Sendai Framework for Disaster Risk Reduction

The droughts which are threatening food security in West Africa; sea level rise taking away the livelihoods of Small Island Developing States (SIDS); flash floods and mudslides inflict death and destruction in many cities, severe heat waves sweeping across Europe and Russia and strong hurricanes which caused large economic losses in the USA and the Caribbean. Environmental degradation and climate change contribute to the increasing occurrence of disasters linked to natural hazards noted by UNCSD Secretariat. The Sendai Framework for Disaster Risk Reduction 2015-2030 (The Sendai Framework) which was endorsed by the UN General Assembly on 23 June, 2015 following the 2015 third UN World Conference on Disaster Risk Reduction (WCDRR) 14-18 March, 2015 in Sendai city, Japan advocates for:

The substantial reduction of disaster risk and losses in lives, livelihoods and health and in the economic, physical, social, cultural and environmental assets of persons, businesses, communities and countries.

The Sendai framework call all stakeholders to action and states that the realization of the new framework depends on our unceasing and tireless collective efforts to make the world safer from the risk of disasters in the decades to come for the benefit of the present and future generations.  

Hyogo Framework

The Sendai Framework is the successor of the Hyogo Framework, an outcome of stakeholder consultations held from July 2014 to March 2015 under the guidance of UNDRR upon the request of the UN General Assembly. UNDRR is tasked to support the implementation, follow-up and review of the Sendai Framework.

Sendai Framework for Disaster Risk Reduction 2015-2030

Scope & Purpose

The present framework will apply to the risk of small-scale and large-scale, frequent and infrequent, sudden and slow-onset disasters, caused by natural or manmade hazards as well as related environmental, technological and biological hazards and risks. It aims to guide the multi-hazard management of disaster risk in development at all levels as well as within and across all sectors.

Expected Outcomes

The substantial reduction of disaster risk and losses in lives, livelihoods and health and in the economic, physical, social, cultural and environmental assets of persons, businesses, communities and countries,

Goal

Prevent new and reduce existing disaster risk through the implementation of integrated and inclusive economic, structural, legal, social, health, cultural, educational, environmental, technological, political and institutional measures that prevent and reduce hazard exposure and vulnerability to disaster, increase preparedness for response and recovery, and thus strengthen resilience.

Targets

• Substantially reduce global disaster mortality by 2030, aiming to lower average per 100,000 global mortality between 2020-2030 compared to 2005-2015.
• Substantially reduce the number of affected people globally by 2030, aiming to lower the average global figure per 100,000 between 2020-2030 compared to 2005-2015.
• Reduce direct disaster economic loss in relation to global gross domestic product (GDP) by 2030.
• Substantially reduce disaster damage to critical infrastructure and disruption of basic services, among them health and educational facilities, including through developing their resilience by 2030.
• Substantially increase the number of countries with national and local disaster risk reduction strategies by 2020.
• Substantially enhance international cooperation to developing countries through adequate and sustainable support to complement their national actions for implementation of this framework by 2030.
• Substantially increase the availability of and access to multi-hazard early warning systems and disaster risk information and assessments to people by 2030.

Priorities for action

Priority 1 Understanding Disaster Risk: Disaster risk management needs to be based on an understanding of disaster risk in all its dimensions of vulnerability, capacity, exposure of persons and assets, hazard characteristics and the environment

Priority 2 Strengthening disaster risk governance to manage disaster risk

Disaster risk governance at the national, regional and global levels is vital to the management of disaster risk reduction in all sectors and ensuring the coherence of national and local frameworks of laws, regulations and public policies that, by defining roles and responsibilities, guide, encourage and incentivize the public and private sectors to take action and address disaster risk.

Priority 3 Investing in disaster risk reduction for resilience

Public and private investment in disaster risk prevention and reduction through structural and non-structural measures are essential to enhance the economic, social, health and cultural resilience of persons, communities, countries and their assets, as well as the environment. These can be drivers of innovation, growth and job creation. Such measures are cost-effective and instrumental to save lives, prevent and reduce losses and ensure effective recovery and rehabilitation.

Priority 4 Enhancing disaster preparedness for effective response, and to "Build Back Better" in recovery, rehabilitation and reconstruction

Experience indicates that disaster preparedness needs to be strengthened for more effective response and ensure capacities are in place for effective recovery. Disasters have also demonstrated that the recovery, rehabilitation and reconstruction phase, which needs to be prepared ahead of the disaster, is an opportunity to "Build Back Better" through integrating disaster risk reduction measures. Women and persons with disabilities should publicly lead and promote gender-equitable and universally accessible approaches during the response and reconstruction phases.

Guiding Principles

• Primary responsibility of States to prevent and reduce disaster risk, including through cooperation.
• Shared responsibility between central Government and national authorities, sectors and stakeholders as appropriate to national circumstances.
• Protection of persons and their assets while promoting and protecting all human rights including the right to development.
• Engagement from all of society.
• Full engagement of all State institutions of an executive and legislative nature at national and local levels.
• Empowerment of local authorities and communities through resources, incentives and decision making responsibilities as appropriate.
• Decision-making to be inclusive and risk-informed while using a multi-hazard approach.
• Coherence of disaster risk reduction and sustainable development policies, plans, practices and mechanisms, across different sectors.
• Accounting of local and specific characteristics of disaster risks when determining measures to reduce risk.
• Addressing underlying risk factors cost-effectively through investment versus relying primarily on post disaster response and recovery.
• "Build Back Better" for preventing the creation of, and reducing existing, disaster risk.
• The quality of global partnership and international cooperation to be effective, meaningful and strong.
• Support from developed countries and partners to developing countries to be tailored according to needs and priorities as identified by them.

The Sendai Framework & Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs)

The United Nations Office for Disaster Risk Reduction (UNDRR) finds strong synergy between the Sendai framework and SDGs. There are set of 11 indicators which are common in the SDGs and Sendai framework (Sendai framework indicators are in bracket) as follows:

Goal 1: End poverty in all its forms everywhere.

Indicator 1.5.1: number of deaths, missing persons and directly affected persons attributed to disasters (A1 and B1).

Indicator 1.5.2: direct economic loss attributed to disasters in relation to global gross domestic product (GDP). (C1).

Indicator 1.5.3: number of countries that adopt and implement national disaster risk reduction strategies in line with the Sendai Framework for Disaster Risk Reduction 2015–2030 (E1).

Indicator 1.5.4: proportion of local governments that adopt and implement local disaster risk reduction strategies in line with national disaster risk reduction strategies (E2).

Indicator 11.5.1: number of deaths, missing persons and directly affected persons attributed to disasters per 100,000 population (A1, B1).

Indicator 11.5.2: direct economic loss in relation to global GDP, damage to critical infrastructure and number of disruptions to basic services, attributed to disasters (C1, D1, D5).

Indicator 11.b.1: number of countries that adopt and implement national disaster risk reduction strategies in line with the Sendai Framework for Disaster Risk Reduction 2015–2030 (E1).

Indicator 11.b.2: proportion of local governments that adopt and implement local disaster risk reduction strategies in line with national disaster risk reduction strategies (E2).

Indicator 13.1.1: number of deaths, missing persons and directly affected persons attributed to disasters per 100,000 population (A1&B1)

Indicator 13.1.2: number of countries that adopt and implement national disaster risk reduction strategies in line with the Sendai Framework for Disaster Risk Reduction 2015–2030 (E1).

Indicator 13.1.3: proportion of local governments that adopt and implement local disaster risk reduction strategies in line with national disaster risk reduction strategies (E2).

Disaster Risk Facts

Natural hazards or man-made disasters requires immediate financial resources for response and reconstruction of a weakened economy, damaged infrastructure, destroyed businesses, reduced revenues and a rise in poverty. The World Bank noted following:

• According to the latest data from insurer Munich Re, losses from natural catastrophes in 2020 rose to $210 billion globally, from $166 billion in 2019.
• Of all of deaths from weather, climate, and water hazards, 91% occurred in developing economies.
• Since 1980, more than 2.4 million people and over $3.7 trillion have been lost to disasters caused by natural hazards globally, with total damages increasing by more than 800% from $18 billion a year in the 1980s to $167 billion a year in the last decade.
• Almost 75% of the losses are attributable to extreme weather events. As climate change threatens to push an additional 100 million people into extreme poverty by 2030.

Solutions

1. Nature-based solutions, such as conserving forests, wetlands and coral reefs, can help communities prepare for and recover from disasters.
2. The International Strategy for Disaster Reduction recognizes the clear relationship between sustainable development, poverty eradication, disaster risk reduction, disaster response and disaster recovery and reiterate to continue to deploy efforts in all these areas.
3. Make use of the existing scientific and technical knowledge to build resilience to natural disasters.
4. Emphasizing the importance of strengthening the resilience of nations and communities to natural disasters through disaster risk reduction progrrams.
5. Understanding and addressing socio-economic activities that exacerbate the vulnerability of societies to natural disasters and strengthen local authorities and community capabilities to reduce vulnerability to disasters.
6. Develop national and local capacities to implement the Hyogo Framework and the Sendai framework for Action through the establishment of national platforms for disaster reduction.