires.
Early warning to early action measures have the power of drastically reducing the number of wildfires. Our aim is to make sure that fires don’t even start, to safeguard the environment. However, when a fire starts, scientific organisations embedded in the Civil Protection system can also provide reliable tools for increasing situational awareness during operations making response more efficient.
There has been a systematic approach to integrate cross-cutting issues into the planning and implementation of the exercise. An established code of conduct and feedback and complaints mechanism ensured a respectful and safe environment for all participants.
The scenario started with the winter and spring having much less rainfall than in other years and this was followed by a particularly hot spring and summer. Georgia and its neighbouring countries have worked extensively on early warning systems that provides the opportunity for early action in relation to forest fires. Despite this, there was a growing forest fire that they were unable to contain without additional resources. In a different location in the country there was a virtual, simultaneous but unrelated, CBRN event. The participants also needed to act on other emergencies such as car accidents and missing people.
Together with the Georgian Emergency Management Services we designed the exercise to create challenging situations for the responders, so they can do assessments, make decisions, and react accordingly. This exercise provided a unique opportunity for the participants from the region and beyond to jointly get ready for responding to wildfires. The field experience they gain will increase their mission readiness and contribute to their learning process. Success is only possible with the joint efforts of our very international team.
In addition to local and national response, the exercise required international assistance and the activation of the EU Civil Protection Mechanism (UCPM). More than 350 emergency operators assisted, with teams from Armenia, Azerbaijan, Georgia, the Republic of Moldova, Ukraine, Italy, and Sweden.
In order to enhance the Emergency Preparedness capabilities the PPRD East 3 programme works with all civil protection systems, civil society and volunteers. This is crucial to strengthen the response planning processes. During the exercise, Red Cross participants from Georgia, Ukraine and Italy trained Search and rescue, psychosocial support and first aid.
Situational awareness and operational planning is crucial during a properly coordinated response. All the operational structures have to part of it, particularly in case of international deployments. Our aim is to have an enhanced coordination capacity, testing the integration of different procedures and the interaction with high level situational awareness provided by research components.
During an operation, the all-inclusive Civil Protection System approach, triggers the possibility to have a unique operational plan, effective coordination and support, with a positive impact on the effectiveness of the activity and a significant cost reduction, such as common and shared logistics, integrated communication, and avoiding overlapping activities. This approach also supports the integration of the community, ensuring better preparedness and augmented resilience.
On the second day, there was a parallel high level meeting with representation from all partner countries, the consortium and ECHO. This included a morning conference with presentations on the PPRD East programme and capacity development within the region. In the afternoon, the group visited the field exercise, where they met all teams and were able to see how the exercise was executed and the teams working together. Manpower, Fire engines, Helicopters and drones were used.
All partners’ participation is a clear manifestation of European solidarity in action and an example of fruitful regional cooperation that will echo beyond the Eastern Partnership region. This is important to the EU – having mechanisms established for preparedness and response. I am happy to see how our partners are getting closer to the Union Civil Protection Mechanism.
The PPRD East 3 Programme has a supportive approach to capacity development, where partnership and ownership is key.
We build on existing capacity and adapt to the needs and priorities in each partner country. With this the programme achieves a strengthened alignment with the European Union civil protection mechanism and a safer future for all partner countries. This exercise was an example of how this works in practice. We were very happy with the results seeing everybody from different countries and backgrounds working together.
The third phase of the EU-funded programme 'Prevention, Preparedness and Response to natural and man-made disasters in Eastern Partnership countries – phase 3 (PPRD East 3)' runs from 2020-2024, strengthening disaster risk reduction and crises management in the Eastern Partnership countries and promoting regional cooperation with the EU Civil Protection Mechanism.
PPRD East 3 has three main objectives:
• Enhancing the capacity of the civil protection organisations
• Enhancing the multi-stakeholder approach by involving all stakeholders including other government agencies, civil society and the academia.
• Strengthening the regional cooperation of the partner countries and the cooperation with the European Union.
The programme is implemented by a consortium consisting of the Swedish Civil Contingencies Agency (MSB) as the lead agency and programme coordinator, the Emergency Services Academy Finland, the Ministry of Interior of the Slovak Republic – Section of Crisis Management, the Centro Internazionale in Monitoraggio Ambientale (CIMA) and the Italian Red Cross (CRI).
Article published on behalf of the PPRD East 3 consortium.
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