Disaster Risk Reduction & ASB in Georgia

INTERVIEW

Arbeiter-Samariter-Bund (ASB) was launched in Georgia back in 1992 as an organization providing humanitarian aid to the country. In 2010, it changed its scope and began focusing more on assisting Georgia’s IDP population, supporting social enterprises and social services in the country, and launching an Inclusive Disaster Risk Reduction project (IDRR). GEORGIA TODAY spoke with Karl Koester, ASB Georgia Director, to find out more about the organization, the IDRR project concept, and the activities ASB has implemented within the project framework to date.

“Arbeiter-Samariter-Bund (ASB) worked in the area of humanitarian assistance until 1997, and then we pulled out and re-emerged in 2010 with a different focus to meet the needs of the time. Since 2010, we’ve been working on disaster risk reduction with a special focus on inclusive disaster risk reduction, strengthening social services, and working with the Georgian Samaritan Association (SSK), which we support with our office and staff, although they are an independent organization.”

TELL US MORE

Besides the Disaster Risk Reduction (DRR) program, we would also be prepared to do emergency disaster programs, but that only happens when there’s an emergency! Another main pillar of our organization’s activity in Georgia is the supporting and strengthening of social services through the establishment of social enterprises- anything to do with the elderly, the disabled, or the marginalized. We also have a project to re-socialize prisoners and run inclusive programs for children in day care centers.

TELL US ABOUT THE DISASTER RISK REDUCTION PROJECT YOU’RE IMPLEMENTING

Our DRR project has a special focus on disability-inclusive disaster risk reduction. Georgia is a country that experiences frequent floods, landslides, earthquakes, avalanches and droughts, which affect vulnerable communities in particular, making this project extremely relevant. We’re now implementing the fourth phase of the project, in partnership with the European Commission. ASB also works closely with the Government of Georgia on various initiatives related to disaster risk reduction, from DRR policy and planning to community-based and preschool-based DRR; capacity development, media outreach and much more. Initially, in order to raise awareness of DRR from an early age, we started by introducing and implementing the program in the kindergartens, covering up to 500 kindergartens throughout the country, both in Tbilisi and in different regions of Georgia. We did training for kindergarten teachers, caregivers and administrative staff, and developed, disseminated and trained staff in the use of special education materials for kindergarten children. What we’re teaching through our program is how to deal with disasters, and since the emphasis is on an inclusive risk reduction approach, we’re introducing how, for example, a wheelchair user might evacuate a building, or how persons with visual or hearing impairment can deal with disaster. These may be very simple technical aspects, but still they are very important to know, as the evacuation time during a disaster may be very limited, so it’s vital to be prepared in advance. After the trainings within the kindergartens, we created special committees inside each in order to maintain the sustainability of our program, and gave kindergarten staff the capacity to continue ensuring safety within their respective kindergartens. In close cooperation with the Ministry of Education and Science of Georgia, and with the Emergency Management Agency of the Ministry of Internal Affairs of Georgia, we worked on kindergarten curriculums, meaning it’s now mandatory for kindergartens to teach DRR. The full package of the DRR program was transferred to Ministry of Education and Science of Georgia for the internal education countrywide, and, of course, since there are more than 500 kindergartens in Georgia, additional finances have to be provided to cover all of them fully.

We decided it is just as important to teach DRR to students aiming to become teachers, and initiated a DRR course in universities, with a focus on six of the state universities. The course is accompanied by a special guidebook for the lecturers and students, as well as by special educational material. The program kicked off in January at Telavi State University, the universities of Gori, Kutaisi, Batumi, and Zugdidi, and at the Samtskhe-Javakheti State University. In addition, students have the chance to use the program materials at the DRR resource centers created in these universities.

Another major component of the DRR project is the work we do with disabled people organizations (DPOs), which is one of our largest target groups. We train these groups, aiming to prepare them for disasters, providing them with guidelines on how to work with persons with disabilities. We do this in close cooperation with the Crisis Management Council and the Emergency Management Agency of the Ministry of Internal Affairs of Georgia, so, today, we can say that there are guidelines already set detailing how to incorporate disability in DRR and how to actively involve DPOs in this process. Yet another achievement that I’d like to mention is the education roadmap that we created with the Ministry of Education and Science, a document highlighting all the main directions and necessary tools for integrating DRR into the Geor-gian education system, and noting the gaps and results we’re aiming to achieve. Particularly after the flood of June 13, 2015, we decided to add a media training component to our DRR project, providing trainings for journalists representing all types of media; print and online, alongside PR department representatives, with international trainer Nigel Kay, former journalist at the BBC. We developed a media guide book for the journalists, too.

Further, together with the UNICEF office in Turkmenistan, we replicated our pre-school Disaster Risk Reduction program and delivered trainings for day care centers, and preschool education sector representatives in Turkmenistan as well as sharing ASB’s developed DiDRR education material, to use in the regions and to support them in implementing the program throughout the country.

For us, it’s equally as important to cooperate with the private sector. For example, we trained the m² Real Estate company staff and their residents in DRR.

WHAT CHALLENGES AND GAPS CAN YOU HIGHLIGHT WITH REGARDS TO DRR AWARENESS IN GEORGIA? WHAT DO YOU THINK HAS CHANGED SINCE THE PROJECT WAS LAUNCHED?

I think the culture of DRR is still being developed; however, we think that the attitude of the general public has changed towards the importance of DRR. We believe that people now clearly realize that awareness and knowledge [of DRR] is immensely important. The demand is certainly there from the Government of Georgia.

DO YOU PLAN TO EXPAND THE DRR PROJECT REGIONALLY, INVOLVING ARMENIA AND AZERBAIJAN?

We will have to explore opportunities and see if they are interested.

WHAT’S IN THE ASB PIPELINE OF PROJECTS FOR GEORGIA IN 2018?

We will be working with the Georgian government more to ensure that people with disabilities are considered and included by society; that their rights are protected and that their lives are improved. We’re planning to implement this through signing a convention with the government. We’ll also be focusing on public–private partnerships and supporting more social enterprises, in order to provide more social services to communities. We’ll continue working in the direction of DRR, too, although the resources and grants for continuing the program are limited.

SOPHO BOCHOIDZE, NINO GUGUNISHVILI