Asia Pacific focus at disaster risk reduction forum

Experts and policymakers came together to discuss disaster risk reduction in Brisbane last week.

The Asia Pacific Partnership for Disaster Risk Reduction set the scene for the 2020 Ministerial Conference, which will feature over 3,000 delegates from 50 countries.

The forum discussed the intersection between climate and disaster risk. As delegates explored the opportunities available to address infrastructure investment and the knowledge and understanding to reduce vulnerability to disasters in the future.

“The Asia Pacific Ministerial Conference on Disaster Risk Reduction provides an opportunity to consider the trends, challenges and opportunities in implementing best practices for disaster risk reduction across Australia and more broadly across the Pacific and Asia,” said Amanda Leck Executive Director AIDR.

“We have real opportunities to scale up on disaster risk reduction in Australia with the community calling for action on climate change.

The 2020 event will be held in conjunction with the United Nations Office for Disaster Risk Reduction (UNDRR). It will focus on the implementation of the Sendai Framework for Disaster Risk Reduction 2015-2030 across the Asia-Pacific region.

“While the focus has been on mitigating emissions, there is a really opportunity to start to have a conversation about adaptation and risk reduction to enable community resilience. We have a better understanding of the need for integrated approaches, and one of these is the need to factor in disaster risk reduction to new investments in infrastructure,” Ms Leck said.

The Queensland Minister for State Development Cameron Dick said Queensland has a great deal of knowledge and experience when it comes to natural hazards and disasters.

“Already this season we have experienced unheard-of bushfire activity around parts of the state. The efforts of Queenslanders are unparalleled in disaster management and resilience.

“In the last year, our state recovery and reconstruction bill was more than $1.3 billion,” Mr Dick said.

The Asia-Pacific Ministerial Conference on Disaster Risk Reduction will be held at the Brisbane Convention and Exhibition Centre in June 2020.

It will be held in collaboration with the Australian Government and the UNDRR, with support from the Australian Department of Foreign Affairs and Trade, the Department of Home Affairs, Geoscience Australia, and the Queensland Reconstruction Authority.