Disaster Management Civil-Military Coordination

1. Disaster ManagementCivil-Military Coordination ARF Meeting on Development of TTEx for ARF DiREx 2011 Bandung, 5-7 August 2010

2. What is Disaster Management? • DM is the discipline of dealing with and avoiding risks. It is a continuous process by which societies manage hazards in an effort to avoid or reduce the impact of disasters. • DM involves preparing for disaster before it occurs, disaster response, and supporting and rebuilding society after natural or man-made disasters.

3. DM – A Four-Phase Approach • Mitigation – involves reducing or eliminating the likelihood or the consequences of a hazard. • Preparedness – involves planning, organising, training, exercising, evaluation activities to ensure effective coordination and enhancement of capacities to respond to disasters. • Response – involves taking actions to reduce or eliminate the impact of disasters that have occurred or currently occurring. • Recovery – involves restoring the affected area and populations to a normal state.

4. Humanitarian Partnership - THE KEY ACTORS

5. Why partnerships? • Partnerships are at the centre of effective humanitarian response, and form the basis for humanitarian action • No single humanitarian agency can cover all humanitarian needs • Collaboration is not an option, it is a necessity • Limited resources – need more efficiency in response • Common interest and objectives

6. Why do we need Coordination? We need to deal with a multiplicity of actors We need to work with limited resources. We need to avoid the politicization of aid We need to avoid gaps, duplications, and assure the responsibility of each humanitarian partner.

7. What is Civil-Military Coordination • The essential dialogue and interaction between civilian and military actors in humanitarian emergencies that is necessary to protect and promote humanitarian principles, avoid competition, minimize inconsistency, and when appropriate pursue common goals.

8. What is CMCoord? • Basic coordination strategies range from coexistence to cooperation. • Coordination is a shared responsibility facilitated by liaison and common training. • Key elements include: • Planning • Information Sharing • Task Division

9. Why Have it? • In the areas of security, medical evacuation, logistics, transport, communications, information management, and others. • Ensure that humanitarians have the access they require, but at the same time do not become targets. • Minimize the competition for scarce resources such as ports, supply routes, airfields and other logistics infrastructure.

10. Why Have it? • Armed actors are likely to seek to establish relationships with the civilian population and in many cases attempt to provide them assistance . • Though military forces can provide useful resources and support to the affected country, population or humanitarian actors, the percieved association with the armed actors can compromise the humanitarian efforts and may pose an additional security threat.

11. CMCoord and Humanitarian Assistance Operations • Military forces are active players in international crisis response • Manynations use their militaries as first responders to natural disasters • Unique capabilities not available from civilian assets

12. Potential Benefits for Humanitarian Community • Access to extensive logistics capability • Airlift, sealift, overland transportation • Medical assistance, supplies and technical capabilities • Communications assests • Manpower • Protection

13. CMCoord and Humanitarian Concepts and Principles • Humanity, Neutrality, Impartiality • Needs-Based Assistance • Humanitarian Access to Vulnerable Populations • Perception of impartiality/Neutrality • Operational Independence • Security of Humanitarian Personnel

14. Military & Civil Defense Assets • MCDA comprises relief personnel, equipment, supplies and services provided by foreign military and civil defence organisations for International Disaster Relief Assistance (IDRA, enumerated in paragraph 61 of Additional Protocol I to the Geneva Conventions of 1949)

15. MCDA is a “Last Resort” Need for Assistance International Military and Civil Defence Assets International Civilian Relief Local/National Response Time

16. General Principles on the Use of MCDA • UN Requests for MCDA made by RC/HC • Decision to accept MCDA made by humanitarian organizations • MCDA requested when there is no civilian alternative • Unique in nature or timeliness – “Last Resort” • Humanitarian operation must retain civilian nature and control • Humanitarian work performed by humanitarian organizations

17. General Principles on the Use of MCDA • Military respect for codes of conduct, humanitarian principles, and IHL • Avoid large scale involvement of military in direct assistance • Use of MCDA should be limited in time and scale • Clearly defined exit strategy and transition plan • Avoid reliance on military assets

18. Hierarchy of Humanitarian Tasks • Direct Assistance – Face-to face distribution of goods and services • Indirect Assistance – At least one step removed from the population • Infrastructure Support – General services that facilitates relief, but are not necessarily visible to or solely for the benefit of the affected population

19. Assessing the Civil Military Environment • Inventory of civil-military actors, military missions, and mandates • Identification of available assets • Analysis of civil-military relations • Effect on humanitarian principles • Assessment of civil-military coordination structures and mechanisms

20. CMCoord Interaction Options • Collocation • Civilian and military are located together in same building/coordination centre • Liaison Exchange • Liaison Visits • Formal visits are planned at different levels • Interlocutor • Civilian and Military co-exist • Exchange info through formal and established channels

21. CMCoord Resources • UNDAC Field Handbook • UN OCHA Civil Military Coordination Section • cmcs@un.org • http://ochaonline.un.org/cmcs • UN CMCoord Training • UN CMCoord Training Course • UN CMCoord Staff Course • UN CMCoord IMPACT – Distance Learning Tool • UN CMCoord Deployment Roster