June 22, 2018
The Regional Platform for Disaster Risk Reduction in the Americas was held from June 20 to 22, 2018 in Cartagena, Colombia. This was the 6th international conference of DRR organizations in the Americas to promote the international guideline for DRR adopted in 2015, namely, "The Sendai Framework for Disaster Risk Reduction 2015 2030," where the American states adopted the "Cartagena Declaration," declaring that they will keep on working and strengthening cooperative relationships and collaborations in the Americas, invest in DRR infrastructure, raise public awareness and education, respond to vulnerable groups, etc., to strengthen DRR capabilities.
Dr. Hitoshi Baba, JICA Senior Advisor, delivering the keynote lecture
Over 200 people participated at the Conference
Simultaneous with the conference, JICA held another meeting focusing on "River Flood Risk Management," in collaboration with the Institute of Hydrology, Meteorology and Environmental Studies of Colombia. Dr. Hitoshi Baba, JICA Senior Advisor, made a presentation on JICA's past records in DRR cooperation and river management in Japan, and also gave a lecture on the significance of pre disaster investment.
More than 200 participants from international organizations gathered at the venue. Many of them took part in the discussions and reaffirmed the importance of pre disaster investment in flood control from various perspectives. In the panel discussions, DRR officials and experts from various countries, including those from Colombia, Argentina, Brazil, Honduras and Costa Rica, and those related to the JICA projects, took to the stage, individually.
At booth exhibitions which were held simultaneously for three days, approximately 500 people from different government offices and international organizations visited the booth. The conference was, therefore, an opportunity for many people to know about JICA's cooperation in DRR in Latin America.
Panel Discussion: Mr. Yuri Giustina, Coordinator of the Scientific and Technological Development Fund and the Telecommunications Technological Development Fund of the Ministry of Science and Technology of Brazil, and counterpart for the JICA project, spoke on JICA's technical cooperation, namely, "The Project for Strengthening the National Strategy of Integrated Natural Disaster Risk Management."
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