Moldova to launch first national campaign to prepare population for crisis situations

Moldova on November 19-21will launch its first national campaign to prepare the population for crisis situations, initiating the National Program, Prepared Moldova. Through this initiative, the authorities aim to help citizens better understand the risks they may face, learn how to protect themselves and identify simple measures they can take in advance for their own safety and the one of those around them.

The campaign will start on November 19 in Chisinau with the National Resilience Congress, a national event that will bring together central and local authorities, international partners, the business community, civil society, the media, academia, and community representatives.

The Congress will present more tools and initiatives meant to prepare the population and strengthen cooperation between institutions and communities. They include the Resilience Guide for Families, Communities and Citizens, the emergency backpack, the Alerts module in the EVO application and the Community Resilience Platform. The Resilience Guide for Families, Communities, and Citizens will provide accessible recommendations on household’s preparedness, establishing basic supplies, family communication, safety measures and recommended actions in various crisis situations. It will also include information tailored to the needs of families with children, pet owners, elderly people and people with disabilities.

The event will also present the contents of an emergency backpack, with concrete examples of items that each family can gradually prepare according to its own needs and financial possibilities. At the same time, the Alerts module in the EVO application, meant to inform the population during crisis situations, will be presented. Through the EVO application, citizens will be able to receive relevant information and notifications, as part of efforts to develop rapid digital communication channels between the authorities and the population. This tool will expand the possibilities for informing and alerting the population during crisis situations, complementing existing public communication channels.

The module in the EVO application is distinct from the MD-Alert system, whose launch is planned for 2027. MD-Alert will use Cell Broadcast technology, which enables warning messages to be sent directly to the mobile phones of people located in a specific area, without requiring them to install an application. Participants will also observe more crisis scenarios, one related to public health and another involving drones. The exercises will show how information flows between institutions, how decisions are coordinated and which entities become involved.

The campaign will continue on November 20 in Edinet and on November 21 in Stefan Voda, with the participation of representatives of local public authorities, territorial and local crisis management commissions, emergency services, educational institutions, civil society and communities from the northern and southern regions of the country. The activities will focus on the practical application of the campaign's recommendations: preparing households to cope for 72 hours, developing crisis management capacities at the local level, activating local crisis management commissions and identifying support measures for vulnerable people.

The National Crisis Management Center (CNMC) emphasized that the campaign was not being organized in response to a specific threat and did not involve planned disruptions to public services. „Preparing for risks does not mean that they are necessarily about to occur. It means having the information, resources and capabilities needed in advance to better cope with unforeseen situations. A prepared Moldova means better-coordinated institutions, stronger communities and better-informed families,” the CNMC said.