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UN Workshop Strengthens Azerbaijan's Disaster Management Capacity
Ms. Maria-Olga Gonzalez de Perez, Disaster Programme Specialist from UNDP's Bureau for Crisis Prevention & Recovery in Geneva, facilitated the exercise. It was attended by focal points from UNDP, UNHCR, UNICEF, WFP, UNFPA, IOM, WHO, WB, IFRC, and Oxfam. A high-ranking official from the Civil Defense, Colonel Kamil Bagirov, represented the Government. The UN Contingency Planning Working Group was established in October 2001 to undertake contingency planning for the UN system and other international organisations involved in disaster management. The Group reviewed the existing contingency plans developed by different agencies and identified how these plans could be integrated. This included identification of core areas of competence of agencies in preparedness for and response to emergencies, assessing the capacity of the Government of Azerbaijan to cope with the consequences of the most likely emergencies which might occur in the country, and identifying possible third-party partners. The workshop gave another impetus to the contingency planning process ensuring a concerted response by all the relevant actors in the event of a potential emergency. Mr. Bohdan Nahajlo, Representative, UNHCR, and Ms Hlin Baldvinsdottir, Head of Delegation, IFRC, facilitated the group discussions. When closing the forum, Mr. Marco Borsotti, UN Resident Coordinator, emphasised the usefulness of the workshop in building a team spirit and producing practical results. "International experience shows that human ingenuity can diminish the possible threats imposed by disasters, should a joint strategic planning and common approach be developed", Mr. Borsotti said. Among the major achievements of the workshop was the development of a practical toolkit and work plan, which once finalized, will be submitted to the UN Country Team for its review and approval. The participants requested that consideration be given to re-naming the UN Contingency Planning Working Group to the UN Emergency Preparedness and Response Team and that relevant Government representatives be invited to join. The team supported the idea of conducting an earthquake drill for UN staff with the support of the Civil Defense official. The workshop brought together theoretical knowledge with concrete practical skills and contributed to the integration of UN emergency preparedness arrangements with national disaster prevention efforts to further sustain the contingency planning process.
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A UN Contingency Planning Workshop was held on 14-15 April, 2003 in Baku to prepare for the various potential emergency situations which may occur in Azerbaijan and would require taking extraordinary measures to provide initial survival assistance.
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© United Nations Azerbaijan 2004 |
