Purpose:

The Regional Asia-Pacific Conference on Gender and Disaster Risk Reduction held 16-18 May 2016 in Ha Noi, Viet Nam, concluded with the recommendations for actions which are aligned with the Sendai Framework’s four Priorities for Action. Each recommendation articulates how the actions will be operationalised. Furthermore, throughout the implementation of all of these processes there is need to consider horizontal and vertical accountability, monitoring and adequate allocation of resources. There is also need to ensure recognition is also made of diversity within women and girls (age, disability, ethnicity, migrant status, socio-economic status, sexual orientation and gender identity).

Overview:

The drafting of the recommendations took into account the complexities that the region is facing in addressing disaster risks including the impacts of climate change, increasing inequalities between regions and between population groups – disability, race, ethnicity, sexual orientation, among others. Also considered was the opportunities provided by the new context to address gender responsive DRR with new normative provisions. Gender equality is recognized in all post-2015 frameworks: the Sustainable Development Goals (SDG), the Sendai Framework and the Paris Agreement. For the first time, these global frameworks speak to each other, with resilience being central to all. The Committee on the Elimination of Discrimination against Women (CEDAW) is also developing a General Recommendation on DRR and Climate Change that will elaborate the state obligations to promote and protect the rights of women and girls in the context of disasters and climate change.

See also: Vietnamese version [pdf, 0.54 MB]