HESTIA

Overview

Description

A well-coordinated reception of international assistance is crucial to ensure an effective disaster response during large-scale emergencies. It is essential for UCPM Member and participating countries to have clear Host Nation Support (HNS) systems in place. In Belgium, the floods in the province of Liège in 2021 showed that procedures and practical preparations need to be strengthened to better integrate international emergency services in Belgian operations. The project aims to strengthen Belgium’s preparedness to receive international assistance from a whole-of-government approach and to harmonise the procedures with the 2024 updated EU HNS Guidelines. It will build on Belgium’s earlier contribution to the EU HNS Guidelines, having placed the topic on the agenda during its EU Presidency in 2011. The project will also align with several other initiatives Belgium is involved with, notably the UCPM Trainings for civil protection authorities and crisis management stakeholders – Lot 2 (NAT online, NCP Course, OIC) and the eNOVATION-project, under which a CBRN related cross-border exercise will be organised in April 2026 focussing on HNS. The project will also consider existing procedures and work regarding NATO HNS. In addition, Belgium is a partner in a France led project proposal, organising tabletop exercises outside the EU with a focus on Host Country Support procedure. The project will entail a mapping of the current HNS procedures, operational capabilities and a benchmarking of the procedures against those of other UCPM Member and Participating states (WP2), followed by a gap analysis that will inform the revision or creation of new procedures (WP3&4). By consulting relevant stakeholders, complementarity and interoperability will be ensured, including with the Belgian miliary HNS guidelines. Staff will receive training about the new procedures, through workshops and e-learning tools. A field exercise will be organised to test the new procedures (WP5).

Partner organisations