National risk reduction policies, programmes and services across central government aim to support local government, businesses and individuals to reduce risk at the community and personal level. Alongside central government, national professional bodies and organisations provide guidance to practitioners working within different sectors, and information to the public.
Departments and State Owned Enterprises may also contribute to reduction outcomes through the services they deliver locally as part of their daily activities. These may vary from risk proofing capital infrastructure to that of providing social, education and health services that lessen an individual’s and community’s vulnerability to their risks.
National lifeline utilities and network providers proactively address risks to their services that includes regional lifeline engineering planning groups to recognise and address their inter-dependencies.
The Government also establishes priorities for and funds research into hazards, risks, vulnerabilities and disaster resilience, to guide informed decision-making. Developing a comprehensive understanding of New Zealand’s hazardscape is an essential step in identifying and prioritising risk reduction activities, alongside of readiness, response, and recovery planning. For further information on CDEM research in New Zealand, see CDEM Research.