10 November 2016 – The Philippines shared its perspective on how it is investing in building sustainable and resilient communities in the Geneva launch of the 2016 World Disasters Report.

Ambassador Cecilia B. Rebong, Permanent Representative of the Philippines to the United Nations and Other International Organizations in Geneva, highlighted the policy reforms and DRR initiatives of the country to strengthen resilience.

“For the Philippines, investing in resilience saves lives and money. However investing and building resilience is also a collective effort that should be within and at all levels,” said Ambassador Rebong.   She mentioned that the public-private partnership complemented the Government’s coordinated, multi-stakeholder approach to building resilience and cited as an example the work of the Private Sector Alliance for Disaster Resilient Societies (ARISE) in the Philippines that bring together leading companies to ensure that DRR is at the heart of investment strategies.

She said that discussions and consultations are in full swing in the Philippines to finalize the amendment to the Philippine Disaster Risk Reduction and Management Law (PDRRM Law/RA 10121). The sunset review of the PDRRM Law led to the incorporation of several features into an amendatory bill, including a strong focus on strengthening local government units and capacity building to create a more strengthened disaster risk reduction and management at the local level.

“We need to have a change of mind-set – from one that is reactive to one that is more proactive, more strategic and long-term,” concluded Ambassador Rebong.

Ambassador Rebong was joined in the panel by IFRC Secretary General Elhadj As Sy, Ambassador Valentin Zellweger, Permanent Representative of Switzerland to the UN and the other international organizations in Geneva, Mr. David Sanderson, one of the Editors of the World Disasters Report, and Dr. Robert Glasser, Special Representative of the UN Secretary-General for Disaster Risk Reduction.

This year’s World Disaster Report - “Resilience: Save lives today, investing for tomorrow” - calls for increased investment in building community resilience as a means of reducing the humanitarian impact of disasters and other crises. The Report is the IFRC's annual flagship publication that contains the latest trends, facts and analysis of contemporary catastrophes to understand their effect on vulnerable populations worldwide.  The full report can be accessed under the following link: http://www.ifrc.org/en/publications-and-reports/world-disasters-report/world-disasters-report/.  END