Germany National Platform

History

Following the adoption of the Sendai Framework, the German Federal Government established an interministerial working group for the implementation of the Sendai Framework (IMAG Sendai), which was restructured in 2018. 

In the same year, the national focal point has been nominated within the Federal Office of Civil Protection and Disaster Assistance (BBK). The national focal point coordinates and advises between the IMAG Sendai and other relevant actors in Germany. 

Since 2016, the German Red Cross has been organizing the German Conference on Disaster Risk Reduction with the support of the German Federal Foreign Office. The event's main focus is the dialogue on current topics, challenges and innovative approaches to enable synergies between international and national DRR. This conference has provided the opportunity to record the overall progress in the implementation of the Sendai Framework, and allowed public participation in the development of the German Resilience Strategy for monitoring. Therefore, the conference is currently supported by the national focal point in Germany, the Deutsches Komitee für Katastrophenvorsorge e.V. and Katastrophennetz e.V. 

Since 2020, the German web portal on disaster risk management (KatRiMa.de) has served as a virtual information exchange platform. Every institution or organization can participate and publish information on their mandate/activities, tools and good practices. Funding for this web portal has been provided by the Federal Ministry of Economic Cooperation and Development as well as the Federal Ministry of the Interior. 

Additional steps were taken in the past years to further develop the national platform and enhance its outreach to various stakeholders from different sectors and levels. In 2023, an initial participation process with various stakeholders took place.

Structure

Current permanent members and functions of the national platform: 

• The IMAG Sendai steers all activities related to the Sendai Framework and the German Resilience Strategy. All federal Government ministries are involved in this working group.
• The authorities working group consists of several federal authorities and provides technical support to the IMAG Sendai related to different sectors and various hazards.
• The IMAG Sendai as well as the authorities working group currently form the institutional core of the German national platform and meets twice a year.
• The national focal point has the role of a coordinating office for all joint meetings and activities of these groups, and it is mandated to act on behalf of the German Federal Government in various international processes related to the Sendai Framework. 

The German Resilience Strategy envisages the further development of a national platform for strengthening resilience to disasters in Germany. This includes the cooperation and exchange between government institutions and civil society stakeholders, the scientific community, the media and the private sector in Germany. 

In 2024, these non-governmental groups will be invited to elect members for a coordination group. In the sense of a network of networks, the coordination group will pool expertise and interests by reaching out to a wider number of experts, which represent various stakeholders. The first formal meeting of the coordination group will take place in connection with the 2024 German Conference on Disaster Risk Reduction. By then, a working programme will be jointly defined for the next few years, related to topics such as progress monitoring and documentation of lessons learned.

Mandate

The national focal point within the Federal Office of Civil Protection and Disaster Assistance was mandated to guide the establishment of the national platform and foster stakeholder participation in the implementation process of the Sendai Framework in Germany. As such, it serves as an information hub for organizations and initiatives involved in DRR.

Budget

The office of the national focal point, group meetings (e.g. of the IMAG Sendai and the authorities working group) as well as the web portal (KatRiMa.de) are funded. Additional activities, depending on the topic/focus, require resource mobilization.