SECRETARY-GENERAL CALLS FOR PROMOTION OF DISASTER PREVENTION IN ORDER TO BUILD `A SAFER WORLD FOR THE TWENTY-FIRST CENTURY'

6 October 1997

Press Release
SG/SM/6351
OBV/13

SECRETARY-GENERAL CALLS FOR PROMOTION OF DISASTER PREVENTION IN ORDER TO BUILD `A SAFER WORLD FOR THE TWENTY-FIRST CENTURY'

19971006 On Occasion of International Day for Natural Disaster Reduction, Kofi Annan Addresses Paradox of Water-Related Disasters: Too Much, Too Little

Following is the message of Secretary-General Kofi Annan on the occasion of the International Day for Natural Disaster Reduction, to be observed on 8 October:

This year's observance of the International Day for Natural Disaster Reduction shines a spotlight on the role of water in natural disasters. Earthquakes, cyclones and volcanic eruptions may be among the most dramatic natural hazards, but water-related disasters -- from floods and drought to desertification -- affect more people and cause more damage. Indeed, with the "El Nino" phenomenon currently causing both flooding in Peru and drought in Indonesia, the focus on water is especially timely.

Floods are occurring more frequently than other disasters, a trend attributable to many causes, including deforestation and rapid development, especially in urban areas. But drought and desertification are also on the rise. Drought is also a leading killer, causing the deaths of a reported 74,000 people in 1996. Desertification affects one fourth of the earth's land and more than 1 billion of the world's people, and costs $42 billion each year in lost productivity. Here, too, deforestation is a major contributing factor, along with other poor land use practices such as overgrazing, over-cultivation and mismanagement of irrigation.

The United Nations is fully engaged in efforts to help countries cope with natural disasters and incorporate disaster reduction and preparedness into their overall development plans. In 1989, as a spur to international action and cooperation, the General Assembly proclaimed the International Decade for Natural Disaster Reduction (1990-2000). Throughout the 1990s, United Nations conferences on the environment, population, human settlements and other issues stressed the links between disaster reduction and sustainable development.

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Since the World Conference on Natural Disaster Reduction, held in 1994 in Yokohama, Japan, many countries have adopted new laws and national strategies for disaster reduction, preparedness and mitigation. The United Nations, for its part, has carried out disaster management training programmes in dozens of countries, focusing on institution-building, early warning, networking between institutions and individuals, and the production and dissemination of training materials. When disaster strikes, the Organization arranges for relief shipments, launches international appeals for assistance and serves as a clearinghouse for information about needs and consequences.

We face a paradox with water-related disasters: too much water, and too little. Virtually every country faces the prospect of both flood and water shortage. Moreover, such disasters know no borders; floods and droughts often affect several countries at once.

The case for international cooperation is clear. So is the humanitarian imperative: reducing the loss of life, property damage, and economic and social disruptions caused by natural disasters and environmental emergencies. So let us pledge, on the occasion of International Day for Natural Disaster Reduction 1997, to intensify our work of promoting an ethos of disaster prevention in order to build a safer world for the twenty-first century.

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