China's emergency management: building a framework

Abstract

Emergency management is not only a buzz but also extraordinary word in the public management studies. China has also significant current or potential emergencies and disasters threats. Therefore, the ultimate goal of this thesis focuses on presenting the strategic considerations and practical advices to the Central People's Government of the People's Republic of China to reform its current emergency management system. These recommendations inspired from the new suspicious in emergency management through international case studies. It indicates that fragmentations across a wide range of participants in emergency management jeopardize comprehensive coordinated operation. This research is grounded in the analytical framework, which encapsulates structure alignment and dynamic coordination rules. On the one hand, structure alignment aims to integrate the emergency management legislation, planning, organizational architecture into an inclusive system. On the other hand, dynamic coordination rules would be flexible decision making principles to efficiently implement paper-based comprehensive coordination. Then, it proposes that an innovative strategy, the integrated planning for progressive response, spells out a comprehensive emergency management. Four serious considerations, including the unified risk assessment system, the pre-established and coordination oriented planning, the integrated national emergency management architecture, and the dynamic rules of coordination, outlined the key institutional framework of this innovative strategy for comprehensive emergency management. Finally, this thesis suggests translatable and feasible considerations and advices for the Central Government of China. It highlights that both centralized and decentralized emergency management mechanism is imperative to different emergency management activities. Three coordination portfolios narrow down the bureaucratic fragmentation to the greatest extent and endeavour to maximize comprehensive coordination in delivering all emergency services and support more efficiently and smoothly. Citizens' awareness of emergency management also needs to be fully developed. Due to China's unique political context, it is not only doable but also very efficient to place military service to be in temporary charge of emergency management. It also indicates that national legal, planning, organizational architecture would be changed to align with comprehensive coordination. Localization of planning aims to improve first line response capability. Further, various training programs for public and officials attempt to enrich their awareness and capability. Also emergency management would be connected to the appraisal of bureaucrats' performance.