G8 Summit in Aquila commits to risk reduction

For the second time already, the G8 countries acknowledge the importance of disaster
risk reduction and recognize the Hyogo Framework for Action as a tool to reduce
disaster impacts, in particular in developing countries. The declaration on ‘Responsible
leadership for a sustainable future’, issued at the G8 Summit in Aquila, Italy on 8
July, explicitly identifies UNISDR and WMO as organizations to collaborate with for
‘defining common guidelines for disaster prevention and management to be used in
developing national plans, building on the Hyogo Framework for Action and on national
experiences’.

Preceding the summit, a joint statement was issued by the seven international agencies/
organizations which form the Management Oversight Board of the ISDR partnership,
urging the G8 leaders and their governments to apply their ‘considerable influence,
resources and political will’ to advance disaster risk reduction, especially as the G8
countries are ‘uniquely placed to establish, support and implement nationally owned
disaster risk reduction plans and help address the risks associated with climate change’.