National Disaster Risk Management Plan for Disaster Management Arrangements and Disaster Risk Reduction including for Climate Change.

The National Disaster Risk Management Plan is a national plan with sectoral approach. The purpose of this Plan is to ensure effective disaster risk reduction and management at national, provincial and local level, with specific focus on women and children, through institutional capacity building and the cooperation between the Government of Solomon Islands and the NGOs, civil society and private sector.
Government of Solomon Islands takes measures against food insecurity as a consequence of disasters. During disasters and also in post-disaster phases, food-related assistance programmes will be carried out for the affected communities, with a child and gender sensitive approach
This DRM Plan recognises community and individual rights and gives particular importance to equity, fairness, gender and most vulnerable groups. Women’s participation will be ensured in the operational and decision-making processes.
This Plan addresses disaster risk management from two aspects, as disaster management and disaster risk reduction. In order to ensure disaster management, this Plan sets out activities for preparedness for and response to disasters such as (i) standard operating procedures, (ii) early warning system, (iii) exchange of information, (iv) planning, (v) public-awareness raising and education, (vi) capacity building, (vii) damage assessment and hazard mapping for recovery purposes, (viii) recovery and rehabilitation activities for shelter, welfare and livelihood, as well as water and food supply, (ix) relief interventions, (x) international assistance. The risks of hazards including climate change and the potential impacts of disasters will be reduced by (i) monitoring and assessment of hazards including the natural meteorological, geological and hydrological hazards, as well as the impacts of climate change, and other man-made hazards, (ii) hazard mapping, (iii) usage of technologies including GIS and satellite imagery, and (iv) incidence and risk assessment of hazards. In addition to the above activities, the Government of Solomon Islands will establish and sustain arrangements for disaster risk management across the sectors and the communities, such as policy development, budget planning and international cooperation for the disaster relief and recovery assistance. The coordination between all actors will be strengthened for the access to information for decision-making processes and the necessary support for taking action. Agency plans, hazard specific contingency plans and community plans may be prepared for DRM in accordance with this Plan. This Plan underlines that in case of health pandemic and agriculture pests and diseases, this Plan will be activated by the Ministry of DRM upon the notice of the Ministry of Health and Medical Services and the Ministry of Agriculture and Livestock and pest and disease control activities will be carried out in support of the related Ministries.
This Plan and the National Disaster Council Act determine roles, activities and coordination mechanisms for Ministries, committees, sub-committees and all agencies in disaster risk management at international, national, provincial and community level. The National Disaster Council is responsible for the implementation of this DRM Plan and is the strategic decision-making authority for resource utilization and priorities. Besides, the Council will ensure coordination with international, national and bilateral partners for external support. The committees on hazards, risk reduction, disaster management arrangements and recovery and rehabilitation will be established under the National Disaster Council and these committees will be responsible for policy development. Furthermore, sub-committees will be established under Provincial and Municipal Disaster Committees addressing disaster management arrangements. A Risk Reduction Plan for disaster and climate change will be developed by the Risk Reduction Committee with the support of the Hazards Committee. The National Disaster Management Office (NDMO) will monitor national progress on a three yearly basis against the monitoring regime of the United Nations International Strategy for Disaster Reduction.