A 3rd Expert Group Meeting on Disaster Risk Reduction (DRR) was virtually organized and hosted by the Disaster &Emergency Management Presidency (AFAD), the Ministry of Interior of theRepublic of Turkey, on March 9-10, 2021. The delegates from ECO Member States,ECO Secretariat as well as regional and international organizations participated in the meeting.
While inaugurating the meeting, Acting President of AFAD, Mr. Hamza Taإںdelen underscored the importance of improved regional coordination and cooperation on DRR. He underlined AFAD’s core business is to validate a disaster management focusing on risk reduction, conveying some of their initiatives and projects as well as training programmesto systematically mitigate and respond such natural hazards through micro and macro plans, aimed at securing a more resilient society and safer residential area for sustainable development. Mr. Hamza expressed optimism that the outcomes of the 3rd expert group would facilitate the decisions of 8th Ministerial Conference on DRR. He thanked the ECO Secretariat for significantly contributing to make the meeting a success as well as extended his gratitude to the participants for attending the event.
The ECO Deputy Secretary General, Mr. Kanan Nazarov,illuminated the salient features of the ECO Framework on Disaster Risk Reduction (ECOFRDRR) adding that the developed framework would help secure the intended aims and objective in the region on DRR. He recalled that the ECOFRDRR and the relevant Roadmap for its implementation would be considered and adopted by the 8th Ministerial Conference on DRR as ECO’s main documents on disaster risk reduction.
In its various sessions, the Expert Group Meeting prepared and finalized the(i) ECO Regional Framework on Disaster Risk Reduction (ECORFDRR), ECO Draft Roadmap of Implementing ECORFDRR (2021-2025), (ii) the Ankara Declaration (iii) draft agenda and report of the 8thMinisterial Conference to be considered/adopted by Ministers/Heads of Delegations on 17 March 2021. The technical sessionincluded presentations on (i) Innovations in Disaster Management (New Technologies, approaches etc.) (ii) Local Level Strategies and Risk Management Approaches (iii) the Importance of Education in Disaster Risk Management, with the aim to enhance and improve community resilience.
The discussions made during the meeting also featured certain ways and means as well as possible collective measures for combining regional skills, expertise and international practices to fuel the regional efforts for preventing and minimizing the effects of such adverse events.
The copies of the presentations made by the experts/trainees are placed at the ECO Secretariat website and can be accessed through the link given below:
Asian Disaster Preparedness Center
Department of Earthquake – Turkey
Importance of Training on Disaster Management
PREPARING OF DISASTER HAZARD MAPS AND DISASTER RISK ANALYSIS SYSTEM (ARAS
