U.N. official looks to Japan as leader in disaster resilience efforts
The focus of work related to natural disaster recovery must shift from rapid rebuilding to long-term resilience and inclusivity, and Japan can play a leading role in such efforts, according to the chief of the U.N. Office for Disaster Risk Reduction.
"We must stop building back fast with big promises and start building back better and more resilient," said Kamal Kishore, special representative of the U.N. secretary general for disaster risk reduction, in a recent interview with Kyodo News.
"Japan has been a key promoter of resilient recovery" under the idea of "Build Back Better," Kishore said, adding that when Japan calls for action in the realm of disaster risk management, "other people take it seriously."
The tag line was mentioned in a key document adopted in the 2015 U.N. World Conference on Disaster Risk Reduction, held in Sendai, a city in northeastern Japan that was hit hard by the 2011 mega earthquake and tsunami.
Kishore said that poorly planned reconstruction often reproduces vulnerabilities and increases inequalities.
When leaders lack sufficient capacity for recovery planning, he added, they can make unrealistic promises to their communities in what he called a "tyranny of rush," such as saying all disaster-affected houses will be rebuilt in three to six months.
In June 2024, Kishore visited the Noto Peninsula, central Japan, which was jolted by a magnitude-7.6 quake on New Year's Day of that year.
Recalling his conversation at a temporary shelter with an 85-year-old woman who had been affected by the temblor, Kishore said she talked about her future "with a great sense of hope" even after being displaced from her home.
He described her as having been relocated well, with the placement taking into account her disabilities, her friend networks and the shops she frequented.
Kishore advocated for local engagement in reconstruction, citing an example from Nepal, where 900 women received training and became masons in the aftermath of a powerful earthquake in 2015.
"They not only rebuilt houses, but generated new livelihoods and generated skills for people that will serve them for a long time," he said.
Kishore praised Japan's openness in sharing both its successes and failures, saying the country is "already sharing its experience with a great degree of generosity and openness."
As the United States has reduced its financial contributions to U.N. organizations, the UNDRR will lose 15 percent of its funding this year, Kishore said ahead of the June 3-6 Global Platform for Disaster Risk Reduction in Geneva.
Kishore expressed concern that the ongoing trade and tariff conflicts between Washington and Beijing may increase reconstruction costs due to rising prices for building materials, as well as drive up expenses for new construction aiming to ensure postdisaster resilience.
© KYODO
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