National Policy on Disaster Management 1999.

The Principles of the Disaster Management Policy specify that the community in the affected area must have a significant role in planning and implementing disaster management activities. The various preventive measures to disaster situations must be assessed and implemented according to the criteria of the population and property at greatest risk, and the negative effect on the economy. In all instances, free emergency assistance will be distributed to the most vulnerable populations and under no circumstances will it be provided to people with a normal state of health and nutrition and with purchasing power. In the event of an emergency the focal or reference points for all actions at all levels will be clearly defined, and the State co-ordination bodies will be provided with adequate powers. The strategy of avoiding the creation of parallel structures will always be followed, thereby ensuring a close connection between emergency activities and multi-sectoral institution building, with a view to maximising scarce resources. The Government will promote the active participation of civil society in all phases of disaster management.
The general objectives of the Disaster Management Policy are: a) To avoid loss of human life and destruction of property by natural disasters or by man; b) To incorporate disaster prevention into the overall national development process; b) To promote domestic and external solidarity in the event of disasters; c) To guarantee effective co-ordination and participation in disaster management by the public and private sectors; d) To contribute to the conservation and preservation of the environment; e) To promote regional or international co-ordination in disaster management, particularly in the case of disasters with causes that originate in neighbouring countries. Food security is guaranteed by a set of short and long-term multi-sectoral programmes to ensure the availability of and access to food of sufficient quantity and quality that, through an adequate food distribution system, an acceptable nutritional status for the affected population is assured. The Policy also approves the Statute of the National Institute for Disaster Management.
The specific objectives are: a) To conceive the legal framework, plan and guidelines for the development of effective disaster management standards; b) To guarantee implementation of the Policy through the National Disaster Management Plan, Contingency Plans and other related inter-sectoral policy instruments; c) To prepare and implement plans and procedures consistent with community priorities and objectives that reflect the level of vulnerability and risk; d) The creation and revision of institutions that ensure a harmonious relationship between emergency actions and development; e) To, promote the implementation of training programmes on disaster management at all levels; f) To ensure that public and private entities and other associations comply with legislation on the safety of their installations and other means of protection against the risk of disasters; g) To guarantee that industrial, transport and other activities do not constitute a danger for their workers and the population in general; h) To propose, through the supervising body, the declaration of emergency situations resulting from localised or widespread disasters, on the basis of socio-economic data on the regions affected and the National Alert System; i) To mobilise all the necessary domestic and external resources to assist victims and affected areas, when necessary resorting to an Emergency Appeal to national and international solidarity; To assess post-disaster needs, including projects or measures that help strengthen institutional capacity to respond to future disasters. A set of policy actions, strategies, plans, legal norms and operating programmes aimed at prevention, relief and rehabilitation in the event of disasters, thereby reducing the level of risk and vulnerability. It is the entire continuous, integrated, multi-sectoral and multidisciplinary process, the core of which is an adequate information and communication system.