The Ibero-American Network for Disaster Risk Reduction and Civil Protection (RGIR) has held its first Conference of National Authorities in the National School of Civil Protection in Rivas-Vaciamadrid (Madrid), to formalize the creation of this new regional cooperation mechanism. The meeting, closed by the Minister of the Interior, Fernando Grande-Marlaska, is part of the XXX Ibero-American Summit.
The initiative, organized by the General Secretariat for Civil Protection and Emergencies and the Ibero-American General Secretariat (SEGIB), is supported by the Development Bank of Latin America and the Caribbean (CAF) and promoted by the Spanish Agency for International Development Cooperation (AECID) and the Foundation for the Internationalization of Public Administrations (FIAP).
The Secretary General for Civil Protection and Emergencies, Virginia Barcones, highlighted that the Network represents a "historic step for Ibero-American cooperation in civil protection," sharing common risks and a common will to better protect societies through collaboration.
Lorena Larios, Ibero-American Cooperation Secretary of SEGIB, emphasized that the Network will allow for strengthened cooperation and the connection of disaster risk reduction with areas such as water, meteorology, and climate change.
Jorge Mijangos, Director of Cooperation with Latin America and the Caribbean at AECID, valued the design of a trust fund for strategic projects of the Network, especially in early warning systems.
Ignacio Corlazzoli, Manager of Resource Mobilization and Global Alliances at CAF, stated that the Network is a "necessary and timely response" to the increasing complexity of disasters and risks associated with earthquakes and El Niño.
Tobias Jung, Secretary General of FIAP, expressed his honor in accompanying the creation process of this network that "can save many lives" by connecting and strengthening national structures.
The Network brings together over 670 million people from 22 Ibero-American countries: Andorra, Argentina, Bolivia, Brazil, Chile, Colombia, Costa Rica, Cuba, Ecuador, El Salvador, Spain, Guatemala, Honduras, Mexico, Nicaragua, Panama, Paraguay, Peru, Portugal, Dominican Republic, Uruguay, and Venezuela.
The meeting concludes the process initiated in March 2026 in Antigua (Guatemala) and will address the approval of internal regulations, strategic guidelines, and the definition of the Permanent Technical Secretariat.
