It’s difficult to predict when tsunamis will strike, and though occurrences are rare, investing in keeping cities safe from this deadliest and most costly disaster will keep lives and economies from being washed away. 

That’s from Mami Mizutori, the UN Special Representative for Disaster Risk Reduction (UNDRR), who says proper allocation of disaster funds means “a hazard doesn’t necessarily have to become a disaster.” 

She spoke to UN News’s Natalie Hutchison, to mark World Tsunami Awareness Day, explaining how her Office is helping  to implement disaster risk management efforts around the world.