India-Japan Workshop on Disaster Risk Reduction

The 3^rd Indo-Japan Workshop on Disaster Risk Reduction was held at Vigyan Bhawan in New Delhi. The workshop was attended by about 140 delegates from Japan and India including experts from both the governments, top premium research institutes, city administrators, specialized Disaster Management agencies and private sector. 

The Government of India and the Government of Japan had signed a Memorandum of Cooperation (MoC) in the field of Disaster Risk Reduction (DRR) in September 2017. The 3^rdIndo-Japan workshop is the follow-up of the deliberations held during the 1^st Indo-Japan Workshop on DRR held on March 18-19, 2018 in New Delhi as well as during the 2^nd Indo-Japan workshop on DRR held on October 13-15, 2018 in Tokyo, Japan. The 3^rd workshop was organized with an objective of enhancing collaboration between research institutes, cities and the private sector in the field of Disaster Risk Reduction. 

Inaugurating the workshop, Dr. P. K. Mishra, Additional Principal Secretary to the Prime Minister, said that both India and Japan have world class research institutions and collaboration among them can lead to capacity building at all levels. He added that the collaboration between cities, research institutions and private sector will also result in mutual benefit and long-term Disaster Risk Reduction. Our world is changing very fast and evolving targets of Sendai Framework for Disaster Risk Reduction (SFDRR) need to be supported by solid research.  He emphasised that the collaboration between India and Japan should be strengthened in the areas of Early Warning Systems, build-back-better, capacity development, Science & Technology application and institution strengthening. 

The Japanese delegation included Vice-Minister for Policy Coordination, Cabinet Office, Mr. Akihiro Nakamura, Ambassador of Japan to India, Mr. Kenji Hiramatsu, along with Government officials, domain experts from leading research institutes and various private companies working in the fields of Disaster Risk Reduction had participated in this workshop. 

Japanese Ambassador, in his address, appreciated that the workshop is held once every six months and reiterated the significance of three themes set for this workshop as collaboration amongst research institutes, among cities and among private companies, from the point of view that Disaster Risk Reduction should involve various stakeholders, and expressed Japan’s continuous support to India’s challenges towards DRR in every possible way.  

Ms Mami Mizutori, Assistant Secretary General and Special Representative of the Secretary General for Disaster Risk Reduction, United Nations Office for Disaster Risk Reduction (UNISDR), in her address, said that disasters are complex problems, and no country or organization has all the answers on how to best mitigate every type of disaster. India and Japan are two countries that have faced some of the biggest disasters in human history, but have also taken concrete steps towards better Disaster Management in the future. There is a lot to share between the two countries and she strongly believed that their joint efforts will advance global resilience. 

On the sidelines of the event, Dr. P. K. Mishra held bilateral talks with Mr. Akihiro Nakamura, Vice-Minister for Policy Coordination, Cabinet Office, Japan.  During bilateral talks, the two countries reaffirmed their commitment for bilateral cooperation in the areas of Disaster Risk Reduction and Disaster Resilient Infrastructure.