Programa de Reduccion de Riesgo de Desastres -PRRD 4: Promoting culture of Resilience

Rural population faces recurrent floods, landslides, strong winds, forest fires, drought and frost. The impact on the vulnerable livelihoods of rural and marginalized population is compounded by the more extreme events resulting from Climate Change. To improve food security, the Government is implementing large and sustained public investments in water and rural development since 2005. However the resilience of the existing and future infrastructures to future disasters is limited for lack of systematic integration of DRR/CCA in planning and implementation of projects. Thanks to more sensibilization and due to new national regulations, national and sub national authorities as well as the communities are requesting tools and methodologies for integration of DRR/CCA. 

To ensure that the socio-economic development of Bolivia is more resilient to the effects of disaster risks and climate change thanks to a culture of resilience that promotes the application of DRR/CCA by trained public officers, university students and population.

The project goal is to  promote the use of knowledge and new DRR/CCA skills to develop a culture of resilience among public officers, university teachers and students and vulnerable population that will reduce the vulnerability of infrastructure and livelihoods to effects of climate change

The trained agents of change will be:

6’700 university undergraduates and 50 University professors

7’500 public officers from key viceministries of Water Resources management and Rural Development and 2  departments trained by the EGPP in three years.

In addition:

Audience of public awareness campaign of 1.5 million persons 

2’000 families in 15 vulnerable communities will demonstrate change thanks to added value of DRR/CCA implemented by university students

• Outcome 1: The integration of DRR/CCA in the National School of Public Administration (EGPP) course portfolio and its application by 7’500 trained public officers improves the quality of public investments, in particular in the sectors of water resources management and rural development
• Outcome 2: University curricula, education material and relevant trainings for undergraduates of 3 universities include DRR/CCA concepts and practices to assess and reduce vulnerabilities with a demonstration in 15 poor municipalities in departments of Cochabamba and Tarija through their end-of-year thesis/internship
• Outcome 3: Population in areas of interventions is timely informed on disasters risks and measures to reduce the vulnerability of their livelihoods thanks to countrywide and local public awareness campaigns

Expected results:  

1. EGPP course/vocational training package integrates adequately DRR/CCA concepts and practices
2. Curricula of 5 undergraduate programs in 3 universities integrates DRR/CCA concepts and tools
3. 6 countrywide and 20 local awareness campaigns

Results from previous phases:  

Previous 3 phases since 2005 were focused on Risk management and risk reduction in agriculture at municipal level with its authorities and local population. Concepts and good practices in CCA/DRR were developed and validated

Major relevant results were:

• PRRD 3 promoted the increase of the annual municipal budget for DRR by at least 30 % then maintains this level of investment. 90 % of the existing Risk Management Unit (UGR) and Emergency Operations Centers (COE) in the country have been set up with PRRD technical assistance. These UGR are now functional and developed strategic tools to integrate DRR /CCA in municipal planning.
• At the municipal level 20,000 people received awareness on DRR / CCA issues. Families are using agro ecological practices for prevention, mitigation and adaptation.
• National DRR/CCA platform generating knowledge dissemination and ensure coordination between level and sectors. Actors at all levels, from producers to the national authorities are more aware of the importance of prevention and start investing more resources (human and financial) in DRR/CCA.

French Coopération (Coopération Française au Développement)

GIZ (through INVENT)

PRRD4: Risk Governance (Helvetas)

ViceMinistry of Civil Defense (in addition to the Water Resource Management and the Rural Development)

SDC projects:

• ACC fund for Applied research  with UMSS/UMSA
• Vocational training development (PROCAP)

Phase 4 18.03.2014 - 31.12.2018   (Completed)