Institutional Coordination of Disaster Management: Engaging National and Local Governments in Japan

Coordinating a wide range of organizations is crucial for disaster management. This paper reviews the coordinating mechanisms of disaster management in Japan, in particular focusing on the relationship between national and local governments. While local governments have the principal responsibility of managing disasters, they often have limited capacity and experience in disaster management. Furthermore, they are often overstretched with the various tasks of response and recovery. Supporting local governments from the outside and coordinating such support activities are essential in mitigating disaster damage. This paper examines (1) coordination mechanisms, and (2) actual coordinating efforts of response and recovery in recent disasters such as the Great East Japan Earthquake and Tsunami in 2011. It was found that Japan is evolving in coordinating mechanisms by learning from disasters. The national platform of coordination was established over 50 years ago. Similar platforms were established at the local level as well. Each national agency has established and strengthened the supporting teams of response and recovery efforts in affected areas. Local governments outside the affected areas also provide support to affected governments according to pre-agreement.