Pakistan holds its first National Dialogue Platform on Anticipatory Action

Pakistan’s first National Dialogue Platform on Anticipatory Action took place in Islamabad on 19-20 December 2023, under the theme, ‘Together for scaling up anticipatory action in Pakistan’. The event was hosted by the National Disaster Management Authority Pakistan, in collaboration with the German Red Cross, the Pakistan Red Crescent Society, Welthungerhilfe, the World Food Programme, the Food and Agriculture Organization of the United Nations (FAO) and the United Nations Office for the Coordination of Humanitarian Affairs.

The National Dialogue Platform brought together more than 150 participants, including humanitarian actors, meteorologists, climate scientists, national and provincial disaster management authorities, academia, community leaders and decision-makers. Discussions focused on constructing, reinforcing and amplifying anticipatory action in Pakistan to reduce the impact of anticipated disasters. In particular, the sessions sought to:

• promote a shared understanding of anticipatory action
• facilitate the exchange of knowledge and experiences
• understand the roles of international financial institutions in advancing the inclusion of funding for disaster risk and pre-arranged financing
• identify gaps, challenges, roadblocks and milestones for a collective way forward
• develop practical recommendations for implementing anticipatory action effectively in Pakistan

Over the two days, there were also plenty of opportunities for networking and collaboration among the stakeholders, who all work proactively to address the challenges posed by natural disasters.

Outlining national priorities

Towards the end of the event, the participants outlined the priorities and fundamental building blocks for anticipatory action to expand in Pakistan. They also came up with concrete recommendations to support the testing, implementation and evidence-collecting of activities, and identified a pathway for developing a country-level roadmap for anticipatory action. “Anticipatory action has emerged as an innovative way forward to act ahead of predicted disasters unfold[ing], to reduce humanitarian, infrastructural and economic losses,” remarked LtG Inam Haider Malik, the chairman of the National Disaster Management Authority.

During the closing session, Mr Asif Khan, the head of the German Red Cross’s Country Liaison Office, highlighted that scaling up anticipatory action will require a joint undertaking to explore anticipatory approaches. This is needed to extend them to climate- and weather-related hazards that have not yet been sufficiently addressed by anticipatory action, such as heat waves and droughts, which often have less visible impacts. The overarching theme – ‘Together for scaling up anticipatory action in Pakistan’ - aligns with key policies and processes both within and beyond the Red Cross Red Crescent Movement. For example, the Movement's ambitions to address the climate crisis emphasize the need to facilitate access to funds and assist governments in establishing anticipatory mechanisms for climate-smart disaster risk reduction. Furthermore, a core objective of the IFRC’s Strategy 2030 is to aid individuals in anticipating, responding to, and swiftly recovering from crises.

He further emphasized that localization is the way forward, so anticipatory action work must be driven and co-designed by local actors. This includes people in vulnerable situations being engaged in developing plans for anticipatory action.

Looking ahead: the next steps for Pakistan

The concept of anticipatory action is gaining traction in Pakistan, as evidenced by discussions at the first National Dialogue Platform. However, participants representing various organizations underscored the persistent challenges, such as insufficient hazard specific data, limited forecast capabilities, and the necessity for enhanced coordination when expanding anticipatory measures from the district to the national level.

Additionally, the National Dialogue Platform provided a forum to articulate forthcoming plans and activities. Participants identified key priorities and recommendations, including:

• develop a national roadmap for anticipatory action  
• integrate anticipatory action into existing disaster risk management policies, national disaster management plans and monsoon contingency plans
• a long-term national disaster management plan which includes anticipatory action, and with impact-based forecasting being mainstreamed
• the institutionalization of anticipatory action, adopting a multi-hazard approach; this is essential for creating a robust and sustainable framework that can effectively respond to a variety of potential threats
• establishing a national technical working group to bring together experts and stakeholders, foster collaboration and expertise, and drive the development and implementation of anticipatory action
• making national dialogue platforms a regular and recurring feature in the country, providing a consistent platform for stakeholders to share progress, challenges and best practices
• engage provincial stakeholders through a consultative process, to gather valuable local-level insights on anticipatory action initiatives.

At the government level, the necessary commitments to anticipatory action include:

• prioritize and incorporate anticipatory action within existing disaster-risk-management policies and tools  
• establishing the national dialogue platforms as a regular feature in Pakistan.