4th Intl. Symposium of A-PAD SL to focus on ‘Urban Resilience: Building Inclusive and Competitive Ci

Friday, 17 November 2017 00:00 - - {{hitsCtrl.values.hits}}

The Asia Pacific Alliance for Disaster Management (A-PAD) Sri Lanka will host the 4th International Symposium on 22 November at the Hilton, Colombo, under the theme ‘Urban Resilience: Building Inclusive and Competitive Cities Amidst Disasters’.

The event is expected to draw representatives from the government sector, private sector, civil society, NGOs and INGOs, diplomatic representatives, military officials and the media.

A-PAD SL, which is affiliated to A-PAD Japan, is aimed at coordinating and supporting disaster preparedness, mitigation, disaster risk reduction, capacity building and relief activities across Sri Lanka. The platform, established in 2014, links agencies and organisations of the public and private sector in humanitarian, development and Corporate Social Responsibility activities.

As evident from the past, Sri Lanka is prone to many disasters and it is expected to worsen now more than ever. Hence, be it the construction of buildings, business continuity management or health, it is vital that every aspect of life be aligned with Disaster Risk Reduction and Management in order to develop Sri Lanka and other countries in the region to be inclusive and competitive cities amidst disasters.

In 2016 and 2017, as a result of the floods and landslides alone, approximately over 700,000 persons were affected, resulting in major economic damage and losses. In light of this problem, locally and globally, A-PAD SL has identified the 11th Sustainable Development Goal, which is “Make cities and human settlements inclusive, safe, resilient and sustainable”, as an apt and timely area to be addressed.

The International Symposium 2017 will address the private sector and incorporate expertise from Japan, Korea, Indonesia, Bangladesh, the Philippines and Sri Lanka.

The Chief Guest for the event will be Disaster Management Minister Anura Priyadarshana Yapa and the keynote address will be delivered by Ministry of Policy Planning and Economic Development Deputy Minister Dr. Harsha De Silva. The symposium will also be graced by Ambassador of Japan to Sri Lanka, Kenichi Suganuma, and A-PAD CEO Kensuke Onishi.

The delegates of this year’s symposium will hear from a panel of 10 speakers on various subthemes varying from the role of the private sector in the development of urban resilience, climate resilient urban planning and business continuity, etc. which will be followed by a discussion.