Haiti's Civil Protection Launches 2026 Disaster Risk Reduction Awareness Campaign
DGPC marks International Day for Disaster Risk Reduction with the theme 'Resilience starts at home' and school outreach in the North-East.
To mark the International Day for Disaster Risk Reduction, observed annually on October 13, the General Directorate of Civil Protection (DGPC) hosted a conference-debate at its headquarters under the theme "Resilience starts at home," according to icihaiti.com. An accompanying awareness campaign was conducted in several schools across the North-East Department.
The DGPC said its longstanding conviction is that, when facing hazards, the first response is local, beginning within families and strengthened through coordinated institutional action. A thematic presentation was delivered by Paul Judex Édouarzin, Deputy Representative and Country Programme Manager for the United Nations Environment Programme (UNEP).
Officials stressed that preparedness begins long before an emergency: understanding household risks, creating a family emergency plan, identifying evacuation routes, gathering essential supplies, and knowing authority-designated shelters. The campaign urged that preparation account for children, the elderly, people with disabilities, and others needing special assistance.
The school-focused effort aimed to educate students, teachers, and administrators on actions to take before, during, and after disasters. The DGPC said continued activities, practical drills, and stakeholder engagement remain crucial to reducing school vulnerability. It called on Haitian families to make prevention a daily practice and reaffirmed its commitment, with other SNGRD bodies, to strengthen information, awareness, preparedness, and coordination nationwide.