Background

The National Defence College (NDC) in collaboration with the Department of Disaster Management Affairs (DoDMA) with funding from the United Nations Resident Coordinator’s Office (UNRCO) organised the inaugural Comprehensive Disaster Management Course from 8 to 10 November 2023 at the Crossroads Hotel in Lilongwe.[1]  The Course had 70 Participants from the Malawi Defence Force (MDF), Malawi Police Service (MPS), Ministry of Health (MoH), Ministry of Local Government, and DoDMA and was facilitated by officials from MDF, DoDMA, United Nations, and International Independent Consultants.

The Comprehensive Disaster Management (CDM) course focused on applying the military planning and decision-making process to the unique circumstances associated with operations in response to disasters and humanitarian assistance. The course was anchored on the theory of Military Aid to Civilian Authorities (MACA), policy guidance from DoDMA and generally accepted international norms on humanitarian assistance and civil-military coordination. Case studies, small group practical applications, and role-playing exercises enhanced lectures by subject matter experts. The Course was designed and delivered to prepare senior leaders and their staff at both strategic and operational levels to respond more effectively during civilian-led humanitarian assistance (HA) and disaster response (DR) missions. Therefore, the inaugural CMD Course provided a foundation for disaster preparedness in Malawi.

The Phenomenon of Disasters in Malawi

Disasters are a widespread phenomenon in Malawi culminating into displacement, loss of lives, property, and economic activity. In the recent decades, the country has witnessed an increase in the frequency and magnitude of these hazards, which often culminate into disasters. Since the nature of calamities differs, they pose a complex challenge for communities. The number of disasters is rising rapidly and steadily.[2] People are becoming more vulnerable to disasters of different complexities and magnitude. With rapid unfolding effects of climate change and the progress in technology, the frequency and intensity of climate change led disasters have increased in the country.  Malawi is a highly disaster-prone nation due to its geographical position and geological formations.[3] Apart from loss of lives and livelihoods, disasters have also contributed to slow socio-economic development of the country, while eroding generational efforts and gains in infrastructural development and other spheres of life.  Most cases of disasters in the country emanate from climate change and climate variability. However, rapid population growth, unsafe construction practices, high levels of poverty, lack of enforcement of regulations, environmental degradation, low literacy rates, and general human recklessness are all contributing to this rise.

Disasters have an enormous and significant negative impact on development of key sectors of the economy like agriculture, infrastructure, housing, health, and education. Disasters increase poverty and retard national efforts in achieving the national targets set to achieve the Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs).[4] The effects of disasters are extreme on the poor and marginalised societies.    

The increase in urbanisation has led to mushrooming and expansion of informal settlements, inadequate infrastructure and lack of basic service delivery, limited extent of disaster risk management (DRM) mainstreaming. The adoption of resilience practices is slow in the country and there is a predisposition towards response rather than anticipatory DRM; limited access to weather forecast and climate information;  funding challenges are there across all levels;  actions are not well coordinated; existing disaster preparedness act is not in tandem with prevailing environment;  limited public awareness or challenges to achieve mindset change; low participation of the private sector in DRM, particularly on resilience building; and limited focus on resilience building in urban areas. The country needs to adopt Comprehensive Disaster management (CDM), which is a holistic process of reducing the impact of natural or human-made disasters on people and the environment.[5]

Disaster Risk Management Policy Framework

Recurrent disasters in Malawi have had far-reaching impacts on various sectors of development such as agriculture, education, infrastructure, housing, food, energy, health, water and other sectors of the country’s economy. These disaster events have undermined the stability of livelihoods among the most vulnerable communities, including women, children and the elderly contributed to serious social and economic setbacks to the development and poverty reduction priorities and poses a threat to achieving the SDGs. Tackling the underlying risk factors in the natural and built environments and in the social and economic conditions of people remains one of the most difficult tasks of disaster risk management (DRM) in Malawi. The strategic approach to this challenge has been broadly described as “mainstreaming disaster risk reduction in development”. However, to a larger extent, the mainstreaming of disaster risk reduction (DRR) is a governance process enabling the systematic integration of DRR concerns into all relevant development spheres. In other words, responsive, accountable, transparent, and efficient governance structures underwrite the environment where DRM can be institutionalised as an underlying principle of sustainable development.

At the global level, there is an acknowledgement that efforts to reduce disaster risks must be systematically integrated into policies, plans and programmes for sustainable development and poverty reduction, good governance, and disaster risk reduction, which are mutually supportive objectives such that to meet future challenges, accelerated efforts must be made. For instance, the adoption of the three global landmark events of 2015: The Sendai Framework on Disaster Risk Reduction 2015–2030, the 2030 Agenda for Sustainable Development and the Paris Agreement under the United Nations Framework Convention on Climate Change (UNFCCC), have created new windows of opportunities for mainstreaming DRM within development strategies by recognising the need to ‘mainstream’ DRM into development, that is, to consider and address risks emanating from natural hazards in medium-term strategic development frameworks, in legislation and institutional structures, in sectoral strategies and policies, in budgetary processes, in designing and implementation of individual projects and in monitoring and evaluation.[6] The Sendai Framework has broadened the task of mainstreaming to include the private sector, cultural heritage, and tourism. It has advocated an all-of-society and whole-of-government approach to disaster risk reduction.

At the national level, the Government of Malawi has made significant strides in mainstreaming DRM into sustainable development. The Malawi Growth and Development Strategy (MGDS) III recognises the role of comprehensive DRM in ensuring the well-being of Malawians and the protection of its national assets from disasters. This overarching strategic framework makes it imperative that DRM does not remain the responsibility of any single agency or organisation of the government; instead, it must be the responsibility of every development organisation at all levels, both within and outside the government. This aligns with what the Sendai Framework describes as the “all-of-society and all-of-state” approach. This further makes it imperative that, based on the national strategic framework on DRM, broad national guidelines should be established for mainstreaming DRM across every sector of development at all levels in unambiguous terms.

Hazard Profile

A disaster is an outcome of a hazard, exposure, or vulnerability against coping capacity. Disasters occur at the intersection between a vulnerable society and a given hazard. Identification and understanding the different natural and human-induced hazards such as floods, earthquakes, droughts, epidemics, and conflicts is key to the prevention of disasters. Man-made disasters include technological accidents, fires, and accidents. Commonly known hazards leading to natural disasters in Malawi are briefly discussed below:

Geophysical hazards

Geophysical hazards include phenomena such as earthquakes and landslides. Deforestation is one of the major causes of drought, soil erosion, and earthquakes. Communities must plant more trees to avoid such disasters. Additionally, communities must monitor their needs to prevent natural calamities.

Hydrological Hazards

Hydrological hazards related to climatological disasters such as extreme hydro-meteorological (drought, floods, hailstorms, lightning, windstorms), temperatures, floods, and drought have been prevalent in recent years. These hazards require climate change mitigation and climate change adaptationmeasures.[7]  Proactive measures in flood risk reduction, such as proper urban planning, investment in resilient infrastructure, and public awareness campaigns, are effective emergency and disaster response in Malawi.

Meteorological Hazards

Meteorological disasters such as cyclones and storms are a common occurrence. The intensive use of fuels such as petrol and diesel has increased the amount of carbon dioxide in the air and, as a result, the temperature rises, and the glaciers melt. 

Biological Hazards

Biological disasters such as invasive species, diseases such as Cholera and COVID-19, human and wildlife conflicts, epidemics and insect or animal plagues have ravaged communities.

Disaster Risk Assessment and Reduction for Strengthening Resilience

Disaster risk is the potential losses in lives, health status, livelihoods, assets, and services, which could occur to a particular community over some specified future period. Floods are the most devastating natural disasters in Malawi, particularly in the lower shire. Major causes of floods include deforestation, an increase in population density, indiscriminate waste disposal, and poor or non-existent drainage systems, among others. The prevalence of disaster has also led to poor environmental hygiene with associated outbreaks of diseases and pandemics.

The first priority for action of the Sendai Framework for Disaster Risk Reduction (SFDRR) is understanding disaster risk, which stresses that policies and practices for disaster risk management should be based on an understanding of disaster risk in all its dimensions of vulnerability, capacity, exposure of persons and assets, hazard characteristics and the environment. Such knowledge can be leveraged for the purpose of pre-disaster risk assessment, for prevention and mitigation and the development and implementation of appropriate risk reduction and effective response to disasters. The Malawi Growth and Development Strategy (MGDS III) sought to reduce vulnerability and enhance the resilience of its population to disasters and socio-economic shocks through the development, updating and dissemination of location-specific disaster risk information, including hazard and vulnerability maps to decision-makers, the general public and communities at risk, among other strategies.[8]

Disaster Risk Reduction entails reducing potential disaster losses through systematic efforts to analyse and manage the causal factors of disasters including through reduced exposure to hazards, lessened vulnerability of people and property, effective and efficient management of land and the environment and improved preparedness for adverse events. Disaster reduction should lead to strengthening resilience, which entails the ability of a system, community or society exposed to hazards to resist, absorb, accommodate, and recover from the effects of a hazard in a timely and efficient manner, including the preservation and restoration of its essential basic structures and functions. This requires the provision of adequate financial, technical and human resources to be made available from both private and public sectors for the prevention and reduction of disaster risks. However, currently, public and private investment in disaster preparedness and risk reduction is limited, and the country continues to suffer from losses and damage due to disasters. The only existing national financial instrument for disaster management is the National Disaster Appeal Fund, which remains focused on disaster response and not disaster risk reduction.[9] Additionally, Existing disaster preparedness and risk reduction interventions are mostly short-term and project-based. 

Vulnerability Assessment to Mitigate Risk

Vulnerability relates to the conditions determined by physical, social, economic, and environmental factors or processes that increase the susceptibility of an individual, a community, assets, or systems to the impacts of hazards. Vulnerability Assessmenthelps identify areas and populations that may be more susceptible to the impacts of hazards. Vulnerability assessment involves considering factors such as:  population density, socio-economic conditions, infrastructure quality, and access to essential services. A vulnerability assessment should lead to an understanding of the elements at risk/ exposed elements, systems and communities to the different hazards that should inform appropriate actions to increase the capacity of communities at risk of disasters to manage and recover from disasters.  Such actions should include, for example, legislation, policies, programmes, emergency operations plans, and training. In conducting a vulnerability assessment, both likelihood and impact must be interrogated. Evaluation of likelihood and impact involves analysing factors such as historical data, scientific studies, and expert opinions to determine the probability and severity of an event.

Disaster Mitigation

The country should develop a mitigation programme that identifies activities to lessen or limit the adverse impacts of hazards based on lessons-learned from known hazards, their impacts, and the risk and vulnerability they create. Local communities should be engaged to develop mitigation projects for which they can seek funding. These projects should include fortifying critical infrastructure and enhancing the environment where such enhancements would limit devastation in future hazard impacts. A national dialogue about building standards should be conducted to go through a process of reinforcing the current building standards and establishing new standards where appropriate. There is need to engage engineers, environmental planners, builders, suppliers of construction materials, quantity surveyors, and architects to develop a comprehensive approach to mitigation. Mitigation should also include a robust education programme that establishes a culture of disaster risk management learning in all grade levels.[10]

Planning and Disaster Preparedness

Disaster preparedness involves the knowledge and capacities developed to effectively anticipate, respond to, and recover from the impacts of likely, imminent or current hazardous events or conditions. Planning and preparedness for disasters should begin at households, community and district, and national levels.[11]  In times of crisis, a well-executed evacuation plan can be the difference between chaos and order, between fear and reassurance. Therefore, developing plans in advance of a hazard impacting a community will increase the preparedness of the community. Potential responders must be familiar with the plans, which require regular training and exercises on those plans. In addition, building relationships among a network of response personnel will ensure familiarity during a response allowing for greater efficiency. After-action reviews help to create a culture of learning and continuous improvement.  Disaster preparedness for effective response and recovery focuses on enhancing disaster preparedness systems and mechanisms to ensure that there is timely effective and efficient disaster response.  The priority area also advocates for the integration of resilience in disaster preparedness, response, and recovery.  

Access to weather forecasts and climate information by communities in remote and vulnerable areas is limited.[12]  Where information is disseminated, there is laxity in acting by the intended communities. While contingency plans are developed, these are not tested, implemented, and sometimes reviewed. The country also requires improved coordination facilities for humanitarian response, such as transport, search and rescue equipment, warehouses, evacuation centres and emergency operation centres. There is limited focus on post-disaster recovery, rehabilitation, and reconstruction with integration of the build back better principle still challenging. Prepositioning of equipment, supplies, and personnel for disaster response is partially done.  The following are critical mechanisms for planning and disaster preparedness:

1. Establish Humanitarian Assistance Plans, including outlining roles and responsibilities of key stakeholders, establishing communication protocols, and providing guidance on specific actions to be taken during different types of emergencies and disasters. Planning, coordinating, and executing evacuations is a primary protective action regardless of the threat or hazard. Planning and preparedness should  include identification of potential hazards,  create emergency contact information including contact numbers for local authorities, emergency services, and medical facilities; communication plan, identify, evacuation routes, meeting points, assign responsibilities, evacuation procedures; provide for special considerations such us vulnerable persons, women and children;  secure emergency supplies;  conduct regular drills and training; ensure that  evacuation equipment such as fire extinguishers, fire hoses, or personal protective equipment, is available and maintained; identify potential shelter options; make transportation arrangements. Overall, government and other partners should facilitate enhanced financing and investments in disaster risk management. 

• Establish Early Warning and Early Response Systems: Implementing robust early warning systems such as weather monitoring, seismic monitoring, disease surveillance, and community-based alert systems helps in timely detection and dissemination of information about potential hazards.[13]   Early waring systems enable early evacuation, mobilisation of resources, and activation of humanitarian assistance mechanisms. EWS should include hazard mounting detection, data collection and analysis to assess magnitude, location, and potential impact of the hazard and establish effective warning communication. The main objective of a people-centred early warning system is “to enable individuals, communities and organisations threatened by a hazard to prepare and to act appropriately and in sufficient time to reduce the possibility of harm or loss.”[14] The system can be effective and successful only if the warnings produced are able to trigger appropriate reactions and people are able to save themselves. Early warning should also embrace early warning technology.

• Training and Capacity Building: Training should focus on various aspects of HA and disaster response, including incident command, search and rescue techniques, medical response, communication and coordination, and logistics, while capacity building should involve public education campaigns to raise awareness and promote individual and community preparedness. There is also a need to regularly conduct exercises of various types: orientation and workshops, tabletop exercises, functional, full scale, and no-notice to ensure a strong system. Lessons learned fro these exercises should be recorded and used to review, evaluate, and modify plans.

Framework for Comprehensive Disaster Management:  Whole-of-Society Approach

DoDMA coordinates humanitarian responses across the country to both natural and man-made disasters. Comprehensive Disaster Management should deal with the dangers that occur before, during, and after the disaster. In this regard, awareness is key to disaster risk management.   More sustained efforts are required to come up with deliberate strategies and action plans to preparedness, response, recovery, and mitigation of disasters. DoDMA should not only focus on natural disasters but also man-made disasters, which we must deal with holistically. The country needs a whole-of-society approach for comprehensive disaster management. The country has also experienced man-made disasters including environmental degradation, pollution, and road accidents. Whether natural or man-made, disasters cause death and suffering such that their risk must be managed with the same zeal and attention. The Ministries of Forestry, Education, Energy, Health, Agriculture, and Transport, Water and Sanitation, Local Government, among others, are key stakeholders in comprehensive disaster management. DoDMA should build upon local capacities and complement local response mechanisms, contributing to preparedness for possible future disasters and strengthening long-term resilience.

Effective Response

Disaster response is the provision of emergency services and public assistance during or immediately after a disaster to save lives, reduce health impacts, ensure public safety, and meet the basic subsistence needs of the people affected. Disaster response and coordination are critical components of effective management of disaster in Malawi. Timely and well-coordinated response efforts can save lives and minimize damages. The important ingredients of an effective response system are integrated all-level institutional arrangements, a safe communication system, rapid evacuation of threatened communities, quick deployment of specialised response forces and coordination and synergy among various agencies at various levels in dealing with any disaster. There must also be clear understanding by all agencies and their functionaries of their roles and responsibilities and specific actions in response efforts.   Responders should have a proper understanding of the humanitarian principles which provide guidance towards the provision of humanitarian assistance to the affected population. Responders should respect the dignity of all people affected by disasters, including their meaningful involvement in decisions that affect their lives and livelihoods.

Division of Labour and Understanding Each Other’s Roles and Responsibilities

DoDMA plays central role in coordinating emergency response efforts at the national level with MDAs such as:  Malawi Red Cross Society, Department of Fire Service, and security agencies. These agencies have specific responsibilities and expertise in different aspects of DRM, such as:  search and rescue, emergency medical response, firefighting, and law enforcement. To achieve synergy, there is need to improve the participation of and coordination among stakeholders in disaster risk management.  Pre-disaster planning and preparedness will create the synergies necessary to achieve the desired outcomes.

Effective Coordination and Effective Communication

Effective coordination among different response agencies and effective communication are essential to ensure the timely deployment of search and rescue (SAR) teams and maximise their effectiveness. Effective communication can help people stay informed, make informed decisions, and coordinate their actions during a crisis.

Working with Local Communities

The local government has the key role of first responder. Local community leaders and volunteers also play a significant role in coordinating humanitarian assistance and disaster response at the grassroots levels. Local communities act as intermediaries between affected communities and response agencies. They provide local knowledge and support and facilitate communication and cooperation and strengthen community engagement. The country should work on strategies at the community level to improve grassroots peoples’ knowledge of disaster risks.  

 Damages Assessment

Assessment of damages and need is crucial in informing the priorities for local response and identifying the needs for humanitarian assistance, including resource allocation. In addition, damage assessment helps in prioritising recovery and identifying future mitigation projects and prevention plans. The damage assessment process is, therefore, critical for strengthening the disaster risk management system. Stakeholders should ensure accurate and comprehensive data collection through evaluating infrastructure damage, especially critical infrastructure, assessing the impact on livelihoods and essential services, and identifying the needs of affected populations, particularly vulnerable groups.

Recovery and Rehabilitation

Recovery is the restoration and improvement where appropriate, of facilities, livelihoods and living conditions of disaster-affected communities, including efforts to reduce disaster risk fact. Recovery must be based on a holistic lesson-learned framework in order to facilitate building back better. After an emergency or disaster, a thorough assessment of damages and needs should be conducted to understand the extent of destruction and identify the requirements for recovery. Recovery and rehabilitation are integral components of humanitarian assistance and disaster response. These include livelihood support and economic recovery, community engagement and participation, infrastructure restoration and rebuilding, international support, and funding. Livelihood support and economic recovery in humanitarian assistance and disaster response involve providing financial assistance, vocational training, access to credit, support for entrepreneurship and small businesses, and help affected populations regain self-sufficiency, reduce dependency on external aid, and stimulate local economic growth. Supporting the restoration of livelihoods and promoting economic recovery is crucial for the long-term stability of affected communities.

Recommendations to Enhance Comprehensive Disaster Management

Comprehensive disaster management leads to more effective response and better protection of its communities. Implementing comprehensive disaster management measures requires strong political will, collaboration among stakeholders, and long-term planning and commitment.  To enhance comprehensive disaster management in Malawi, there is a need to:

1. Develop a national disaster risk management framework to set standards on how to prepare, respond, recover, and mitigate disasters. Ensure the framework provides the freedom and flexibility for local contextualisation. Generally, Government should improve governance systems and procedures in disaster risk management.  Operationalisation and subsequent aligning and mainstreaming of the new Disaster Management Act would go a long way in facilitating disaster risk management.

• Formulate Policy and enact legislation on firefighting and emergency response in Malawi. Arson being a prevalent offence in Malawi. Fire has been commonplace in Malawi and has ravaged properties including crowded market. Yet, the country does not yet have a law relating to fire and rescue services to provide a mandate and outline the roles and responsibilities of fighter fighters nationally and from a local government perspective.

• Technology Integration:  including the use of advanced data analytics, remote sensing, geographic information systems, and Artificial intelligence.  These would improve planning and preparedness, risk and threat assessment, early warning systems, and decision-making in coordinating response efforts during disasters.

• Climate Change Adaptation: including incorporating climate resilience and risk reduction strategies into infrastructure planning, land-use management, community development, building climate-resilient infrastructure and promoting sustainable practices. These would improve risk assessment, early warning systems, and decision-making in coordinating response efforts during disasters in Malawi.

• Community Resilience and Empowerment:  including engaging communities in decision-making, planning and response efforts, empowering them with the knowledge and skills to mitigate risks and respond effectively during emergencies. Through these, participatory approaches, community-based disaster management committees, and early warning systems that involve local communities will enhance the overall resilience and response capacity at the grassroots level.

• Strengthening the Framework for Comprehensive disaster management: Comprehensive Disaster Management requires a community-based disaster risk management by actively engaging the at-risk communities in identifying, analysing, treating, monitoring, and evaluation of disaster risks in order to reduce their vulnerabilities and enhance their capacities.

• Building Capacity for Disaster Management: Government should enhance institutional capacity building. This should include building infrastructure such transportation equipment, communication systems, and healthcare facilities to handle large-scale emergencies and disasters including provision of Air Ambulance to cater for avalanche of emergencies across the country. Generally, government should increase investment and resource allocation in comprehensive disaster management initiatives.

• Improve Local Engagement: As the first responder, it is imperative to empower local government to respond to disasters and the national government to provide support. This will require establishing standards and guidelines that move disaster risk management to a comprehensive system that emphasises all phases: preparedness, response, recovery and mitigation.

1. Institutionalise Public Awareness and Education: Institutionalise public awareness, including a fire awareness campaign. Stakeholders should improve research, learning, knowledge and information management in disaster risk management. Institutions of higher learning should be incentivised to conduct and publish research on various elements of Malawi’s disaster risk management.  

• Provide Training for Emergency Medical Technicians: Inadequate training and capacity building is a hindrance to effective conduct of disaster response and humanitarian assistance in Malawi. The development of a staff cadre that is composed of Malawi government employees and those working for NGOs as long-term residents of Malawi will allow for continuity of operations and the development of a resilient system.

11.  Develop local and national government emergency operations centre (EOC) management criteria: This includes developing access procedures. For example, a check-in and check-out process of EOC personnel.  Utilize an identification card printer to provide temporary identification cards to all staff working in the EOC. Develop an incident management system that will include guidelines on qualification, credentialing, and training requirements of EOC personnel. Maintain an electronic database of all staff assigned to the EOC, which is used to verify any individual reporting to the EOC. Develop criteria for activation and deactivation of the EOC.

12. Strengthen relationships with regional partners and organizations to share best standards and practices in the southern Africa region. Conduct regional exercises especially for disasters that are common in many countries. Develop and agree on mutual-aid assistance especially for search and rescue and material support. Develop a personnel exchange program to facilitate the transfer of knowledge within the region.

*Commandant of the National Defence College, serving with the rank of Brigadier General in the Malawi Defence Force.

**Independent Emergency Management Expert, member of the International Association of Emergency Management and holds a Master of Public Administration specialising in Emergency Management.

*** Chief Disaster Resilience Officer, Department of Disaster Management Affairs (DoDMA), Malawi.

**** Research Fellow, National Defence College, Malawi. Captain, Malawi Defence Force.

[1] The National Defence College (NDC) is an institution of higher learning established by the Malawi Defence to develop strategic leaders with skills to understand the strategic context and address contemporary and emerging security challenges. See National Defence College Malawi, https://ndc.mw.

[2]The International Federation of Red Cross and Red Crescent Societies (IFRC), World Disasters Report 2022 https://www.ifrc.org/sites/default/files/2023-01/20230130_2022_WDR_DataAnnex.pdf 

[3]      Malawi is highly vulnerable to the impacts of disasters given its location along the great African Rift Valley, rapid population growth, unsustainable urbanisation, poor settlement patterns, weak buildings/infrastructure, lack of access to information and knowledge, climate variability and environmental degradation.

[4] United Nations Development Programme, “Sustainable Development Goals,” https://www.undp.org/sustainable-development-goals. (accessed 12 December 2023).

[5] Caribbean Diaster Emergency Management Agency, “Comprehensive Disaster Management ,” https://www.cdema.org/cdm.

[6] United Nations Economic Commission for Europe (UNECE), “Sendai Framework,” https://unece.org/Sendai-framework. (accessed 12 December 2023).

[7] The implementation of policies to reduce greenhouse gas emissions and enhance sinks (human or natural processes or activities which remove greenhouse gases from the atmosphere).

[8] Malawi Government, “The Malawi Growth and Development Strategy (MGDS) III (2017-2022),” https://malawi.un.org/sites/default/.

[9] The Department of Disaster Management Affairs, “The Directorate of Disaster Response and Recovery,” https://dodma/gov/mw.

[10] Raymond Misomali and Maona Ngwira, “Cyclone Freddy EOC Activation: After Action Review” 11.

[11] Kissa Kadaluka. “Search and Rescue,” Presentation at the Comprehensive Disaster Management Course .

[12] Prince Bright Majiga Disaster Early Warning and Early Response Systems. Towards People-Centred Warning and Response Systems in Malawi. Presentation at the Comprehensive Disaster Management Course.

[13] A set of capacities needed to generate and disseminate timely and meaningful warning information to enable individuals, communities and organizations threatened by a hazard to prepare and to act appropriately and in sufficient time to reduce the possibility of harm or loss.”

[14]International Strategy for Disaster Reduction, “Platform for the Promotion of Early Warning,” www.unisdr.org/2006/ppew.