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United Nations Development Programme - Montenegro
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UNDAF Outcome: 2.3 Sustainable economic development and environmental protection:
Outcome 3.2 Established system for conservation and sustainable management of natural resources. Effective prevention, control and reduction of environmental risks, and enhanced environmental awareness and participation by children, young people and adults.
Expected CP Outcome:
Outcome 3: Balanced and equitable regional economic growth based on sustainable planning and use of natural resources that will provide a high quality of life and long term economic opportunities for its inhabitants
Establishment of institutional and regulatory framework for disaster risk reduction (including a variety of climate change induced risks)
Disaster Risk Reduction in Montenegro
A. What is the development problem?
The frequency of hydro-meteorological events, leading to emergency situations, is on the rise in Montenegro. Historic data on flooding, presents five major events in the period 1979-1997; which has risen to six times in the years 2004-2010. The year 2010 saw floods impacting Montenegro twice; first in January and then in November-December. The Post Disaster Needs Assessment following the November – December 2010 Floods, estimated the total damages and losses at approximately € 44 million, at 1.49% of the GDP. The beginning on 2012 saw the advent of heavy precipitation fringing many parts of the country to grind to a halt and enforcement of an emergency declaration. The impact of climate change is, for sure, being felt by the entire region. The country is also exposed to geo-tectonic movement, with 40% of the area prone to seismic risks of magnitude 8 or more on the Richter scale. A devastating earthquake, in April 1979, on the coast and wider area of Skadar Lake, caused damages amounting to $4 billion, affecting 100,418 people and killing 136 people. Forest fires, landslides, avalanches, though localised, are perpetual hazards. Besides the economic impact, these emergency situations accentuate the existing vulnerability paradigms, which coupled with social and legal marginalization, create a vicious cycle for the poorest. The negative impact of these disasters on the developmental trend is an obvious one and can be addressed by factoring in risk reduction in long term plans and by building capacity and resilience at the national, municipal and community levels.
B. What does UNDP do to solve the problem?
UNDP supported, Capacity Assessment for Disaster Risk Reduction , for Montenegro, has been conducted under the auspices of the South Eastern Europe Disaster Risk Mitigation and Adaptation Programme.
UNDP BCPR has conducted a complimentary DRR capacity assessment in 2011 for Montenegro to identify capacity gaps and understand desired capacities and made recommendations on how these can be achieved.
UNDP Montenegro has supported the Government, after the November-December 2010 floods, by conducting a comprehensive needs assessment and recovery matrix.
The UN provided humanitarian aid to the snowbound communities, in Montenegro, in February 2012 and offered further technical support to the Government.
UNDP is addressing the challenge of the hazard prone informal settlements in Montenegro through development of urban plans and policy support on long term climate change adaptation measures.
UNDP has conducted Flood Risk Assessment and Preparedness Planning in 12 hazard prone municipalities of Montenegro. This has been done along with the Sector of Emergency Management and the Municipalities. These assessments, coupled with trainings, build on international best practices and EU directives on risk assessment and mapping. GIS platforms are being used to map the findings of the assessment process.
C. What are some of the results we achieved to date?
The recommendations of the Capacity Assessment for Disaster Risk Reduction have been validated at the National Policy Dialogue and form the basis for the Government’s DRR strategy development process.
The ownership of the flood risk assessment and mapping, developed with support from UNDP, lies with the Government, particularly the Sector for Emergency Management and the Municipalities. This would ensure sustainability.
Focus on community based disaster preparedness and effective early warning systems have been highlighted at all levels and accepted as a priority.
To showcase best practices UNDP has conducted a community based pilot on disaster preparedness in the hazard prone municipality of Berane. Red Cross, UNCHR, Municipality of Berane, Protection and Rescue Services and local CBOs are involved in this initiative.
The national focus on disaster prevention, mitigation and preparedness is strengthened through the policy and capacity building provided to stakeholders at various levels. The National Platform for Disaster Risk Reduction is in the pipeline.
D. DRR Governance and Institutional Arrangements in Montenegro
The Law on Protection and Rescue (2007) defines the responsibilities, rights and obligation of citizens, legal entities, local self-government, and state administrative bodies pertaining to protection and rescue. A National Strategy for Emergency Situations has been adopted by the Government in 2006. The National and Local Plans for Protection and Rescue are meant to be adopted at the national and municipal levels and at the level of specific companies. The National Strategy of Sustainable Development (2007) and Spatial Plan of Montenegro (2006) are other instruments identifying risk mitigation measures. The Montenegrin National Forestry Policy and National Forest Inventory maps potential threats to the forests. The law on Montenegrin Red Cross identifies the Red Cross role in emergencies; training, evacuation support, family unification, tracing and first aid. The 2010 law on Hydro-meteorological Matters and Law on Hydrographic Activities gives mandate to the Hydro-meteorological Institute of Montenegro to issue warnings.
The Ministry of Interior and Public Administration (Internal Affairs) is mandated for risk management, preparedness and response since 2004. The Sector for Emergency Management (Extraordinary Situations) subordinate to the ministry was established in 2004 and has started considering DRR since 2010. Talks on establishment of a National Platform on DRR are ongoing.
Government of Montenegro, The Ministry of Interior and Public Administration (Internal Affairs), Sector for Emergency Management
Milica Begovic Radojevic, PhD - Team Leader Economy and Environment, UNDP Montenegro
Rahul Pandit - National Disaster Reduction Advisor, UNDP Montenegro (MSB Secondee)
Jovana Jovovic - United Nations Volunteer, Disaster Risk Reduction and Second National Communication Assistant
Flood affected communities taking more active role in emergency situations - http://www.undp.org.me/home/2012/drr/index.html
A wonderful community of friends and practitioners - bringing together the best of minds to develop capacity for disaster risk reduction - http://www.undp.org.me/home/2012/rahul/index.html
Disaster Risk Reduction: An essential component in Montenegro’s development - http://www.undp.org.me/home/2012/sandra/index.html
The Municipality of Cetinje, in Montenegro, would be the first city in the country to join the campaign, in 2013.
The Sendai Framework Voluntary Commitments (SFVC) online platform allows stakeholders to inform the public about their work on DRR. The SFVC online platform is a useful toolto know who is doing what and where for the implementation of the Sendai Framework, which could foster potential collaboration among stakeholders. All stakeholders (private sector, civil society organizations, academia, media, local governments, etc.) working on DRR can submit their commitments and report on their progress and deliverables.
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