Disaster Risk Reduction (DRR) Programme

Hyogo Framework for Action and ISDR System Partners

Hyogo Framework for Action

Ten years after the adoption of the Yokohama Strategy for a Safer World: Guidelines for Natural Disaster Prevention, Preparedness and Mitigation (1994), in 2005 the United Nations convened the Second World Conference on Disaster Reduction in Kobe, Hyogo, Japan. During this conference the Hyogo Framework for Action 2005-2015: Building the Resilience of Nations and Communities to Disasters (HFA) was negotiated and adopted by 168 countries shifting the paradigm for disaster risk management from post disaster response to a more comprehensive approach that would also include prevention and preparedness measures. The HFA five priority areas for action are:

1. Ensure that disaster risk reduction is a national and a local priority with a strong institutional basis for implementation.
2. Identify, assess and monitor disaster risks and enhance early warning.
3. Use knowledge, innovation and education to build a culture of safety and resilience at all levels.
4. Reduce the underlying risk factors.
5. Strengthen disaster preparedness for effective response at all levels.

The National Meteorological and Hydrological Services (NMHSs) and the World Meteorological Organization (WMO) have critical contributions to the implementation of HFA. As part of the development of the strategic priorities of WMO in disaster risk reduction, through extensive consultation with Members, WMO mapped HFA according to the areas where WMO and NMHS would play a key and where they could contribute.

ISDR System Partners

The International Strategy for Disaster Reduction (ISDR) System has been restructured over the past two years to engage a broad range of international, regional, national agencies and governments towards implementation of the Hyogo Framework for Action 2005-2015.
The ISDR system is supported by i) a Management Oversight Board (MOB), providing strategic advice, ii) a Global Platform for Disaster Risk Reduction (GPDRR), sharing good practices, promoting implementation of HFA in the countries and regions and supporting integrated planning among operational agencies. The ISDR Secretariat provides administrative support to the strengthened ISDR system.

WMO Secretary-General is actively participating on the ISDR Management Oversight Board, together with heads of the World Bank, the International Federation of Red Cross and Red Crescent Societies, the United Nations Development Group, the United Nations Environment Programme and the United Nations Office for the Coordination of Humanitarian Affairs. Moreover, WMO is a contributing partner in the multi-stakeholder Joint Work Plan of the ISDR System, to leverage capacities and resources of agencies towards implementation of the HFA, and more specifically leads the activities related to its second priority, namely “identifying, assessing and monitoring disaster risks and enhancing early warnings”.

Through a coordinated approach, benefits of WMO and NMHSs were strongly reflected through the First Session of the Global Platform for Disaster Risk Reduction (GP/DRR), held in Geneva in June 2007. During this event, WMO has been recognized internationally as the lead agency in the area of early warning systems.

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