The Secretariat of the International Strategy
for Disaster Reduction (UN/ISDR)
On-line Conference
 
Dialogue on millennium development goals and disaster risk reduction
 
Introduction
Guidelines
 
Technical support by
 
 
 
 
 
Introduction
 

In September 2005, world leaders will meet again in New York for a summit to review the MDGs. In January 2005, the World Conference on Disaster Reduction called for a stronger link between internationally agreed development goals and disaster risk reduction. The ISDR Secretariat is hosting an online dialogue on the mainstreaming of Disaster Risk Reduction into strategies to attain the Millenium Development Goals. The dialogue opens on the 12th of July and will continue for a period of three weeks.

The objective of the online conference is to provide a forum to exchange views on how disaster risk reduction should be better represented in the Millennium Development Goals; both for the current targets and the indicators as well as to identify how the MDGs can be closer linked to the implementation of the Hyogo Framework for Action 2005-2015. It seeks to bring into the process voices from varied professional, geographical and institutional groups.

The two broad areas which the conference seeks to address are, firstly, how to make the MDGs indicators more sensitive to Disaster Risk Reduction and, secondly, how to better incorporate Disaster Risk Reduction into the ‘areas of intervention’ to achieve the MDGs.

  1. Disaster Risk Reduction and the Millennium Development Goals, Targets and Indicators
    The ISDR Secretariat has developed a matrix that examines the interrelation between the Millennium Development Goals, Targets and the Indicators outlined in the Road map towards the implementation of the United Nations Millennium Declaration (Secretary-General Report to GA A/56/326). The original indicators do not measure whether progress towards the targets is insulated against disaster risk. The table examines how the indicators can be adapted to measure the extent of disaster risk reduction. This has been done without adding new indicators but by using the existing MDG target indicators with additional time or geographic dimensions to make them sensitive to the question: is the progress in attaining the MDG target disaster resilient, or is it susceptible to exogenous shocks from hazard induced disasters.

    We would appreciate your feedback regarding the questions of :
    • Whether these indicators are practical instruments which may be used without necessitating excessive additional data collection exercises
    • Whether these indicators effectively measure disaster resilience of the process of achieving MDG targets
    • Any suggestions for alternatives or modification of indicators are welcome

  2. Disaster Risk Reduction and the Areas of Intervention to achieve the MDGs
    The UN Millennium Project, an independent advisory body to the UN Secretary-General Kofi Annan led by Jeffrey Sachs published a report in 2005 on Investing in Development: A Practical Plan to Achieve the Millennium Development Goals . The report lays down ‘Areas of Intervention’ for each MDG so as to upscale investments and reach the Goals by 2015. However, on closer analysis these interventions are not risk reducing in themselves and many may, in fact, be accumulating new disaster risks. Therefore, we have also been working towards ensuring that interventions to achieve the MDGs are consistent with disaster risk reduction. This process ensures that further investments directed at attaining the MDGs will not lead to the accumulation of new disaster risk.

    We would greatly appreciate your comments on :
    • Whether these measures are adequate
    • Whether they effectively capture the essence of dovetailing DRR into the MDG process
    • Any examples and methodologies from the field of how disaster risk reduction has been effectively mainstreamed into efforts to attain the MDGs and vice-versa.

You are invited to provide comments on how disaster risk reduction should be better represented in the Millennium Development Goals; both for the current targets, the indicators and for how the MDGs can be closer linked to the implementation of the Hyogo Framework for Action 2005-2015.

We are interested in your views on both the content and the actual processes of how to move forward with the integration, particularly with reference to the MDG indicators and areas of intervention to achieve the MDGs.

It will be necessary to fill in an online registration form in order to post opinions on the website. The dialogue will be moderated by Praveen Pardeshi at the ISDR. Please send your comments to: mdgs-drr@un.org