Marcos meets UN envoy for disaster risk reduction

President Ferdinand Marcos Jr. met Mami Mizutori, Special Representative of the United Nations Secretary General for Disaster Risk Reduction in Malacañang on Friday.

In a statement, the Presidential Communications Office (PCO) said Mizutori paid a courtesy call to President Marcos coinciding with the celebration of the International Day for Disaster Risk Reduction.

“During the meeting, President Marcos Jr. and Special Representative Mizutori discussed strategies to accelerate the country’s disaster risk reduction and the preparations for the 2024 Asia-Pacific Ministerial Conference on Disaster Risk Reduction,” the PCO said.

The 2024 Asia-Pacific Ministerial Conference on Disaster Risk Reduction, which will be hosted by the Philippines in October 2024, will be the largest biennial conference on disaster risk reduction in Asia-Pacific.

Marcos earlier signed Administrative Order No. 09 creating the Inter-Agency Committee with the Department of Environment and Natural Resources (DENR) and Department of National Defense (DND) as the lead agencies for the country’s hosting of the 2024 Asia-Pacific Ministerial Conference on Disaster Risk Reduction.

According to the DENR, the said conference is expected to draw over 3,000 high level international delegates and bring global leaders to monitor, review and enhance cooperation for the implementation of the Sendai Framework for Disaster Risk Reduction 2015-2030 at the regional level.

The Sendai Framework, adopted at the Third UN World Conference on Disaster Risk Reduction in Sendai, Japan last March 18, 2015, aims to achieve the substantial reduction of disaster risk and losses in lives, livelihoods and health, as well as in economic, physical, social, cultural and environmental assets of persons, businesses, communities and countries over the next 15 years.

Before her meeting with Marcos, Mizutori served as keynote speaker for the Barangay Leaders for Resilience Forum dubbed, ‘Barangayan para sa Kalikasan at Bayang Matatag’ on Thursday,

The event was attended by over 500 barangay leaders from across the country who showcased their respective communities’ practices in environmental protection, climate action and disaster risk reduction.—LDF, GMA Integrated News