<< More about the Community Risk Programme

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• Past Interventions
• Current Issues for Tonga
• Programme Response

The Pacific is acknowledged as being among the most threatened regions in the world, with the continuing presence of natural, human induced, technological and environmental hazards. While the threats presented by these hazards may be seasonal or differ from country to country in respect to type, frequency or intensity, no country is immune to their devastating impacts.

The challenge of achieving sustainable development goals, including poverty alleviation and protection of the environment, cannot be achieved unless the impacts of disasters on vulnerable communities is taken into account. Whilst not all risks to development result from the impact of disasters, the reduction of the potential for such events needs to be central to any programmes designed to achieve and maintain sustainable development. This potential can only be effectively reduced, in the context of the development process, by adopting a broader and more integrated approach to hazard mitigation and risk management.

The SOPAC Community Risk Programme offers such an approach to the management of community risk and targets three key areas: strengthening the resilience to disasters, mitigating the effects of hazards and mainstreaming risk management as part of the national development planning process. Through a High Level Advocacy strategy the Community Risk Programme is encouraging national commitment to the adoption of a whole of government approach to reducing community vulnerability and strengthening disaster risk management arrangements in order to improve national development planning processes in member countries.

Past Interventions

Past interventions of the Community Risk Programme aimed to strengthen the capacity of relevant hazard and risk management agencies, increase the awareness of hazards and risks, and directly find ways to mitigate the effects of natural hazards in Tonga.

• The Tonga Fire Service was assessed and recommendations provided on how the service could be more effective and well resourced .
• An assessment of the capacity of the National Disaster Management Office [NDMO] to apply information analysis tools [such as GIS], which could be made available to them to assist in risk management planning .
• In 2001, a weeklong public awareness campaign on disaster reduction was conducted in Tonga by the NDMO with the assistance of SOPAC. The campaign raised awareness on natural hazards and associated risks among communities and decision makers in Tonga.
• Volcano risk maps on Niuafo’ou Volcano [the most active volcano in Tonga] were produced, measures for reducing volcano risks identified and an operational support plan established.
• SOPAC provided technical support to Tonga after they experienced Cyclone Waka in 2002. The impacts were assessed by SOPAC and a report produced on the findings.
• An Earthquake microzoning study of Nuku’alofa was carried out to determine the characteristics of earthquakes, ground responses and geo-technical parameters.
• The compilation of an Environmental Vulnerability Data Profile for Tonga.
• Pacific Cities Initiative – Nuku’alofa and other capital cities of the Pacific region are at high risk from a wide range of threats from natural and man-made hazards. This situation is being redressed to a significant extent under the Pacific Cities initiative of SOPAC. The Pacific Cities initiative - a move to bring all-hazards assessment under one banner in high-risk urban areas of the Pacific - has matured quickly over the past several years. The risks facing cities in the Pacific arise from a wide variety of hazards including earthquake, tsunami, slope failure, cyclone and related hazards including storm surge, drought and flooding and environmental hazards such as pollution. Pacific Cities conceptually ties together projects having disparate origins and funding sources. Pacific Cities aims at an understanding of the hazards facing Pacific Island communities in order to assess the elements at risk and their vulnerability - particularly human vulnerability.

Current Issues for Tonga

The critical issues faced by Tonga as mentioned in the country’s National Assessment Report, which relate to the Community Risk Programme and are interrelated with the other programmes of SOPAC are:

• Preparedness for disasters to protect lives, property and resources are high priorities in Tonga, requiring appropriate skills, knowledge and resources.
• Need to improve the assessment of environmental vulnerability and risks.
• Prevention and minimisation of impacts of man-made disasters.
• Need to strengthen the capacity of the National Disaster Preparedness Committee, especially to reach the outer islands.
• Need to develop appropriate and effective measures to address Tonga’s vulnerability to climate change.
• Weak meteorological capabilities; need more efficient technology for weather forecasting to give timely warnings of hazards.
• Need to strengthen civil society and communities’ capacity in emergency and disaster preparedness.

Programme Response

A comprehensive and strategic response is in place for the Community Risk Programme to address the needs of the Kingdom of Tonga in relation to the sustainable development issues mentioned above. Needs are met either nationally in response to specific requests from the Kingdom of Tonga, or regionally to ensure sustainable development is on par with all Member Island Countries.

In 1999, a risk analysis project was started in Tonga, which aimed to quantify the risk to life and property using an interrogative database that assesses the interaction among hazards, property, lifelines and demographics . The risk analysis is part of the Pacific Cities project, which has the ultimate aim of quantifying risks in a GIS database to provide the public and governments of the Pacific with relevant knowledge and information regarding risks from natural and man-made hazards facing pacific communities.

Other projects that have been approved for execution in Tonga include:

• Development of a range of risk assessment tools for the Tonga Government, as part of the agreement of the government’s contract with the World Bank .
• The development and adaptation of a National Framework for Tonga on Regional Disaster Policy and Planning.
• Provision of follow up training to the National Fire Service of Tonga .
• Raising public awareness through a workshop on the risk associated with geohazards such as earthquakes, volcanic eruptions and tsunamis to improve the preparedness of the community of Tonga .

The ongoing regional programmes of SOPAC’s Community Risk Programme that involve the Tonga nation include:

• The provision of support where appropriate for Tonga representation at international training programmes, workshops and conferences.
• The provision of high-level advocacy to promote the mainstreaming of risk management through the application of CHARM.
• CHARM national training courses and workshops.
• The provision of post disaster technical or institutional support following the impact of disasters.
• The environmental vulnerability index – a tool that assesses the vulnerability of the countries of the world and to assist national stakeholders in decision-making and to influence policy to reduce vulnerabilities of Pacific communities.