Through this program, RCSBIH builds and develops its capacities and resources to respond adequately and timely to natural and man- made disasters at all levels of its organization in whole BiH. RCSBIH carries out its activities through the network of volunteers, who are trained and partly equipped, and organized in 40 multi-purpose field teams in BiH. Legal basis is created (signed agreements between RCSBiH and Ministry of Security BiH, RCFBH and Federal Administration of Civil defense, RCRS and Republic administration of civil protection RS ) for RCSBIH to become equal and respectable partner in planning and response to all kinds of disasters , floods, draughts, earthquakes and large scale population movements.
With our special trained teams/RDRT (Regional Disaster Response Team) we are part of international forces within IFRC for immediate response in cases of regional and international disasters, where we every year give our contribution.
The Council of Ministers of BiH passed a decision on forming a Mixed specialized unit for protection and rescue at the level of Bosnia and Herzegovina.
The mixed specialized unit for protection and rescue will include the following RCSBIH teams:
- First Aid team
- Team for water purification
- Team for disaster affected population, including tent settlement
- Team for Tracing service
- Team for psycho-social support
- Team for water rescue
On the basis of the Article 13. paragraph k) of the Framework Law on protection and rescue of people and material goods from natural and other disasters in Bosnia and Herzegovina.
In accordance with its mission to help vulnerable people, disaster preparedness and response is one of its main activities, regardless the scale of disaster, its type-whether it is natural or armed conflict (internal, external or international).
After signing the Dayton peace agreement, RCFBIH started to work intensively on building and developing its capacities and resources to respond timely and in adequate manner to disasters, to be able to prevent and alleviate them and to provide adequate protection to affected population. Positive results achieved at the beginning through training and partial equipping multi-purpose field teams , and actions and response of those teams to some recent disasters , create obligation to develop the program and improve its quality.
In the period from 2001 up to now, Red Cross FBiH , with the support of IFRC every year, has responded to all natural disaster that occurred at the territory of Bosnia and Herzegovina (floods, landslides, major snowfalls, draughts).
Legal basis was also created for the Red Cross to be equal and respectable partner to relevant institutions.
