How UNICEF and the CADRI Partnership Are Building a More Resilient Future for the Kyrgyz Republic
In honor of World Children’s Day on 20th November, the CADRI Partnership highlights UNICEF’s pivotal role in uniting with partners to build resilience from the ground up in the Kyrgyz Republic and beyond, placing children and vulnerable families at the heart of disaster risk reduction and climate change adaptation efforts.
Central Asia’s Kyrgyz Republic is a country of staggering beauty — and of equally staggering vulnerability to natural hazards. Two-thirds of the population lives in areas vulnerable to earthquakes, and many rely on agriculture and glacial water for their livelihoods and energy. As a result, the people of the Kyrgyz Republic face escalating climate risks.
In 2019, as disaster risk reduction (DRR) and climate change adaptation (CCA) were gaining momentum across Central Asia, the Ministry of Emergency Situations reached out to the CADRI Partnership. By early 2022, following a global pandemic, several consultations and a scoping mission, CADRI, in close collaboration with the Government, deployed experts across various sectors to assess the country’s DRR capacities, laying the groundwork for continued progress and sparking a ripple effect of resilience across the region.
The power of partnership: UNICEF’s critical role in CADRI
The CADRI Partnership is founded on the belief that by working across sectors, its interventions can amplify the impact of any individual partner. One such partner is UNICEF.
For over a decade, UNICEF has offered its expertise in education, Water, Sanitation, and Hygiene (WASH), social protection, and child safeguarding to CADRI in more than 25 countries, including recent missions in Djibouti, Zambia, and the Kyrgyz Republic.
“CADRI’s role is not just about assessing risks; it’s about building resilience from the ground up,” says Tigran Toymasyan, UNICEF Emergency Specialist at the Regional Office for Europe and Central Asia and Regional Focal Point for the CADRI Partnership. “UNICEF’s involvement has allowed us to embed child-centered approaches in DRR strategies, ensuring that when disaster strikes, children and vulnerable families are not left behind.”
Social protection as a cornerstone of disaster risk reduction
By early 2022, using the CADRI Tool, a critical gap in the Kyrgyz Republic’s DRR had been identified: the insufficient integration of social protection. In response, UNICEF spearheaded the development of a dedicated social protection module to embed protective measures within the broader disaster risk management framework.
“By integrating social protection into the broader disaster management response, we contribute to a more comprehensive approach and ensure that the most vulnerable populations — children, women, and low-income families — receive essential support and are not left behind during emergencies when they are most at risk of harm,” says Artiom Sici, Social Policy Specialist at UNICEF Moldova and former Social Protection Specialist at UNICEF Kyrgyzstan.
Building on existing shock-responsive social protection tools and with input from national and UN experts, the module now contains more than 400 questions to guide government organizations, UN agencies and partners in assessing and enhancing social protection systems for disaster and climate resilience. UNICEF has hailed the module as a “game-changer”, highlighting the critical role of social workforces in these efforts.
“Social workers play a key role in identifying vulnerable individuals and families, providing immediate support, and helping to navigate complex needs. By integrating their skills into disaster response efforts, we can enhance the reach and impact of social protection programmes,” added Artiom.
In February and March 2022, UNICEF co-led a 10-day CADRI mission to the Kyrgyz Republic alongside FAO, UNDP, and the Ministry of Emergency Situations (MES). Joined by experts from OCHA, UNDAC, UNDRR, UNFPA, WFP, and WHO, the mission assessed national and local DRR capacities, focusing on preparedness, risk assessment, loss and damage data management, and early warning systems, addressing priorities identified during a 2021 virtual scoping mission.
The mission successfully applied the use of the new social protection module. Since then, social protection has become a cornerstone of the Kyrgyz Republic’s National DRR Concept, serving as a model for other countries — and as one more way to ensure that vulnerable communities are included in disaster preparedness and response plans, so no one is left behind.
For more on the CADRI Partnership’s work in the Kyrgyz Republic, read here.
A stronger Kyrgyz Republic for future generations
By fostering partnerships and addressing critical gaps, CADRI has laid a foundation for UN joint programming and cross-sector collaboration, strengthening the Kyrgyz Republic’s resilience to future crises.
CADRI’s work in the Republic “was a true partnership effort, with each agency bringing their sector-specific expertise to the table,” Tigran says. “This joint approach ensured that all sectors, including health, education, and social protection, were addressed holistically.”
The CADRI process has also shaped national policies, plans, and strategies, with key recommendations integrated into the Kyrgyz Republic’s National DRR Concept and action plan, and the UN Sustainable Development Cooperation Framework (UNSDCF) 2023–2027. This alignment reinforces the country’s commitment to sustainable growth and resilient development in line with the Sendai Framework for DRR. The CADRI capacity diagnosis report also served as a valuable resource for the mid-term review of the Sendai Framework, in turn influencing government policies and strategies, as well as the UNSDCF.
As a risk-informed planning instrument, the CADRI assessment and tool have empowered the country to make evidence-based decisions that promote long-term resilience, and boosted risk-informed programming and investment for UNICEF’s Regional Office.
Now, in partnership with the World Bank, UNICEF is leading efforts to improve school safety, training the staff of more than 1,800 schools in resilience measures to better protect themselves during disaster. The CADRI assessment played a key role in identifying gaps and mapping ongoing initiatives in risk-informed development, as well as serving as a basis for prioritizing actions and mobilizing resources effectively.
“The CADRI process not only influenced our work in social protection but strengthened our partnerships across the UN System and with Government line ministries,” says Artiom. “We now have a clearer roadmap for building resilience through joint programming, and the social protection module is an important tool that we will continue to refine and implement.”
By uniting the expertise of diverse agencies and government partners, including UNICEF, the CADRI Partnership has laid a solid foundation for sustainable resilience for all amid escalating climate risks. These efforts are forging a resilient future — one where children, families, and communities are empowered to not only withstand disasters, but thrive beyond them.
By delivering as one, CADRI and UNICEF have demonstrated that collaboration can transform challenges into enduring solutions, illuminating a path of preparedness for future generations.
The full Capacity Diagnosis Report for the Kyrgyz Republic is available in Russian under the media hub on cadri.net.
