Today, 13 October 2020, we are marking the Int
ernational Day for Disaster Risk Reduction amidst the COVID-19 pandemic.
As a natural disaster prone country, Pakistan has come a long way in terms of policy development, institutional capacity building, coordination and coherence. We have strengthened t
he response capacity of our institutions at the national, pr
ovincial and local (district) levels. The strength of our governance systems was tested in the first wave of COVID-19 pandemic
. While we have successfully contained the initial outbreak, we continue to mitigate its long-term socio-economic impacts.
Pakistan launched its renewed “National Disaster Response Plan 2019” with a
view to imp
roving the level of preparedness and strengthening the capacity of the
country to respond. It addresses multiple potential challenges including floods, earthquakes, avalanches, droughts and industrial hazards.
On this Int
ernational Day for Disaster Risk Reduction, Pakistan reiterates the need for redoubling of efforts under the United Nations and other int
ernational platforms including sharing of experiences, knowledge and transfer of technology to mitigate risks of disasters and to save lives.
