By Leilani S. Junio
MANILA, March 25 (PNA) — The Department of Social Welfare and Development (DSWD) said on Wednesday the Philippine delegation to the 3rd United Nations World Conference on Disaster Risk Reduction held from March 13 to 18 in Sendai City, Miyagi Prefecture, Japan had achieved two important things.
“First, we have shown the world that we have learned our lessons, and second, there are many partnerships that we have been able to forge, specifically with those invested in supporting renewable energies and resilience by way of a risk-informed analysis and risk-informed decision,” DSWD Secretary Corazon J. Soliman said.
Secretary Soliman headed the country’s 70-member delegation to the conference. The delegates shared their experiences in responding to super typhoon “Yolanda” that devastated a wide area of the Philippines in November 2013.
Soliman cited Department of Public Works and Highways (DPWH) Secretary Rogelio Singson for his talk about the construction of infrastructure facilities to ensure resilience to future disasters.
“Likewise, National Economic and Development Authority (NEDA) head Secretary Arsenio Balisacan talked about the economic laws and how these will help in the rehabilitation of the typhoon-hit areas,” she said.
She added that the delegates from the Department of Science and Technology-Philippine Atmospheric, Geophysical and Astronomical Services Administration (DOST-PAGASA) showed how the Philippines is now able to forecast weather disturbances better using the technologies of the Noah Project.
“We also shared that we have implemented, starting with typhoon ‘Ruby’, the pre-disaster risk assessment strategy where a team determines the geographic specifics and time bound of disasters,” Soliman said.
She explained that under the said strategy, the team would look at where the typhoon path would be, how many will be affected based on the National Household Targeting System for Poverty Reduction or Listahanan, what infrastructures are at risk, and what kinds of equipment are needed in disaster response.
“At the conference, we committed to abide by the framework. Back home, work should start now. We have to start coordinating and collaborating toward the goals of the Sendai Declaration,” the DSWD chief said.
According to her, the priorities of action under the framework are: understanding disaster risk; strengthening disaster risk governance to manage disaster risk; investing in disaster risk reduction for resilience; enhancing disaster preparedness for effective response; and “Build Back Better” in recovery, rehabilitation and reconstruction.
She also said that these priority actions will achieve seven global targets which are:
* Substantially reduce global disaster mortality.
* Substantially reduce the number of affected people globally.
* Reduce direct disaster economic loss in relation to global gross domestic product.
* Substantially reduce disaster damage to critical infrastructure and disruption of basic services, among them health and educational facilities, including through developing their resilience.
* Substantially increase the number of countries with national and local disaster risk reduction strategies.
* Substantially enhance international cooperation to developing countries through adequate and sustainable support to complement their national actions for implementation.
* Substantially increase the availability of access to multi-hazard early warning systems and disaster risk information and assessment to the people.
The Sendai Declaration, also known as the Sendai Framework for Disaster Risk Reduction 2015-2030, outlines the determination of participating heads of states, ministers, and delegates to strengthen disaster risk reduction and reduce the loss of lives and assets worldwide.
It lays down the framework that will guide the international community to minimize the impact of disasters and make the world safer for the present and future generations. (PNA)