disaster

UN underlines need for disaster preparedness in Asian region

22 October 2010
Given their vulnerability to floods, cyclones and other extreme weather events, Asian countries must incorporate disaster risk reduction strategies into their national plans to enhance their readiness to respond to climate change, the United Nations agency tasked with minimizing the threat posed by natural disasters said today.

Curbing disaster risk is ‘everybody’s business,’ Ban says

13 October 2010
With the world’s cities never having been so at risk of disruption by disasters as they are now, Secretary-General Ban Ki-moon today underscored the need for wide participation in bolstering the resilience of urban areas to hazards.

UN scheme to boost urban resilience to disaster launched in Arab region

4 October 2010
The United Nations initiative to bolster cities’ resilience against natural hazards was unveiled in Kuwait today, with a senior world body official voicing hope that Arab cities will sign on to the scheme.

UNICEF rushing relief supplies to flood-hit Indian states

24 September 2010
The United Nations Children’s Fund (UNICEF) and its partners are assisting the Indian Government in rushing relief supplies to millions of people who have been uprooted from their homes in the states of Uttar Pradesh, Bihar, and Uttarakhand by heavy floods.

Dominican leader calls for new UN union of countries at risk from natural disasters

23 September 2010
With countries’ vulnerability to natural disasters rising as their development levels fall, Dominican Republic President Leonel Fernández today called for the creation of a new global coalition under United Nations auspices of nations at risk of catastrophe to share experiences and knowledge.

UN chief welcomes first-ever global meeting of search and rescue group

14 September 2010
Secretary-General Ban Ki-moon today welcomed the decision of the International Search and Rescue Advisory Group (INSARAG) to hold its first-ever global meeting, saying there was “great scope” for using modern technology to help with rescue and relief efforts in the wake of major disasters.

Kenya: UN agency ‘trains trainers’ on curbing disaster risk

25 August 2010
A United Nations workshop to “train trainers” on disaster risk reduction kicked off today in Kenya with the hope that participants apply the lessons learned elsewhere in Africa.

Indonesian schools and hospitals join UN initiative to promote disaster risk reduction

20 August 2010
Thousands of Indonesian schools and hospitals have signed up to a United Nations campaign to encourage authorities to better protect such structures in vulnerable areas from the impact of future natural disasters.

‘Be ready’ for disasters, Haitian official tells world’s mayors at UN event

30 July 2010
Drawing from the experience of January’s catastrophic earthquake which devastated Haiti’s capital, Port-au-Prince, the city’s mayor today told a United Nations-backed conference in Shanghai that local governments must be better prepared for disasters.

Indonesia commits to boost safety of schools and hospitals in UN-backed scheme

29 July 2010
Indonesia today pledged to enhance the safety of more than 3,000 schools and 100 hospitals as part of its commitment to a global United Nations programme to bolster these structures, where poor construction can often lead to the highest death tolls during earthquakes and other disasters.