Two years have passed since Japan’s Tohoku coast was ravaged by a massive earthquake and tsunami. Thousands of lives lost, hundreds of thousands of survivors left without shelter, and millions of dollars in monetary damage were left behind when the ocean waters retreated.

Much has changed in Japan in the past two years, yet much has painfully stayed the same in the tsunami zone. Mercy Corps assisted in the emergent aftermath of the disaster, and has continued to provide support for local small merchants, helping to revive the badly struggling local economies.

Town was hit by 2011 Great East Japan Earthquake and Tsunami

The Singapore Red Cross, together with representatives from the Ministry of Foreign Affairs and local Shichigahama officials today opened the Shichigahama Toyama Nursery School, marking a major milestone in the rebuilding efforts following the 2011 Great East Japan Earthquake and Tsunami. The ceremony was attended by Guest-of-Honour Mr Sam Tan, Senior Parliamentary Secretary for Foreign Affairs and Culture, Community and Youth and Mr Yoshio Watanabe, Mayor of Shichigahama Town.

The Caritas Annual Report shows our work in 2012 through five strategic priorities identified during the year: addressing poverty at home and abroad, responding to emergencies, upholding the dignity and rights of indigenous peoples, promoting environmental justice, and connecting effectively with our Catholic community.

Public donations topped $3 million last year, including a record Lent total of more than $900,000. We are grateful for the government’s New Zealand Aid Programme which contributed almost $1 million towards Caritas development and relief programmes.

Natural disasters1 in 2012

In 2012, 310 natural disasters were recorded in the EM-DAT database. They claimed 9,930 lives, affected over 106 million others and caused economic damages of US$138 billion.

There were no mega-disasters in 2012 in terms of human impact.

The largest disaster of 2012 in terms of mortality was Typhoon Bopha in the Philippines that resulted in 1,901 deaths. It was the strongest tropical cyclone on record to hit the southern Philippine island of Mindanao and affected over 6 million persons.

Kristalina Georgieva, the European Commissioner for International Cooperation, Humanitarian Aid and Crisis Response and Akihiro Ohta, Minister of Land, Infrastructure, Transport and Tourism of Japan have exchanged letters providing a framework to further enhance EU-Japan cooperation in disaster management.

Kristalina Georgieva
Commissioner for International Cooperation, Humanitarian Aid and Crisis Response

Japanese week by Friends of Europe / Brussels

11 March 2013

Dear Excellencies,

The topic today is one that, for as long as I live, will be in my heart.

It is the great East Japan earthquake, and what Japan and the rest of the world have learned and continue to learn from it.

Two years after the devastating 9.0 Tohoku Earthquake and subsequent tsunami and nuclear disaster struck northern Japan, taking the lives of more than 16,000 people and leaving an estimated 3,000 missing, Direct Relief continues to support long-term recovery efforts to restore health and hope to the people affected.

Elizabeth Ferris and Mireya Solís | March 11, 2013 12:00am

11/03/2013 - Two years have passed today since one of the biggest disasters in Japan's history. Although Japan is one of the best prepared countries to cope with disasters, the magnitude of the earthquake and the subsequent tsunami made it necessary to complement Japan's response capacities with international assistance.