UCPM peer review for Czechia
Four senior experts (‘peers’) from Sweden, Poland, Romania and Portugal are this week (2-6 March 2026), taking part in an on-site mission to Czechia.
The review week was kicked off on Monday by Deputy Director-General Daniel Miklós, Directorate General of Fire Rescue Service (HZS ČR) in Czechia. Mr. Miklós referred to the importance of continuing to strengthen the disaster risk management system of Czechia, in view of the increasing challenges faced, and welcomed the peer review and the future recommendations. The European Commission commended Czechia for volunteering to undergo a peer review and emphasised the efforts of the HZS ČR team for the preparation of the mission.
HZS ČR had engaged good number of stakeholders for this week of meetings and field visits. Organisations involved in these discussions include the Ministries of Interior, Finance; Industry and Trade; Health; Environment, the National Bank, the Hydrometeorological Institute, the armed forces, regions of South and Central Bohemia, the Moravian-Silesian region, the Capital City of Prague, the municipality of Bílichov, Ostrava Technical University, the ČEZ Group (energy distribution), and the Záchranný Kruh Association (an NGO developing information for education and prevention in the area of risks and emergencies).
Field trips include visits to KVK (Karlovy Vary ‘World of Rescuers - Health and Safety Centre’), ČVUT (Czech Technical University of Prague) and the headquarters of Central Bohemian Region FRS STC (Fire Rescue Service).
Scope of the peer review
The overall objective of the peer review is to identify areas for improvements and highlight good practices within the disaster risk management and civil protection system of Czechia. The key priorities of this review have been defined in consultation with the Czech authorities, selected from the programme’s analytical framework Disaster Risk Management - Peer Review Assessment Framework (DRM PRAF) that guides the review and the drafting of the final report. A new version of framework was published in November 2025 (news article), and the Czechia review will be the first to pilot it. The topics selected for the Czechia peer review are:
- Disaster risk governance: all sub-topics.
- Risk assessment: legislative, institutional and procedural framework; risk identification, analysis and evaluation.
- Disaster risk management planning: all sub-topics.
- Preparedness: legislative, institutional and procedural framework; early warning systems; risk awareness and population preparedness.
About the peer review
In 2025, Czechia, represented by the Directorate General of Fire Rescue Service (HZS ČR) under the Ministry of Interior, expressed an interest in undergoing a peer review within the 2025-2027 cycle of the UCPM Peer Review Programme. Preparatory work begun in 2025 and continued in 2026 with the preparation of a desk-research and the organisation of this mission.
The peers will present their findings in a comprehensive report, which will include concrete recommendations. The report is expected to be ready by summer 2026.
The team of peers is accompanied and supported the European Commission, its Directorate-General for Civil Protection and Humanitarian Aid Operations (DG ECHO), as well as the technical consultant CMCC, Euro-Mediterranean Centre on Climate Change.
The Peer Review Programme, the European Commission supports EU Member States, UCPM Participating States, and other eligible third countries to review their disaster risk management (DRM) policies and practices by taking stock of strengths and weaknesses and putting forward recommendations to increase their effectiveness. Peer reviews may be conducted at national or sub-national level. Based on an independent analysis conducted by peers from other UCPM countries, peer reviews are a strategic tool for strengthening resilience against disasters at the European, national, and sub-national level, with one of the main objectives to exchange knowledge. Since 2013, 20 countries and one region have benefitted from a peer review. Recent reviews have been completed for wildfire risk management in Land Brandenburg (Germany), Italy and Greece. More information is available at: UCPM Peer Review Programme | UCP Knowledge Network: Applied knowledge for action (europa.eu) |
Last updated: 4 March 2026