Legal Preparedness for Responding to Disasters and Communicable Disease Emergencies: Cambodia
October 20, 2013
This legal research study was conducted in Cambodia between June 2008 and April 2009 to:
- Identify gaps and areas of good practice in addressing legal issues and implementing the key regional and international instruments relevant to disaster and communicable disease emergencies in Cambodia;
- Recommend legal and policy measures to minimize legal barriers and encourage effective national and international responses to disasters and communicable diseases in Camboida.
The research process involved: i) legal document collection and analysis against key international and regional instruments; ii) a survey of key stakeholders; iii) consultation meetings with UN, INGOs and governmental officials; and iv) a high-level meeting to discuss the findings and recommendations of the study with the Government of Cambodia and other partners.
Among its recommendations, the study highlighted the following points:
- New laws on disaster management and communicable disease control are needed to ensure their compatibility, to allow the cross-referencing of certain key provisions and to clarify arrangements in situations when both a disaster and communicable disease emergency are present.
- The laws should be supplemented where necessary by a number of implementing Decrees/Sub-Decrees which provide further detail on specific aspects which may require more frequent amendment – however specific recommendations for these are not detailed in this report.
The Project was managed by the International Federation of Red Cross and Red Crescent Societies (IFRC) with technical assistance from World Health Organization (WHO), supported by Asian Development Bank (ADB)-funded Pooled Fund of the Greater Mekong Sub-region Communicable Disease Control Project.
International Federation of Red Cross and Red Crescent Societies / Asian Development Bank, 2009.
Online version of the case study
http://www.ifrc.org/PageFiles/93702/IDRL_Report-Cambodia_v17-ENG.pdf