Pacific

Tools to Increase Resilience of Pacific Island Countries to Natural Disasters

By Samntha Semoso – EMTV Online

A four-day workshop, running from 9 to 12 June 2015 opened in Suva with representatives from the Pacific Region Governments and Development partners attending, focusing on the disaster risk modelling and assessment tools.

The workshop was hosted by SPC and the Development partners through the Pacific Catastrophe Risk Assessment and Financing Initiative (PCRAFI), which aims to establish an upgraded disaster and climate risk information platform, and to enhance the capacity of Pacific Island governments to use it.

“The workshop aims were to engage with countries on the risk assessment products and tools being developed, providing training and a deeper understanding of risk modelling methodology used in PCRFI, to assist countries to have more of the data they need immediately after an event,” the Director of SPC’s Geoscience Division, Professor Michael Petterson said

These tools can be used to improve the resilience of Pacific Island countries by providing the technical information needed to make informed decisions about risks of disasters to communities, and their assets, Prof Petterson said. “These will allow them to more quickly and efficiently respond to disasters,” he said.

The tools, including a rapid impact estimation tool and the Pacific Risk Information System (PacRIS), are being developed by the Secretariat of the Pacific Community (SPC), World Bank and the Asian Development Bank with the financial support of the Government of Japan and the Global Facility for Disaster Reduction and Recovery (GFDRR).  

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