World Conference adopts Yokohama Strategy for natural disasters.

Natural disasters continue to strike and increase in magnitude, complexity, frequency and economic impact. At the same time, awareness of the process and potential benefits of disaster reduction is still confined to specialized circles, and has not yet been adequately communicated to policy makers and the general public.

So concluded the World Conference on Natural Disaster Reduction, convened in Yokohama, Japan from 23 to 27 May, at the mid-point of e International Decade for Natural Disaster Reduction (1990-2000).

Calling for development of a "global culture of prevention" and improved risk assessment, broader monitoring and communication of warnings, the Conference adopted the Yokohama Strategy for a Safer World: Guidelines for Natural Disaster Prevention, Preparedness and Mitigation.

The document includes: an assessment of disaster reduction since the beginning of the Decade: a strategy for the year 2000 and beyond; a plan of action for activities at the community and national levels, at the regional and subregional levels, and at the international level: and recommendations for follow-up action.

"Earthquakes and cyclones will happen. There is nothing we can do about that, but we can be prepared for them when they do strike", said the UN Under-Secretary-General for Humanitarian Affairs, Peter Hansen, at the opening session of the Conference on 23 May.

"Disaster reduction can take place at any point in the process which we call "disaster". It can comprise prevention and preparedness, relief and development, as well as measures to reduce the effects of such disasters."

The "Yokohama Message", summarizing the outcome of the Conference (see box, p. 73), affirms that the impact of natural disasters in terms of human and economic losses has risen and society has become more vulnerable to such disasters. The hardest hit and least able to cope are the poor and socially disadvantaged in developing countries, it states.

Over the past two decades, earthquakes, volcanoes, landslides, tidal waves, droughts and other natural events had killed some 3 million people and inflicted injury, displacement and misery on countless more, Mr. Hansen told reporters in New York on 18 May. In fact, there had been a steady increase over the past 30 years in the number of significant natural disasters. The number of people affected had increased by 6 per cent per year, three times the global population growth rate.

However, prevention and mitigation were possible, Mr. Hansen went on, citing Jamaica, where in 1951 Hurricane Charlie resulted in 150 deaths, while in 1988 a much worse Hurricane Gilbert killed only 4 5 people. That was how far that Caribbean nation had come in preventive measures, he said.

Moreover, disaster prevention, mitigation, preparedness and relief are interrelated, contributing to and gaining from the implementation of sustainable development, the "Yokohama Message" states. Since disaster prevention is better than disaster response in achieving the goals of the Decade, nations should incorporate that principle in their development plans along with efficient follow-up measures.

Attended by 1,000 delegates, including representatives of 147 countries and territories (South Africa participated in a UN General Assembly Conference for the first time since the early 1970s), a major goal of the Conference was to bring together for the first time senior policy makers, technical experts and representatives of non-governmental organizations to develop an action plan to put the results of science and technology at the service of disaster-prone regions of the world.

The action plan--called for in December 1989 under General Assembly resolution 44/236, by which the Decade was proclaimed--will be of particular importance developing countries, where 90 per cent of the world's natural disasters occur.

A statement of principles, set out at the beginning of the Conference final document, maintains that risk assessment is a required step for the adoption of adequate and successful disaster reduction policies and measures. Vulnerability can be reduced by the application of proper design and patterns of development focused on target groups, as well as by appropriate education and training of the whole community.

It was also pointed out that environmental protection as a component of sustainable development consistent with poverty alleviation is imperative in the prevention and mitigation of natural disasters.

Mid-decade assessment

In reviewing the progress made during the first five years of the Decade, the final document states that activities in the fields of training, technical applications and research at all levels have had positive results in some regions in reducing disaster losses. However, results have been achieved "unevenly and not in a concerted and systematic way as envisaged by the General Assembly".

The document further states that existing tools for improvements in disaster response, as part of a comprehensive approach towards disaster management, "are not always utilized to the full extent of their potential". Also, the "potential of the information media, industry, scientific community and the private sector at large has not been sufficiently mobilized", it says.

Continued emphasis on disaster response by the UN system has "slowed down the momentum of the Decade's initial phase". Moreover, not all UN bodies have contributed to the implementation of the Decade "to the extent possible", states the document.

It calls for strengthening the resilience of local communities to cope with natural disasters through recognition and propagation of their traditional knowledge, practices and values in development activities, and enlarging the focus of disaster reduction to cover environmental and technological disaster situations.

"Acts of nature cannot be abolished", asserted Secretary-General Boutros Boutros-Ghali in a videotaped message to the Conference on 2 3 May. "But development can help prevent future natural disaster. It is increasingly difficult to differentiate between man-made and natural disasters. . . Demographic and environmental pressures contribute to natural disasters. War starts mass movements of people, infrastructure suffers, and disaster can swiftly follow."

Strategy for the Year 2000

The Strategy for the Year 2000 and beyond calls for development of a "global culture of prevention as an essential component of an integrated approach to disaster reduction". It also urges adoption of a policy of self-reliance in each vulnerable country and community, with the involvement and active participation of the people in disaster reduction, prevention and preparedness.

The Strategy calls for effective national legislation and higher priority at the political decision-making level on natural disaster reduction.

"A coordinated international strategy for disaster mitigation is like preventive diplomacy; it reduces the threat of disasters before they become crisis situations", said Under-Secretary-General Hansen on 23 May. "The effect of natural events can be reduced as long as we have the human and financial resources, and Governments have the political will, to put appropriate measures in place."

Plan of Action

The Plan of Action calls on all countries to "express the political commitment to reduce their vulnerability" by means of "declaration, legislation, policy decisions and action at the highest level, which would require the progressive implementation of disaster assessment and reduction plans at the national and community levels".

The Plan urges nations to develop risk assessment programmes and emergency plans, as well as comprehensive national disaster management plans, focusing on disaster preparedness, response and mitigation. It calls for the strengthening of clearly identified bodies, such as national committees, charged with promoting and coordinating disaster reduction activities, and recommends dear identification of specific disaster prevention needs which could use the knowledge or expertise available in other countries or in the UN system.

Recognizing the many common aspects of disaster vulnerability among countries of the same region, the Plan calls for establishment of regional centres for disaster reduction and prevention, and improvement in regional communications capabilities to strengthen early warning mechanisms for disaster reduction.

At the international level, the Plan calls for contributions to fund the implementation of the Decade's goals and asks donor countries to increase the priority in their assistance programmes for disaster prevention, mitigation and preparedness. The Plan also recommends that disaster prevention and mitigation become an integrated component of development projects financed by multilateral institutions.

The Decade's Trust Fund should give priority to financing the establishment of early warning systems in disaster-prone developing countries, particularly the least-developed, land-locked and small island developing States. Coordination of international disaster management, in particular by the UN system, is paramount for an integrated approach to disaster reduction and should be strengthened, it states.

Lastly, the Plan of Action recommends the holding of a review conference on natural disaster reduction at the end of the Decade, in order to map a strategy for continued disaster reduction activities into the twenty-first century.

Overall, the Conference showed "how the vision and scope of the United Nations is changing. A broader concept of development is now necessary. It must encompass natural disaster reduction", said Secretary-General Boutros-Ghali in his videotaped message. "Prevention is better than cure."

RELATED ARTICLE: Excerpts from The `Yokohama Message'

Disaster response alone is not sufficient, as it yields only temporary results at a very high cost. We have followed this limited approach for too long. This has been further demonstrated by the recent focus on response to complex emergencies which, although compelling, should not divert from pursuing a comprehensive approach. Prevention contributes to lasting improvement in safety and is essential to integrated disaster management.

The world is increasingly interdependent. All countries shall act in a new spirit of partnership to build a safer world based on common interests and shared responsibility to save human lives, since natural disasters do not respect borders.

The information, knowledge and some of the technology necessary to reduce the effects of natural disasters can be available in many cases at low cost and should be applied. Appropriate technology and data, with the corresponding training, should be made available to all, freely and in a timely manner, particularly to developing countries.

Community involvement and active participation should be encouraged in order to gain greater insight into the individual and collective perception of development and risk, and to have a dear understanding of the cultural and organizational characteristics of each society, as well as of its behaviour and interactions with the physical and natural environment This knowledge is of the utmost importance to determine those things which favour and hinder prevention and mitigation or encourage or limit the preservation of the environment for the development of future generations, and in order to find effective and efficient means to reduce the impact of disasters.

The adopted Yokohama Strategy and related Plan of Action for the rest of the Decade and beyond will note that each country has the sovereign responsibility to protect its citizens from natural disasters.

The framework of action of the international Decade for Natural Disaster Reduction provides all vulnerable countries, in particular the developing countries, with the opportunity to achieve a safer world by the end of this century and beyond In this regard, the international community and the United Nations system in particular must provide adequate support to the International Decade for Natural Disaster Reduction, and its mechanisms, especially the secretariat of the Decade to enable them to carry out their mandate.

The Yokohama Conference is at a crossroad in human progress. in one direction lie the meagre results of an extraordinary opportunity given to the United Nations and its Member States. In the other direction, the United Nations and the world community can change the course of events by reducing the suffering from natural disasters. Action is urgently needed.

Nations should view the Yokohama Strategy for a Safer World as a call to action, individually and in concert with other nations, to implement policies and goals reaffirmed in Yokohama, and to use the international Decade for Natural Disaster Reduction as a catalyst for change.