Comprehensive Security Together #18: Risk Assessment as a Basis for Preparedness

According to the Security Strategy for Society, preparedness is based on risk assessment. Various preparedness measures, such as contingency plans and advance arrangements as well as keeping these up to date, require regular risk assessment and updating.

For this reason, we have to make sure that the national risk assessment is current and timely. This work supports the ongoing work to update the Security Strategy for Society.

The operating environment of the rescue services is expected to change significantly in the next few years. Accidents or incidents caused by extreme weather events, climate change or the ageing of the population give rise to emergency calls and the need for rescue operations. This also applies to international activities, such as EU, NATO and Nordic cooperation.

A high-tech society is also very susceptible to disruptions. Digitalisation is transforming our ways of working. This will lead to changes in the work content and generate completely new kinds of tasks and requirements for the rescue services’ capacity to anticipate, prepare for and respond to accidents.

These observations are included in the Government Report on Internal Security. Alongside the Government Report on Internal Security, the Foreign and Security Policy Report and the Defence Report together with their descriptions of the operating environment form a coherent whole.

In terms of rescue services and civil defence, the Defence Report, in particular, highlights requirements to be considered when developing different arrangements and it supports the conclusions of the Government Report on Internal Security.

In updating the Security Strategy for Society, the national strategic objectives of rescue services and civil defence will be formulated to correspond to the changes in the operating environment and threat scenarios.

Kimmo Kohvakka
Director General of the Rescue Services
Ministry of the Interior