Enhancing regional and local
capacities through the development of a Central American network
for disaster and health information (CANDHI).
Introduction & background
In 2001, CRID launched a project to improve access to disaster
and health information in Central America, with the financial
and technical support of the U.S. National Library of Medicine
(NLM), the Pan American Health Organization (PAHO/WHO) and
the United Nations International Strategy for Disaster Reduction
(UN/ISDR). In the aftermath of hurricane Mitch and the devastating
earthquakes in El Salvador, it was apparent that radical changes
were needed to improve national capacities in disaster preparedness,
mitigation and response. Access to relevant and reliable (technical)
information was a must for any and all of these activities.
One of the results after three years of work is that the project
has made it possible to create a growing network of disaster
information centers in several Central American countries.
In the longer term, the establishment of disaster information
centers will facilitate the development of improved disaster
prevention and mitigation policy and planning in both countries.
In short, the project has played an essential role as the
main facilitator of the Central American Network for Disaster
and Health Information (CANDHI), which at the time of writing
consists of 9 information centers in Costa Rica, Honduras,
Nicaragua, El Salvador and Guatemala.
This project is executed by NGO FundaCRID, based in Costa
Rica that has the expertise, experience and institutional
network that is required for the successful implementation
of this complex endeavor. FundaCRID carries out its activities
through the Regional Disaster Information Center (CRID). CRID´s
main mission is to contribute to reducing the impact of disasters
in Latin America and the Caribbean by gathering and disseminating
disaster-related information. However, CRID goes far beyond
simply compiling and supplying technical information; it promotes
collective efforts among information centers, fosters alliances
and champions the use of information technologies and networks
to enhance best practices in disaster reduction.
Goals and objectives
Main objective is to contribute
to disaster reduction in the region, particularly in Central
America, through capacity building activities in the area
of disaster and health-related information management. Strategy
is to provide selected information centers with the required
knowledge, training and technology resources in order to have
sufficient capacities to act as reliable information providers
to a host of other users in these countries.
The project also promotes the use of (new) technological tools
for the development of information services and products,
and builds institutional capacities as a way to guarantee
a satisfactory response to the demand for disaster related
information. Training is a part of this process and centers
its focus on acquiring additional capacities in the development
of information products and services.
Project target groups include all those people and organizations
that can benefit from disaster-related information such as
community leaders, health workers, educators, scientists,
politicians, NGOs, government organizations and UN agencies,
and others. The project has been extended twice and has a
duration of five years.
Activities undertaken
The project has engaged in providing
the necessary technical infrastructure to the participating
centers in order to start providing information services to
their local and regional information clients. The setup of
technological infrastructure includes the implementation of
physical networks, servers, connectivity and internet access.
Monitoring and assessment are also part of the technical assistance
scheme.
Furthermore, the formation of competent and motivated human
resources is an essential part of the CANDHI project as the
project supports national and local disaster information centers
with training. The following areas are covered: Information
management, website development, creation, maintenance and
(internet) publication of databases, digitization of documents
and training for trainers in order to create a self-sustaining
training effort in the region.
Another important area of work relates to the production and
dissemination of information products to institutional and
individual end users. A large number of useful information
products have been produced through this project and they
include but are not limited to web services that offer thousand
of digitized documents online; web-based databases; training
materials; as well as thematic CDs containing relevant documents,
contacts, internet references and multimedia.
Inter-institutional cooperation and the provision of ad-hoc
services –as needed during emergencies- have been other
clusters of activities.
Major achievements
Centers are acting as reliable information
providers |
A variety of regional and local training
activities implemented |
Centers are training other actors locally |
Useful training materials developed and on the internet
for free |
Thousands of digitized documents on the internet at
no cost |
Sustainable working methods developed |
A great variety of information products being developed |
Indirect benefits go beyond initially planned effects
(multiplier effect) |
Lessons learned & future challenges,
suggestions for the future
1. Information management is vital to disaster prevention
and mitigation. 2. Increased (institutional) capacities in
the area of disaster information management and in the promotion
of a disaster prevention culture may help to reduce the negative
effects of disasters. 3. Knowledge engineering, training,
and the use of current and emerging technological resources
are important factors in making information more meaningful
for different kinds of users and sectors. 4. Information management
is an important ingredient in the sustainable development
process in the region. 5. Regional coordination can be of
great help in the disaster prevention and mitigation planning
process. It can also be an instrument to improve policymaking
and facilitate decision procedures.
The development of a regional disaster information network
is a formidable task that is expected to take many years.
However, with above-mentioned training efforts and other activities,
we are already witnessing the emergence of a real network
of disaster information centers that is well on its way to
improving access to and availability of disaster information
sources in Central America. Furthermore, in some south American
countries, conditions are now good to start work in building,
piece by piece, a regional information network
The participating centers of the Project NLM/CRID/OPS-OMS
are:
HONDURAS
Autonomous University of Honduras
(UNAH), National Library of Medicine http://cidbimena.desastres.hn/
Northern Regional University Center, Disaster Documentation
Center (CIDCURN) http://cidcurn.desastres.hn/
EL SALVADOR
Documentation and Health Information Center of El Salvador’s
PAHO Office. http://desastres.ops.org.sv/
Disaster Protection Center (CEPRODE)
http://desastres.ceprode.org.sv/
GUATEMALA
University of San Carlos, Library of the School of Medicine.
http://desastres.usac.edu.gt
NICARAGUA
National Autonomous University of Nicaragua (UNAN), Health
Studies Investigation Center http://desastres.cies.edu.ni/
National Autonomous University of Nicaragua (UNAN), Disaster
Information Center http://desastres.unanleon.edu.ni/
This project is possible thanks
to the financial support of the National Library of Medicine
of the United States. Click here
to visit NLM´s website.
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