UNDRR News

Regional cooperation on disaster risk reduction in Central Asia and the South Caucasus received a major boost this week as representatives from eight countries consulted with the UN Office for Disaster Risk Reduction (UNISDR) on a post-2015 framework for disaster risk reduction.

The UN Office for Disaster Risk Reduction (UNISDR) today stated that for the first time in history the world has experienced three consecutive years where annual economic losses have exceeded $100 billion due to an enormous increase in exposure of industrial assets and private property to extreme disaster events.

More than 100 delegates from over 20 countries met in Helsinki today to discuss how to make sure countries around the world can better prevent the fallout of conflicts, war and disasters from reversing the gains in development, economic growth and provision of services to their people in the future global development agenda.

Reaching back hundreds of years to learn the lessons of history combined with the best of modern know-how is the ideal mix to build more resilient communities and nations.

UNISDR Chief Margareta Wahlström today announced that children from Japan who continue to live with the consequences of the Great East Japan Earthquake, will attend the Global Platform on Disaster Risk Reduction in May.

Almost two years after the devastating Great East Japan Earthquake, UNISDR Chief Margareta Wahlström, paid a return visit to one of the worst-affected towns, Minami-Sanriku, in Miyagi Prefecture, and met with the Mayor, Mr. Jin Sato.

UNISDR Chief, Margareta Wahlström, met with active women leaders in Fukushima city last month on a visit to Fukushima Prefecture in the lead-up to the second memorial day of the Great East Japan Earthquake on Monday, March 11.

The UN Office for Disaster Risk Reduction, UNISDR, today marked International Women's Day with an announcement that women will play a central role in developing the next global framework on disaster risk reduction.

Representatives of UN agencies, funds and programmes completed an action plan this week that will accelerate the integration of disaster risk reduction into all UN country level operations in response to the rising levels of disruption to millions of lives each year from disasters.

Africa's infrastructure is under pressure from increasing disasters but the infrastructure deficit is an opportunity for the continent to take a global lead on sustainable development and to leap-frog environmentally unfriendly technologies, said Mrs. Rhoda Peace, the Africa Union Commissioner for rural economy and agriculture, at a seminar marking the 11th African Day for the Environment hosted by the Tunisian government.