Centre for Disaster Preparedness and Management, University of Peshawar-PAKISTAN
email = mushtaq@upesh.edu.pk

Imparting education and training in the field of disaster risk reduction/prevention/mitigation and management leading to post-graduate degree/diploma in disaster prevention and management.   

•    Promoting research leading to higher degrees and instituting research case studies to provide hands-on training in the fields of disaster prevention/mitigation and management.   

•    Assisting federal and provincial governments in disaster risk reduction through vulnerability mapping, information clearing house mechanism and training in risk assessment, prevention, mitigation and management from various forms of natural and man-made hazards.   

•    Assisting disaster management authorities at federal, provincial and local levels through case studies and compilation of best practices, such as adaptation strategies at district level to climate hazards, e.g., as droughts and floods.     

•    Providing a platform equipped with latest information/data, digital and spatial library to national, provincial and local government institutions for framing disaster management frameworks and early warning.   

WHY IT IS IMPORTANT?
The importance of disaster management cannot be neglected as the globe is more frequently hit by disasters as compared to the past. The global warming and the climate change is causing more exposure of the globe to the hazards ultimately converting into disasters due to the lack of societies equipped with the advanced techniques of coping with the disasters. Therefore it is necessary to equip man with such knowledge and techniques so that the hazards could be avoided from being converted into disasters and that the effects of the disasters could be minimized and that in future disasters of every magnitude could be coped with easily. In this regard, the disaster preparedness and management is of supreme importance and also very important for each society.

WHY THE UNIVERSITY OF PESHAWAR TOOK THE INITIATIVE?
There is a lack of resource persons qualified in the disaster risk reduction and disaster preparedness and management. Therefore there was always a need felt in the relevant area for the qualified personnel in the field whenever the homeland was struck by a natural or man-made disaster.  However the need of educating common masses in this field of study arouse when the northern area of Pakistan specifically NWFP was severely hit by a devastating earthquake on the 8th of October, 2005. There were thousands of people killed and left homeless and consequently millions of foreign aid flowed in the country but due to the unavailability of the qualified personnel, it took too long in the rehabilitation.
Another fact that compelled the University of Peshawar to take the initiative is that Peshawar City is lying very near to the Hindu Kush Series and is very vulnerable to various natural disasters. Particularly flash floods and earthquakes. Therefore the University of Peshawar can serve as a focal point, as there is no other well established university which could work on such a big level.
Therefore the think tanks combined and planned to form a well-organized structure which would educate the people in Disaster Preparedness and Management, as a result the University of Peshawar took initiative to establish the Centre for Disaster Preparedness and Management (CDPM) in collaboration with the GTZ and ICIMOD.The CDPM, University of Peshawar has become the pioneer of the Disaster Management Studies in the public sector as it has become the 1st institute to offer the 1st ever post-graduate one-year diploma in the Disaster Preparedness and Management.
The CDPM also intends to offer more specialized curricula in the Bachelor’s and Master’s Degree, which will produce much more specialized and qualified individuals as compared to that of the diploma holders.
 

Address: Centre for Disaster Preparedness and Management(CDPM, STC Building, University of Peshawar, NWFP, Pakistan.