Disaster response

Disaster response and contingency planning guide

© International Federation of Red Cross and Red Crescent Societies

The International Federation’s Global Agenda (2006–2010)
Over the next five years, the collective focus of the Federation will be on achieving the following goals and priorities:

Any part of this handbook may be cited, copied, translated into other languages or adapted tomeet local needs without prior permission from the International Federation of Red Cross and Red Crescent Societies, provided that the source is clearly stated. The maps used do not imply the expression of any opinion on the part of the International Federation of Red Cross and Red Crescent Societies or National Societies concerning the legal status of a territory or of its authorities. Coverphoto: Fredrik Barkenhammar/German Red Cross

Our goals
Goal 1: Reduce the number of deaths, injuries and impact from disasters. Goal 2: Reduce the number of deaths, illnesses

and impact from diseases and public health emergencies.
Goal 3: Increase local community, civil society and Red Cross Red Crescent capacity to address the most urgent situations of vulnerability. Goal 4: Promote respectfor diversity and human

dignity, and reduce intolerance, discrimination and social exclusion.

Our priorities
Improving our local, regional and international capacity to respond to disasters and public health emergencies. Scaling up our actions with vulnerable communities in health promotion, disease prevention and disaster risk reduction. Increasing significantly our HIV/AIDS programmingand advocacy. Renewing our advocacy on priority humanitarian issues, especially fighting intolerance, stigma and discrimination, and promoting disaster risk reduction.

2007 International Federation of Red Cross and Red Crescent Societies P.O. Box 372 CH-1211 Geneva 19 Switzerland Telephone: +41 22 730 4222 Telefax: +41 22 733 0395 E-mail: secretariat@ifrc.org Web site: www.ifrc.org

Disasterresponse and contingency planning guide

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Acknowledgements
These guidelines draw upon on a wide variety of documents already produced or in use by National Societies, field delegations, partner organizations and disaster management professionals, as well as on a two-year process of dialogue and collection of best practices and peer reviews from within the International Red Cross and RedCrescent Movement. An external inter-agency working group, a disaster management delegates’ working group, and a reference task force also inform these guidelines. The following is a list of the main documents consulted:
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Preparation of Community Disaster Preparedness Plans in Community-Based Self Reliance - Disaster Preparedness Manual: A Manual for Red Cross Instructors in the Pacific.International Federation of Red Cross and Red Crescent Societies, Regional Delegation Suva. Disaster Preparedness, 2nd edition. Randolph Kent for DHA Disaster Management Training Programme, 1994. Prepared in collaboration with the University of Wisconsin-Disaster Management Centre and InterWorks. Guidelines for Disaster Response and Contingency Planning, International Federation of Red Cross and RedCrescent Societies, Pan-American Disaster Response Unit (PADRU), 2006. Preparedness Planning Module. International Federation of Red Cross and Red Crescent Societies, Disaster Preparedness Training Programme. June, 2000. Inter-Agency Contingency Planning Guidelines for Humanitarian Assistance. Inter-Agency Standing Committee (IASC), November, 2001.

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This publication was madepossible by the generous financial support of the European Commission’s Humanitarian Aid Department (ECHO), the United Kingdom’s Department for International Development (DFID) and staff support from the American Red Cross. This guide will serve as a working tool for disaster response staff from within National Red Cross and Red Crescent Societies and the International Federation of Red Cross and Red...