09 December 2015 – The Philippines shared lessons learned from Supertyphoon Haiyan at the launch of the 2015 United Nations Population Fund (UNFPA) Report, entitled “Shelter from the Storm: A transformative agenda for women and girls in a crisis-prone world,” on December 03 at the Graduate Institute, Geneva.

As a panelist on the discussion on the women and girls in crisis situations, Philippine Permanent Representative to the United Nations, Ambassador Cecilia B. Rebong shared that, of the many lessons learned from Supertyphoon Haiyan, the vulnerabilities of women and girls was a message most clearly heard, and one of the issues most in need of correction. As a result of the experience in Supertyphoon Haiyan, the Philippines supported the incorporation of sexual and reproductive health rights in the Sendai Framework for Disaster Risk Reduction (SFDRR) in 2015. As the Philippines conducts a sunset review of Republic Act No. 10121 (the Philippine Disaster Risk Reduction and Management Act of 2010), it is expected that the elements of the Sendai Framework would permeate into the crafting of emergency response/DRR programs/plans moving forward. END