Risk communication and community engagement

During outbreaks or emergencies the communications landscape is flooded with information from many sources and the media are thirsty for news. Addressing people's concerns and perceptions at these times requires special attention. For this reason, risk communication capacity is a core requirement for countries within the IHR framework.

Effective risk communication and community engagement (RCCE) ensures that risk managers, stakeholders and affected communities are informed and engaged at all stages of the risk assessment process so that they can make informed decisions. RCCE relies on timely and transparent information sharing, coordination, information delivery, and public and stakeholder participation in the emergency response. Early and regular RCCE builds trust and contributes to crisis control, while delaying considerations of RCCE increases the likelihood of unfavourable outcomes.

Developing RCCE capacity involves improving understanding of RCCE principles and practices as well as developing, testing and implementing national RCCE plans. At present, many States Parties in the WHO European Region do not have an all-hazard RCCE plan within the IHR framework. In the past 2 years WHO has scaled up efforts to work with these States Parties to build up this critical capacity. These efforts include the dissemination of training materials and guidance documents as well as the provision of workshops, trainings, mentorship and support.