Disaster risk reduction experts drawn from Member States, Regional Economic Communities (RECs), and partner organisations converged at the AU Headquarters in Addis Ababa, Ethiopia, on 14-15 June 2023, for the validation workshop of the second Africa Biennial Report on Disaster Risk Reduction.

Welcoming the participants at the opening, Mr Harsen Nyambe Nyambe, the Director of Sustainable Environment and Blue Economy (SEBE) at the African Union Commission (AUC), said, “The great attendance to this workshop is a great testimony that the Member States are committed to enhancing disaster resilience. Looking back five years ago, we have managed to raise the profile of disaster risk reduction on the Continent”. The Director highlighted the political commitment towards DRR with the appointment of H.E. Filipe Nyusi, the President of the Republic of Mozambique, as the AU Disaster Risk Management (DRM) Champion by the African Union Assembly of Heads of State and Government in February 2022. “Progress has been realised in multi-hazard early warning through the AMHEWAS programme. However, we still face challenges in accessing sufficient data to inform policy and programme development. The next two days present us with an opportunity to fill in the gaps and accelerate the next Biennial report”, he added.

The participation rate by Member States in the generation of the 2nd Africa Biennial Report dropped by 34% from the previous figure of 91%, this time averaging 57%. The participants discussed the draft report over the two days, addressed the existing gaps, and enriched the draft. During the two-day workshop the remaining 43% of member states committed to provide data by 23 June 2023.

At the end of the validation workshop, the participants also adopted the roadmap towards the development and finalisation of the third Africa Biennial Report on DRR. The draft revision is underway, and an online validation workshop will follow in July. The second Biennial Report is set for launch in October 2023, while the validation for the third Biennial report is expected to happen in December 2023 and launch in February 2024.

The validation workshop followed a rigorous process of regional data collection workshops held in 2022 in Kenya, Chad, Senegal and Mozambique. The African Centre for Disaster Studies hosted by North-West University in South Africa is facilitating the development of the Africa Biennial Reports on DRR.

The development of the biennial report is supported by the European Union through the Intra-ACP 11th European Development Fund (EDF) Natural Disaster Risk Reduction Programme and also by the Government of Sweden through UNDP within the framework of the Sahel Resilience Project.

For further information, please contact:

Mr. Gatkuoth Kai| Technical Coordinator for Disaster Risk Reduction| Directorate of Sustainable Environment and Blue Economy, | E-mail: KaiG@africa-union.org | WhatsApp: +251 909537884

For media enquiry:

Mr. Molalet Tsedeke, Information and Communications Directorate | African Union Commission|+251-911-630 631; Molalett@africa-union.org

Ms. Maryanne Muriuki, Communications Analyst, Disaster Risk Reduction Unit, Department of Agriculture, Rural Development, Blue Economy and Sustainable Environment, AU Commission. Email: MuriukiM@africa-union.org

Information and Communication Directorate, African Union Commission I E-mail: DIC@africa-union.org
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