Purpose
This Handbook for Local Government Leaders provides mayors, governors, councillors and others with a generic framework for risk reduction and points to good practices and tools that are already being applied in different cities for that purpose. It responds to the following key questions: WHY building disaster resilience is beneficial; WHAT kind of strategies and actions are required; and HOW to go about the task. Because cities, towns and municipalities differ in size, social, economic and cultural profiles and exposure to risk, each one will approach the tasks differently.

The message is: resilience and disaster risk reduction must be part of urban design and strategies to achieve sustainable development. They require strong alliances and broad participation. Applying the guiding principles of the “Making Cities Resilient” Campaign and the information in this Handbook will help cities and local governments to share learning, access information, develop indicators and performance measures and track progress.

Usage: Guideline for implementation

Audience: Local government leaders such as mayors, governors and councillors