Parliamentarians

Legislators often oversee policy changes and budget allocation, in addition to their primary role in legislation development. Parliamentarians and senators with increased understanding and knowledge of disaster risk reduction (DRR) can play a strategic role in bridging long-existing gaps in DRR between national governments and local authorities. This is because the majority was elected to represent the interests of their local constituencies at the national level. Informed legislators can also play an active role in strengthening policies and legislations at national level and their implementation at local level.

Parliamentarians can play a strategic role in bridging long-existing gaps in DRR.

UNISDR advocates for making disaster risk reduction an essential part of planning and programmes and has taken the initiative to target advocacy efforts at legislators. The aim is to foster an enabling political environment for achieving sustainable socio-economic development resilient to disasters and climate change.

This initiative advocates for disaster risk reduction through its informed parliamentarians and parliamentary assemblies. UNISDR primarily targets parliamentarians and senators from member states of the United Nations. The secondary target includes those who work at regional and international parliamentary assemblies and their secretariats.

UNISDR helps to put disaster risk reduction on the parliamentary agenda at global, regional and national levels.

UNISDR also increases DRR understanding and knowledge, provides technical support to individual parliamentarians and senators who are willing to make a contribution to the implementation of the Hyogo Framework for Action, building the ownership and leadership of parliamentarians in building disaster resilient nations and communities.

UNISDR's parliamentarian focal point is Ana Cristina Angulo-Thorlund (thorlund@un.org)

Parliamentarian Advisory Group for Disaster Risk Reduction

The Advisory Group consists of individual parliamentarians who have demonstrated strong political commitment to the building of resilience of nations and communities to disasters. They have been very active in promoting risk reduction and resilience building in the context of climate change, MDGs and sustainable development. They come from different geographic regions of the world. The Advisory Group will advise UNISDR on the further engagement of parliamentarians in disaster risk reduction while serving as global ambassadors, advocating for DRR as a regional, national and local priority. Current members are shown below.

Parliamentarians News
Thousands to attend Geneva platform on reducing disaster risk 5 Feb 2013
UNISDR champion applauds African Union for decision on disaster insurance 6 Aug 2012
UNISDR reports on record-breaking year 18 Jul 2012

View more UNISDR Parliamentarians news

Parliamentarians Documents
The Manila call for action of parliamentarians on applying disaster risk reduction as an instrument for achieving the Millennium Development Goals SOURCE: 2010
Disaster risk reduction: an instrument for achieving the Millennium Development Goals SOURCE: UNISDR 2010
Disaster reduction in Africa: ISDR Informs 2009 issue SOURCE: UNISDR AF 2010
The Manila call for action of Parliamentarians on disaster risk reduction and climate change adaptation SOURCE: UNISDR; Senate of the Philippines, Philippines - gov; GLOBE Europe 2008