Some 30 countries from the Americas and the Caribbean ended a key conference on disaster risk – which drew a record attendance – with a pledge to step up action to prevent and better manage disasters in a region prone to hurricanes, earthquakes and other
A high-level panel on the fourth and last day of the platform examined the challenges and opportunities to improve governance and intersectoral coordination in a region which is routinely exposed to a wide range of disasters.
Ministers and senior officials from the Americas and the Caribbean pledged to make their countries more resilient to hazards, such as earthquakes, hurricanes or pandemics, and renewed their vow to achieve the goals of the Sendai Framework, the
Most disasters strike without warning. But more than 20 per cent can be predicted and early action can prevent them from turning into full-blown catastrophes.
Disasters are a major cause of displacement of people around the world, with some 30 million being forced from their homes in 2020 by earthquakes, hurricanes, floods and other disasters.
Building back better after disaster is one of the four priorities of the international blueprint on disaster, the 2015 Sendai Framework, of which regional platforms constitute a key part.
The four-day Regional Platform is being held for the first time in the Caribbean under the theme “Building Resilient Economies in the Americas and the Caribbean”.
The RP21, the first to be hosted by a Caribbean country, will also discuss the challenges posed by human displacement, explore strategies to strengthen disaster early warning systems, boost urban resilience and foster good governance.
The forum, a preliminary event to next week’s VII Regional Platform for Disaster Risk Reduction, debated how the private sector can bring disaster risk information to other social sectors, support risk-informed governance and help governments meet the United Nations 2030 Agenda.
