Strengthening disaster risk management in East Asia and the Pacific distance learning seminar series: session 1

Session 1: Lessons learned and knowledge sharing seminar on Post-disaster Recovery Planning

Organizer(s): Tokyo Development Learning Center (TDLC)
Date: 11 Dec 2008
Location: Philippines, China, Indonesia, Japan, Vietnam, Lao People's Democratic Republic
Language(s): English/Japanese
Disaster Type: General
Category: Meetings & Conference

Introduction

In the 1990s, more than one billion people worldwide were affected by natural disasters, with direct economic losses of $629 billion. The East Asia and the Pacific (EAP) region are highly vulnerable to the impacts of natural disasters, ranging from earthquakes to floods to drought. Since 1990, natural disasters in the region have caused more than $50 billion in damage and affected more than 2 billion people (CRED – EM-DAT database). From FY04-07, the Bank provided financing (or managed trust fund resources of) about $1.5 billion in the region to support primarily post-disaster interventions in response to floods, typhoons, earthquakes, and the 2004 Asia tsunami. Because natural disasters have a disproportionate impact on the poor, disaster mitigation and management programs are an integral part of poverty alleviation strategies.

Regional distance learning seminar series

As part of the EAP Sector Management Unit Initiatives, which is a program promoting outreach and knowledge-sharing, the East Asia and Pacific Disaster Risk Management (DRM) team, in collaboration with the Global Development Learning Network (GDLN), has planned a learning and knowledge sharing seminar series to reach counterparts in countries of the region, as well as staff working in country offices.

This seminar series will highlight three areas:

Post-disaster recovery planning and lessons learned
Risk financing and the World Bank’s new financial products
Local approaches to disaster risk management

Within these three areas of focus, this series is comprised of 6 sessions delivered via VC by connecting 5-6 countries in the region starting from December 2008 to June 2009.

SESSION 1: 11 Dec. 2008
Lesson learned and knowledge sharing seminar on post-disaster recovery

SESSION 2: 11 Feb. 2009
Specialized seminar - Introduction to catastrophe risk financing frameworks

SESSION 3: 6 Mar. 2009
Local government approaches to disaster risk management and climate change: Climate resilient cities

SESSION 4: April 2009 (TBD)
Housing and community reconstruction after disasters

SESSION 5: May 2009 (TBD)
Community based disaster risk managment

SESSION 6: June 2009 (TBD)
World Bank's new risk financing products