LDCs Ambassadorial Local weather Change and Threat-Knowledgeable improvement Briefing: Street to Doha Sequence
It’s a pleasure to be with you this morning. I wish to thank the Authorities of Malawi for the invitation to take part each as we speak and on the Africa and Haiti Regional Evaluation Assembly in February.
I take these invites as welcome indicators of your dedication to catastrophe danger discount.
Local weather Change stays the best existential menace of the twenty first Century and nowhere is that this extra apparent than on the planet’s Least Developed International locations.
Excessive climate occasions together with the worldwide COVID-19 pandemic are undermining the financial improvement of LDCs to a level by no means seen earlier than.
They’re additionally detrimental to the achievement of the SDGs and a key purpose why so many international locations and communities are being left behind.
Current evaluation by the UN Workplace for Catastrophe Threat Discount exhibits that over the past twenty years when financial losses are expressed when it comes to proportion of GDP, the worst-hit nations are all low-income international locations.
Amongst greater than 120 international locations reporting throughout all Sendai Framework targets for catastrophe losses, LDCs account for 48% of livelihood disruptions, 40% of deaths, 17% of financial losses, and 14% of infrastructure injury.
That is the case despite the fact that among the many reporting international locations, their mixed GDP quantities to just one% of the full; and their mixed populations are simply 18% of the full inhabitants.
The inequality and disparity are stark.
Financial resilience is an space that we have to pay extra consideration to after we advocate for catastrophe danger discount. Current analysis means that it’s simply as essential part of constructing resilience to disasters as catastrophe preparedness and early warning methods.
Because the Secretary-Normal mentioned earlier this yr, in response to the present international disaster, the G20 Debt Service Suspension Initiative and debt aid have to be expanded to all creating international locations that want it.
LDCs are made extra susceptible by deep-rooted poverty, decrease funding in resilient infrastructure and well being providers, the local weather emergency, COVID-19, unplanned urbanization and different elements.
It’s six years for the reason that adoption of the Sendai Framework for Catastrophe Threat Discount which requires particular consideration to be given to the LDCs, and ten years for the reason that adoption of the Istanbul Programme of Motion which has catastrophe danger discount embedded in its precedence space for motion on “a number of crises and different rising challenges”.
The Normal Meeting decision on the implementation of the Istanbul Programme of Motion and the political declaration of its high-level mid-term assessment in 2016 hyperlink the implementation of the Sendai Framework to the achievement of the Programme of Motion.
It’s excessive time for a programme of motion for the LDCs which has catastrophe danger discount at its core. The LDC-5 Convention is the final likelihood to do that earlier than 2030.
Integrating catastrophe danger discount inside insurance policies for structural transformation, productive capacities, infrastructure improvement, well being and training, and sustainable agriculture will be certain that coverage funding selections made as we speak won’t create danger for present and future generations.
Investing in catastrophe danger discount can guarantee LDCs are extra resilient to the subsequent pandemic, the subsequent international financial downturn and the subsequent local weather disaster.
The Sendai Framework acknowledges that strengthening catastrophe danger governance is on the coronary heart of efficient and environment friendly administration of catastrophe danger. This is applicable to pure and man-made hazards in addition to associated organic, environmental and technological hazards.
Threat governance requires clear imaginative and prescient, plans, competence, steerage and coordination inside and throughout sectors of presidency and full engagement with civil society and the non-public sector.
The clear manifestation of that is the creation of sturdy well-resourced establishments tasked not simply with catastrophe response however the administration of catastrophe danger; and appearing at all times within the public good with a concentrate on the pursuits of essentially the most susceptible segments of society.
Final yr was the Sendai Framework deadline for a considerable enhance within the variety of international locations with nationwide methods for catastrophe danger discount.
So far, now we have 101 international locations with such methods which can be aligned to some extent with the targets and priorities for motion of the Sendai Framework.
These are quite simple targets on paper:
- The discount of lack of life;
- The discount of the numbers of individuals affected by disasters;
- Reductions in financial losses which impression on revenues accessible for enhancing entry to well being and training;
- And reductions in injury to vital infrastructure, particularly colleges and well being amenities;
Sadly, up to now solely 20 of the 46 LDCs acknowledged by the UN have put such methods in place, or at the very least so notified UNDRR.
It’s evident that a lot higher worldwide help is required.
It’s UNDRR’s ambition that when the LDC5 Convention takes place in Doha, subsequent January, hosted by the Authorities of Qatar, that the majority if not all LDCs can have nationwide methods for catastrophe danger discount in place.
Larger worldwide cooperation for creating international locations in implementing the Sendai Framework is important to the success of those nationwide methods.
Worldwide cooperation that helps LDCs to gather catastrophe loss information, set up multi-hazard early warning methods, enhance public entry to catastrophe danger data, assessments and local weather forecasts, have to be a precedence within the subsequent programme of motion.
A lot higher worldwide help can also be wanted for resilient infrastructure, fundamental providers and housing, in addition to resilient agriculture and risk-informed land use planning.
All of this requires scaling up worldwide help within the type of financing, capability constructing, and expertise switch.
The Doha Programme of motion should subsequently be a clarion name for bi-lateral donors, IFIs and international and regional improvement banks to align their help to the LDCs with the implementation of the provisions of the Sendai Framework.
As extra international locations search to graduate from LDC standing, integrating catastrophe danger discount into home coverage and worldwide help is important to make sure commencement is sustainable.
A particular effort is required in Africa which has nearly all of LDCs.
Because of the COVID-19 pandemic, the world now realizes greater than ever earlier than how inseparable catastrophe danger discount is from sustainable improvement.
Nothing undermines sustainable improvement like a catastrophe. Solely prevention saves lives.
Thanks to your consideration.
