Conference on Involvement at local level in disaster risk reduction organised in Slovenia

Within the DIRECT project, a Conference on Involvement at local level in disaster risk reduction was organised in Bled in Slovenia on 30-31 August 2018.

The Conference gathered around 60 representatives of institutions and organisations dealing with protection and rescue and emergency management in Slovenia, Italy, the Czech Republic and Montenegro. The aim of the Conference was to enable exchange of experiences and good practice models in the area of disaster risk reduction – DRR.  During the two-day Conference, the participants presented and discussed the following topics: organisation of the protection and rescue systems in different countries, with the emphasis at the local level, role and activities of different institutions and services in case of natural and other disasters, benefits from international cooperation in this area including bilateral agreements and participation in the EU Civil Protection Mechanism, as well as the case studies of response when different disasters occurred.  Representatives of FORS Montenegro and the Directorate for Emergency Management of the Ministry of Interior of Montenegro participated in the work of the Conference.

The Conference was organised within the project DIRECT – DIsaster REsilient Communities and Towns funded by the Directorate-General for European Civil Protection and Humanitarian Aid Operations (ECHO) of the European Commission (DG ECHO) implemented by FORS Montenegro and the Directorate for Emergency Management of the Ministry of Interior of Montenegro, in partnership with the Protection and Rescue Service of the Municipality of Kranj from Slovenia, Fire and Rescue Brigade of the Moravian-Silesian Region of the Czech Republic and Czech Association of Fire Officers. The aim of the project is to improve preparedness of local communities, institutions and services for more efficient response to a growing number of natural and man-made hazards.

Main project activities include trainings for rescuers on protection and rescue in case of fires, floods, earthquakes, etc., field rescue exercises, trainings on Disaster Risk Reduction – DRR, development of evacuation plans for schools and local communities, awareness raising campaign related to disaster risks, study visit to EU, international conferences on DRR, etc.

Apart from the main activities, the project will, through strengthening the international cooperation in this area, lead to the exchange of experiences and good practice models, both between the protection and rescue institutions and services and between rescuers who often face the same tasks and challenges in their work.