Disaster Risk Reduction and Emergency Response
Rescue 1122 was established under the 2006 Punjab Emergency Service Act to provide management and prevention of emergencies across the Punjab, as prior to 2004 this service did not exist in Pakistan. It is an integrated emergency service providing emergency, fire, rescue, disaster management, water rescue, animal rescue and community safety services under one umbrella. To build capacity within the emergency response teams, British NGO VSO worked with the Pakistani government and other partners to facilitate and train Community Emergency Response Teams (CERTs) of volunteers, who can respond in the event of natural disasters, and who are an integral part of Rescue 1122.
With assistance from VSO, the government of Pakistan established two national volunteering mechanisms, the National Volunteer Platform and the National Volunteer Database. The promotion of volunteerism within Pakistan not only enabled volunteers to participate in programmes like Rescue 1122, but also to promote social cohesion and peace, to challenge harmful social norms, and to encourage active citizenship within Pakistan.
In partnership with VSO, Rescue 1122 have now established 5,037 Community Emergency Response Teams (CERTs) with 11,4138 community volunteers in all 36 districts of Punjab. These teams conduct emergency response actions, awareness campaigns, build community resilience, conduct risk assessments and safety survey, and identify hazards, vulnerabilities, and capacities in order to manage disaster risks and create early warning mechanisms.
The government of Pakistan have now expanded the Rescue 1122 services to Khyber Pakhtunkhwa and Baluchistan province after seeing the success of its services and response in Punjab.
Overall, the participation of volunteers within Pakistan’s rescue service has provided millions of people with rapid and effective emergency response services, which are able to respond to natural and manmade disasters. CERTs are highly trained teams of volunteers able to respond to emergencies and save lives across the 36 districts of the Punjab.
