The Emergency Fund (EF) is a sub-category of the Emergency Grant (FIS). Like the FIS, it allows any Protected Areas (PAs) manager to address specific, unpredictable, and urgent threats jeopardizing the viability of a particular target (habitat, wildlife or flora species) or the ecological integrity of the protected area in general. The fund is primarily used to finance activities not originally included in the manager’s Annual Plan (AP) but whose implementation is key to deal with an unforeseen situation (usually pressure or threat) occurring during the year, such as fire. Therefore, this fund does not finance passive activities such as the building or maintenance of firebreaks, awareness campaigns, etc., or investment costs.
However, the EF addresses the expectations and needs of certain types of emergencies that require immediate intervention within hours of the start/warning to limit damage. The situation generally does not allow for an extended processing time. The main objective of the Emergency Fund is to better respond to emergencies and the needs of PAs by developing simplified mechanisms and procedures for fund mobilization and disbursement.
The main characteristic of the EF is to provide the manager with funds in advance, without going through a normal request as is the case with the FIS, and funds are already available on the ground, ready to be mobilized in case of a warning.
