The Civil Defence Commission https://cdc.gy/

Responsibility for disaster management in Guyana extends to every individual, family, community, government and private sector organizations. The Civil Defence Commission coordinates the national system with these bodies and is committed to initiating and supporting the disaster management process throughout Guyana

Civil Defence Commision (CDC)

The Commission will function as follows:

· Service Provider – Promoting its role of providing services to local authorities/communities and for that purpose, to develop programmes designed to enhance those services.

· Planning and Implementation – Ensuring the promotion and development at national level of disaster planning and management and, in co-operation with local authorities, facilitating the implementation of disaster management measures for the purpose of emergency relief and support;

· Loss reduction and Mitigation – Promoting the adoption of disaster loss reduction and mitigation policies and practices at the national and local authority level;

· Voluntary Service – The promotion and development of voluntary service as an integral aspect of disaster management;

· Training and Education – To establish and promote the development, maintenance and improvement of the tenants of disaster management training and education; and

· Permanent Staffing – Maintaining a permanent body to enhance the national capacity for disaster management services.

Responsibility for disaster management in Guyana extends to every individual, family, community, government and private sector organizations. The Civil Defence Commission coordinates the national system with these bodies and is committed to initiating and supporting the disaster management process throughout Guyana.

Disaster Management in Guyana

A disaster is any event, natural or man-caused, which creates an intense negative impact on people, goods and services, and/or the environment, and exceeds the affected community’s internal capability to respond, prompting the need to seek outside assistance. One such example is the 2005 flood that affected Guyana.
The Comprehensive Disaster Management (CDM) Cycle
Guyana, through the CDC, has embarked on a Comprehensive Disaster Management (CDM) programme that illustrates the cyclic process by which we plan for and reduce the impact of disasters,  taking steps to recover after a disaster has occurred. Appropriate actions at all points in the CDM cycle will lead to greater preparedness, better warnings, reduced vulnerability or the prevention of disasters during the next repetition of the cycle.
The figure below illustrates the four phases of the CDM cycle: Mitigation, Preparedness, Response andRecovery.

Phases of the CDM Cycle
There are four phases in the CDM cycle:
1.    Mitigation:
During the mitigation phase structural and non-structural measures are undertaken to limit the adverse impact of natural and technological hazards, and environmental degradation. According the United Nations International Strategy for Disaster Reduction (UNISDR), the adverse impacts of hazards  cannot often be fully prevented, but their scale or severity can be substantially reduced by various strategies and actions.
Management activities in the mitigation phase encompass engineering techniques and hazard-resistant construction, as well as improved environmental policies and public awareness,  including hazard vulnerability and risk assessments.
Measures taken during the mitigation phase also address preventing natural or man-caused events from giving rise to disasters or any emergency situations, e.g. not allowing your child to have access to matches, gasoline, or kerosene oil.

2.    Preparedness:
During the preparedness phase of the CDM cycle  measures are taken to reduce the  maximumlevel of loss in human life and other damage, through the organization of prompt and efficient actions of response and rehabilitation such as practicing earthquake  or fire drills.

Preparedness activities are geared towards minimizing disaster damage, enhancing disaster response operations and preparing organizations and individuals to respond. They also involve planning, organizing, training, interacting with other organizations and related agencies, resourcing inventory, allocating and placing, and plan testing.

3.    Response:
Actions carried out in a disaster situation with the objective to save lives, alleviate suffering and reduce economic losses. The main tool in response to this is the implementation of plans which were prepared prior to the event.

Response activities are post activities geared towards:
•    Providing emergency assistance
•    Reducing the probability of additional injuries or damage
•    Speeding recovery operations
•    Returning systems to normal level

4.    Recovery:
In the recovery phase, also referred to as the recovery and rehabilitation phase,  activities are geared towards the restorating of basic services and the beginning of the repair of physical, social and economic damage e.g. livelines, health and communication facilities, as well as utility systems.
The recovery phase also includes efforts to reduce disaster risk factors.

Disaster Management encompasses all aspects of planning for and responding to disasters, including  before, during, and after disaster activities. It refers to both the risk and consequences of a disaster.

Learn more about disasters in the caribbean.  Summary of Natural Disaster in the Caribbean (185.5 kB)

Disaster Risk Management

According to United Nations Office for Disaster Risk Reduction (UNDRR) a hazard is a process, phenomenon or human activity that may cause loss of life, injury, or other health impacts, property damage, social and economic disruption or environment degradation. Moreover, a disaster is a serious disruption of the functioning of a community or a society at any scale due to hazardous events interacting with conditions of exposure, vulnerability and capacity, leading to one or more of the following: human, material, economic and environmental losses and impacts.

Disaster Risk Management (DRM) therefore is the reduction of disaster losses by applying risk reduction policies that are designed to reduce, manage and prevent disasters. DRM strengthens resilience against disasters and encourages sustainable development by targeting disaster risks. Disaster risks take into account the hazard, exposure and vulnerability of affected areas. 

There are several types of Disaster Risk Management (DRM) policies. These include Prospective Disaster Risk Management, Corrective Disaster Risk Management, Compensatory or Residual Disaster Risk Management, and Community-Based Disaster Risk Management.

Prospective DRM seeks to prevent future and increased disaster risks. Corrective DRM seeks to reduce and manage present disaster risks. Compensatory DRM deals with the social and economic risks of disasters and mitigating their unavoidable effects on people. This particular policy assists individuals by implementing plans to prepare, respond and recover from disasters and also provides financial relief. Community-Based DRM promotes the involvement of locals in assisting and monitoring the risks of disasters in their areas. Local and indigenous peoples’ approach to DRM is a complementary approach that utilizes local, traditional and indigenous practices to assess, plan and implement risk reduction strategies and policies.

In January 2005, the Hyogo Framework for Action (HFA) was introduced by the UNDRR and the Government of Japan. Its purpose was to improve local and national efforts to substantially reduce the impact of disasters by 2015 while strengthening international cooperation. This was endorsed by 168 Member States and it became the vehicle for global and regional cooperation on Disaster Risk Reduction. However, HFA did not succeed and led to the implementation of the Sendai Framework for Disaster Risk 2015-2030 in March 2015. The Sendai Framework functions as a management tool to help countries make informed decisions, plan risk reduction strategies and allocate resources for risk reduction. Guyana is one of the many countries that has endorsed the Sendai Framework which strives to achieve its goals by 2030.

Disaster Risk Management (DRM) in Guyana is coordinated by the Office of the Prime Minister and the Civil Defence Commission (CDC). Through a partnership with more than 30 different agencies at the local, regional and international levels; the CDC manages and reduces the risks of disasters countrywide.

Hazard Mitigation

According the United Nations International Strategy for Disaster Reduction (UN/ISDR) mitigation may be defined as the lessening or limitation of the adverse impacts of hazards and related disasters. The adverse impacts of hazards often cannot be fully prevented, but their scale or severity can be substantially lessened by various strategies and actions. The Commission is committed to updating its Multi-Hazard Plan to accommodate the ever-changing risks, and the Multi-Hazard Early Warning System (MHEWS), an evolving project, is in the initial operational phase. This system is designed to accurately detect, notify and prepare relevant bodies and stakeholders for any impending hazard.

Disaster Preparedness

Disaster preparedness plays a critical role in mitigating the adverse health effects of disasters. Preparedness is defined by the United Nations International Strategy for Disaster Reduction (UNISDR) as knowledge, capabilities, and actions of governments, organizations, community groups, and individuals “to effectively anticipate, respond to, and recover from, the impacts of likely, imminent or current hazard events or conditions.” Preparedness efforts range from individual-level activities (such as first aid training), to household actions (e.g. stockpiling of equipment and supplies), community efforts (like training and field exercises), and governmental strategies (including early warning systems, contingency plans, evacuation routes, and public information dissemination). Perceived risk, disaster preparedness knowledge, prior disaster experiences, and certain sociodemographic characteristics such as gender, age, education, and family income have potential to affect an individual’s emergency preparedness and related behaviors. At the CDC, preparedness is a quintessential part of the plan to manage and combat risks and disasters.