Countries all over the world have witnessed disaster in one form or the other.
Whether natural disaster such as earthquakes, flood, drought and famine or manmade like terrorism and war, disaster leaves wanton destruction on its wake, rendering people homeless and in extreme cases death.
On realisation for the need for coordinated approach to manage disasters, the United Nations in 1989 designated 13 October as the International Day for Disaster Risk Reduction.
The day highlights the importance of reducing disaster risks and the need to build more resilient communities.
The theme for this year is “fighting inequality for a resilient future”.
The UN in a message to the occasion said it aligns with the Sendai Framework which is the international agreement to prevent and reduce losses in lives, livelihoods, economies and basic infrastructure.
The UN described disasters and inequality as two sides of the same coin, with one reinforcing the other and therefore encouraged all stakeholders to take action to break the cycle.
