The CBDRM Framework of Vietnam provides a national methodological and institutional reference for embedding disaster risk reduction at community level. It translates national disaster management priorities into a participatory, bottom-up process led by local authorities and communities, with a strong emphasis on prevention, preparedness, and resilience-building across multiple hazards.
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CBDRM in Vitnam
General Information
The Framework on Community-Based Disaster Risk Management establishes a standardized yet adaptable approach for engaging Vietnamese communities in assessing risks, planning preparedness measures, and implementing locally appropriate disaster risk reduction actions.
Vietnam is highly exposed to recurrent floods, typhoons, landslides, droughts, and storm surges, with impacts disproportionately affecting rural and coastal communities. Prior to the framework, disaster management was largely reactive and centralized. The CBDRM Framework was developed to address the need for systematic community participation, improved local preparedness, and integration of local knowledge into national disaster risk management systems
Hazard Type
Geographical Scope - Nuts
Population Size
Population Density
Needs Addressed
The framework addresses the limited capacity of local communities to anticipate, prepare for, and respond to disasters, as well as the historical disconnect between national disaster management planning and community-level realities. It responds to recurring disaster losses by institutionalizing participatory risk assessment, local preparedness planning, and community-led mitigation actions within national governance structures.
The framework explicitly recognizes that disaster impacts are unevenly distributed. It requires community risk assessments to identify households with elderly people, children, persons with disabilities, and economically marginalized families, and to design preparedness and evacuation measures that reflect their specific needs.
CBDRM is implemented through local People’s Committees, supported by line ministries and mass organizations. While the framework is nationally endorsed, it is operationalized at commune and village level, ensuring alignment between national disaster policies and community-driven action.
Preparedness under the framework includes community disaster preparedness plans, early warning dissemination mechanisms, evacuation planning, and regular drills. These activities are coordinated with district and provincial disaster management authorities to ensure interoperability during emergencies.
The framework acknowledges that many target communities have limited physical infrastructure. It therefore emphasizes low-cost, locally manageable measures such as community shelters, safe evacuation routes, warning signals, and the protection of essential services, rather than large-scale infrastructure investments
Stakeholder engagement aims to empower communities as active agents in and to enhance readiness to disaster risk management by involving them directly in hazard identification, risk analysis, planning, implementation, and monitoring of DRR actions.
The framework promotes participatory risk and vulnerability assessments, community planning workshops, village meetings, simulation exercises, and the involvement of mass organizations such as women’s and youth unions as trusted intermediaries between authorities and residents.
Community members directly influence priorities and actions through participatory assessments and planning processes. Local disaster preparedness plans are developed collectively and formally endorsed by commune authorities, giving community inputs a recognized role in decision-making rather than a purely consultative function
The framework builds long-term resilience by strengthening local knowledge, organizational skills, and coordination mechanisms. Through repeated planning cycles, drills, and integration into local development planning, communities progressively gain the ability to manage risks autonomously while remaining connected to higher-level support systems.
Vulnerable Groups
Governance
Emergency Preparedness
Infrastructure Readiness
Engagement Level
Empowerment Level
Implementation
A key innovation of the framework is its integration of CBDRM into national policy while preserving flexibility at local level. It provides a clear methodological sequence (risk assessment, planning, implementation, monitoring) while allowing communities to adapt tools and priorities to their specific hazard profiles and socio-economic conditions.
Vietnamese
The framework is implemented under the authority of the Government of Viet Nam, coordinated through national disaster management bodies and local People’s Committees, with technical support from international partners such as UNDP and the IFRC.
Viet Nam has decades of experience in disaster management and has progressively shifted toward prevention and preparedness. National and subnational authorities regularly implement large-scale disaster preparedness, response, and recovery operations, providing a strong institutional foundation for CBDRM.
A consortium of 14 international NGOs and National organizations, united under the Joint Advocacy Network Initiative (JANI). Supported by the European Commission's Humanitarian Aid Office (ECHO)
Implementation follows a structured cycle:
- community mobilization;
- participatory risk and vulnerability assessment;
- development of a community disaster preparedness plan;
- implementation of mitigation and preparedness measures;
- drills and simulations;
- periodic review and updating of plans
Resources include trained facilitators, local government staff time, modest financial inputs for community activities, and technical guidance materials. External support is often used for training and initial rollout, but recurring activities are covered by local resources. This assessment is based on the framework’s emphasis on sustainability and integration into local planning, supported by documented donor-supported CBDRM programs in Viet Nam.
CBDRM is conceived as a continuous process embedded in local governance rather than a time-bound project. Activities are implemented before, during, and after disasters, with monitoring and revision cycles aligned to annual planning and hazard seasons.
Experience of the Implementing Organisation in DRM
Target Audience
Resources Required
Timeframe & Phases
Participation Results
Challenges include varying local capacity, uneven resources across communes, and sustaining engagement beyond project cycles.
Risks are mitigated through standardized guidance, capacity-building, and the integration of CBDRM activities into routine local planning and budgeting processes.
Risk & Mitigation Plan
Scalability and Sustainability
Sustainability is ensured by embedding CBDRM within national policy and local governance structures, reducing dependence on external projects and enabling gradual institutionalization at commune level.
The framework is explicitly designed to be replicated nationwide and adapted to different hazard contexts. Its methodological consistency combined with contextual flexibility makes it transferable to other countries with similar governance structures.
Technology plays a supportive role, mainly through basic early warning dissemination and information sharing. The framework prioritizes accessibility and reliability over advanced technological solutions.
Direct costs are relatively low and mainly associated with training, facilitation, and community activities. Emphasis lies in affordability and integration into local planning.
Operational costs relate to ongoing training, drills, and plan updates, which are increasingly covered by local government budgets once the framework is established.
Key lessons include the importance of genuine participation for plan ownership, the effectiveness of linking CBDRM to local development planning, and the value of combining local knowledge with technical expertise to produce realistic and actionable preparedness measures.