Advocacy

Our key policy messages

Our advocacy activities are structured around a set of key policy messages, which form the basis of our engagement at national, regional and global level:

1. Development must be risk-informed

Policy decisions must take disaster risk into account. From national development strategies to local water management plans, risk considerations should be embedded in every policy-making process

2. The perspective of communities most at risk must be prioritised

Risk can be perceived differently by different people, and we believe that the perspective that really matters is that of people who are at the frontline of disasters. So when we talk about disaster risk, we mean risk from the perspective of those communities who experience disasters most often.

3. Decision-makers must listen to communities

To be able to take disaster risk into account, the people involved in taking decisions (such as national and local government representatives, donor institutions, national and international NGOs) must listen to communities.

4. Civil society organisations can bridge the gap between governments and communities

While national governments have the primary responsibility for the resilience of their citizens, civil society organisations have an important role to play in supporting the process. They are often best placed to facilitate dialogue between communities and governments, and to support local authorities in the implementation of policies at the local level.