SENDAI, JAPAN, 18 March — Death and destruction from earthquakes, extreme weather and other hazards around the world would be decreased significantly by 2030 according to goals set today by countries meeting at the Third World Conference for Disaster Risk Reduction, which closed this evening in Sendai, Japan.

SENDAI, JAPAN, 17 March — Public investment had substantial strategic, operational and tactical benefits for disaster risk reduction, as it could increase resilience, save lives and accelerate recovery of devastated homes, institutions and infrastructure, the Sendai World Conference heard today during its fifth and final ministerial round table.

SENDAI, JAPAN, 16 March — Speakers in Sendai today called for a paradigm shift to avert the calamitous effects of disasters from a top-down approach to a bottom-up approach that drew on contributions from local leaders and communities, districts and villages, during a discussion titled “Governing Disaster Risk:  Overcoming Challenges”.

SENDAI, JAPAN, 15 March — Building back better after earthquakes, cyclones and other destructive forces and international cooperation in reducing harm from future crises were the focus of high-level discussions today in Sendai, Japan, as the Third United Nations World Conference on Disaster Risk Reduction continued.

Following are UN Secretary-General Ban Ki-moon’s remarks at the United Nations high-level event on “Uniting Nations, People and Action for Resilience”, in Sendai, Japan, today:

Following are UN Secretary-General Ban Ki-moon’s remarks at the opening of the third United Nations World Conference on Disaster Risk Reduction, in Sendai, Japan today:

SENDAI, JAPAN, 14 March — “Sustainability starts in Sendai,” United Nations Secretary-General Ban Ki-moon declared at the opening of the Third World Conference for Disaster Risk Reduction in Japan, asserting the largest-ever high-level meeting on the subject was “the first stop on our journey to a new future”.