Integrating international good practices into national crisis management
At the World Health Organization (WHO) Ministerial Conference "Protecting Health in Earthquakes", held in Istanbul, the Republic of Moldova presented how the new national crisis management architecture supports better coordination between institutions in the face of national security risks, with an emphasis on the continuity of essential services for citizens. The conference brought together around 200 world-renowned leaders and experts from around 30 Member States across 4 WHO regions. The purpose of the Conference is to increase regional and international awareness, knowledge and collaboration among WHO Member States, relevant authorities and other stakeholders in multiple WHO regions to reduce the health impact of earthquakes.
Earthquakes have a systemic impact, simultaneously affecting critical infrastructure, medical services, supply chains and the general functioning of public institutions. For this reason, the effective response requires a unified, state-wide coordination. In this context, the National Crisis Management Center (NCMC) ensures the common picture of the situation and inter-institutional coordination, facilitating quick decisions and synchronized actions between all relevant institutions - from the health sector and intervention services, to public authorities and operators of critical infrastructure. By establishing the NCMC, the Republic of Moldova approach is based on an integrated model of planning and action, which connects prevention, preparedness, response and recovery in a unified framework, applicable in complex situations.
Participation in this forum provided access to the experience of other states on how they protect medical services and the continuity of vital functions during earthquakes, as well as the integration of these lessons into the working mechanisms of the NCMC.
The final Joint Istanbul Declaration reflects the collective understanding that preparedness, resilience and solidarity must be translated into sustained action at both sectoral and cross-border levels.
