Human Rights, Humanitarian Assistance,Refugees
Humanitarian Assistance / Emergency Assistance
Humanitarian Assistance
In recent years, humanitarian crisis around the world has tendency to continue longer and become more complex, and natural disasters are increasing both in number and scale. Therefore, it is an important issue for the international community to respond effectively to such situation.
Toward reconstruction from the Great East Japan Earthquake, the Government of Japan sets it as our foreign policy to make consistent contribution in humanitarian assistance. It is one way to acknowledge solidarity expressed by the international community after the Great East Japan Earthquake.
From these standpoints, the Ministry of Foreign Affairs formed basic concepts of humanitarian assistance of our country as "Humanitarian Aid Policy of Japan".
Emergency Assistance
The Government of Japan has three tools for emergency assistance for overseas disasters: (i) Dispatch of Japan Disaster Relief Team; (ii) Provision of Emergency Relief Goods; and (iii) Emergency Grant Aid. One or more of these tools are chosen according to the magnitude of the disaster and requests from the affected country. Dispatch of a Japan Disaster Relief Team (JDR) and Provision of Emergency Relief Goods are used in the case of a natural disaster such as a flood, cyclone, typhoon, earthquake, volcanic eruption, and pandemic, as well as a man-made disaster such as a fire or explosion of an oil or gas tank, but not in the case of a conflict-related disaster. Emergency Grant Aid is available in any of those cases.
Procedures for Considering and Implementing Dispatch of Japan Disaster Relief Team and Emergency Relief Goods
When a large-scale disaster occurs overseas and the government of the affected country or an international organization requests assistance from Japan, the Ministry of Foreign Affairs (MOFA) examines the details of the request, considers the details of assistance according to the scale, type and other aspects of the disaster, and consults with the ministries and agencies concerned, before providing assistance. The process from a request for assistance to dispatch of a JDR Team / Provision of Emergency Relief Goods is as follows.
Flow Chart of Dispatch of Japan Disaster Relief Team and Emergency
