Azernews.Az

BAKU – Sub-Regional Office of the United Nations International Strategy for Disaster Reduction (UNISDR) for Central Asia and the Caucasus and the Ministry of Emergency Situations of the Republic of Azerbaijan, with support from UNDP, will be holding a workshop on National Platform for Disaster Risk Reduction in Baku on Wednesday.

The workshop will bring together representatives of the relevant government ministries including the Ministry of Emergency Situations, Ministry of Ecology and Natural Resources, Ministry of Health and Ministry of Industry and Energy, bilateral donors, international and national NGOs and media. Ms. Goulsara Pulatova, Regional Coordinator of UNISDR Central Asia & Caucasus office and Mr. Abdurahim Muhidov, HFA Coordinator will facilitate the workshop.

The overall purpose of the meeting would be to bring together all stakeholders in the area of disaster risk reduction (DRR) and potential partners of the National Platform to discuss ways to improving national coordination in disaster risk management and risk reduction, as well as reporting on the progress achieved in the country. The UNISDR officers will make presentations on UNISDR, the activities in the region of Central Asia and Caucasus, the Hyogo Framework for Action, the structure and the contents of the national report on HFA.

The country reports are used in compilation of the regional progress reports, and in the Global Assessment Report which is published every two years, at the Global Platform for Disaster Risk Reduction. The sessions of the Global Platform were held in 2007 and 2009, and the next one is planned for May of 2011 in Geneva.

The idea of the workshop was first discussed and agreed with the Government of Azerbaijan in December 2009 when UNISDIR sent a mission to Baku to introduce its mandate to the Government and establish contacts with the relevant governmental and non-governmental organizations, UN agencies and international NGOs working in the country.