Brisbane to host the 2020 Asia-Pacific Ministerial Conference on Disaster Risk Reduction
Bangkok, 5 April 2019 - Australia will host the Asia-Pacific Ministerial Conference on Disaster Risk Reduction (APMCDRR), 23 to 26 June 2020 in Brisbane, in partnership with the United Nations Office for Disaster Risk Reduction.
Asia-Pacific is the most disaster-prone region in the world and includes seven of the ten countries with the highest number of disaster-related deaths in 2018. The region is facing growing disaster risk fuelled by rapid and unplanned urbanisation, climate change and growing inequality. Australia is also confronting disruption and devastation caused by drought, bushfires, cyclones and, most recently, flooding.
“Hosting this conference will provide an opportunity to share Australian experiences as well as learn from our neighbours who face similar challenges, increasing our collective understanding of disaster risks. Working together will help us to save lives, minimise economic loss and ensure no one is left behind during a disaster”, said Senator Marise Payne, Australia’s Minister for Foreign Affairs.
The conference will be held in Brisbane, home of the Queensland Reconstruction Authority, Australia’s only standalone agency responsible for disaster recovery, resilience and mitigation policy. More than 2,000 delegates from over 50 countries, primarily in the Asia Pacific region, are expected to participate. The conference is expected to focus on the need for local and inclusive action to build community resilience in the face of growing disaster risks.
“Australia’s hosting of the next Asia-Pacific Ministerial conference offers an exciting opportunity to put a spotlight on the challenges faced by the Pacific and Small Island Developing States that are disproportionately impacted by climate change and extreme weather events”, said Mami Mizutori, Special Representative of the United Nations Secretary-General for Disaster Risk Reduction.
The conference in Brisbane is the ninth regional Ministerial Conference on Disaster Risk Reduction and the first hosted by Australia. It is expected to produce a political declaration on disaster risk reduction and an updated regional action plan. The last ministerial conference was hosted by Mongolia in Ulaanbaatar in July 2018.