25 September 2013 (Port Vila, Vanuatu) – The National Advisory Board on Climate Change and Disaster Risk Reduction (NAB) with support from the Pacific Risk Resilience (PRR) programme organized a one-day inception workshop for a nation-wide the Risk Governance Assessment in Vanuatu.
While significant progress has been achieved during the last two years, remaining weaknesses in coordination and governance mechanisms in the climate and disaster risk sector continue to lead to stakeholder confusion, duplication of efforts, excessive time and resource demands on a limited number of actors, and a less effective delivery of services to ni-Vanuatu people.
The objective of this Assessment was to analyze current climate and disaster risk capacities, strengths and weaknesses at all levels (national, provincial and local), evaluate critical institutional functions and their performance by Vanuatu’s national institutions, and suggest mechanisms and improvements to make best use of strengths or remedy weaknesses. Most importantly, the Risk Governance Assessment will inform and contribute to the development of a much needed climate change and disaster risk reduction policy to benefit of the people of Vanuatu.
The participants included the Director General of the new Ministry of Climate Change who acknowledged UNDP and AusAID for assisting the Government with the Risk Governance Assessment through the PRR programme. “Thank you for providing funds to help improve sectors mainstreaming climate change adaptation and disaster risk reduction…while Vanuatu is taking lead in this role, the only missing issue is linking the sectors therefore we have the Risk Governance Assessment team to assist us”.
Mr Napat continued to state that “climate change adaptation and disaster risk reduction are broader sustainable development and we welcome everyone’s view in this Risk Governance Assessment exercise”.
Following on from this inception workshop, the team will have follow up meetings with stakeholders at the national level and in two provinces.
The Pacific Risk Resilience (PRR) Programme will focus on strengthening governance mechanisms for disaster risk management and climate change adaptation at the sub-national and local levels. The programme is supported by the Australian Agency for International Development (AusAID) and implemented by UNDP for an initial period of five years in Vanuatu, Solomon Islands, Tonga and Fiji.
UNDP