Friday, Jan 21, 2005
Friday, Jan 21, 2005 |
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By P. S. Suryanarayana
SINGAPORE, JAN. 20. The United Nations today announced the launching of a "comprehensive plan" for early warnings against a whole range of natural disasters across the world, including any future tsunamis in the Indian Ocean region. The U.N. plan, which had been on the cards for nearly two years, was formally unveiled at the World Conference on Disaster Reduction, being held in Kobe, the site of a major earthquake in Japan a few years ago. The plan acquires added importance in view of the tsunami that struck several countries, including Indonesia and India, last month. Speaking at the Kobe conference, the Director of the U.N. International Strategy for Disaster Reduction (ISDR), Salvano Briceno, said: "This new programme will help bring safety, security and peace of mind. ... Millions of people worldwide owe their lives and livelihoods to effective early warning systems". While no firm timeframe had been set for the commissioning of the proposed "International Early Warning Programme" (IEWP), the conference was informed of one possibility that a "basic" system could be put in place in about 18 months. The WMO Secretary-General, Michel Jarraud, told the Kobe conference that about 90 per cent of all natural disasters were of "meteorological or hydrological origin". With Japan having offered to play a lead-role in the establishment of a tsunami warning system for the Indian Ocean region, the Japanese Prime Minister, Junichiro Koizumi, outlined new initiatives. These included the launching of the "Initiative for Disaster Reduction", the strengthening of ties with neighbouring countries and the creation of a U.N. database of worldwide disaster-recovery case studies.
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