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)

Parliamentarians News
UN kicks off discussions on new international blueprint for disaster risk reduction 5 Mar 2012
Panama Canal expert joins regional fight for risk reduction 9 Feb 2012
UNISDR and lawmakers agree on global advisory group 21 Dec 2011

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; GLOBE Europe; Senate of the Philippines, Philippines - gov 2008