Egypt

A regional meeting of experts held in Cairo could result in a doubling of the number of Arab countries that systematically report on disaster losses. UNISDR brought together over 40 participants from 15 Arab countries to discuss and exchange experiences on establishing national disaster loss databases.

This policy brief, issued while Governments discuss how to adapt to climate change in Durban, reflects that African countries are committed and investing funds to reduce risk to floods and droughts, albeit too little and still insufficiently in

The League of Arab States (LAS) and UNISDR move one step closer to a plan of action on disaster risk reduction for the Arab region. The action plan is expected to be endorsed at the first-ever Regional Platform for Disaster Risk Reduction in the Arab region planned for 2012.

UNISDR, the UN's disaster risk reduction office, in Egypt joined events around the world to celebrate the International Day for Disaster Reduction, 13 October, with the theme of recognizing the role of children and young people as partners in disaster risk reduction.

The report "Natural Hazards, and Unnatural Disasters: the Economics of Effective Prevention", prepared by the World Bank in partnership with the United Nations and funded by the Global Facility for Disaster Reduction and Recovery, concludes that natural hazards often turn into disasters as a result of poor policies and practices, and examines ways to make prevention cost-effective.

The first comprehensive training on Disaster Risk Reduction in the Arab region gathered thirty leading specialists to discuss regional and global disaster risk trends. Organized by the UNDP Regional Centre for Arab States, it provided valuable insight on disaster risk assessment, mitigation and preparedness.

Cairo, 22 May - The United Nations report titled "Revealing risk, redefining Development", launched this May by Secretary General Ban Ki-Moon at the Third Session of the Global Platform on Disaster Risk Reduction in Geneva, reveals a new interest and concern for disaster risk reduction in the Middle East and North Africa.

This inventory is an attempt to pull together the threads and to identify what does and what does not work in relation to legal, institutional and planning frameworks for disaster risk reduction (DRR) in Africa. It aims to further support the

The League of Arab States developed the Arab Strategy for Disaster Risk Reduction 2020 (ASDRR), which was adopted by the Council of Arab Ministers Responsible for the Environment in its 22nd session, held in Cairo on 19 December 2010.

Heads of States welcomed and endorsed the "Arab Strategy for Disaster Risk Reduction 2020" in recognition of the increasing risk and frequency of disasters that challenge the development process in the region during the 2nd Summit for Socio Economic Development of the Council of Arab Ministers Responsible for the Environment (CAMRE) held in Egypt in January 2011.