The Secretariat of the International Charter Space and Major Disasters is working with selected institutions in El Salvador, Guatemala, Uruguay and other countries in Latin America to engage them as Authorised Users so that in the future, these institutions may request the activation of the Charter in case of large disasters. This effort has been facilitated by the National Commission for Space Activities of Argentina (CONAE) and UN-SPIDER, and has benefitted from the support provided by the German Aerospace Center (DLR) and other members of the Charter.
In the case of El Salvador the Secretariat of the Charter is interacting with the Environmental Observatory of the Ministry of Environment and Natural Resources. The Environmental Observatory is a key agency in the inter-institutional framework of the Civil Protection Directorate of El Salvador; which coordinates response efforts in case of emergencies and disasters. In the case of Guatemala, the National Emergency Operations Centre (NEOC) is in contact with the Charter Secretariat to become the Authorized User. The NEOC is operated on a 24/7 basis by the Executive Secretariat of Guatemala's National Coordinating Agency for Disaster Reduction (SE-CONRED). In the case of Uruguay the Secretariat of the Charter is interacting with the National Emergency System (SINAE).
As a way to facilitate this process, CONAE has been conducting a series of video conferences and teleconferences to make institutions in these Latin American countries aware of the Principle of Universal Access that has been launched by the Charter to further strengthen the Charter's contribution to disaster management worldwide and to explain how Authorised Users should request the activation of the Charter. Subsequently, a simulation is conducted by the Secretariat of the Charter with the relevant institutions as a way to assess their ability to request the activation of the Charter and to use the geospatial information that is provided by the Charter in case of large disasters.
More information on the Universal Access Principle can be found in the brochure that has been elaborated by the International Charter: https://www.disasterscharter.org/documents/10180/187832/CHARTER_UA_ENG.pdf
