KL DECLARATION CALLS FOR INTEGRATION OF DISASTER RISK REDUCTION INTO

KUALA LUMPUR, Dec 5 (Bernama) -- The Third Asian Ministerial Conference
(AMC) on Disaster Risk Reduction (DRR) which ended here Thursday, called on
regional and national disaster reduction stakeholders to integrate DRR into
national, sub-national and sectoral planning.

In the Kuala Lumpur Declaration on DRR in Asia 2008, the ministers and
heads
of delegation also called on them to build capacities to evaluate financial and
economic costs and benefits of DRR.

They also called for the promotion of comprehensive preparedness planning
to mitigate the impacts of disaster and for the international donor community
to increase its funding support for regional and national activities for
DRR.

"Recognising that governments have a responsibility to reduce risks of
disasters, there is a need for support and assistance from other stakeholders
including international, regional and national organisations, national Red Cross
and Red Crescent Societies, civil society organisations and their networks to
ensure appropriate implementation of the recommendations of the AMC," the
declaration said.

The participating countries also called for the promotion of training
opportunities to regional, national and local media representatives and
journalists to generate public risk reduction and disaster prepardness measures
and develop broadcasting systems for the dissemination of early warnings for
the Asia Pacific region.

In the declaration, they also invited the Asia Pacific regional office of
the United Nations International Strategy for Disaster Reduction, in
collaboration with members of the Asian Partnership on Disaster Reduction (IAP),
to prepare a Regional Action Plan on the KL declaration on DRR.

South Korea has offered to host the next ministerial meeting in Incheon in
2010.
-- BERNAMA