EFDRR Roadmap Action-Oriented Dialogue
23-24 February 2023, Bucharest – The UfM Secretary General, in response to an invitation extended by Dr. Raed Arafat, Romanian Secretary of State and Head of the Department for Emergency Situations, attended the EFDRR Roadmap Action-oriented Dialogue: “Understanding and communicating existing and future risks: ensuring evidence-based communication”. This event was co-organised with the European Forum for Disaster Risk Reduction and the UN European and Central Asia office of Disaster Risk Reduction.
The EFDRR Roadmap Action-Oriented Dialogue sought to explore diverse experiences and strategies employed by pertinent stakeholders in Europe concerning the establishment of societal resilience through effective risk communication. The ultimate goal was to formulate recommendations for both governments and stakeholders aimed at enhancing the efficacy of risk communication.
In his opening of the high-level roundtable, UfM Secretary General addressed his thoughts to the victims of the earthquake in Turkey and Syria, as well as to the rescuers of the countries participating in this conference. He subsequently addressed three key points associated with crisis communication. First, he emphasized the necessity of establishing trust between institutions and citizens, drawing attention to the UfM’s strong online audience engagement as an example. Second, he underscored the importance of communicating scientific data, a task that the UfM fulfills through its expert reports. Lastly, he highlighted the significance of access to and comprehension of social networks, underlining the role of digitalization and education. He stressed that this aspect should not overlook the countries in the South.
The Secretary General also took the opportunity to meet Mr Raed Arafat, as well as Mr. Janez Lenarcic, European Commissioner for Crisis Management, Mr. Christos Stylianides, Minister of Climate change and Civil Protection of Greece, and General Duarte da Costa, Director-General of the Portuguese National Authority for Emergency and Civil protection.
During his bilateral meetings, the Secretary General recalled the need for increased and coordinated cooperation between countries of the South to address disaster risks, which today have the potential to exceed the capacity of individual states. He explained that it is in this sense that the UfM’s Regional Dialogue Platform on Civil Protection will work on the themes of a roadmap which will round up by the meeting of the UfM Directors-General on CP, based on three thematic working groups: prevention, preparedness, and response.
