Establishing cooperation protocols

Cooperation protocols are essential and must be established in accordance with the respective competences of strategic and operational authorities.

• Concerning the strategic level, the first authorities are local elected officials, notably mayors who are responsible for citizens’ security. Depending on the severity or nature of a crisis, local authorities may have to call human and material resources that are managed by non-local authorities, such as the Préfets in France or the governors or regional ministers in Belgium. The point is to coordinate efforts while respecting the prerogatives of each level of governance and, this is important, to speak with one voice to the media. European experiences show that means are mobilised in a gradual way, from the local to the supra-local (province, département, region) and then the national level in case of a major crisis, such as the Covid pandemic.

• The ALARM project also highlighted the need to act at a transnational level, in particular at a cross-border level, given that risks and their consequences on local populations are shared. There are cooperation mechanisms among the different Member States, such as the EU Civil Protection Mechanism, which aims to strengthen cooperation between the EU Member States and six Participating States on civil protection to improve prevention, preparedness and response to disasters. When an emergency overwhelms the response capabilities of a country in Europe and beyond, it can request assistance through the mechanism. The European Commission contributes to at least 75% of the transport and/or operational costs of deployments. Since its inception in 2001, the EU Civil Protection Mechanism has responded to over 540 requests for assistance inside and outside the EU, including more than 100 in 2020, notably the Beirut explosion in August 2020 and flood relief in Ukraine, Niger and Sudan. Furthermore, the Emergency Response Coordination Centre (ERCC) is constantly in contact with national civil protection authorities and ensures the rapid deployment of emergency support. It can intervene in disasters that occur out of the European space.