SG calls for shift from risk to resilience

Source(s): United Nations Office for Disaster Risk Reduction
UN Secretary-General Ban Ki-moon said that three out of four humanitarian disasters are now climate-related (Photo: UNEP)

UN Secretary-General Ban Ki-moon said that three out of four humanitarian disasters are now climate-related (Photo: UNEP)

PARIS, 30 November 2015 - UN Secretary-General Ban Ki-moon today called for a shift from disaster risk to resilience as he highlighted that “three out of four humanitarian disasters are now climate-related.”

Speaking on the opening day of the COP21 climate change summit, which has drawn leaders from around the globe, the Secretary-General stressed that the hardest hit are the poor and the vulnerable, including small farmers, fishing communities and indigenous peoples.

“It is imperative that we strengthen resilience and build adaptive capacity, especially in Small Island Developing States, the Least Developed Countries and most African nations. Vulnerable countries also need support in implementing the 2030 Agenda for Sustainable Development and the Sendai Framework for Disaster Risk Reduction,” he said.

The Sendai Framework was adopted in March 2015 at the Third UN World Conference on Disaster Risk Reduction and sets targets for substantial reductions in disaster risk and disaster losses including mortality, numbers of people affected, economic losses and damage to critical infrastructure.

The Secretary-General said: “We must anticipate climate risks and absorb them in new development models. World leaders have repeatedly told me they look to the United Nations for assistance in strengthening national and global resilience. They have also emphasized the need to involve a range of actors, especially the private sector.

“At the UN Climate Summit in 2014, a number of resilience initiatives from both the public and the private sector were launched. Today, I am pleased to announce my initiative on resilience, which builds on the momentum from the Summit for stronger action on resilience.”

Mr. Ban said that the initiative is a multi-stakeholder partnership that focuses on accelerating climate resilience before 2020 for the most vulnerable by strengthening three elements: early warnings and early action, insurance and social protection coverage, and increased “capacity to adapt development to reduce risks at the national and international level.”

He continued: “Investment in climate resilience can save 23,000 lives a year. It can avoid up to $2 billion dollars a year in asset losses, and generate up to $30 billion dollars in increased productivity. A new, universal and meaningful climate agreement here in Paris must contain strong provisions for all countries to strengthen their resilience.”

Several speakers focussed on what it will take to make the world a more resilient place. Danilo Medina, President of the Dominican Republic, said that climate change is a challenge to his country's survival which threatens us daily. "We are therefore pleased that the need to fight climate change is uniting more and more voices anf finding more allies."

Baron Waqa, President of the Republic of Nauru, said:  "After years of excess and willful ignorance, the climate bill has finally come due. Who will pay? Right now, it is being paid by the poorest and the most vulnerable. Small Island Communities pay in the droughts that destroy livelihoods and the record cyclones that steal lives. We see a small toll exacted every day as our shorelines are slowly eroded. Larger payments are made when the foundation of our marine ecosystems are bleached away."

President Waqa continued: "Fortunately, the solutions are at hand. Countries and communities around the world demonstrating that a better life – a good life – is possible. Clean energy not only reduces emissions, but also improves our public health. Efficiency measures can save us money as it saves our climate. We already know what we must do."

Jacob Zuma, President of South Africa, said: "Since developing countries already experience climate change impacts, the Paris agreement cannot focus only on mitigation. Climate change impacts are driven by global inaction on mitigation, thereby deepening the adaptation burden on developing countries. A Global Goal for Adaptation must therefore be part of the Paris agreement. This Goal must express adaptation as a global responsibility that requires a global response: The less mitigation actions are taken, the more societies will be forced to adapt and to contend with loss and damage."

He added:  "We also need commitments of on-going means of implementation in the form of financial resources, technology transfer and capacity-building for the period beyond 2020 to enable developing countries to implement their contributions. Climate 3 finance must be scaled up significantly beyond the US$100 billion mark for the post- 2020 period. A Paris agreement that is hollow and weak on the provision of means of implementation to support adaptation and mitigation efforts of developing countries, will not be acceptable and will furthermore undermine our collective response."

 

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