AFRICA’S GOVERNANCE RESPONSE TO COVID-19 | PRELIMINARY REPORT 2020 5.2 Recommendations for Member States a. Immediate Governance Measures 1. Member states should establish multistakeholder national response governance bodies. 6. Member states should adopt a human rights approach to disaster preparedness and management and ensure their governments consider the potential consequences of their disaster policy decisions and actions for the enjoyment of human rights by all concerned. 2. Member states should ensure that their COVID-19 prevention and containment measures are implemented within a framework that respects the rule of law and the human rights of citizens. 7. Member states should establish mechanisms for ensuring that their governments are accountable for disaster decision-making, including in the use of public finances devoted to the emergencies that disasters create. b. Medium-Term Governance Measures 1. Member states that do no have national disasterrelated legislation and a relevant institutional mechanism, should consider these measures for implementation as best practice. 8. Member States should, as far as is possible, invest in developing the infrastructure and scientific, technological and institutional capacities to research and forecast hazards, vulnerabilities and disaster impacts, including developing capacities for vaccine research and development. 2. Member states are encouraged to increase their investment in institutional capacity central to an effective governance response to COVID-19. 3. Public institutions and the private sector should accelerate South-South cooperation for knowledge sharing, technology transfer in health care, and epidemics research 5.3 Recommendations for the APRM 1. Undertake research on state resilience and disasters to inform its methodology and processes. 2. Review APRM framework to integrate disaster preparedness and management, including revising its base questionnaire to address the governance of disasters. 3. Develop monitoring and evaluation tools for evaluating the attainment of good disaster governance. 4. Member states should incorporate disaster planning in their national and local development planning frameworks. 5. Member states should decentralize responsibilities and capacities for disaster management and ensure coordination and cooperation between the local and national levels. 61