UNDRR News

Disaster risk reduction was high on the agenda as government auditors met in Turkey this week to discuss accountability and good practices in the area of disaster-related aid, against the tragic backdrop of Sunday’s 7.2 quake that left over 400 dead and 2,000-plus buildings destroyed.

The UN has issued a flash appeal for US$15.7 million to provide emergency assistance to El Salvador which has now been pounded by heavy rains and floods since 10 October.

International efforts to mitigate climate change are insufficient to meet the goal of keeping global warming to below 2 degrees Celsius above pre-industrial levels, a United Nations report warned, just a month before a major conference on the issue is held in Durban, South Africa.

Four student representatives from Kobe University, Bukkyo University and Tohuku University announced a ‘Youth Declaration’ during United Nations Day celebrations in Sendai City to highlight the commitment and active participation of youth in building disaster resilient communities.

The tragic loss of life in yesterday’s earthquake in the Ercis region of Turkey and the reported collapse of almost 1,000 buildings underlines the importance of providing the right incentives and information to builders and owners in the world’s most dangerous earthquake zones, says UNISDR, the UN office for disaster reduction.

UNISDR, the UN's disaster risk reduction office, in Egypt joined events around the world to celebrate the International Day for Disaster Reduction, 13 October, with the theme of recognizing the role of children and young people as partners in disaster risk reduction.

The floods which have affected eight million people across South East Asia, and which now threaten Bangkok, have underlined shortcomings in disaster risk reduction with many children drowning because they cannot swim, and thousands of workers now unemployed because of poorly located manufacturing plants, the Head of the UN’s Bangkok Office for Disaster Reduction, UNISDR, Jerry Velasquez said today.

UNISDR Chief, Margareta Wahlström, today welcomed the news that both the Lebanese Army and the National Institute of Administration, the country’s civil service, are to make disaster risk reduction a core element of staff training.

Earlier today, Thailand’s Prime Minister, Yingluck Shinawatra, said it was impossible to protect all of Bangkok from the worst floods in decades, describing the situation as a national crisis.

One of the world’s most earthquake-prone and heavily urbanized countries, Lebanon, is bringing together 96 mayors and other leaders from over 80 cities and municipalities for two days this week to discuss progress on disaster risk reduction across a wide range of threats.