Enhancing cross-border preparedness through shared management of emergency stock in Southeast Europe
Imagine severe floods along the Sava river in Serbia, similar as in spring 2014. The Red Cross of Serbia is running out of gum boots for their disaster response teams and needs more than 400 of them immediately. What to do?
And here the X-STOCK project comes into play. Through a shared management of emergency stocks in the region of South East Europe and a software, that is showing RC Serbia the availability of gum boots in neighbouring countries, these needed items can be quickly shared.
The X-STOCK project aims to standardise available emergency response items in a first step and based on this catalogue develop a common management system. With this system stakeholders active in response will be able to request, receive and replenish needed items during a crisis more efficiently. The software will be the tool that visualises the system around sending and receiving humanitarian aid. Standard Operating Procedures (SOP’s) will guide the mechanism around agreements to ease up the border crossing of humanitarian aid transports.
In a project partner meeting, which was held in Kolasin (Montenegro) from 21st to 24th March 2022, partners developed the functionalities of the software application, outlined the content of the SOP’s and also tested a first trial version of the software. In the upcoming months the software will be further developed and logisticians and disaster managers who will use it shall be trained.
In the final phase of the X-STOCK project, the software application, the SOP’s and potential new agreements will be tested during a tabletop exercise (TTX).
The developed system is meant to be scale able and easy to transfer to other regions. By organising stocks on a regional level, a crisis affected country can immediately asked for supplies within the first hours of the response operation. Standardised, pre-stocked goods can then be delivered within due time and ensure more effective operations.
