New information on GRIP

GRIP Semi-Annual Report

GRIP team — 07-05-2007 17:06:24 GMT

Semi-Annual Progress Report is available here.

International Launch of the Global Risk Identification Program

GRIP team — 27-08-2007 17:06:24 GMT

Launch of the Global Risk Identification Program (GRIP) On June 5-7, 2007, the Secretariat for the UN-International Strategy for Disaster Reduction (ISDR) organized the First Global Platform Forum.

GRIP implements projects in Asia

GRIP team — 27-08-2007 17:06:24 GMT

On June/July 2007, the UNDP's Regional Program for Asia and GRIP co-hosted a Regional Workshop on Sharing Risk Knowledge. This workshop was divided into 2 events: Experiences in Risk Assessment from the Region, Enhancing Application of Disaster Loss Data.

Pakistan's composite Risk Assesment Scoping Workshop

GRIP team — 14-03-2008 17:06:24 GMT

The Government of Pakistan has taken the lead for a National Composite Risk Assessment which is planned to be implemented during the next two years.GRIP will be participating in the upcoming scoping workshop

Data base standards meeting Munich February 28-29

GRIP team — 14-03-2008 17:06:24 GMT

The main objectives of this first meeting were to reach to an common understanding on the conceptual framework regarding data base standards and quality. The meeting was hosted by Munich Ree and took place on February 28-29

Japan Mission March 18-22

GRIP team — 14-03-2008 17:06:24 GMT

A mission to Japan is scheduled for discussions with the Cabinet Office of Japan and other Japanese partners with regards to the GRIP Programme

GRIP Steering committee

GRIP team — 25-03-2008 17:06:24 GMT

The biannual GRIP steering commitee meeting will take place in Panama on April 7. The meeting will link with the Provention Meeting and the GRIP Regional Group Induction meeting on April 11 in Panama City

GRIP Launch in Mozambique

GRIP team — 25-04-2008 17:06:24 GMT

GRIP will be launched in Africa with a first workshop in Maputo on May 7 and 8 in close collaboration with the Government of Mozambique and UNDP

Launch of GRIP Risk Assessment Activities in Mozambique

GRIP team — 02-07-2008 17:06:24 GMT

The Global Risk Identification Program (GRIP) recognizes the need for a sound understanding of risk (magnitude, characteristics, causes, distribution) for the preparation of realistic and effective National Strategies for Disaster Risk Management

Risk Mapping and Shelter Response Planning

GRIP team — 01-10-2008 17:06:24 GMT

The usually chaotic situation at all levels that results from the physical, human, and economic impacts of a disaster, makes it difficult to provide quick and efficient shelter response. It makes sense, therefore, to develop in advance strategies for shelter procurement, preparation and deployment. These strategies need to be based on realistic and accurate risk estimates that provide information not only on the magnitude of damage but also on its geographic distribution, characteristics, and causes. Shelter provision is also the first step towards the recovery of the affected communities. Ensuring housing reconstruction considering disaster risk reduction techniques is essential. UN-HABITAT and GRIP, on behalf of the IASC Emergency Shelter (ES) Global Cluster, have embarked on a long-term activity that will support the systematic incorporation of risk management into urban planning and city governance and development. Funded by the ES Global Cluster, UN-HABITAT and GRIP initiated a global activity called Risk Mapping and Shelter Response Planning. The goal of this initiative is to improve capacities to predict and address future post-disaster shelter recovery needs as well as to manage information about on-going risk after a disaster and their implications for shelter planning. This improved capacity will ensure rapid and efficient shelter provision after a disaster and will help to optimize resource utilization at local, national and international levels. By applying, adapting and calibrating the methodology in various pilot countries using actual past events, the wide applicability and usefulness will be demonstrated before its large-scale deployment and utilization. The initial pilot cities include Maputo (Mozambique), Kathmandu (Nepal), and Tijuana (Mexico). It is envisaged that the same exercise will be replicated in other cities around the world, gaining experience and providing major predictability in future emergency shelter responses.

Pre Disaster Risk Mapping and Shelter Response Planning in Kathmandu

GRIP team — 01-10-2008 17:06:24 GMT

Nepal is preparing Shelter Response Strategy and Plan for Kathmandu Valley which is expected to guide organized and systematic shelter response in case of a major disaster event like a major earthquake. The response strategy and plan is being prepared by National Society for Earthquake Technology – Nepal (NSET) as part of Risk Mapping for Shelter Response Project. The project work is being carried out under the broad guidance and leadership of the Department of Urban Development and Building Construction (DUDBC) of the Government of Nepal which is a responsible government institution for urban development and shelter planning. In addition, five municipality offices within Kathmandu Valley; three Disaster Development Committees (DDCs); and other national, international organizations and UN agencies will be involved in such strategy and plan development process. The process of strategy and plan formulation builds upon rich experiences of NSET from similar projects in Nepal and recent disaster response in India, Pakistan, and Indonesia. The project tries to identify immediate shelter response, transitional shelter response and long-term housing reconstruction and rehabilitation into a logical continuum and tries to address the inter-linkage between all three phases. A draft report on shelter response plan and strategy for Kathmandu Valley is under preparation. Existing earthquake risk of Kathmandu Valley is currently being evaluated - the input parameters for earthquake risk assessment such as demographic information, building typologies and building construction trends etc. are being updated to get the potential damage and casualty figures which will form the basis for shelter response plan. A Shelter Response Planning Workshop has been planned for third week of September in Kathmandu. The workshop will provide inputs on different aspects of shelter response and make decisions on key issues.

GRIP Priority Country - Ecuador

GRIP team — 01-10-2008 17:06:24 GMT

One of the five GRIP Outcome Areas is the implementation of comprehensive risk assessment packages to support sound disaster risk reduction policies and plans in the co-called Demonstration Countries. The comprehensive service packages implemented in those countries can then be replicated in other countries of the region. Mozambique and Sri Lanka are the demonstration countries in Africa and Asia, respectively. In Latin America, Ecuador has been selected to be the model country for the implementation of a Risk Assessment comprehensive package explained above. Preparation of the project has already started in collaboration with the Ecuadorian Government, relevant institutions, and the UNDP Country Office. It must be noticed that Ecuador is also a Pilot Country for the development of the Climate Change Program of UNDP-BCPR.

Bi-national Program – Chile and Peru

GRIP team — 01-10-2008 17:06:24 GMT

Two risk assessment projects being implemented under the GRIP Grants programme join forces. Five cities in northern coastal Chile are doing urban earthquake and tsunami risk assessments that will be integrated to produce a multi-state risk reduction strategy while municipalities of the Arequipa region of Peru are using glacier melting risk assessment results to incorporate adaptability in their development plans. Because these two regions border each other and face similar risks, it is only logical that they combine and share their experiences with each other. With assistance from GRIP, the two parties have already started contact with each-other and, in mid-September, a workshop organized in Peru with the participation of their Chilean neighbours will provide the opportunity to kick off the bi-national collaboration.

Disaster Data Standard Meeting in Geneva, Oct. 27-28, 2008

GRIP team — 18-11-2008 17:06:24 GMT

One of GRIP objectives is to expand and improve the evidence base on disaster-related losses by promoting and supporting the systematic organization of loss data into databases for analysis and use. Historical loss data is necessary for risk assessment and for measuring progress towards achieving the expected outcome of the Hyogo Framework of Action - the substantial reduction of disaster losses. In order to provide governments, academicians and in general the international community the opportunity to use and leverage existing indicators about historical loss data in different regions of the world, the project will attempt to produce a series of recommendations in the form of Disaster Data Standards. These Data Standards are planned to contain the following sections: - Terminology and Content: This section of the standard will provide a reference glossary with definitions of concept, mandatory identification (dimensions) fields, definition of the meaning of impact variables, etc - Transactional compatibility: This section of the standard will propose sets of standard codes (such as codes for events, GLIDE, geographic codes, etc) that will allow the computer systems to exchange, integrate, compare and in general interoperate disaster data - Interoperability Specification: this section of the standard deals with standard generic formats for information exchange and especially the definition of protocols by which computer (or better, automated systems) can communicate and exchange information making possible the physical implementations of the use cases that will drive the standards.

Final Review Meting of Global Assessment Report on Disaster Risk Reduction (GAR/DRR)

GRIP team — 21-11-2008 17:06:24 GMT

One of the components of the ISDR’s 2009 Global Assessment Report on Disaster Risk Reduction (GAR/DRR) is Disaster Risk-Poverty Interface Analysis which study the effects of disaster on poverty and vice-versa. It is an intutive and frequently claimed statement that disasters deepen and perpetuate poverty and conversely, poverty is a key factor in increasing disaster risk.

The meeting on 5-6 November 2008 in Bangkok provided an opportunity for the country teams to present and to share the findings of this analysis. The discussions at the meeting also contributed to finalizing inputs to the Global Assessment Report. The Report will consist of a thematic focus on addressing the relationship between disaster risk and poverty. The evidence presented will make the case for disaster risk reduction as a key instrument to reduce poverty and for poverty reduction strategies in turn, to contribute to reducing disaster risks.

Situation Evaluation Tool for National Disaster Risk Assessment

GRIP team — 20-02-2009 17:06:24 GMT

The Global Risk Identification Programme (GRIP) has developed a situation evaluation tool for national risk assessment to facilitate understanding of risk assessment and management in a country, ultimately leading to the creation of a preliminary national risk management profile. The tool assesses the risk assessment studies done in the country, risk information needs and requirements for decision/policy making, data available and their sources, professional expertise and skills existing in the country, institutional capabilities (including methodologies), and existing DRR strategy, framework and programmes. The situation evaluation exercise is a preparatory phase towards the development and implementation of a national risk identification programme or project. In addition, the process also provides an excellent chance to engage main stakeholders to raise awareness, generate demand for risk assessment, ensure support and participation in national risk assessment, and lay down a governance framework for national risk assessment.

Regional Workshop on Risk Assessment for South Eastern Europe

GRIP team — 07-04-2009 17:06:24 GMT

The Government of Bosnia and Herzegovina (BiH), UNDP Regional Bureau, UNDP Country Office and GRIP organized a regional workshop for South Eastern Europe in Sarajevo on Jan 20-23, 2009. Nine countries of the region participated. The workshop's main objectives were to agree on the methodology for National Risk Assessment in BiH, to identify the risk assessment needs of countries in the region and agree on the best match between those needs and the services offered by UNDP and GRIP, and to develop the understanding of the role of risk assessment within the risk reduction process among Government Officials and UNDP Country Offices (COs). The workshop triggered awareness, encouraged to move from emergency response to risk reduction, and promoted adoption of risk reduction activities into development planning of a country. GRIP will provide the COs with the necessary materials and information to promote Risk Assessment activities in the countries based on the identified needs and the COs will assist the National Governments to design programmes that fit the local needs.

GRIP Side Event at Global Platform for Disaster Risk Reduction - Wednesday 17th

GRIP team — 16-06-2009 17:06:24 GMT

GRIP is organizing this side event in coordination with ISDR Secretariat and with support from its implementing partners. It will take place on Wednesday, June 17, 2009 from 13:30 to 15:00 hours in rooms 18.

At the side event, GRIP and few of its implementing partners (5 or 6 out of approximately 100 implementing partners) will present the progress achieved during the two years since the 2007 Global Platform when GRIP was officially launched. The side event will also present GRIP's products, services, and future vision and provide opportunities to forge new partnerships and to strengthen existing ones. Participants will have the opportunity to share their experiences and increase their understanding of the importance of risk assessment in disaster risk reduction.
Highlights of the side event include presentations on:

DisDat portal
GLIDE project
Risk Assessment in Mozambique
GRIP projects in Nepal
Global Programme on Pre-Disaster Shelter Response Planning
GRIP projects in Tijuana
GRIP, the way forward

GRIP is also having a booth at the Market Place that will be held for the whole duration of the Global Platform. This booth is open to show the work of GRIP and its implementing partners and discuss needs and learn of opportunities for work collaborations and partnerships. A detailed agenda is attached available here

GEM: A Global Earthquake Model

GRIP team — 13-11-2009 17:06:24 GMT

The GEM initiative brings together worldwide expertise on all aspects of earthquake risk in a unique private-public alliance to produce software and tools that help to reduce earthquake deaths, destruction, dislocation, monetary losses and adverse socio-economic effects. GEM started in 2009 with the construction of its first working model; a truly global, open-source model for seismic risk assessment on a national and regional scale that will be finished by 2013. With committed backing from academia, governments and industry, GEM aims to contribute to achieving profound, lasting reductions in earthquake risk worldwide. GEM would like to invite all to participate in its brief online user-need survey. Please visit: http://www.globalquakemodel.org for the survey and more information on GEM.

Demonstration Country - Ecuador update

GRIP team — 13-11-2009 17:06:24 GMT

The Ecuador-UNDP Country Office requested GRIP assistance to implement an international workshop to discuss the National Strategy for Disaster Risk Reduction. The workshop was held in August in time for the submission of the Strategy to the Congress. As a result, the Government of Ecuador created the Ministry of Risk Management that, among other things will coordinate the implementation of the National Strategy discussed in the August workshop.

Mexico project closing workshop

GRIP team — 13-11-2009 17:06:24 GMT

In collaboration with UN-Habitat and IFRC and on behalf of the Global Emergency Cluster, GRIP assisted the City of Tijuana, Mexico to develop a pre-disaster shelter plan prepared under the Risk Mapping for Strategic Planning of Shelter Response for Tijuana project. The project was implemented under the coordination of the Municipal Directorate for Civil Protection. The results were presented in July 2009 at a public seminar that was widely covered by the media. As a result, the national and regional governments have decided to replicate the Tijuana experience in the other 4 major cities of Baja California State under the GRIP programme. The national government of Mexico is contributing $1 million, the state government of Baja California with $95,000 and the Inter-American Development Bank with $300,000 for the project.

Regional Meeting West Africa

GRIP team — 03-12-2009 17:06:24 GMT

The ECOWAS commission is developing programmes to facilitate the implementation process for mainstreaming disaster risk reduction into sustainable development planning and activities in West Africa. During recent meetings conducted by the ECOWAS Commission to address disaster risk reduction issues in West Africa, it was generally agreed by all stakeholders that the main challenges for the sub-region is to achieve effective disaster risk identification, monitoring and mapping. In order to make advancement in such, West Africa Sub-Regional Training Workshop on Risk Assessment was held on November 23 - 28, 2009 in Dakar Senegal. The main objectives of the training workshop were:

to train West African DRR focal points on concepts of hazard assessment, risk analysis and vulnerability mapping in order to develop the understanding of the role of risk assessment within the national risk reduction process;
to analyse the need and value of risk assessment across different sectors in the West African sub-region region;
to agree on the methodology for national risk assessment in West Africa by presenting different risk assessment and mapping tools using geo-information data and techniques;
to establish a sub-regional network of sub-regional stakeholders involved in risk assessment to further engage them and enhance regional cooperation in information sharing and exchange and coordination to compliment each other’s efforts and enhance effectiveness in addressing the common challenges in building resilience to disasters
to discuss opportunities for ECOWAS member States to be engaged on data sharing protocols and transboundary joint activities on disaster risk reduction

As a result of the workshop, the following three concrete activities were proposed to be included in the regional DRR programme for West Africa: a) current situation, in terms of DRR, of 16 countries in the regions (application of GRIP's Country Situation Analysis methodology), b) start GRIP supported National Disaster Observatories in 2-3 pilot countries, and c) start GRIP supported Multi-Hazard Urban Risk Assessment of 3-5 pilot cities.
The project is projected to be the first phase of a long-term regional DRR programme. All the activities is envisaged to be implemented within 2 years. Details will follow. These activities were discussed with ECOWAS before being presented to the countries. ECOWAS fully endorse them and the countries expressed their willingness to implement and support these activities.

New training event

GRIP team — 09-12-2009 17:06:24 GMT

The Centre for Space Science and Technology Education in Asia and the Pacific (CSSTEAP), affiliated to the United Nations, has been regularly organising courses of varying duration in the fields of Remote Sensing and GIS, Satellite Communications, Satellite Meteorology and Global Climate and Space Sciences for the working scientists and university educators in the region with a view to enhancing capacity at local level in those areas which can advance their social and economic development.
CSSTEAP will be conducting special course “Interpretation of high resolution aerospace imagery for environmental management and geo-hazard assessment” at Indian Institute of Remote Sensing (NRSC), Indian Space Research Organization, Dept. of Space, Govt. of India, Dehra Dun (India) from January 25 to February 5, 2010 providing an opportunity to CSSTEAP RSGIS Alumni to strengthen the knowledge they acquired as participants of the PG Course in RS and GIS in the above mentioned topics.

Syria: GRIP Training Workshop on Establishing of NDO

GRIP team — 15-02-2010 17:06:24 GMT

GRIP Training Workshop on Establishing a National Disaster Observatory Upon request from Government of Syria and UNDP Syria, GRIP recently held a training workshop on establishing a National Disaster Observatory (NDO) in Syria. The workshop took place on 26th – 28th January 2010 and its objectives were:

to set up the context under which the establishment of an NDO will effectively assist the country in managing its disaster risk.
to introduce the concept, structure, institutional framework, implementation process, applications and general technical characteristics of the NDO, and
to agree on the implementation, coordination and monitoring aspects of the establishment of an NDO, including the institutional, financial and legal frameworks.

The 3 day workshop received good media coverage. Listed below are the articles published in Syrian newspapers about the workshop. All the articles have been translated from Arabic into English using Google translation.

1) A training workshop on the National Disaster Observatory

Teshreen Online
A training workshop was held for the establishment of National Disaster Observatory in the Paradise Tower Hotel on 27th – 29th January. The workshop was a part of “Risk Mitigation in Urban Areas” project implemented by the Ministry of Local Administration in collaboration with United Nations Development Programme (UNDP).
At the beginning of the workshop Dr. Irfan Ali, head of systems and schemes of the Ministry of Local Administration, said: “Today’s training programme is aimed at creating a database of disaster events and associated losses. The database will contribute on revision of national strategy for disaster risk reduction and re-formulation of a reliable decision support system for risk management. With technical support from the experts from the Global Risk Identification Program (GRIP) of UNDP, the workshop will train local professionals on how to establishment of a National Disaster Observatory, a sustainable institution for collection, analysis and interpretation of disaster events and associate loss data.”
There will be a distinct method for classification of risks and the definition of specific components of the process. It was also pointed out by Dr. Irfan that the project to mitigate the risks will contribute to the development of a master plan for earthquake risk management and capacity development to mitigate the effects of drought in the future.
Dr. Carlos Villacis, coordinator of Global Risk Identification Programme, said, “Syria is the first Arab country that will implement a National Disaster Observatory for natural disaster management and we hope will be the starting point for the rest of the Arab countries. We will work through this workshop for three days to identify the needs, problems and difficulties faced by Syria and identify most appropriate solutions.”

2) National Disaster Observatory in collaboration with the Global Risk Identification Programme

DAMASCUS - Abdul-Karim Saad
Albaath: 27/01/2010
Dr. Eng Irfan Ali, Director of systems and schemes of the Ministry of Local Administration, inaugurated a training workshop titled “Establishing a National Disaster Observatory” which is part of Risk Mitigation in Urban Cities implemented by the Ministry of Local Administration and the United Nations Development Programme (UNDP).
In a statement to Albaath, Dr. Eng Irfan said that the workshop aimed at creating a database of disasters events and associated losses which will provide important inputs for the formulation and review of a national strategy for disaster risk reduction as well as contingency and action plans. UNDP has supported the Ministry of Local Administration and local authorities for the last 9 years through capacity development to support disaster risk management. The latest project established the geographical information system to support risk management.
Carlos Villacis, coordinator of Global Risk Identification Programme (GRIP), referred to the importance of the workshop to identify the needs of Syria and the understanding of the problems faced at national level, to find solutions and to identify steps to be taken for the establishment of national disaster observatory which helps to collect information and analysis of losses and disasters. He pointed to the failure that occurred in Haiti earthquake where it had to be done before the disaster. Nations and local communities must be prepared for disasters in order to save the lives of our children and future of the countries. It should be noted that GRIP is the official platform of the Hyogo Framework of Action for risk identification and is hosted by UNDP.

3) Workshop on Establishment of National Disaster Observatory

January 25, 2010
Damascus, Syrian Arab News Agency
The Ministry of Local Administration and the United Nations Development Programme (UNDP) jointly held a national training workshop on the establishment of the National Disaster Observatory in the city for three days.
The workshop focused on disaster data collection and registration mechanism of the National Disaster Observatory (NDO) which is an integral part of the national risk information system. Other issued discussed in the workshop were the system of natural hazards and human system, data modelling and design and implementation of NDO. It also introduced the Global Risk Identification Programme to the participants. GRIP is an initiative launched by UNDP which operates within the Hyogo Framework for Action 2005-2015: Building the Resilience of Nations and Communities to Disasters. GRIP aims to promote sustainable development by reducing the effects of natural hazards and improve the understanding and analysis of risk information to use it in decision-making at all levels.

4) In order to support the resolution and regional planning ... Training course for directors of planning in all Syrian governorates

masaader.com – The business hub
Damascus 27 / 01 / 2010.
As a part of the “Risk Mitigation in Urban Areas” project being jointly implemented by the Ministry of Local Administration and United Nations Development Programme (UNDP), a training workshop titled “Establishing a National Disaster Observatory” was held 26-28 of this month. The participants included disaster risk reduction project managers, decision makers and project coordinators.
The workshop introduced a variety of topics, including the mechanism for collecting, registering, analysing and interpreting disaster data to establish a National Disaster Observatory which is an integral part of the National Risk Information System. Experts from the Global Risk Identification Programme (GRIP) provided training to the participants of the workshop. The participants were divided into working groups where they drafted the implementation plan for the establishment of a National Disaster Observatory and the next steps to take.
GRIP is an initiative launched by UNDP and operates within the Hyogo Framework of Action (HFA). Its goal is reduce natural disasters risk to promote sustainable development by improving the understanding and analysis of risk information in order to use the information in the decision-making process all levels – local, national and global.

5) National Disaster Observatory Training

www.syriandays.com
Fadi al Sherif - 27/01/2010
Within the scope of project “Risk Mitigation in Urban Areas” jointly implemented by the Ministry of Local Administration and United Nations Development Programme (UNDP), a training workshop on establishment of a national disaster observatory was held with a view to creating a database of disaster losses which will feed into the formulation and review of the national strategy for disaster risk reduction as well as contingency and action plans.
Workshop was inaugurated by engineer Dr. Irfan Ali, Director of systems and schemes the Ministry of Local Administration, Carlos Villacis, coordinator of Global Risk Identification Programme (GRIP), and Mr. Ghimar Deeb, team leader of democratic governance and crisis prevention programme of UNDP.
Through lectures and group works, experts from GRIP trained the participants on collection, registration, analysis and interpretation of losses caused by disasters. In his statement, Dr. Irfan Ali stressed the vital role that UNDP has played in the last 9 years in disaster risk reduction by supporting the capacity of the Ministry of Local Administration and local authorities to develop a structure to support disaster risk management in Syria. UNDP continues to support Government of Syria with 4 on-going projects on crisis prevention and recovery. The present training workshop falls within the scope of one of the four projects.
Dr. Ali also expressed the necessity of immediate actions against disasters, and that we need to be ready to face un-expected disasters such as the earthquake in Haiti and the Ethiopian-Beirut airplane crash.
For his part, Dr. Carlos Villacis said that we must not wait for the disaster to occur, but to work proactively and to reduce risks faced by communities and cities. Dissemination of information and awareness is very important to reduce risks. Carlos said, “It is necessary to achieve a clear understanding of risks and problems faced by Syria and identify solutions and, most importantly, take appropriate actions. The establishment of National Disaster Observatory will help to identify and monitor risks at national and local levels through collection, analysis, interpretation and dissemination of disaster events and losses.”
The workshop will last until 28th of this month in Paradise Tower Hotel. The participants include disaster risk reduction project managers and decision makers.

6) Start of a training course for the establishment of the National Disaster Observatory

Syria-news.com
27/01/2010
A 3-day training workshop began on Tuesday for the establishment of the National Disaster Observatory. Several topics were discussed including the mechanism for registering disaster events and training for the establishment of the National Disaster Observatory. The Syrian Arab News Agency (SANA) reported that "Experts from the Global Risk Identification Programme (GRIP) organised the training workshop on the establishment of the National Disaster Observatory. GRIP implemented by United Nations Development Programme (UNDP) as the official platform of the Hyogo Framework for Action for risk identification, provides a unique opportunity to promote strategic and systematic approach to reduce vulnerabilities and risks.”
Known exposure in general conditions resulting from poor physical, social, economic and environmental conditions increase the vulnerability of a community to impact of hazards, which in case of hazards lead to losses.
The mechanism for recording, registering, analysing and interpreting disaster events and losses, which will eventually be part of the National Disaster Observatory (NDO), was discussed during the training workshop. The experts showed a possible design of NDO and how it is an integral part of National Risk Information System. The workshop also focused on the natural hazards classification, disaster data modelling, and design and implementation of NDO.
The training workshop will last 3 days and is a part of the Risk Mitigation in Urban Cities project implemented by the Ministry of Local Administration in cooperation with UNDP.

GRIP mission to Swaziland

GRIP team — 16-02-2010 17:06:24 GMT

As part of risk assessment activities included in the Swaziland Country Programme, the UNDP Country Office requested GRIP's support to:

implement a National Risk Assessment;
establish a National Disaster Risk Assessment Team (in the form of or linked to SVAC) and institutionalize the Team (or develop team as subcommittee of SVAC).

Both the National Government and the CO have expressed their readiness to start the National Risk Assessment (NRA). The partner Ministry of Local Administration is fully on board. To start the implementation process, GRIP is assisting Swaziland with the organization of a 3.5-day national workshop with the following objectives:

to set up the context under which the implementation of National Risk Assessment will effectively assist the country in managing its disaster risk. This will be done by discussing the Risk Assessment needs of Swaziland and providing a general training on risk assessment and its role within the entire Disaster Risk Management (DRM) process, including specific examples on applications to decision making processes;
To introduce the concept, structure, institutional framework, implementation process, applications and general technical solution of NRA;
To provide a specific training for the implementation in Swaziland of the Systematic Inventory and Evaluation for Risk Assessment (SIERA) methodology that we have developed. The main objective of the SIERA is to prepare the country to get ready for implementing NRA, by carrying out a systematic inventory and evaluation of existing work, capacities and institutional frameworks in the country to produce a standardized country profile, identify the capacity development needs (and address some of them), engage the various stakeholders in the process (and in this way raise awareness among the various sectors of the community and strengthen the National DRM System), and produce a national e-library with the information collected in the project. In addition to all of this, the CSA will produce the foundation for the implementation of a comprehensive multi-hazards National Risk Assessment and the e-library will be the first step in the development of a National Disaster Risk Information System that could be implemented in the future; and
To agree on the implementation, coordination and monitoring aspects of the implementation of an NRA, including the institutional, financial and legal frameworks.

The outputs of the mission will be:

Local capacity and institutional agreements needed to start the implementation of National Risk Assessment (NRA) in Swaziland;
An agreed work plan for implementing SIERA;
A preliminary plan for the implementation of National Risk Assessment (NRA).