World Civil Defence Day

Link to the text of the Secretary General’s speach March 1, 2022 Today is World Civil Defense Day. In 1931, on the initiative of several states, the Association of Geneva Zones was founded in Paris, which was later transformed into the International Civil Defense Organization (ICDO).
ICDO is headed by a Secretary General, who is elected by the General Assembly for a six-year term. Since October 2018, Belkacem El Kuetroussi has been appointed Secretary General of the ICDO. He proposed to hold World Civil Defense Day in 2019 under the slogan: “Our task is to ensure the safety of children.”
The Russian Federation has been a full member of the ICDO since 1993. In accordance with Decree of the Government of the Russian Federation No. 323 dated July 3, 2003, the Russian Ministry of Emergency Situations is the main coordinating agency ensuring the participation of the Russian Federation in the ICDO.
At the moment, interaction between Russia and ICDO is carried out on the basis of the Framework Agreement on Strategic Partnership between the Government of the Russian Federation and ICDO. A plan of joint work on the line of international development assistance projects is being implemented.
The Russian Federation is a strategic partner and donor of the ICDO, which allows the Ministry of Emergency Situations of Russia, under the auspices of the ICDO, to implement the most important international development assistance (IDA) projects. These include the supply of technical training aids and samples of special equipment for equipping national rescue services, the provision of methodological and technical assistance in the development of national crisis management centers, training of national personnel in the field of emergency preparedness and response, humanitarian demining and the deployment of regional centers for emergency humanitarian response and educational-practical profile.
Through the implementation of these projects, national, regional and international civil defense capacities are being strengthened. The readiness of the forces for various emergencies is being improved, as well as humanitarian assistance and support to countries in need in the development of national civil protection structures.
One of the most important areas of interaction with ICDO is the development of the International Center for Monitoring and Coordination. At present, the work of the center is steadily gaining momentum, it is becoming one of the basic international centers that carry out automated collection, analysis and exchange of operational information about emerging large-scale disasters, monitoring and forecasting emergency situations based on the latest geoinformation technologies, as well as a single platform for the development of programs for remote training of anti-crisis management specialists of ICDO member countries.
Comprehensive work continues in the field of improving the training systems for personnel of emergency services. In particular, on the basis of a strategic partnership with the Ministry of Defense, work is underway to create a unified methodological base for training specialists in the field of civil defense, activities to improve the conduct of specialized training programs and trainings, including using distance learning technologies.
On a regular basis, training courses are held for specialists from ICDO member countries, both on the basis of educational organizations of the Russian MES, and with the departure of teachers from the Russian MES in the format of “mobile groups of teachers” to foreign countries. Specialists of the Ministry of Emergency Situations of Russia annually undergo advanced training at international courses of the ICDO.
In general, cooperation between the Russian Federation and ICDO contributes to the formation of international humanitarian response mechanisms and population protection systems, as well as the implementation of the global sustainable development agenda, strengthening international cooperation in improving preparedness and response to the challenges and threats of the 21st century.
The Russian-Armenian Center of Humanitarian Response, represented by the entire team, sincerely congratulates all the people who have dedicated themselves to the cause of civil defense.