Over half of Dutch still don't have an emergency kit at home

Despite a major government campaign urging the Dutch to prepare for emergencies, over half of households still don’t have an emergency kit at home, the Ministry of Justice and Security reported based on research commissioned from Ipsos I&O. The Ministry stressed that the risk of emergencies is increasing amid climate change and the geopolitical situation.

According to the figures, 44 percent of the Dutch have assembled an emergency kit. The Ministry stressed the increase from last year, when 35 percent of households had put something together for an emergency.

The Ministry also said that the number of Dutch people with an emergency plan doubled, and nearly half have spoken to the other members of their households about what to do in an emergency.

Last year, the government held a major campaign, titled Denk Vooruit, or Think Ahead in English. The government sent booklets with information on how to prepare an emergency kit and other measures to take to 8.5 million households.

According to the Ministry, over 90 percent of Dutch people have seen the information booklet. The Telegraaf reported that over a quarter of people who received a booklet did not read it at all. And only 42 percent took action.

Justice Minister David van Weel called that worrying, speaking to the newspaper. “We have not yet been able to reach all groups,” he said. “There is certainly still work to be done.”

“Preparation is no longer a once-off action; it is a habit that we must build together,” Van Weel said in the statement published by his Ministry. “And this certainly applies to us as the government as well; we too must take extra steps to become resilient against contemporary threats such as cyberattacks and sabotage. We become resilient together.”