MEPs exchange views with Kristalina GEORGIEVA, EU Commissioner, on EU's disaster response capacity, in the European Parliament in Brussels.

Brussels

exchange of views

LEINEN, Jo (S&D, DE)

GERBRANDY, Gerben-Jan (ALDE, NL)

natural disasters (T)

GEORGIEVA, Kristalina (BG)

ARSENIS, Kriton (S&D, EL)

EU's disaster response capacity: extracts from the exchange of views

SOUNDBITE (English), Kristalina GEORGIEVA, EU Commissioner, It is absolutely clear, its come with no surprise that our citizens over 90% of them request from the EU to step up its role in disaster response. This is what we are responding to the reality on the ground and the demands of our citizens. So what is that EU can do to make a difference? There are 4 areas in which a EU coordination role can be very helpful. Without undermining the necessity for aligning resources and responsibility for disaster responses to the lowest level. In other words, primal responsibility should be the local governments and the national governments and than there is a very important role for the EU.

SOUNDBITE (English), Kristalina GEORGIEVA, EU Commissioner, And what they will do at the hard, at the core would be to move us away from what we have today, which is an ad-hoc response: disasters hits, we make a call and than we deploy; to a pre-planed and predictable and immediate deployment. What we need to do, what we will propose in our communication to do is first scenario planning: what kinds of disasters are expected; second assessment of assets that we have in a call to member states to make on a voluntary bases assets predetermined available to us. So when I make a call I don't tremble for hours whether or not the response will be there but I know in advance who will commit, what kind of assets to that specific type of disaster.

SOUNDBITE (English), Kriton ARSENIS (S&amp;D, EL), We need in a sense to have humanitarian crises prevention. In the sense that we know countries that are more vulnerable, we know countries, of course that is more and more related to climate change identification.

SOUNDBITE (Dutch), Gerben-Jan GERBRANDY (ALDE, NL), My concrete question is on Tanzania, there are plans to build a road to the Serengeti, and that could have terrible consequences for that area. I will like to ask you, and indeed I've already submitted a written question on this: is the commission planning to take any action here?

SOUNDBITE (German), Jo LEINEN (S&amp;D, DE), On the Lisbon treaty, art 2.1.4 is written that we want a Europe an voluntary humanitarian aid corps, an European peace corps if you like, what are the plans to actually do that?

SOUNDBITE (English), Kristalina GEORGIEVA, EU Commissioner, There is no way to deal with the increase of frequency and intensity of disasters without a very strong focus on preparedness and prevention. We certainly have plenty of documented evidence that an investment in preparedness and prevention has a very high pay of and for this reason when we think of EU disaster response we actually think of it holistically: prepares, prevention, response and than rehabilitation, and than feedback so that we help to improve the way we act next.

SOUNDBITE (English), Kristalina GEORGIEVA, EU Commissioner, What I do know is that a road opens up opportunities, but if it is n the hart of a forest, a valuable forest its make bring more damages to a country and of course to the world as a whole than benefits from it .We have see it many, many times :you open up, you build the road than you have economic activities along it going up in the forest, and very often much further and larger than the initial assessments predict we have seen that . I will look at it, and I will get back to you with more details.