African ministers adopt the extended Programme of Action

African ministers adopted the extended Africa Programme of Action for the Implementation of the Africa Regional Strategy for Disaster Risk Reduction.  The ministers were among more than 250 participants from 42 African countries who gathered at the Second Ministerial Conference on Disaster Risk Reduction that took place from 14 to 16 April 2010 at the Kenyatta International Conference Centre in Nairobi, Kenya in parallel to the First Ministerial Conference of Ministers Responsible for Meteorology in Africa .

The ministerial conference was organised by the African Union Commission, the Government of Kenya, and the United Nations International Strategy for Disaster Reduction (UNISDR) in collaboration with the World Bank Global Facility for Disaster Reduction and Recovery (GFDRR).

It was officially opened by Hon. Uhuru Kenyatta, Deputy Prime Minister of the Republic of Kenya, in the presence of Margareta Wahlström, the UN Special Representative of the Secretary General for Disaster Risk Reduction and H.E. Ms. Tumusiime Rhoda-Peace, Commissioner for Rural Economy and Agriculture, African Union Commission. Delegates representing Regional Economic Communities, National Platforms and Focal Points for disaster risk reduction, institutions, donors, experts, academia, UN agencies and NGO’s were also present.

The event included an Expert Meeting, a series of parallel events and a Ministerial Conference. Participants discussed and agreed on clear recommendations for action, operational mechanisms and requests to countries  to allocate resources, along with the Extended Africa Programme of Action for Disaster Risk Reduction 2006-2015, and the Draft Decision to be submitted to the AU Summit. Africa now has the legal framework in place to move Disaster Risk Reduction forward.