Participants at the Intra-ACP Forum, which took place during the Global Platform for Disaster Risk Reduction in Cancun, Mexico in May 2017 (photo: UNISDR)

21 June 2017, Geneva, Switzerland - The Africa, Caribbean and Pacific (ACP) Group of States, whose 79 members include some of the most disaster-prone and climate-vulnerable nations in the world, have prioritised the power of international cooperation to reduce the impact of natural hazards. 

At its meeting during the 2017 Global Platform for Disaster Risk Reduction, which concluded on 26 May in Cancun, Mexico, the Intra-ACP Forum, jointly organized by the UNISDR and the ACP Secretariat, brought together Ministers from Haiti, Solomon Islands and South Sudan, along with representatives of UNISDR, the ACP Group of States, the European Parliament and European Commission, the African Union Commission, the Secretariat of the Pacific Community and CARICOM Secretariat. They shared lessons and best practices from Disaster Risk Reduction Programmes funded in ACP countries through the European Development Fund.

“This timely discussion is of pertinence to us all as we strive to build enhanced resilience and consolidate adaptation, particularly in environmentally vulnerable countries, through the effective implementation of comprehensive Natural Disaster Risk Reduction and Risk Management Programmes,” said Ambassador Leonard Ognimba, Deputy Secretary-General of the ACP Secretariat. 

“Natural disasters are a recurring phenomenon in our regions. One only has to look at these examples of natural disasters over the last three years in our states, to get an appreciation of the unwelcome consequences of the loss of lives, the displaced people and livelihoods, the significant damage to the public and private infrastructure in our countries.” 

He pointed to the impact of volcanic activity in Cabo Verde, earthquake in Tanzania and hurricanes and tropical cyclones in Africa (Chedza and Enawao in Madagascar), and in island states in the Caribbean and Pacific (Pam, Erika, Matthew and Donna). 

Ambassador Ognimba underscored the political commitment made by ACP Heads of State and Government last year to strengthen coordination and dialogue among the 79 countries in all international fora. The aim, he recalled, is to enable the ACP Member States to work in favour of reforms to multilateral architecture that serves their interests and enhances their role in all areas of global governance, and thereby contribute to their development.