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President Faustin Archange Touadera was in parliament at the opening of the validation workshop of the national strategy document for disaster risk reduction and adaptation to climate change.
– Mr. President of the National Assembly;
– Mr. Prime Minister, Head of Government;
– Ladies and Gentlemen, the Presidents of the Institutions of the Republic;
– Ladies and Gentlemen, Members of the Government;
– Madam Deputy Special Representative of the Secretary General of the United Nations, Humanitarian Coordinator;
– Ladies and Gentlemen Ambassadors, Heads of Diplomatic and Consular Missions, Representatives of International Organizations;
– Ladies and Gentlemen, Members of the Reflection Committee on Disaster Risk Reduction;
– Distinguished guests;
– Ladies and gentlemen ;
The Central African Republic, our country, by its physical, geographical, geological and climatic realities is, like other countries in the world, exposed to natural, health and anthropogenic hazards.
The increasingly increasing impacts of these hazards are at the origin of recurring disasters, exacerbated by vulnerabilities of all kinds.
Faced with these challenges that threaten the existence of humanity, each country in the world must find, at the national level, innovative and sustainable solutions once morest the effects of climate change.
It is therefore with pride that I chair today the opening ceremony of the national workshop for the validation of the National Strategy for the Prevention and Reduction of Disaster Risks and Adaptation to Climate Change.
– Distinguished guests;
– Ladies and gentlemen.
It will be recalled that it was in 2012 that the Government of the Central African Republic laid the foundations for a process through the establishment of a reflection committee which brings together several ministerial departments and many other entities interested in the question.
The Sendai Framework 2015-2030, on which this strategy is aligned and to which our country is a party, defines seven (7) objectives and four (4) priorities for action to prevent and reduce the impacts of disaster risks.
Other global and regional agendas, including the Sustainable Development Goals, the Paris Climate Agreement, the New Urban Agenda, the Biodiversity Agendas and the African Union’s Agenda 2063 have similar goals. which cannot be achieved without considering disaster risk reduction, as there are clear links between these international instruments.
Governance for disaster risk reduction involves assessing and managing risk factors, understanding the causes of those risks, limiting community exposure and acting to reduce people’s vulnerability.
Preparation for an effective response, better reconstruction through post-disaster recovery must involve all sectors and all stakeholders.
To achieve the expected results, we must take into account climate change scenarios.
These consist of the establishment of multi-sector forecasting, surveillance and early warning mechanisms, centered on the population as well as mechanisms for communication, infrastructure related to water, transport, housing , telecommunications, sanitation, to ensure that they remain safe, efficient and operational during and following disasters, in order to ensure vital and essential services.
The Sendai Framework commits all major development and humanitarian actors to invest in disaster risk reduction to build the resilience of communities to their hazard-related events.
To this end, it is imperative that the National Platform that will be put in place can function as a single coherent system, with several mechanisms allowing better collaboration between all stakeholders and all sectors, in order to provide guidance and the necessary support to the implementation of the various programs in this area.
Speaking particularly to our technical and financial partners, I would like to remind you that this Strategy and its Implementation Plan, which will be validated during this workshop, come as tools intended to help the Government to commit, with the other States of the planet, to integrate disaster risk reduction and resilience building into its country management tools and to take measures to combat climate change and its repercussions (SDG 13).
To respond to these disasters and crises and return to the paths of sustainable development, our country needs to be supported in its efforts, while improving its skills to proactively manage disaster risks and build resilience in order to face to future crises.
This working document, prepared with the support of internal and external partners, is dedicated to coordinated response planning for disaster situations.
This is an opportunity for me to salute the work carried out by the reflection committee, despite the limited means and the difficulties of all kinds.
I can only be delighted that this process, initiated since 2012, has made such significant progress.
I urge all participants present here to be diligent and punctual and to show seriousness in their analysis in order to produce a Document that will be accepted by all.
Finally, I would like to renew my thanks to the Central African Red Cross and the Dutch Red Cross as well as to MEDAF-PHAMA (Shalina) and the Ledger Hotel, whose support made the organization of this workshop possible.
It remains for me to tell you how convinced I am to see comments and conclusions coming out of this workshop that will improve the document submitted for your analysis.
While wishing full success to your work, I declare open the national validation workshop of the National Strategy Document for Disaster Risk Reduction and Climate Change Adaptation.
Thank you.
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