<?xml version="1.0" encoding="UTF-8"?><xml><records><record><source-app name="Biblio" version="7.x">Drupal-Biblio</source-app><ref-type>27</ref-type><contributors><authors><author><style face="normal" font="default" size="100%">Georgi Tzvetkov</style></author><author><style face="normal" font="default" size="100%">Philip Spassov</style></author><author><style face="normal" font="default" size="100%">Vesselin Petkov</style></author><author><style face="normal" font="default" size="100%">Todor Tagarev</style></author></authors></contributors><titles><title><style face="normal" font="default" size="100%">Albania: Capabilities, Organisations, Policies, and Legislation in crisis management and disaster response</style></title><secondary-title><style face="normal" font="default" size="100%">IT4Sec Reports</style></secondary-title></titles><keywords><keyword><style  face="normal" font="default" size="100%">Albania</style></keyword><keyword><style  face="normal" font="default" size="100%">Civil Security</style></keyword><keyword><style  face="normal" font="default" size="100%">disaster preparedness</style></keyword><keyword><style  face="normal" font="default" size="100%">disaster response</style></keyword><keyword><style  face="normal" font="default" size="100%">National Civil Emergency Plan</style></keyword><keyword><style  face="normal" font="default" size="100%">SEEDRMAP</style></keyword></keywords><dates><year><style  face="normal" font="default" size="100%">2015</style></year><pub-dates><date><style  face="normal" font="default" size="100%">June 2015</style></date></pub-dates></dates><number><style face="normal" font="default" size="100%">120</style></number><publisher><style face="normal" font="default" size="100%">Institute of Information and Communication Technologies</style></publisher><pub-location><style face="normal" font="default" size="100%">Sofia</style></pub-location><language><style face="normal" font="default" size="100%">eng</style></language><abstract><style face="normal" font="default" size="100%">Albania has a total area of 28,748 km2. It shares a border with Montenegro to the northwest, with Kosovo to the northeast, with Macedonia to the north and east, and with Greece to the south and southeast. It has a coastline around 476 km long. Albania is divided into 12 regions (qarks), 36 districts, 375 municipalities and communes, which are the basic units of local self-government.

The four main hazards affecting Albania are forest fires, floods, earthquakes and snowstorms. Among other hazards available assessments make reference to landslides, drought, epidemics, avalanches, tsunami, technological hazards, dam burst and storms.

The national crisis management framework consists of three levels – national, regional and local. At national level, the Council of Ministers leads and governs the national system of civil emergency management in Albania, with the main role played by the General Directorate of Civil Emergencies in the Ministry of Interior.

Prefects in the qarks (regions) are responsible for planning and coping with civil emergencies at qark (regional) level. A Commission of Planning and Responding to Civil Emergencies is established in each qark with the task to coordinate activities of the qark authorities and volunteer organisations for planning and coping with emergency. Accordingly, the mayor or the head of commune is responsible for planning and responding to civil emergencies in the respective municipality or commune (local) level. Under the chairmanship of the mayor or the head of commune, a Commission of Planning and Responding with Civil Emergencies is established, and its main task is to coordinate all activities of the local government unit and volunteer organisations, responsible for planning and responding to emergencies.

The principal operational forces or active structures in Albania are comprised of the Armed Forces; Directorate of Fire Protection and Rescue (PMNZZH); the Ambulance Service; the State Police and other Police units; Directorate of State Reserves; Units specialised in mines and technical response; Monitoring and operational supportive structures.

Earlier data show that in normal times the human resources dedicated to crisis management include the following: app. 450 personnel, including the employed in civil protection at qark level (app. 50) and personnel employed in civil protection at commune or district level. Involvement of private companies and volunteers is limited to app. 500 of active personnel.
</style></abstract></record><record><source-app name="Biblio" version="7.x">Drupal-Biblio</source-app><ref-type>27</ref-type><contributors><authors><author><style face="normal" font="default" size="100%">Philip Spassov</style></author></authors></contributors><titles><title><style face="normal" font="default" size="100%">Estonia: Capabilities, Organisations, Policies, and Legislation in crisis management and disaster response</style></title><secondary-title><style face="normal" font="default" size="100%">IT4Sec Reports</style></secondary-title></titles><keywords><keyword><style  face="normal" font="default" size="100%">centralisation</style></keyword><keyword><style  face="normal" font="default" size="100%">Civil Security</style></keyword><keyword><style  face="normal" font="default" size="100%">disaster preparedness</style></keyword><keyword><style  face="normal" font="default" size="100%">disaster response</style></keyword><keyword><style  face="normal" font="default" size="100%">Estonia</style></keyword><keyword><style  face="normal" font="default" size="100%">Ministry of Interior</style></keyword><keyword><style  face="normal" font="default" size="100%">niche capabilities</style></keyword></keywords><dates><year><style  face="normal" font="default" size="100%">2015</style></year><pub-dates><date><style  face="normal" font="default" size="100%">June 2015</style></date></pub-dates></dates><number><style face="normal" font="default" size="100%">124</style></number><publisher><style face="normal" font="default" size="100%">Institute of Information and Communication Technologies</style></publisher><pub-location><style face="normal" font="default" size="100%">Sofia</style></pub-location><language><style face="normal" font="default" size="100%">eng</style></language><abstract><style face="normal" font="default" size="100%">The Estonian crisis management system is based on measures that can be taken in order to protect human life, property and the environment during civil emergencies. In Estonia the highest authority responsible for emergency and disaster management is the Ministry of Interior. It is responsible for policy formulation and its execution in the area of civil security. At regional level county governors are directly responsible to the Minister of the Interior for crisis management matters. The county governor is the highest crisis management authority at regional level. At local level the main body responsible for civil protection is the local government council which has established the local crisis management committee chaired by the mayor.

The Estonian Rescue Board is directly subordinate to the Ministry of Interior and has a key role in representing Estonia in various international forums such as the UN, EU and NATO and other relevant civil security organisations. Another national government institution under the authority of the Ministry of Interior is the Emergency Response Centre responsible for processing emergency calls to the emergency 112 number and sending out rescue teams to the place of the emergency.

As in the other Baltic Region States the organisational structure is centralised, i.e. coordinated and mostly organised by the central national civil protection authority, as is the case with Estonia, Latvia, Lithuania. Additionally, the use of private rescue services is low in the Baltic Countries. 

The Defence Forces could be deployed in response of crisis or disaster, but in cases where all the other crisis management capabilities of the state have been exhausted or where the required resources or capabilities are only available to the Defence Forces. 

The civil protection expenditures are approximately 0.6% of GDP of Estonia.

The most important non-profit and volunteer organisations in Estonia are regarded the Red Cross, the Estonian Volunteer Fire-Fighters Union, the Estonian Association of Fire and Rescue Chiefs, and the Estonian Life Saving Association and Defence League, who have also been given the task of assisting in rescue work.

The main regulative framework for civil protection and emergencies is defined by the Emergency Act and the Rescue Act of Estonia. 

The National Security Concept of the Republic of Estonia is a key document that establishes the objectives, principles and directions of security policy. The National Security Concept highlights crisis management as one of the essentially important tasks. Another important conceptual document is the Strategy of the Estonian Rescue Board 2015-2025 which plans the Board’s activities in a ten year timeframe. 

The systems for training in the field of civil protection are quite different in the Baltic region, however they share some basic features. Education in civil protection and rescue has a legal foundation in all of the Baltic Region countries. Basic and advanced education at the national level is standardised through the use of certificates, as well as the development of educational and training curricula. All of the Baltic region states have specialised schools and colleges which carry out education in civil protection and rescue area. 

Estonia has signed regional and multilateral provisions of the Council of Europe, the EU, the NATO and the OSCE for assistance in crisis situations. Estonia is also an active initiator in the field of maritime cooperation and of strategic and operational dialogue among the Baltic Sea countries. 

Potential niche capability in which Estonia could realistically contribute to the European crisis management community is the development of software solutions in the cyber defence and the programming of autonomous platforms and systems field of expertise. Estonia could provide software solutions and expertise from which EU member states could benefit and establish new ways for cooperation in the cyber security field.</style></abstract></record><record><source-app name="Biblio" version="7.x">Drupal-Biblio</source-app><ref-type>27</ref-type><contributors><authors><author><style face="normal" font="default" size="100%">Vesselin Petkov</style></author><author><style face="normal" font="default" size="100%">Todor Tagarev</style></author></authors></contributors><titles><title><style face="normal" font="default" size="100%">Hungary: Capabilities, Organisations, Policies, and Legislation in crisis management and disaster response</style></title><secondary-title><style face="normal" font="default" size="100%">IT4Sec Reports</style></secondary-title></titles><keywords><keyword><style  face="normal" font="default" size="100%">disaster preparedness</style></keyword><keyword><style  face="normal" font="default" size="100%">disaster response</style></keyword><keyword><style  face="normal" font="default" size="100%">Hungary</style></keyword><keyword><style  face="normal" font="default" size="100%">Kolontar</style></keyword><keyword><style  face="normal" font="default" size="100%">structural reform</style></keyword><keyword><style  face="normal" font="default" size="100%">three-pillar disaster management system</style></keyword></keywords><dates><year><style  face="normal" font="default" size="100%">2015</style></year><pub-dates><date><style  face="normal" font="default" size="100%">June 2015</style></date></pub-dates></dates><number><style face="normal" font="default" size="100%">127</style></number><publisher><style face="normal" font="default" size="100%">Institute of Information and Communication Technologies</style></publisher><pub-location><style face="normal" font="default" size="100%">Sofia</style></pub-location><language><style face="normal" font="default" size="100%">eng</style></language><abstract><style face="normal" font="default" size="100%">• Hungary is a landlocked country in Central Europe with a territory of slightly over 93 thousand square kilometres. It has boundaries, shared with Austria to the west, Serbia, Croatia and Slovenia to the south and southwest, Romania to the southeast, Ukraine to the northeast, and Slovakia to the north. The country is crossed by rivers Danube and Tisza, which are navigable 418 and 444 kilometres, respectively. 
• The crisis management system in Hungary has been under significant pressure in the last years, which revealed weakness and vulnerabilities to be addressed through policies and actions. Numerous disasters – from the notorious red sludge spill, via floods, to storms and droughts – made it evident that a profound reform of the Hungarian crisis management and disaster response architecture was needed.
• A new disaster management law was adopted in 2011 (in force since 1 January 2012), laying the foundations of a system in which professional disaster management service cooperates closely with obliged and volunteer civil protection structures. As put by the law, disaster management has been named a national cause.
• The National Directorate General for Disaster Management (NDGDM) within the Ministry of Interior is the national authority for disaster management. As of 1 January 2012 a new organisational structure of the NDGDM was introduced, which has been built on three pillars: civil protection, fire protection and industrial safety, with the National Inspectorate General of Fire Services, the National Inspectorate General of Civil Protection and the National Inspectorate General of Industrial Safety constructing the backbone of the NDGDM.
• The Disaster Management Governmental Coordination Committee (DMGCC) is an inter-agency coordination body ensuring consistency between sectors. At county and local level, protection committees are in place to concert disaster management.
• From an operational perspective, the central structures for disaster management at the county and local level include 20 county directorates for disaster management, their subordinated offices for disaster management, the professional dire departments and the municipal fire departments.</style></abstract></record><record><source-app name="Biblio" version="7.x">Drupal-Biblio</source-app><ref-type>27</ref-type><contributors><authors><author><style face="normal" font="default" size="100%">Philip Spassov</style></author><author><style face="normal" font="default" size="100%">Vesselin Petkov</style></author></authors></contributors><titles><title><style face="normal" font="default" size="100%">Latvia: Capabilities, Organisations, Policies, and Legislation in crisis management and disaster response</style></title><secondary-title><style face="normal" font="default" size="100%">IT4Sec Reports</style></secondary-title></titles><keywords><keyword><style  face="normal" font="default" size="100%">centralisation</style></keyword><keyword><style  face="normal" font="default" size="100%">Civil protection</style></keyword><keyword><style  face="normal" font="default" size="100%">disaster preparedness</style></keyword><keyword><style  face="normal" font="default" size="100%">disaster response</style></keyword><keyword><style  face="normal" font="default" size="100%">Latvia</style></keyword><keyword><style  face="normal" font="default" size="100%">Ministry of Interior</style></keyword><keyword><style  face="normal" font="default" size="100%">State Fire and Rescue Service</style></keyword></keywords><dates><year><style  face="normal" font="default" size="100%">2015</style></year><pub-dates><date><style  face="normal" font="default" size="100%">June 2015</style></date></pub-dates></dates><number><style face="normal" font="default" size="100%">125</style></number><publisher><style face="normal" font="default" size="100%">Institute of Information and Communication Technologies</style></publisher><pub-location><style face="normal" font="default" size="100%">Sofia</style></pub-location><language><style face="normal" font="default" size="100%">eng</style></language><abstract><style face="normal" font="default" size="100%">Latvia is a Parliamentary republic where the President is the Head of State. The President is elected by the Parliament (Saeima). The Government, or the Cabinet of Ministers, is appointed by the President, approved by the Parliament and led by the Prime Minister. There is no regional government level as territorially Latvia is divided into 109 rural municipalities and 9 cities under state jurisdiction. These two main types of municipalities are led by municipal council.

The National Security Concept is a strategic document based on analysis of national threat stating principles for prevention of threats, priorities and measures, which must be taken into account when executing new political planning documents, legislative enactments and action plans in the area of national security. The priorities determined in the Concept provide the basis for the development of the National Security Plan by the Cabinet of Ministers.

As in the other Baltic Region States the organisational structure is centralised, i.e. coordinated and mostly organised by the central national civil protection authority, as is the case with Estonia, Latvia, Lithuania. Additionally, the use of private rescue services is low in the Baltic Countries. 

The Prime Minister has the responsibility for the continuous function of the operation of the crisis management system and for the implementation of the related tasks and obligations. The State Fire and Rescue Service, an organisation directly subordinated to the Ministry of Interior, plans, coordinates, leads and controls the civil protection operations. The State Fire and Rescue Service has significant responsibility for crisis management at national level.

At local level the municipal authorities are responsible for establishing and managing the Civil Protection Commission of the municipalities and cities. The Commission coordinates civil protection measures in crisis situations in their respective administrative territories.

The civil protection framework of Latvia foresees the involvement of military forces in support of civil authorities during peacetime emergencies. Latvian Ministry of Foreign Affairs is responsible for the cooperation with the European Union as it implements and coordinates the state external security policy. Cross-border and international collaboration is also organised through the Monitoring and Information Centre operated by the European Commission.

The systems for training in the field of civil protection are quite different in the Baltic region; however they share some basic features. Education in civil protection and rescue has a legal foundation in all of the Baltic Region countries. Basic and advanced education at the national level is standardised through the use of certificates, as well as the development of educational and training curricula. All of the Baltic region states have specialised schools and colleges which carry out education in civil protection and rescue area. 

Potential niche capability that could be filled by Latvia and represent interest to EU crisis management structures is the development of single crisis information systems. The Latvian civil security institutions are looking to improve cooperation in the field of crisis management as they are exploiting new ways for cooperation for the creation of a unified national information system.</style></abstract></record><record><source-app name="Biblio" version="7.x">Drupal-Biblio</source-app><ref-type>27</ref-type><contributors><authors><author><style face="normal" font="default" size="100%">Philip Spassov</style></author><author><style face="normal" font="default" size="100%">Todor Tagarev</style></author></authors></contributors><titles><title><style face="normal" font="default" size="100%">Lithuania: Capabilities, Organisations, Policies, and Legislation in crisis management and disaster response</style></title><secondary-title><style face="normal" font="default" size="100%">IT4Sec Reports</style></secondary-title></titles><keywords><keyword><style  face="normal" font="default" size="100%">centralised organisation</style></keyword><keyword><style  face="normal" font="default" size="100%">Civil protection</style></keyword><keyword><style  face="normal" font="default" size="100%">crisis management structures</style></keyword><keyword><style  face="normal" font="default" size="100%">disaster preparedness</style></keyword><keyword><style  face="normal" font="default" size="100%">disaster response</style></keyword><keyword><style  face="normal" font="default" size="100%">Lithuania</style></keyword></keywords><dates><year><style  face="normal" font="default" size="100%">2015</style></year><pub-dates><date><style  face="normal" font="default" size="100%">June 2015</style></date></pub-dates></dates><number><style face="normal" font="default" size="100%">126</style></number><publisher><style face="normal" font="default" size="100%">Institute of Information and Communication Technologies</style></publisher><pub-location><style face="normal" font="default" size="100%">Sofia</style></pub-location><language><style face="normal" font="default" size="100%">eng</style></language><abstract><style face="normal" font="default" size="100%">As in the other Baltic Region States the organisational structure is centralised, i.e. coordinated and mostly organised by the central national civil protection authority, as is the case with Estonia, Latvia, Lithuania. Additionally, the use of private rescue services is low in the Baltic Countries. 
 
The National Security Strategy establishes the basic goals and means of the national security policy. The aim of the Lithuanian National Security Strategy is to provide a vision of the state’s development, its national interests and the necessary actions for their implementation. 

The civil security system and the civil protection system of Lithuania is comprised by the Government, the state and municipal institutions, economic entities, public organisations, civil protection forces such as fire and rescue, police, state border guard, medical services, public security service, state food and agriculture service, other emergency services, forces of economic entities, volunteers, the emergency commissions and emergency operation centres. 

The management of civil protection in Lithuania is organised in three levels - national, regional (county) and local (municipal). At national level, the Government, the Government Emergency Commission, the Emergency Management Centre, the Ministry of National Defence, the Civil Protection Department, the State Fire Prevention and Rescue Service, Ministries, and other public authorities are the main stakeholders entitled to make strategic decisions on the implementation of civil protection measures.

At county level, administrations of county governors, county civil protection departments, and county emergency management centres are responsible for organising and ensuring preparedness for emergencies as well as for assisting when necessary in their relief. 

At municipal level, mayors of municipalities, civil protection departments, civil protection personnel, municipal emergency management centres, fire protection, search and rescue services, warning and information, evacuation, civil protection services and economic entities are responsible for organising preparedness for emergency situations and when required mitigate their effect.

International cooperation in Lithuania in the field of crisis management is coordinated by the Fire and Rescue Department, which is subordinated to the Ministry of Interior. Individual ministries and other state civil security institutions also participate in international civil protection activities.

Crisis management institutions part of the civil protection and rescue system, Training Centre, other educational institutions of civil protection as well as the forces of the civil protection and rescue system are financed by the state budget, while the economic entities are financed from their own resources. 

The systems for training in the field of civil protection are quite different in the Baltic region, however they share some basic features. Education in civil protection and rescue has a legal foundation in all of the Baltic Region countries. Basic and advanced education at the national level is standardised through the use of certificates, as well as the development of educational and training curricula. All of the Baltic region states have specialised schools and colleges which carry out education in civil protection and rescue area.  
</style></abstract></record><record><source-app name="Biblio" version="7.x">Drupal-Biblio</source-app><ref-type>27</ref-type><contributors><authors><author><style face="normal" font="default" size="100%">Valeri Ratchev</style></author></authors></contributors><titles><title><style face="normal" font="default" size="100%">Montenegro: Capabilities, Organisations, Policies, and Legislation in crisis management and disaster response</style></title><secondary-title><style face="normal" font="default" size="100%">IT4Sec Reports</style></secondary-title></titles><keywords><keyword><style  face="normal" font="default" size="100%">Directorate for Emergency Management</style></keyword><keyword><style  face="normal" font="default" size="100%">disaster preparedness</style></keyword><keyword><style  face="normal" font="default" size="100%">disaster response</style></keyword><keyword><style  face="normal" font="default" size="100%">legislative base</style></keyword><keyword><style  face="normal" font="default" size="100%">Montenegro</style></keyword></keywords><dates><year><style  face="normal" font="default" size="100%">2015</style></year><pub-dates><date><style  face="normal" font="default" size="100%">June 2015</style></date></pub-dates></dates><number><style face="normal" font="default" size="100%">122</style></number><publisher><style face="normal" font="default" size="100%">Institute of Information and Communication Technologies</style></publisher><pub-location><style face="normal" font="default" size="100%">Sofia</style></pub-location><language><style face="normal" font="default" size="100%">eng</style></language><abstract><style face="normal" font="default" size="100%">Despite its relatively small territory and size of population, Montenegro is highly exposed and vulnerable to natural hazards. The country has to address primarily earthquakes, wild fires and hydro-meteorological phenomena such as floods, droughts, heat waves, and heavy snowfall. Of particular concern are the frequent landslides and rock falls linked to the country’s mountainous terrain.

As most of the other former Yugoslavia countries, Montenegro’s authorities have been developing the national civil protection system since 2006 on what remained from the federal institutions, applying modern global and European practices and standards. Gradually, the civil protection mechanism has moved away from the former “civil defence.” In result, the country’s framework on civil protection and disaster relief is not contained in a single formal document. However, in terms of legal arrangements and policy statements, the harmonisation with international norms and standards is relatively successful. 

At the policy level, the National Strategy for Emergency Situations defines the risks and responsibilities of different state, local, and private authorities to deal with such. Directorate for Emergency Management has been established to implement mechanisms for prevention, preparedness and response. The Law on Rescue and Protection is the core legal act, supplemented by the Environment Law (1996), Law on Waters of (1995), Law on Protection against Natural Disasters (1992), Law on Protection of Air against Pollution (1980), and others. The principal political-managerial body on civil protection is the National Coordination, headed by the Prime Minister and the ministers are remaining members. The core administration of civil protection is provided by the Ministry of Interior and Administration (MoI).

Introduction of emergency regime is a right and obligation of the Parliament.

The civil protection concept is comprehensive and relatively well balanced among the state, the municipalities (21 in numbers), business, and private citizens. 

By way of comparison with best practices, the country’s civil protection framework does not require development of hazard-specific contingency plans. 

Montenegro is engaged in the Southeastern European international co-operation for risk reduction and disaster response. 
</style></abstract></record><record><source-app name="Biblio" version="7.x">Drupal-Biblio</source-app><ref-type>27</ref-type><contributors><authors><author><style face="normal" font="default" size="100%">Vesselin Petkov</style></author><author><style face="normal" font="default" size="100%">Todor Tagarev</style></author></authors></contributors><titles><title><style face="normal" font="default" size="100%">Poland: Capabilities, Organisations, Policies, and Legislation in crisis management and disaster response</style></title><secondary-title><style face="normal" font="default" size="100%">IT4Sec Reports</style></secondary-title></titles><keywords><keyword><style  face="normal" font="default" size="100%">disaster preparedness</style></keyword><keyword><style  face="normal" font="default" size="100%">disaster response</style></keyword><keyword><style  face="normal" font="default" size="100%">National Firefighting and Rescue System</style></keyword><keyword><style  face="normal" font="default" size="100%">Poland</style></keyword><keyword><style  face="normal" font="default" size="100%">Standing Operating Procedures</style></keyword></keywords><dates><year><style  face="normal" font="default" size="100%">2015</style></year><pub-dates><date><style  face="normal" font="default" size="100%">June 2015</style></date></pub-dates></dates><number><style face="normal" font="default" size="100%">119</style></number><publisher><style face="normal" font="default" size="100%">Institute of Information and Communication Technologies</style></publisher><pub-location><style face="normal" font="default" size="100%">Sofia</style></pub-location><language><style face="normal" font="default" size="100%">eng</style></language><abstract><style face="normal" font="default" size="100%">• Poland is a country in the eastern part of Central Europe with an area of almost 312 000 sq. km. Poland is an almost unbroken plain reaching from the Baltic Sea in the north, to the Carpathian Mountains in the south.
• The Polish crisis management system is a complex architecture which is still under construction. The heavy floods of 1997, 2001 and 2010 exposed significant shortcomings and prompted a series of legal and institutional reforms.
• In Poland, there is no single authority dealing with disaster management. The structure of the Polish emergency management has five levels: state, ministry (central government body), province (voivodeship), county (poviat) and district (commune, gmina).
• The national firefighting and rescue efforts are the pivotal part of the crisis management system of the country. The Chief Commandant of the State Fire Service, under the supervision of the Minister of the Interior, is the central body of the state administration responsible for the organisation and management of those activities.
• Several services and structures also support or make part of the wider Polish crisis management system, including (but not limited to): the Police; the Border Guard; the State Inspection for Environment Protection; the Institute for Meteorology and Water Management; the National Atomic Energy Agency; the mining rescue stations; the maritime search and rescue service; the naval rescue service; NGOs, e.g. Mountain Volunteer Rescue Service; Tatra Mountains Volunteer Rescue Service; Water Volunteer Rescue Service; Mazurian Rescue Service and others.
• The role of the private sector in the civil security system is limited, while NGOs are important and cooperate closely with the state institutions. The Volunteer Fire Service is the biggest part of the volunteer sector in Poland.</style></abstract></record><record><source-app name="Biblio" version="7.x">Drupal-Biblio</source-app><ref-type>27</ref-type><contributors><authors><author><style face="normal" font="default" size="100%">Valeri Ratchev</style></author><author><style face="normal" font="default" size="100%">Todor Tagarev</style></author><author><style face="normal" font="default" size="100%">Zlatogor Minchev</style></author></authors></contributors><titles><title><style face="normal" font="default" size="100%">Romania: Capabilities, Organisations, Policies, and Legislation in crisis management and disaster response</style></title><secondary-title><style face="normal" font="default" size="100%">IT4Sec Reports</style></secondary-title></titles><keywords><keyword><style  face="normal" font="default" size="100%">disaster preparedness</style></keyword><keyword><style  face="normal" font="default" size="100%">disaster response</style></keyword><keyword><style  face="normal" font="default" size="100%">Emergency Management Information System</style></keyword><keyword><style  face="normal" font="default" size="100%">National Emergency Management System</style></keyword><keyword><style  face="normal" font="default" size="100%">Romania</style></keyword></keywords><dates><year><style  face="normal" font="default" size="100%">2015</style></year><pub-dates><date><style  face="normal" font="default" size="100%">June 2015</style></date></pub-dates></dates><number><style face="normal" font="default" size="100%">121</style></number><publisher><style face="normal" font="default" size="100%">Institute of Information and Communication Technologies</style></publisher><pub-location><style face="normal" font="default" size="100%">Sofia</style></pub-location><language><style face="normal" font="default" size="100%">eng</style></language><abstract><style face="normal" font="default" size="100%">Romania is highly vulnerable to catastrophic natural disasters. Firstly, it is situated in a seismically active region and has a history of devastating and deadly earthquakes – the most affecting happened in Vrancea in 1977. Furthermore, the Bucharest area has experienced a number of tremors of varying intensities, and the probability that a severe and damaging earthquake will occur is high. However, Romania is also at risk by other natural and technological hazards. More specifically, the floods in 2010 revealing weaknesses of the civil protection system triggered some process of improving. Of the former group, floods, drought and heat/cold waves have been experienced frequently, while the most affecting example of a man-made disaster has been the accident at the Baia Mare gold processing plant, where, in 2000, 100 000 cubic meters of toxic waste water spilled out and flooded into the Danube River, affecting Romania, Hungary, Ukraine, Serbia and Bulgaria. 

The Romanian crisis management concept views civil protection as a public policy issue, and as a civil operation during which the military could provide support with both assets and people. Crisis management does not rely on a centralised structure, but is a result of the interaction of parallel architectures. The latter involve bodies and agencies dealing with particular risks, while the crisis management system-of-systems employs an all-hazard approach. The most significant developments within the crisis management domain took place in 2004, as well as after the 2007 accession to the European Union. 

The National Emergency Management System (NEMS) is a nationally owned mechanism of multiple stakeholders, which provides coordination and response in case of emergencies, and serves as an advocate for prevention and disaster risk reduction at different levels. It is organised at four levels (national/governmental, ministerial, county and local), with a particular coordination and communication role for the national-level authorities. The system is led by the Prime Minister, supported by the National Committee for Emergency Situations and having the Minister of Administration and Interior as a chief executive. The main executive administrative body is the General Inspectorate for Emergency Situations (GIES), which coordinates plans and operational activities in cases of natural and man-made emergency situations. Specific plans are prepared at all administrative levels. Funding is provided through the state and local budgets, though they are used mostly for post-disaster rehabilitation and less for preventive measures.

The role of the private sector in the civil security system is limited, while NGOs cooperate closely with the state institutions, mostly in the fields of education and training. The number of organised volunteers is about 130 000. Regulations require that everyone be prepared to take care of himself in the immediate aftermath of major disasters. Every family and company should develop its own emergency plan, stock its own emergency survival kit, and ensure that each family member or company employee is familiarised with emergency procedures and can take precautions to protect their personal safety. However, in general, the society is not well organised at a community level and expectations that disaster management is a state responsibility are widely spread.

After Romania’s EU accession in 2007, the country improved its cooperation with international actors and increased its efforts to make the crisis management system coherent with international (particularly the EU) context. Romania has increased its engagement in the work of committees and working groups dealing with the EU’s civil protection. Romania has activated the EU’s Monitoring and Information Centre (MIC)  several times and contributed to several MIC-coordinated interventions providing support to Greece, Georgia, Hungary, Moldova and Turkey. Bilateral agreements or protocols are signed with some of the Romania’s neighbours (Bulgaria, Hungary, and Moldova), as well with other European (Czech, Denmark, France, the Netherlands, and Turkey) and non-European countries (Azerbaijan and the USA –with FEMA and USTDA).

The Romanian capacity for emergency response includes several niche capabilities: pyrotechnical capabilities for drainage, controlled breaches, and detonation, for water purification and transportation and for marine de-pollution. Military cargo aircraft are also available in cases of emergencies at home and abroad (C-27J Spartan – 6, C-130 Hercules – 3, and An-26 Curl – 4).</style></abstract></record><record><source-app name="Biblio" version="7.x">Drupal-Biblio</source-app><ref-type>27</ref-type><contributors><authors><author><style face="normal" font="default" size="100%">Valeri Ratchev</style></author></authors></contributors><titles><title><style face="normal" font="default" size="100%">Slovenia: Capabilities, Organisations, Policies, and Legislation in crisis management and disaster response</style></title><secondary-title><style face="normal" font="default" size="100%">IT4Sec Reports</style></secondary-title></titles><keywords><keyword><style  face="normal" font="default" size="100%">Civil protection</style></keyword><keyword><style  face="normal" font="default" size="100%">disaster preparedness</style></keyword><keyword><style  face="normal" font="default" size="100%">disaster response</style></keyword><keyword><style  face="normal" font="default" size="100%">legislative base</style></keyword><keyword><style  face="normal" font="default" size="100%">resources</style></keyword><keyword><style  face="normal" font="default" size="100%">Slovenia</style></keyword></keywords><dates><year><style  face="normal" font="default" size="100%">2015</style></year><pub-dates><date><style  face="normal" font="default" size="100%">June 2015</style></date></pub-dates></dates><number><style face="normal" font="default" size="100%">123</style></number><publisher><style face="normal" font="default" size="100%">Institute of Information and Communication Technologies</style></publisher><pub-location><style face="normal" font="default" size="100%">Sofia</style></pub-location><language><style face="normal" font="default" size="100%">eng</style></language><abstract><style face="normal" font="default" size="100%">According to official reports, Slovenia is threatened by a variety of natural hazards, mostly earthquakes, floods, landslides, hail, storms, sleet, frost, and fire. The country has one nuclear power plant and a large industrial sector that operates dangerous substances – a potential source of ecological damages and catastrophic accidents.

The recent civil protection system has been constructed after 1992 by means of the adoption of a number of legislative acts and organisational reforms. The core characteristic of the civil protection system of Slovenia is that protection against natural and man-made disasters has been separated from the national defence system. This way, an integral and functionally unified system has been established based on common goals and principles. However, the main administrative and co-ordination structure for civil protection – Administration of the Republic of Slovenia for Civil Protection and Disaster Relief (ACPDR) is a constituent body of the Ministry of Defence.

Conceptually, the civil protection and rescue system is one of the three pillars of national security along with the defence system and the internal security system. However, “civil protection” in Slovenia is a relatively narrow concept which is common elsewhere in the EU. It includes very specific range of activities, commanding and co-ordinating bodies and specialised units for interventions and rescue in emergencies.

The system is built at three levels – national, regional and municipality. Functionally the focus is on regional capabilities and local authorities, supported by the state. Commercial entities, civil organisations and citizens have legally prescribed important functions for prevention, monitoring, alarming and responding to any extreme developments. Volunteering has a long lasting tradition in Slovenia.

Key civil protection stakeholders are the National Assembly, the Government, particular ministers, and the civil protection service that includes commanders, headquarters and heads of intervention and rescue units, and the local authorities. The administrative and specific expert tasks related to protection against natural and other disasters are carried out by the ACPDR, which is a multi-sectorial and coordinating body.

The units of the Slovenian Armed Forces and the Police are to carry out protection and rescue tasks related to their training and equipment. Their participation in protection and rescue operations is decided upon by the government and in emergency cases by the respective ministers at the request of the Commander of Civil Protection of the Republic of Slovenia.

Annually, Slovenia allocates approximately 0.5% of its national budget for civil protection while municipalities earmark 3% of their budgets. Protection against fire is partly financed from the fire fund, which is generated from a tax on fire insurance.</style></abstract></record></records></xml>