EVENTREPORTTEMPLATE-WMO.doc

EVENT REPORT Date of event: Tuesday 10 May, 13.15 – 14.15, Room 13 Reporters name and contact details: Dr Maryam Golnaraghi Chief of Disaster Risk Reduction World Meteorological Organization Tel: + 41-(0) 22-730-8006 Fax: + 41-(0) 22-730-8128 Email: mgolnaraghi@wmo.int Name and Type of Event Side Event: Saving of Lives and Improved Coastal Risk Management through Regional Cooperation in Ocean and Marine Related Early Warning Systems Organized by: World Meteorological Organization (WMO), Economic and Social Commission of Asia and the Pacific (ESCAP), UNESCO-IOC, International Group on Wind-Related Disaster Risk Reduction (IG-WRDRR) No of participants 65 1) Brief outline of key issues and challenges addressed in the event (1 paragraph) The issues addressed included: (i) Components of effective early warning systems (EWS) and need for institutional coordination at national to regional levels, with multi-stakeholder and multi-hazard approach; (ii) Challenges with development and sustainability of EWS as a critical component of effective national disaster risk reduction strategies and the need for clear policies, legal frameworks and budgeting at national to local levels; (iii) Importance of coordination and leveraging of bi-lateral and multi-lateral cooperation projects for the longer term development and sustainability of EWS; (iv) Examples of key lessons learned from effective EWS and national and regional cooperation related to marine and ocean related hazards (tropical cyclone and storm surges, tsunamis, etc.) in Asia; (v) Components of effective coastal zone management linked to reduction of risks associated with ocean and marine related hazards and building better community resilience, and, (vi) Importance and benefits of education at various levels and targeted at different stakeholders and awareness campaigns. 2) Key messages, outcomes, recommendations (maximum 5 bullet points) There is need for strong political recognition of the benefits of EWS refl