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Nepal

Workshop in Nepal trains ministers to prepare for disasters

NAGEAKOT, Nepal.

A two day workshop on disaster risk management and (DRM) and climate risk management took place in Nepal at the beginning of March 2013. ADPC provided technical support to the workshop which was jointly organized by Ministry of Science, Technology and Environment, and the United Nations Development Programme (UNDP).

Nepal, due mainly to its geographical conditions, in amongst the twenty most hazard prone countries on the planet. The nation has a long term development vision and has, in recent years, made significant progress in poverty reduction, job creation, improved infrastructure, reduced child and maternal mortality rates, etc.

Nepal's vulnerability to hazards, as well as the unpredictability of extreme weather events due to severe climate change, means that for every two steps towards the realisation of its development plan are taken, hurdles hinder development progress. In the past few years, disasters, such as the earthquake of September 2011 led to high economic, social and environmental losses and had a heavy toll on human lives.

The aim of the workshop was to build the capacities of ministerial officials to structure DRM and CRM into project considerations. The workshop concentrated on learning to stocktake existing relevant and existing institutional arrangements, policies, strategies and programs effectively, meaning that superfluous or conflicting policies are not unwittingly created. Participants also learnt about how to identify disaster and climate risk management entry points into policies, plans, programmes and projects related to environment. The workshop provided references to good practices and cases related to DRM/CRM considerations in the environmental sector from South Asia and other regions.

For more information on this workshop please contact Mr. Sudhir Kumar, at Sudhir@adpc.net