The current situation in our region, in which we share common hazards, presents an opportunity for joint work.
The concept of civil protection appeared in Europe in the early 1980s and was followed by the introduction of two parallel disaster initiatives in France and Italy. Later, the European Union launched the European Civil Protection Mechanism, and only recently the #RescEU program. In its simplest form, the goal of civil protection is to minimize the impact of catastrophic events. Civil protection concerns society, citizens, their property and the environment. From a European perspective, civil protection is a wider issue with global repercussions.
The Philia Forum in Athens; the Paphos Meeting 2021; the trilateral treaty of Israel, Cyprus and Greece and conclusions of the Med 7 meeting made direct or indirect references to social security and the need for the creation of a positive agenda as a common issue for the region. These meetings came as natural outcomes of the declarations of tripartite and multilateral cooperations in the region.
In the recent fire in Cyprus, there were (through the European Civil Protection Mechanism) firefighting airplanes from Greece. There were also firefighting airplanes from Israel. There was also an offer from Egypt to provide air assistance.
Disasters know no borders. The explosion in the Port of Beirut was heard loud and clear throughout Cyprus. Lessons learned from the Mount Carmel fires were a basis for the discussion on the reorganization of Cyprus’s firefighting capacity. The global pandemic and its serious consequences have once again demonstrated that inherent dangers of our increasingly complex and interconnected world pose significant problems in the implementation of fundamental social functions.
As disasters have been and will always be a part of our lives, the way societies respond to them is, certainly, crucial. However, the outcome of such disasters, preparing for their possible occurrence and mitigating their possible effects, are matters that exceed the narrow boundaries of a state. In these difficult times, higher-level problem-solving initiatives can provide practical solutions. Changes imposed on the ground by the climate crisis are relentless. Regional initiatives can provide the support needed in times of crisis.
Traditional, innovative and hybrid man-made and natural disasters will continue to occur, increasing disaster management costs and the need for “creative solutions,” especially for smaller states. These disasters, combined with the dangers posed by the pandemic, demonstrate that societal safety and national security are becoming an absolute necessity. There is a clear shift in priorities from the past.
Regional cooperation can provide this support mechanism.
Conditions are mature. A regional structure for societal safety, disaster reduction and prevention can be the catalyst for the creation of a regional network of government agencies, research groups, universities and research organizations interested in promoting civil protection and societal safety. This forum should have political, business and academic circles that feed into each other.
It is also of utmost importance to promote collaboration schemes between private and governmental organizations (in the spirit of the Sendai Framework for Disaster Risk Reduction) that will provide disaster resilience. Such schemes, integrated in a regional context, will be another vehicle for cooperation, even where politically this is difficult. There is a need for switching the current model.
Civil protection can be a bridge of cooperation between the countries of our region. It can also be a catalyst for the development of a positive agenda in our region.
Societal safety is enhanced by solidarity. Effective civil protection requires partnerships and formal agreements based on a shared understanding of risk, a sense of solidarity and the need to exchange relevant knowledge.
The author is a professor in risk assessment at the School of Sciences, European University Cyprus. He is a director at CERIDES – Excellence in Innovation and Technology, and editor in chief of Safety Science (Elsevier).