Investing Today for a Safer Future: How the Hyogo Framework for Action can Contribute to Reducing Deaths During Earthquakes

Abstract

This article provides a brief review of the progress made in the 5 years since implementation of the Hyogo Framework for Action. It also explains the importance of the Hyogo Framework as the appropriate policy guidance tool for reducing risk and vulnerability to natural hazards or disaster risk reduction (DRR). It is based on the premise that natural hazards are increasingly threatening the development gains made in many countries. It is only by addressing all of the five priority areas identified in the Hyogo Framework that a particular government or community can effectively reduce its risk to natural hazards and thus reduce mortality and other negative impacts from these hazards; hence, the relevance of understanding the Hyogo Framework’s various components and approaches (multi-hazard, multi-sectoral, multi-disciplinary, multi-stakeholder) as well as its implications with regard to other policy areas, in particular adapting to climate change, achieving the Millennium Development Goals (MDGs) and ensuring sustainable development. The article further explains how the use of the Hyogo Framework for adaptation to climate change also contributes to reducing risk from geological hazards such as earthquakes and volcanic eruptions. Finally, some specific recommendations are made to enhance the implementation of the Hyogo Framework in its second 5 years of application (2010–2015).

The Hyogo Framework for Action (2005–2015): Building the Resilience of Nations and Communities to Disasters, available at http://www.unisdr.org/eng/hfa/docs/Hyogo-framework-for-action-english.pdf