ESCAP has been actively involved with disaster management, preparedness and risk reduction for more than five decades with extensive experience on integration of disaster risk management into socio-economic development process, the development of regional cooperation mechanisms in disaster management and assisting developing member States to address natural disasters at various levels, from regional to national and communities.
The Commission at its 64th Session in April 2008 established a new intergovernmental Committee on Disaster Risk Reduction and programme of work on disaster risk reduction, and mandated ESCAP to further strengthen its capacity in this area. Issues to be addressed include policy options and strategies for multi-hazard disaster risk reduction and mitigation; regional cooperation mechanisms for disaster risk management, including space and other technical support systems; multi-hazard assessment, preparedness, early warning and response to disaster risks.
ESCAP will use its experience and technical cooperation expertise to provide assistance in disaster risk reduction and risk management to member States, promote regional cooperation and strengthen regional partnerships, and provide the regional structure linking national and global initiatives.
