WCDR Thematic Panel Governance: Institutional and Policy Frameworks for Risk Reduction

1. WCDR Thematic PanelGovernance: Institutional and Policy Frameworks for Risk Reduction Annotated Outline UNDP – UNV – ProVention Consortium – UN-Habitat

2. Introduction • Purpose of the discussion paper • Nature of the theme • Concepts of Governance and Risk Reduction • Governance in the context of disaster risk management • Governance theme in the WCDR and linkages to other major themes

3. Yokohama Review Findings Effective practices, lessons learned, and new initiatives • Political commitment & policy frameworks • Legal and regulatory frameworks • Institutional frameworks • Multi-stakeholder participation • Capacities for disaster risk reduction • Resources for disaster risk reduction

4. Guidance for Future Action Recommendations, methods and approaches • Political commitment & policy frameworks • Demonstrate importance of risk reduction for achieving the MDGs • Demonstrate cost-effectiveness of risk reduction through cost-benefit & socio-economic impact analysis • Incorporate disaster reduction into development and sector policies and plans (mainstreaming) • Carry out risk assessments during development planning

5. Legal and regulatory frameworks • Key for creating the enabling environment • Designate responsibility for oversight and implementation to senior ministerial authority • Address conflicting legislation and regulations • Strengthen links and collaboration between legislators and implementing authorities

6. Institutional frameworks • Facilitate vertical & horizontal coordination and information exchange • Comprise multi stakeholders, -sectors and –disciplines • Ensure awareness of roles & responsibilities and skills are in place to carry out assigned functions • Integrate disaster reduction into decentralized local governance systems (comprising functions, decision-making power and budgetary allocations) • Foster linkages and exchange between local, intermediary, national, regional and international level

7. Multi-stakeholder participation • Empower community level organizations and civil society to participate in decision-making, policy setting, planning and implementation • Improve access to information on disaster risk and risk reduction measures • Encourage private sector participation in risk reduction and strengthen public-private sector partnerships in policy dialogue • Strengthen strategic partnership and alliance building across sectors and disciplines at all levels.

8. Capacities for disaster risk reduction • Ensure long-term, on-going capacity building support which follows a process approach • Address capacity building in a comprehensive manner, which comprises technical, planning and management skills • Improve learning from experiences in disaster reduction through broad-scale exchange of good practices and lessons learned • Integrate local/traditional and technological/ scientific knowledge for disaster reduction

9. Resources for disaster risk reduction • Increase focus on disaster reduction as central element of development funding and programming • Allocate resources for disaster risk management in all relevant sectors of the national as well as local administrative budgets • Prioritize disaster risk reduction in the development policies and processes of international financial institutions • Develop financial strategies for managing disaster risk

10. Conclusions This section will emphasize those areas which require more attention in the future