Anticipatory Action Planning Toolkit
A step-by-step guide to designing and delivering anticipatory action
Practical guidance, tools, and templates to help National Societies plan, fund, and act before disasters strike, drawing on methodologies and tools developed across the RCRC Network and partners.
What Is Anticipatory Action?
“Actions taken to reduce the humanitarian impacts of a forecast hazard before it occurs or before its most acute impacts are felt; the decision to take action is based on a forecast or collective risk analysis of when, where, and how an event will unfold.
— Anticipation HubAbout this Toolkit
This toolkit brings together practical guidance, technical resources, and ready-to-use templates to support anticipatory action programming across the RCRC Network and its partners.
It is designed for National Societies, IFRC delegates and government partners working to build or strengthen anticipatory action systems. Whether you're starting from scratch or refining an existing program, it walks you through every stage of the process — from securing leadership commitment to accessing anticipatory finance.
Early warning systems, including anticipatory action, are among the most effective measures to save lives, protect livelihoods, and reduce the costs of disasters. They are critical for reducing disaster risks and adapting to the impacts of climate change. Yet, despite their proven value, significant global gaps remain — especially in ensuring that early warnings lead to timely anticipatory action.
This Toolkit offers a curated overview of anticipatory action tools, guidance, methodologies, templates and reference materials developed within the RCRC Network and other partners.
This Toolkit is primarily intended for Red Cross Red Crescent National Societies and the wider IFRC network engaged in, or looking to advance, their work on anticipatory action.
As part of the evaluation of the IFRC Anticipatory Action Operational Framework 2021–2025, it was observed that numerous technical resources are being developed across multiple platforms. This toolkit addresses the clear need for systematic curation and consolidation of those resources.
This Toolkit serves as a practical guide to help users identify and apply relevant anticipatory action tools and methodologies within their specific contexts. Each chapter is accompanied by a brief description and an indication of how it relates to delivering anticipatory action.
While most tools are designed for direct use by National Societies, the Toolkit also features tools intended for government stakeholders, where the RCRC can play a critical role in advocacy, technical support, or coordination.
Explore the Toolkit
This toolkit is organized into six steps that reflect the typical journey of developing and implementing anticipatory action programming. You don't need to start at the beginning — use the navigation to jump to the step most relevant to where your National Society is in the process.
Select a step to explore its content
Contact Us
Send a message to the Anticipatory Action Toolkit Team.