Andorra Prioritizes Emergency Plans and Risk Maps for 2026

Andorra's Civil Protection and Emergency Management department has set the approval of its first emergency plans and risk maps as key priorities for 2026, building on technical work completed over the past year.

The department's 2025 annual report describes last year as pivotal in strengthening the national system. Progress included advances on the National Territorial Plan, special plans, and the outline for a future 112 service and National Emergency Centre. Immediate challenges involve rolling out regulations under the qualified Civil Protection Law, particularly for activities and events, alongside deploying a mass alert system using cell broadcast technology by late 2026. In the meantime, a temporary SMS alert tool will continue to support emergency communications.

Operationally, the department activated its response seven times in 2025 and ran five drills, including an avalanche simulation at Arcalís and a seismic emergency exercise. It also coordinated security for major events such as the Small States Games. Training efforts featured 19 courses, with 2,597 participants completing basic civil protection training. Additionally, 28 mountain safety panels were updated with information in four languages.

A major milestone was launching the Civil Protection Volunteer Corps, which graduated its first 25 members. Plans call for adding 15 more in 2026 to reach a stable force of 40, enhancing preventive and support capabilities amid increasingly complex and frequent emergencies.