Japan's Official Development Assistance White Paper 2012

(5) Disaster Risk Reduction and Post-Disaster Reconstruction

Disasters caused by earthquakes, tsunamis, typhoons, floods, debris flows, and other natural events that occur frequently in countries around the world do not merely take human lives and properties. In developing countries that are vulnerable to disasters, poor people suffer from significant damage, and become displaced in many cases. In addition, secondary damage such as the deterioration of sanitary conditions and food shortages may become protracted, making the problem more severe. In this respect, disasters have a significant impact on the overall social and economic mechanisms of developing countries.

<Japan's Efforts>

Japan utilizes its superior expertise and technology acquired through past experiences with natural disasters like earthquakes and typhoons to provide proactive support in the fields of disaster prevention and post-disaster recovery, as well as emergency assistance. In 2005 at the Second UN World Conference on Disaster Reduction in Kobe, the Hyogo Framework for Action 2005-2015 was adopted as a basic guideline for disaster risk reduction activities in the international community. Japan partners with the United Nations and other organizations to promote worldwide implementation.

At the conference, Japan also announced the Initiative for Disaster Risk Reduction through ODA, which represents Japan's basic policy on cooperation in disaster risk reduction. Japan expressed its intention to continue proactively supporting the self-help efforts by developing countries towards building a disaster-resilient society through institution building, human resources development, development of socio-economic infrastructure, and other measures.

Japan hosted the World Ministerial Conference on Disaster Reduction in Tohoku on July 3 and 4, 2012 in three prefectures afflicted by the Great East Japan Earthquake. Among topics discussed were the necessity of mainstreaming disaster risk reduction and building resilient societies, the importance of human security, the need to maximize combining both structural and non-structural disaster risk reduction capabilities, the necessity of collaboration beyond the roles of various stakeholders and the importance of responding to newly emerging disaster risks such as climate change and urbanization. The participants proposed "Disaster Risk Reduction in the 21st Century" as the way to make progress on the aforementioned aspects. They also confirmed the need to position disaster risk reduction as an important element in the post-2015 development agenda, as well as the need for formulating the post-Hyogo Framework for Action that incorporates the results of this conference.

Japan also pledged to provide $3 billion over the following three years to support disaster risk reduction.

Japan's Emergency Assistance

Japan has established a structure to facilitate emergency assistance in response to requests from the government of a disaster-affected country or international organization, when major disaster damage has occurred. Japan utilizes four types of Japan Disaster Relief (JDR) Team to provide humanitarian aid: (i) Search and Rescue Team to search and rescue victims; (ii) Medical Team to provide urgent medical assistance; (iii) Expert Team to give technical advice or guidance on emergency response measures and post-disaster recovery; and (iv) Self-Defense Force Unit to be dispatched when it has been judged to be particularly necessary when a large-scale disaster has occurred.

In addition, Japan provides emergency relief goods as material aid. Japan manages six warehouses overseas with a stock of tents, generators, blankets, and other goods needed to enable victims to live for the immediate future, and Japan is always prepared to provide relief goods to affected countries when a disaster occurs.

Moreover, to provide relief to victims and evacuees from natural disasters and conflicts, Japan disburses Emergency Grant Aid for assistance activities to the governments of a disaster-affected country and to the international organizations and Red Cross, which provide emergency assistance areas affected by disasters.

In FY2011, Japan dispatched a total of 5 JDR Teams to Russia and Thailand, and sent emergency relief goods on a total of 19 different occasions to 18 countries, including Cambodia, Viet Nam, the Philippines and Mozambique. Also in FY2011, Japan provided approximately ¥4.1 billion in Emergency Grant Aid as emergency disaster assistance to a total of 12 countries, including Pakistan, Thailand, and Turkey, and approximately ¥160 million in aid for democratization in the Kyrgyz Republic, Yemen, and Guinea-Bissau.

Particularly, in response to flooding in Thailand, Japan made two deliveries of disaster relief goods (outboard motors for rescue boats, etc.) worth a total of ¥55 million and sent the JDR Expert Teams (experts in dealing with flooding of water supply lines, subways and airport facilities) in October 2011. It then provided emergency grant aid and sent another JDR Team to operate drain pump vehicles in that November. (See this for more details)

The Japan Disaster Relief Team conducts a search and rescue in an area afflicted by the New Zealand Earthquake. (Photo: JICA)

The Japan Disaster Relief Team conducts a search and rescue in an area afflicted by the New Zealand Earthquake. (Photo: JICA)

Collaboration with International Organizations

Japan provides cooperation to the "Global Facility for Disaster Reduction and Recovery" established in the World Bank in 2006. This Facility aims at supporting efforts to improve the ability for disaster risk reduction planning and post-disaster reconstruction in low and middle-income countries that are vulnerable to natural disasters.

With the increase in recognition of the importance of disaster risk reduction, representatives from countries all over the world and from UN organizations such as the World Bank that are involved in disaster reduction gathered at a meeting of the UN General Assembly in 2006. At the meeting, the Global Platform for Disaster Risk Reduction was established to facilitate discussions regarding disaster risk reduction. The first meeting of the Global Platform was held in June 2007. Japan proactively supports the activities of the UN International Strategy for Disaster Reduction (UNISDR), which serves as the secretariat for the Global Platform. The Hyogo Office of the UNISDR was opened in October 2007.

The third session of the Global Platform for Disaster Risk Reduction was held in May 2011 in Geneva, Switzerland. More than 2,600 delegates representing 168 governments, 25 international organizations, 65 NGOs, and private organizations participated in the meeting. Japan announced its intention to host the Third UN World Conference on Disaster Risk Reduction.

Seven years have passed since the Second World Conference on Disaster Reduction in Kobe, and Japan has been engaged proactively in the follow-up efforts on the Hyogo Framework for Action, which serves as the basic guideline for disaster risk reduction activities in the international community, while utilizing the forums provided by meetings of the Global Platform.

Japan is also supporting the ASEAN Coordinating Centre for Humanitarian Assistance on Disaster Management (AHA Centre) (See this) by providing communication equipment and dispatching personnel as well as providing emergency relief goods and supporting for establishing a goods management and distribution system.

●Armenia

Project for Seismic Risk Assessment and Risk Management Planning
Technical Cooperation for Development Study (August 2010 - October 2012)

Armenia, located along the Alpine-Himalayan Belt, is constantly threatened by earthquakes like Japan. In 1988, the 6.7-magnitude earthquake struck the Spitak region in the northwestern part of the country, resulted in over 25,000 victims. In response, Japan dispatched the Japan Disaster Relief Team and provided emergency relief supplies and grant aid.

Such circumstances make Armenians have high concern for earthquake disaster management, and Japan has provided technical cooperation to Armenia, such as project for landslides prevention. The new project for Seismic Risk Assessment and Risk Management Planning started from August 2010 aimed to develop earthquake disaster management plans for Armenia's capital city of Yerevan where a third of the country's population is concentrated, in view of three stages: disaster prevention, emergency response, and recovery/reconstruction. To be specific, Japan supported mainly the following four activities as part of this project: (1) conducted a large earthquake simulation of damages to buildings, infrastructure and population, and developed an earthquake disaster scenario; (2) installed a Real Time Information System on Seismic Intensity capable of rapidly communicating disaster information; (3) developed an earthquake disaster management plan and an evacuation plan; and (4) developed operation continuity plans so that Ministry of Emergency Situations can quickly perform disaster response when earthquakes strike.

The disaster management cooperation between Japan and Armenia was mentioned in the Joint Declaration adopted on the occasion of President Serzh Sargsyan's visit to Japan in June 2012 as one of the pillars for the development of the Japan-Armenia relations.

A Japanese expert held a seminar on trench surveying to the National Survey for Seismic Protection of Armenia. (Photo: JICA)

A Japanese expert held a seminar on trench surveying to the National Survey for Seismic Protection of Armenia. (Photo: JICA)