Articles

The topic of disaster management has gained an increasingly important place on the health agenda of countries in Latin America and the Caribbean and in many other parts of the world. However, the increasing number of actors involved, the improved capacity that now exists in many countries and regions and the globalized environment in which we operate is quickly changing how we deal with risk reduction, preparedness and even response.

There is now growing recognition that disaster risk reduction is a development concern and should not be seen only in the context of a humanitarian response to an emergency. To have truly sustained impact at scale, it is important to integrate the elements of disaster risk reduction that address health concerns across the day-to-day activities of both health agencies and those of partners.

• Ministries of health: although the precise responsibilities of the Ministry of Health vary from country to county in Latin America and the Caribbean, all ministries share a common regulatory role in health matters. Most ministries of health have a dedicated Disaster Management Program or Unit, which is the first line of contact at national level for the planning and execution of emergency-related activities. Although the scope of the program may differ from one country to another, generic or model terms of reference exist for these programs. The Ministries of Health are also home to a variety of other health disciplines whose support is critical to emergency managers in preparedness as well as in crisis situations.  These specialists include the national focal points for International Health Regulations (IHR), health services, maintenance, laboratories and others.

It has often been said that minimizing the health impact of disasters and emergencies is too big a job for the health sector alone.  Achieving this goal requires the commitment and active support of many different agencies, sectors and individuals. It also requires joint training initiatives in a variety of areas that often are still new to the health sector. The involvement of multisector partners will have the value added of gaining buy-in from non-health professionals, who are critical to achieving health sector objectives.

Collaboration and partnerships with regional disaster management and coordination bodies (in Latin America and the Caribbean) account for significant advances in all aspects of disaster risk reduction:

• In Central America, the Center for the Coordination of Natural Disaster Prevention (CEPREDENAC), created in 1988, is an inter-governmental organization that promotes and coordinates international cooperation and the exchange of information, experience and technical and scientific advice on disaster prevention, risk reduction, and response. CEPREDENAC is a specialized agency of the Central American Integration System (SICA). Through a regional dialogue and in line with Central America’s Strategic Plan for Disaster Reduction, CEPREDENAC works to a) promote vulnerability reduction as an indispensable element of the development process; b) expand the participation of other sectors and civil society; c) strengthen local capacity for disaster risk reduction; and d) improve disaster response capacity at local, national and regional level. Read more about CEPREDENAC’s multi-year plan for disaster risk reduction (this is available in Spanish only).