How does the UK respond to disasters?

In the UK, the Government’s Department for International Development –

DFID - and the big aid agencies have emergency teams experienced in reacting quickly to disasters. They can rapidly send:

• specialist medical search and rescue teams
• water and sanitation equipment;
• food, medicines;
• emergency shelters to the disaster-affected region.

In the days and weeks that follow a disaster, these teams work alongside local organisations to ensure that people affected by the disaster have access to food, clean water and emergency shelter as quickly as possible.

In the longer term, the reconstruction of disaster-affected areas in developing countries often takes several years. The rebuilding of homes, businesses and roads is done by local people often with money given by DFID and UK aid agencies as well as other countries.

UK local government can also play an important role, for example through partnerships with affected communities or town twinning. For more information on local government international work and town twinning please follow this link to the Local Government Association's European and International Unit website pages.