SENDAI Framework for DRR: Our Guide for Action

The Sendai Framework for Disaster Risk Reduction was adopted during the 3^rd UN World Conference on Disaster Risk Reduction (WCDRR) held at Sendai, Japan last March 18, 2015. The CESDR Subcenter on DRR-CCA will be guided by this framework in its research and collobarative activities. Summarized below are the highlights of the Sendai Framework for DRR.




I. Expected Outcome: The substantial reduction of disaster risk and losses in lives, livelihoods ad health and in the economic, physical, social, cultural and environmental assets of persons, businesses, communities and countries.This requires strong commitment and involvement of political leadership at all levels.

II. Goal: Prevent new and reduce existing disaster risk through the implementation of integrated and inclusive economic, structural, legal, social, health, cultural, educational, environmental, technological, political and institutional measures that prevent and reduce hazard exposure and vulnerability to disaster, increase preparedness for response and recovery, and thus strengthen resilience. 

•  Enhancement of the implementation capacity and capability of developing countries
• Mobilization of support through international cooperation

III. Seven Global Targets by 2030:

1.      Substantially reduce global mortality by 2030 (aiming to lower the average per 100,000 global mortality rate in 2020-2030)

2.      Substantially reduce the number of affected people globally by 2030 (aiming to lower the global average figure per 100,000 in 2020 - 2030)

3.      Reduce direct disaster economic loss in relation to GDP by 2030

4.      Substantially reduce disaster damage to critical infrastructure and disruption of basic services, among the health and educational facilities

5.      Substantially increase the number of countries with national and local DRR strategies

6.      Substantially enhance the international cooperation to developing countries through adequate and sustainable support

7.      Substantially increase the availability of and access to multi-hazard early warning systems and disaster risk assessments to the people

IV. Four Priorities for Action: In pursuance of the expected outcome and goal, there is a need for focused action within and across sectors by states at local, national, regional and global levels in the following four priority areas:

I.     Understanding disaster risk

II.    Strengthening disaster risk governance to manage disaster risk

III.  Investing in disaster risk reduction for resilience

IV.  Enhancing disaster preparedness for effective response, and to “Build Back Better” in recovery, rehabilitation and reconstruction.

·    V. Role of Academia, Research and Scientific Networks:

• Focus on the disaster risk factors and scenarios, including emerging disaster risks

• Increase research for regional, national and local application

• Support action by local communities and authorities

• Support the interface between policy and science for decision making

The Sendai Framework for DRR and the Philippines

Invited Article

Jerry Velasquez, D. Eng.
Chief of Section, Advocacy and Outreach
UN Office for Disaster Risk Reduction (UNISDR)
9-11 Rue de Varembé CH1202 Geneva, Switzerland

 

In a quiet city of Sendai in Japan just before midnight on March 18, 2015, 185 States adopted the Sendai Framework for Disaster Risk Reduction, a new global roadmap for reducing disaster risks globally for the next 15 years. Adopted at the closing event of the 3^rd UN World Conference on Disaster Risk Reduction (WCDRR), States through the Framework committed to reduce the number of deaths, people affected, economic losses, and damages to critical infrastructures over 15 years.  To do this, they committed to radically improve their national and local risk reduction plans and strategies, increase technical cooperation and support to developing countries, and improve availability and access to early warning systems and risk information.

The Philippines, one of the most active countries who negotiated the Framework, welcome its adoption. The Philippines pushed for the Framework to address disaster-related health issues, migrants, inclusion of the National Disaster Risk Reduction and Management Council’s Pre-Disaster Risk Assessment (PDRA) concept, and the strengthening of international cooperation and global partnership. The Philippines also strongly worked for the inclusion of the concept of “multi-hazard” early warning systems in the Framework, and for the recognition of the need to empower local authorities/local communities in DRR

The Philippines succeeded in getting these issues in the Sendai Framework, with many paragraphs in the priority areas containing references to multi-hard early warning systems in improving efforts in DRR. Social Welfare and Development Secretary Dinky Soliman, head of the Philippine delegation to the WCDRR welcomed the Sendai Framework and noted the country’s strong commitment to implement it.

The Sendai Framework calls on States to undertake a few things urgently, and these will all be relevant for the Philippines. These include the appointment of national focal points for the Framework, who will then be responsible for national coordination, to nominate experts to open-ended inter-governmental working group for development of indicators & terminology, to update risk information for biological, man-made hazards, to update national & local DRR strategies & plans with targets and indicators and with a balance of goals to reduce existing risks, prevent future risks and build resilience to deal with residual risks.

It also calls States to report status of implementation of plans, identify baselines & set targets for risks and DRR action, review and update relevant national legislation, work with other States to update regional DRR strategies, promote the development of local platforms on DRR, and promote coherence across sustainable development and climate agreements in 2015.

With coming sunset review of the 2010 Philippine Disaster Risk Reduction and Management Act in 2015, the gearing up of actions and funding through the Philippine Survival Fund on Climate Change, a number of opportunities are available to use the Sendai Framework for its own benefit.

For example, it maybe possible to promote a more open review of the 2010 DRRM Act with a view of revising the Law and more importantly update the national and local plans on DRR. There is also scope to revisit the MOU signed between the NDRRMC and CCC in 2012 to improve cooperation especially in the provision of coherent risk information locally and the development of coherent and improved local DRRM plans.

There may also be other opportunities for the Philippines to capitalize on the Sendai Framework to improve its work in disaster risk reduction and management. However to start it would be necessary for the country to begin with an in depth and multi stakeholder reading of the Sendai Framework in the near future.

The rationale for action in this area for the Philippines is clear. Philippines is one of the most vulnerable countries in the world to natural hazards, including cyclonic storms, floods, earthquakes, volcanoes, droughts, forest fires, landslides, and epidemics. The reported disaster data for the past 40 years shows that Philippines was visited by 243 storms in the last three decades, causing total economic losses of $ 6.2 billion.

The Sendai Framework is the successor to The Hyogo Framework for Action 2005-2015 (HFA1) - Building the Resilience of Nations and Communities to Disasters, which came out of the World Conference held in Kobe, Hyogo, Japan. The new framework for DRR aims to guide nations, communities and other actors in managing risks and preventing the creation of new risks post-2015.

 

Jerry Velasquez
Chief of Section, Advocacy and Outreach
UN Office for Disaster Risk Reduction (UNISDR)
9-11 Rue de Varembé CH1202 Geneva, Switzerland
T: +41 22 917 8901  M: +41 79 217 3060  F: +41 229178964
E: velasquezg@un.org    W: http://www.unisdr.org/
Twitter: @jerry_velasquez  Skype: jerry.velasquez99

Addressing Disaster Risk in Hazard-Prone Countries

A Framework for Action by Dr. Andy Oreta

We live in an environment where nature and infrastructures interact as shown in Figure 1. Our built environment is a product of society’s utilization of resources and energy obtained from nature. Infrastructure development, however, produces negative outputs like air pollution and waste that have severe impact on human systems and the natural environment including climate change. Nature, on the other hand, provides us with useful resources but at the same time produces natural hazards that threaten the built environment. Disasters occur at the interface between the natural and human systems. The interaction between the natural and built environment may trigger a disaster that has impacts to the safety of man and sustainability of our environment. 

Figure 1. Interaction of hazards, vulnerabilities and Disasters

Achieving safety and sustainability is a major challenge in regions or countries that are vulnerable to adverse natural hazards like earthquakes, typhoons, floods, volcanic eruptions, drought and tsunamis. Infrastructures, if vulnerable to these hazards, become inoperable making them useless. Many buildings and bridges have collapsed in the past due to strong earthquakes and tsunamis. Traffic leads to a standstill when roads and highways become flooded. Water infrastructures become ineffective during water shortages due to drought. When these disasters occur, the quality of life and safety of the people are affected. Safety from harm due to collapsed buildings, safety from accidents during travel from office to homes and lack of safe drinking water are examples of the impact of disasters on safety in hazard-prone regions. Sustainability is also at stake in hazard-prone regions. Disasters lead to wastage of resources and energy and produces debris which contributes to environmental deterioration.

Safety and sustainability issues are intertwined in the interaction between disaster and development. Risk can be simply defined as:

Risk = Hazard x Elements at Risk x Vulnerability

This model simply says disaster risk increases with hazard and vulnerability. Hence, if we want to reduce the risk of the ‘elements at risk’ (like people, structures, economy, etc) to a hazard and prevent a disaster, then we must reduce hazards and vulnerabilities.

Hence our subcenter on DRR-CCA simply has to go back to UNISDR definition of DRR to guide its actions and programs. DRR is defined as “the concept and practice of reducing disaster risks through systematic efforts to analyse and manage the causal factors of disasters, including through reduced exposure to hazards, lessened vulnerability of people and property, wise management of land and the environment, and improved preparedness for adverse events.”  This definition is summarized as a conceptual framework in Figure 2.

Conceptual Framework on how to address disaster risk

Hence researches that aim to reduce or avoid hazards and reduce vulnerabilities on infrastructures and the community will lead to reduction of disaster risks. Reduced disaster risks leads to safer structures and improved safety to the people. Reduced disaster risks also leads to sustainability since there will be less damage to infrastructures and less wastage of resources and less impact to the people which translates to better living conditions. When we protect our people, assets and infrastructures, we increase the people’s resilience and health, preserve our resources and maintain the balance between built and natural environment.