Panel session on Early Warning Systems (EWS)

Background information
Natural or man-made disasters can negatively impact societies, causing disruption of the normal functioning of social and economic life. The combination of hazards, vulnerability and inability to reduce the potential negative consequences of risk results in disasters. Information and Communications Technologies (ICTs) play a pivotal role in disaster prevention, mitigation and management. The main objective of this panel session is to share experiences and knowledge on early warning systems, including safety information systems with ITU-D members. The discussion results may be helpful for producing the annual report of Question 5/2.

Scope of this panel session
It is mainly focused on early warning systems in, but not limited to:
(1) Disaster prediction and detection
– Disaster prediction, including the acquisition and processing of data concerning the probability of future disaster occurrence, location and duration; and
– Disaster detection, including the detailed analysis of the topical likelihood and severity of a disaster event.
(2) Emergency alerting
– Emergency alerting on broadcasting, including alerting messages and evacuation information sent from TV and radio;
– Emergency alerting on mobile phones in the areas to be affected;
– Emergency alerting on digital signages in the towns to be affected; and,
– Emergency alerting on social network services.
(3) Safety confirmation and evacuation guidance
– Safety confirmation for first responders, including dispatching first responders to hazard areas after confirming their safety and availability;
– Safety confirmation for citizens, including messaging board for confirming their family members and/or friends; and,
– Evacuation guidance, including location of shelters, route information to the nearest shelters and amount of emergency goods and foods.