29 Aug 2017

Demystifying the Global Agenda Frameworks into Practice

by GIDRM

Coherent approaches in the implementation of the global frameworks are required to achieve the ambitious Sustainable Development Goals, particularly with regard to reducing disaster and climate risks. Coherence related to disaster risk reduction is more than just managing impacts of disasters, there is the need to address the underlying risks through risk-informed development processes in systematic ways that reflect the goals of the global development agendas. Risk-informed development planning aims to protect development investments and ultimately build people’s resilience.

Three landmark frameworks - the Sendai Framework on Disaster Risk Reduction 2015-2030, the 2030 Agenda for Sustainable Development and the Paris Agreement under the UN Framework Convention on Climate Change - have all called upon member States to mainstream disaster resilience in the context of sustainable development. These global frameworks are considered as tools to support government agencies and relevant stakeholders on their progress towards sustainability and resiliency. However, linking these global frameworks into integrated national and sub-national planning processes is still challenging.

With the Department of Disaster Prevention and Preparedness (DDPM) as host, Germany’s Global Initiative on Disaster Risk Management has joined the Asian Disaster Preparedness Center (ADPC), UNESCAP, UNDP and the International Federation of Red Cross and Red Crescent Societies (IFRC) in organizing an event to develop a deeper knowledge on the key linkages within the global frameworks to ensure that the operationalization of these frameworks at the country- and local-level serves as a vehicle to bring about positive changes towards risk-informed investment decisions and strengthened risk governance.

The 2-day forum, which was attended by all relevant stakeholders including governments, UN agencies, RCRC National Societies, Civil Society Organizations and private sector representatives, identified the challenges, linkages, and potential key entry points for integrating the Global Agendas towards achieving a common goal of making communities resilient to disaster and climate risks in the Asia-Pacific region.

During the Demystifying the Global Agenda Frameworks into Practice Workshop the use of the suitability model to facilitate risk-informed public and private development planning and investments at local level has been discussed in detail.