12th
Pacific Regional Disaster Management Meeting
Madang, Papua New Guinea, 6-8 June
The SOPAC island member national disaster managers from the Cook Islands,
the Federated States of Micronesia, Fiji, the Marshall Islands, Niue,
Papua New Guinea, the Republic of Palau, Samoa, the Solomon Islands,
Tonga, Tuvalu and Vanuatu attended the 12th Pacific Regional Disaster
Management Meeting from 6 – 8 June 2005 in Madang, Papua New Guinea.
Representatives from Australia and New Zealand were also present. The
theme was “Investment for Sustainable Development: Building the
Resilience of Nation’s and Communities to Disaster”, which
focused on the Draft Pacific Framework for Action 2005-2015, modeled
closely on the Hyogo Framework and designed to reflect the special needs
of the Pacific Small Islands Development State (SIDS).
The meeting
also established the Guiding Principles for the Draft Framework
for Action, which will contribute to the Pacific Islands Forum
leaders vision and the achievement of their national development
goals. The SOPAC Governing Council (20-30 September 2005 in
Samoa) and the Pacific Islands Forum leaders will be requested
to consider and endorse the Draft Framework for Action.
The SOPAC
Governing Council and the Pacific Islands Forum leaders are
requested to consider and endorse the Draft Framework for Action
2005-2015. In order to achieve it, they agreed to accelerate
the implementation of disaster risk reduction and disaster
management policies in their countries. They will develop and
strengthen disaster risk reduction and disaster management,
including preparedness, response and relief/recovery systems;
they will integrate disaster risk reduction and disaster management
into national sustainable development planning and decision-making
processes at all levels; and will strengthen effective partnerships
between all stakeholders in disaster risk reduction and disaster
management.
For
more information visit the following website: http://www.sopac.org/
Second International World Conference
on Climate Centre, Hague, 21-24 June
The Red Cross / Red Crescent Climate Centre held its 2nd International
World Conference on Climate Change and Disaster Risk Reduction, 21-24
June in the Hague. The meeting brought together over 100 practitioners
integrating climate change concerns in disaster risk reduction as well
as experts from the disaster reduction and the climate change fields.
Participants discussed community-based climate adaptation/disaster risk
reduction programmes; methods and tools for climate risk reduction; financing
weather and climate related risks; and linking local community climate
risk reduction programmes with national and international policies.
The ISDR
secretariat presented the work of the IATF Working Group on
Risk Assessment (WG3) highlighting UN-Habitat's contribution
(in collaboration with UNDP and ADPC) of a web portal of disaster
risk assessment tools. Collaboration between ProVention Consortium,
the UN Framework Convention on Climate Change, the ISDR secretariat
and others developing tool compendiums was promoted to avoid
the duplication of efforts and for the preparation of a paper
on tools, as agreed by the IATF Climate Change and Disaster
Risk Reduction Working Group led by WMO and UNDP.
For more
information visit the following website: http://www.climatecentre.org/
Third International Early Warning
Conference (EWCIII, Bonn, March 2006)
Discussions have continued in June with the German Foreign Ministry and
the German Disaster Reduction Committee, DKKV, on preparations for the
EWC III. The conference is convened by Germany under the auspices of
the United Nations and will take place on 27-29 March 2006 at the former
Bundestag in Bonn. It is planned to be opened by the German Foreign Minister
and the UN USG for Humanitarian Affairs. The conference will aim at launching
a number of specific projects on early warning, concentrating on high-priority
countries and issues. The projects should focus on tailored comprehensive
national early warning projects, and priority themes for global early
warning advancement initiatives. This approach will advance regional
and international cooperation, in line with the Hyogo Framework for Action.
It is expected
that the Conference should attract the interest of intergovernmental
spheres, both in the diplomatic and technical areas, of practitioners
and experts in disaster risk reduction and early warning, and
of the scientific community.
For more
information please go to: http://www.ewc3.org
UNESCO
Intergovernmental Oceanographic Commission
Twenty-third Session of the Assembly, Paris, 21-30
June
The IOC Assembly which took place in Paris, 21-30 June was an important
opportunity to further advance the establishment of the early warning
system in the Indian Ocean, by setting up a formal Intergovernmental
Coordination Group to manage detailed policies and plans for the Indian
ocean tsunami warning and mitigation system. A detection system to warn
of tsunamis like the one that devastated the coasts of South Asia and
Africa last December will be operational by July 2006. UNESCO's Intergovernmental
Oceanographic Commission (IOC) announced that Indian Ocean states would
meet in Perth, Australia, 3 August to coordinate the system's implementation.
For more
information on the IOC assembly go to: http://ioc.unesco.org
Workshops
at Bangkok on the role of media in education and disaster
prevention, Bangkok, 13-16 June
The Asia-Pacific Broadcasting Union (ABU), a professional association
of 102 radio and television broadcasters in the Asia-Pacific region,
together with the ISDR secretariat, ESCAP, ADPC, with support by EC/ECHO,
organized two media workshops in Bangkok on 13 - 16 June. 30 broadcasters
coming from the tsunami affected countries including Tanzania and Somalia
were present. The first workshop, 13–14 June, was more technical
in nature and involved technical, news and programming directors from
broadcast companies and operational directors from meteorological, oceanographic
and geographic organizations. The participants reviewed the rate and
accuracy in getting information from meteorological, oceanographic and
geographic organizations to broadcasters and clearly identified a communication
gap between them and the met services people. The second workshop addressed
education and public awareness issues and made the commitment to develop
more projects on disaster reduction targeting women and children audiences.
Their works will be presented at The International Day for Disaster Reduction
on 12 October 2005.
Seminar Workshop for National
Authorities: Risk Management Policies, Systems and Experiences
in the Caribbean, Havana, Cuba, 1-3 June
Representatives of 13 member countries of the Association of Caribbean
States (ACS), the United Nations System, the International Federation
of Red Cross and Red Crescent Societies, and CDERA, met at the “Seminar
Workshop for National Authorities: Risk Management Policies, Systems
and Experiences in the Caribbean” held in, Havana, Cuba, 1-3 June,
2005 as part of the regional efforts to implement the Hyogo Framework
in wider Caribbean. Jan Egeland (Under-Secretary-General for Humanitarian
Affairs and Emergency Relief Coordinator), Elena Martinez (UNDP Regional
Director for LAC) and many of the UN Resident Coordinator/Resident Representative
from ACS member countries were among the high level representatives attending
this meeting. The Seminar was organized by the ACS in collaboration with
the Cuban Civil Defense, UN-OCHA, UNDP and UN/ISDR.
The meeting
focused on a) developing training on risk and disaster management,
strengthening exchange and cooperation and developing further
alliances amongst the countries and institutions of the region
with support from the United Nations, Cooperation Agencies
and other regional initiatives for the purpose of improving
national capabilities to reduce the impact of natural hazards;
and, b) improving the integration of the international disaster
response and response preparedness efforts into the national
and regional disaster coordination mechanisms and procedures,
in preparation to the 2005 Caribbean hurricane season. The
outcomes of the meeting are reflected in a document called “Havana
Consensus” that is being reviewed by ACS member countries
for final approval and public dissemination. For more information
please consult the website of the ACS: http://www.acs-aec.org
Setting-up of Senegal National
Platform on Disaster Prevention, Dakar, 1-3 June
More than 30 participants gathered at a national workshop on disaster
reduction in Dakar, Senegal on 1-3 June 2005. This workshop was organised
by the ISDR office in Africa, in close collaboration with the Government
and the United Nations Country Team (UNCT). The purpose of the workshop
was to strengthen national mechanisms dealing with DRR, adopting a multisectorial
and multidisciplinary approach.
High-level representatives from different Ministries, from the Prime
Minister office and the Parliament, and members from the private sector,
the civil society and NGOs attended the meeting. Members of the UNCT
such as UNDP, OCHA, ILO and UNESCO provided also a strong contribution
to the workshop.
Participants
came up with concrete proposals and identified priority areas
for Senegal, which were very close to the ones defined in the
Hyogo Framework.
ISDR strongly
supported the workshop and provided a number of tools, methodologies
and guidelines to implement disaster reduction policies in
the national agenda. The principle of having a national multisectorial
and multidisciplinary platform to better coordinate with key
disaster management partners has been agreed on and Senegal
is now moving ahead with some concrete proposals towards the
implementation of the Hyogo Framework.
The First African Advisory
Group on Disaster Risk Reduction, Nairobi, 10-11 June
Convened by the ISDR secretariat and with African Union and five countries
(Senegal, Kenya, Madagascar, Nigeria, and Uganda), the African Advisory
Group was established. This initiative aims to mobilize political commitment
and link the national needs and concerns with the UN assistance in disaster
risk reduction in Africa, and to carry out advocacy activities at higher
level.
Expert Missions to Indian
Ocean Countries to Assess Requirements and Capacity for an
Effective and Durable National Tsunami Warning and Mitigation
System
The IOC/UNESCO led multidisciplinary assessment team is composed of five
members (an IOC governance person, a WMO representative, an ISDR representative,
a tsunami warning expert and a tsunami response expert) and has started
to visit 17 countries in the region and will be finalized by the end
of August. The first mission was for Sri Lanka (19-21 May 2005), and
in June a mission was sent to Myanmar and Pakistan (9–15 June),
and the other mission was sent to Kenya, Somalia, Tanzania, Oman, Seychelles
(6–17 June).
Strategic Planning Meeting
of the UN Disaster Management Training Programme (UN/DMTP),
Geneva, 20-21 June
The ISDR contributed to the formulation and composition of the Meeting,
organized by UNDP/BCPR, Geneva 20-21 June. This important strategic Meeting
brought together a diverse collection of 25 capacity development individual
professionals and selected organizations from within and beyond the UN
system, from the five continents. The purpose of the meeting was to seek
common ground and productive initial relationships to consider a later,
expanded “Future Search” (methodology) Meeting to develop
specific action areas that could systematically address enhanced, multiple
commitments to capacity-building in furtherance of Hyogo Framework objectives.
The result of this initial discussion is to plan for an expanded Meeting
of capacity-building practitioners scheduled for December 2005 in a joint
collaboration among ISDR-UNDP/BCPR-UN System Staff Training College in
Turin, Italy. The renewed DMTP could become one of the main pillars for
the implementation of the Hyogo Framework in particular to support needs
of national platforms. It is expected to develop into a substantive collaboration
between UNDP-ISDR secretariats.
Dialogue on millennium development
goals and disaster risk reduction
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.
For more
information please go to: http://www.unisdr.org/mdgs-drr
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