Its mission is to support countries in the implementation of Integrated Flood Management (IFM). IFM is a process that integrates land and water resources development in a river basin, within the context of Integrated Water Resources Management (IWRM), with a view to maximizing the efficient use of floodplains and to minimizing loss of human life.
Objectives and Expected Results
APFM has developed training manuals on flood management. Trainings are organized on a demand-driven basis, and individually tailored to the requesting parties. The objectives of APFM trainings range from introductory courses on the IFM approach to trainings on specific IFM tools to policy-oriented workshops on how to integrate IFM principles into legal frameworks and regulatory instruments. APFM can also provide assistance for the design and implementation of pilot projects in IFM. APFM trainings aim to give inputs in the following areas of activity:
- Advice and advocacy for flood management policy and strategy formulation;
- Technical advice on the (inter-) national, regional and local level;
- Facilitation of workshops supporting the integrated approach to flood management;
- Development and provision of flood management tools and capacity building material; and
- Formulation of objectives and scoping for flood management proposals.
Scope
The APFM capacity building workshops have been carried out in several countries and assistance has been requested from all over the world. Workshop training sessions were, for instance, already delivered in Bangladesh, Bosnia-Herzegovina, Mexico, Turkey, Italy, Senegal, Argentina, Lao PDR, Thailand, Vietnam, Nepal, Japan, Kenya, Iran, Indonesia, Switzerland, Peru, and Poland.
Partners
To provide a range of expertise, APFM capacity building initiatives are actively supported by a network of professional institutions. Capacity building partners include:
- UNDP;
- Cap-Net;
- Centre for Ecology and Hydrology;
- CERFE;
- UNESCO-IHE.
Details on the full list of partners can be found here.
Target Audience
The APFM capacity building target audience includes:
- Government agencies on various levels dealing with flood management issues,
- River basin organizations,
- Bi- and multilateral development agencies engaged in water resources management and disaster management,
- Community-based and volunteer organizations engaged in flood preparedness,
- Universities and other institutions for the water and disaster management sectors.
Delivery Methods
APFM delivers on capacity building through wide range of methods including workshops, its HelpDesk, and Flood Management Tools Series. The scope, duration, and topics of the workshops vary based on the demands of the requesting parties but can generally be divided into the following:
- Short vocational trainings or workshops (3-5 days) on the principles and aspects of Integrated Flood Management for policy makers, development planners, as well as water and disaster management professionals with a priority on the national and basin level.
- Training of trainers workshops (1-5 days) for capacity building institutions targeting vocational training of relevant professionals.
- National workshops analysing the current flood management situation and developing a strategic national framework in accordance with the Integrated Flood Management concept.
The HelpDesk for Integrated Flood Management is a facility that provides guidance on flood management policy, strategy, and institutional development related to flood issues for countries that want to adopt the Integrated Flood Management concept. The IFM HelpDesk defines its role as an impartial and competent partner in this area of operational capacities. Find more information in our HelpDesk framework document.
Flood Management Tools Series is composed of short technical publications intended to give quick guidance on relevant material about aspects of flood management to practitioners. The tools cover a broad range of flood-related issues within an integrated approach to flood management. The compilation of the series is an ongoing process. As such, tools should be considered as living documents being periodically updated. The tools series can be found here.