UNDRR News

China has transformed its approach to reducing disaster risk following the devastating Sichuan earthquake ten years ago, with citizens including school children more protected and prepared than ever.

In May 2008, less than four years after the Indian Ocean tsunami resulted in the loss of 230,000 lives, the world witnessed another disaster which provided a tragic illustration of the price people and nations pay in the absence of effective early warning systems being in place.

The anniversary of Nargis is a good moment to reflect on how far the world has come in reducing the death toll from disasters while underlining that there is still plenty of need for disaster risk preparedness in the face of climate change, sea-level rise, and growing population density in hazard-exposed areas.

Urgent action is needed to address water-related disasters which accounted for 90% of the 1,000 most severe disasters that have occurred since 1990, according to the final outcome document – Making Every Drop Count - of the High Level Panel on Water, issued in March to kick off the International Decade for Action on Water for Sustainable Development.

Efforts to eradicate poverty in the Asia-Pacific region are being impeded by the high volume of disaster events across the region where the lives of millions are disrupted every year by floods, storms, drought and earthquakes.

Rwanda has mainstreamed disaster risk reduction (DRR) across all sectors and put in place strong regulations and contingency plans to address all natural and man-made hazards affecting the country.

A new European Science and Technology Advisory Group (E-STAG) convened this week in Sofia, Bulgaria, to focus on improving disaster risk knowledge in 55 countries across Europe and Central Asia.

The World Trade Organization today called for greater dialogue on the impacts of the growing number of disasters on world trade and the role trade can play in building resilience to disasters.

Mongolian journalists have received an introduction to reporting on disaster risk management ahead of this week's ISDR-Asia Partnership (IAP) Forum, a key preparatory event for the Asian Ministerial Conference on Disaster Risk Reduction in July.

Malawi today became the latest country in Africa to complete training on establishing a national disaster loss data base, considered an essential prerequisite for being able to report on progress on reducing disaster losses and improving disaster risk management.