The figures were released at a national flood control and drought relief conference which ended Friday in Nanchang, east China's Jiangxi Province.

Flood hit 29 provinces, regions and municipalities in China, involving 131 million Mu (8.73 million hectares) of farmland and 111 million people, said Zhang Zhitong, deputy head of the General

In brief

Programmes summary:

The International Federation's support to the Red Cross Society of China (RCSC) has had many achievements in the past six months. The result of activities and efforts carried out include strengthened capacities, new initiatives, and stronger partnerships.

While both the RCSC and the International Federation continue to be focused on the recovery operation in the earthquake area since 12 May 2008, attention has gradually shifted back to other programmes,

COPENHAGEN (AlertNet) - Weather extremes have hit Bangladesh, Myanmar and Honduras the hardest over the past two decades and will likely have a bigger impact in the future as climate change intensifies storms, floods and heatwaves, a report said on Tuesday.

The three countries experienced the highest combination of deaths and economic losses from 1990 to 2008, according to a new climate risk index by Germanwatch, a non-governmental organisation promoting sustainable development.

The Asia Pacific region is home to more than half of the world's population, the majority of whom are poor and among the most disadvantaged in the world. Some 600 million women, men and children in the region live below the USD 1 a day poverty line, while 1.8 billion survive on less than USD 2 a day. Compounding the situation, the region is also highly disaster-prone. The diversity, scale and frequency of natural disasters across the region are daunting. Set along numerous fault lines, many countries in the region are often hit by major earthquakes

In the context of the Asia Pacific zone demographic, socio-economic and environmental trends, and the International Federation's strategic priorities, the East Asia region is at high risk from a wide range of disasters and health emergencies. There are five nations within the East Asia region: China, the Democratic People's Republic of Korea (DPRK), the Republic of Korea (RoK), Mongolia and Japan. The countries in the region are plagued with both the threat of major earthquakes and flooding, which recently has intensified caused by changing climate and

Subcommittee on International Development and Foreign Assistance, Economic Affairs and International Environmental Protection

I would like to thank the Chair, Senator Menendez, the Ranking Member Senator Corker, and all the Senators on this Subcommittee, for the opportunity to comment on how climate change is already affecting people in developing countries, and on measures the United States Senate can take to help address their urgent needs.

ActionAid is an international anti-poverty

Le rapport, intitulé, Diarrhée - Pourquoi les enfants meurent encore et ce que l'on peut faire, contient des informations sur les causes des maladies diarrhéiques, des données sur l'accès aux moyens de prévention et de traitement, et un plan en 7 points pour réduire les décès dus à la diarrhée.

* Asia is most disaster-prone continent, report says

* Hard to measure impact of slow-onset crises like drought

LONDON, Sept 22 (Reuters) - Floods, storms, drought and other climate-related natural disasters drove 20 million people from their homes last year, nearly four times as many as were displaced by conflicts, a new U.N. report said on Tuesday.

The study tried to quantify for the first

Zhang Yuzhen, 58, a villager from Qagan Nur Township, Baling Right Banner, was found dead after being swept away along with a donkey cart by a flash flood Tuesday afternoon, said the banner government.

The downpour also packing hail ravaged Qagan Nur Township and the neighboring Baoriwusu Township for about 20