Disasters are as much an information emergency as a physical one. Warnings that arrive late, in the wrong language or through a channel people do not use cost lives, while unchecked rumours can drive panic, block aid access and erode trust in the agencies responding. Governments, humanitarian organisations and utilities across Africa are being asked to show that their public information arrangements are planned, tested and inclusive well before the next flood, drought or outbreak.

This programme follows the disaster cycle. Participants begin with the information needs of affected people and responders, then map the systems that meet them: hazard monitoring, early warning chains, emergency operations centre reporting, situation reports, and the public channels that carry them. They study the Common Alerting Protocol, multi-channel alerting by SMS, radio, social media and community networks, and the discipline of verified, consistent messaging. Later sessions cover information management for coordination, two-way communication with communities, data protection, and how to evaluate whether messages were received and acted on.

Learning is practical. Participants work on a simulated emergency, build alert templates and a situation dashboard, and leave with a draft information plan for their own institution that can be adapted and tested with partners.

By the end of the course, participants will be able to:

• Map the information needs of affected communities, responders and decision makers across the disaster cycle.
• Design an early warning dissemination chain that reaches people through several channels.
• Draft alert messages that are clear, actionable and consistent with the Common Alerting Protocol.
• Set up community feedback and complaints mechanisms and use them to adjust a response.
• Manage rumours and misinformation through monitoring, verification and rapid correction.
• Build situation reports and simple dashboards from field and open data sources.
• Apply data protection and information sharing principles when handling sensitive disaster data.
• Evaluate whether public information reached and influenced the people it was meant for.

The programme suits people who gather, manage or communicate information in emergencies, including:

• Disaster risk reduction and emergency management officers in national and county governments
• Humanitarian information management officers
• Communications and public relations officers in relief agencies
• Meteorological and hydrological service staff
• Red Cross and Red Crescent volunteers and branch coordinators
• NGO programme managers working in resilience and relief
• Radio and media professionals covering emergencies
• Emergency operations centre staff and ICT officers
• Development partner staff supporting preparedness

Participants leave with practical tools they can put to work immediately:

• A draft public information plan tailored to their institution and hazards.
• A set of tested alert message templates for different hazards and audiences.
• A working feedback and rumour log with escalation rules.
• A simple situation dashboard design built from open and field data.
• A media briefing checklist and holding statement for the first hours of a crisis.
• A short roadmap for testing and improving the warning chain with partners.

Learning is built around simulated emergencies rather than lectures. Sessions include:

• A running flood-and-displacement scenario that develops over the five days
• Hands-on drafting of alerts, situation reports and holding statements
• Dashboard and mapping labs using open humanitarian datasets
• Role-play of press briefings and community meetings
• Review of real response experiences from the region

Delegates who attend the sessions and complete the scenario exercises receive a CPD-accredited Certificate of Completion issued by Vision Reach Global Consultancy.