Introduction
"The National Emergency Management Agency (NEMA) is the Government lead for emergency management. We help build a safe and resilient Aotearoa New Zealand by empowering communities before, during and after emergencies. Emergencies can have consequences for people, communities, property, infrastructure, the economy and the environment. NEMA works with central and local government, communities, iwi, and business to make sure responses to and recoveries from emergencies are effective and integrated. Depending on the emergency, NEMA leads or supports the response and recovery. NEMA’s key functions are steward, operator and assurer of the emergency management system. As steward, we provide strategic leadership for risk reduction, readiness, response and recovery activities, and build emergency management capability and capacity. As operator, we lead or support the response to and recovery from emergencies while also supporting the operation of the emergency management system. As assurer (a new function) we will provide assurance that the emergency management system is fit for purpose."