Concerted Effort Needed to Address Tsunamis and Other Disasters – PHL Ambassador 

Ambassador Evan P. Garcia (3rd from left), Permanent Representative of the Philippine Mission to the UN and other international organizations in Geneva, together with Dr. Robert Glasser (2nd from left), Special Representative of the UN Secretary General for Disaster Risk Reduction, and other diplomats at the High-Level Panel Discussion on the World Tsunami Awareness Day at the Palais des Nations on Friday, 27 October 2017, at the Palais des Nations, Geneva, Switzerland.

06 November 2017 GENEVA – “Concerted effort among all is needed in order to effectively mitigate the humanitarian impact of tsunamis and other disasters.”

This was stressed by Ambassador Evan P. Garcia, Permanent Representative of the Philippine Mission to the UN and other international organizations in Geneva, as one of the attendees at the High-Level Panel Discussion on the World Tsunami Awareness Day at the Palais des Nations on October 27, which was co-organized by the Permanent Mission of Japan and the UN Office for Disaster Risk Reduction (UNISDR).

“We must address the nexus of climate change, disaster risk reduction, tsunami awareness, the Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs), and displacement. We must consider the reality of climate refugees and climate change induced migration. We must come together more concertedly on so we can be effective to mitigate the humanitarian impact of tsunamis and other disasters,” Ambassador Garcia said.

Speakers from Japan, the Maldives, Indonesia, Chile and Switzerland shared lessons learned from past events and concrete steps taken at national level to reduce tsunami risks during the High-Level Panel Discussion.

Ambassador Garcia also spoke from the floor and likewise concurred with the speakers that resilience is paramount. He also provided a brief account on how DRR and such similar works are an increasing priority for the ten member states of the ASEAN. ASEAN resiliency is of the thematic priorities under the Philippine chairmanship this year of the ASEAN.

He also shared about the ASEAN Agreement on Disaster Management and Emergency Response (AADMER), which is an agreement ratified by all ten ASEAN member states that paved the way for the establishment of the ASEAN Coordinating Centre for Humanitarian Assistance on disaster management, commonly referred to as the AHA Centre.

He also mentioned the ASEAN Vision 2025 on Disaster Management, which sets the strategic direction that ASEAN will embark on in the next 10 years. It identifies the key areas to move the implementation of AADMER forward towards a people-centered, people-oriented, financially sustainable, and networked approach by 2025. The Vision also include elements that will further strengthen the AHA Centre’s role as the main coordinating body for disaster management, and to realize the vision of the ‘One ASEAN One Response’.

In December 2015, the United Nations General Assembly designated 5 November as World Tsunami Awareness Day to promote a global culture of tsunami awareness. The World Tsunami Awareness Day this year is aligned with the International Day for Disaster Reduction (commemorated every 13th of October) and the "Sendai Seven Campaign" and is focused on Target B of the Sendai Framework for Disaster Risk Reduction, which aims at reducing the number of affected people globally by disasters. END

For more information, visit www.genevapm.dfa.gov.ph or https://www.facebook.com/genevapcg.

Ambassador Garcia shares the ASEAN experience and efforts on resiliency.