The role of High official

Role

As commissioners of the Federal Government, provincial governors have authority over administrative police matters. As the post of governor no longer exists for the Brussels Conurbation, certain tasks associated with this office – namely maintaining public order, coordinating security policies and standardising communal police regulations – are entrusted to the Minister-President.

However, the Brussels Conurbation, which was assigned a High official following the government decree of September 2015, entrusts the latter with the rest of the powers devolved to provincial governors, in this case concerning matters relating to civil security. In essence, the High official is responsible for identifying the risks present on the territory, planning the infrastructure and resources needed to manage emergency situations, ensuring information is shared with the population, organising multi-disciplinary exercises and, above all, adapting existing emergency planning to the needs identified during assessments of real or simulated emergency situations.

In performing these duties, the High official is a decentralised authority of the Federal State. Nevertheless, the latter does have the status of regional agent, since they are appointed by the Government of the Brussels-Capital Region with the assent of the Federal Government.
 

Provincial Governors

The BRU response label is an integrated programme that brings together all current and future projects in the fields of emergency planning, crisis readiness, partner networking and citizen participation. This last area, which has yet to be fully developed, is essential. In particular, the projects proposed aim to implement some of the recommendations made by the decisions committee of the French-speaking parliament of Brussels on the question of "To what extent and in what way do the citizens of Brussels envisage their role in crisis prevention, notification, management and evaluation?"

Citizen meetings

Organised as part of the BRU response programme, these meetings aim to raise awareness among residents of the various aspects of crisis management and emergency preparedness. The aim is to promote citizen participation in the event of a crisis, increase the risk culture and strengthen the resilience of all citizens, for greater safety in Brussels. In partnership with the Montgomery zone, the first citizen meetings were held in Woluwe-Saint-Pierre, Etterbeek and Woluwe-Saint-Lambert at the end of 2023. 

Setting up a Communal civil security citizen reserve (Réserve Citoyenne Communale de Sécurité Civile – RCCSC)

One of the objectives of these meetings was to set up a citizen reserve as part of citizen participation in the event of a crisis.  This objective was largely achieved with over 210 people already expressing their interest in the RCCSC by the end of the pilot phase!
In order to create a real community and to strengthen the special bond between volunteers and those involved in crisis management, the BRU response team launched a newsletter in January 2024.
 

Recommendations for improving crisis management in Belgium

On 25 April 2023, the Committee of Experts on Crisis Management, set up by the Minister of the Interior, submitted a White Paper containing recommendations for improving crisis management in Belgium. This text is the result of a multi-disciplinary effort, and is structured around 6 major themes, with risk culture as the cross-cutting theme.