Mexico's big switch to Sendai

Mexico City, 6 May, 2016 - The President of Mexico, Mr. Enrique Peña Nieto, today re-committed his country to implementing the Sendai Framework for Disaster Risk Reduction as he paid tribute to the National System for Civil Protection on the 30th anniversary of its founding.

The President outlined his vision for Mexico to become a role model for disaster risk reduction over the next 15 years, the lifetime of the Sendai Framework which is the global plan for reducing disaster losses adopted last year by UN member States meeting in Sendai, Japan.

Mexico will host the next Global Platform for Disaster Risk Reduction in Cancun from May 22 to 26, 2017. This will provide a major opportunity to review progress on implementation of the Sendai Framework.

In his speech, President Peña Nieto paid particular tribute to the work carried out by Civil Protection staff and members of the armed forces who travelled to Ecuador to provide assistance after the April 16 earthquake working on rescue, location of victims and carrying out structural safety checks.

He said that the creation of the National System for Civil Protection has been critical in gaining the support of the whole of Mexican society to ensure better disaster preparedness and the ability to recover after disaster strikes.

The President also cited improvements such as strong legislation; budget allocations for disaster preparedness, response and reconstruction; enhanced monitoring of natural hazards and efficient early warning systems – all of which are important ingredients of the Sendai Framework plan to reduce risk and disaster losses worldwide.

President Peña Nieto vowed that Mexico would be proactive in meeting the goals outlined in the Sendai Framework as it faces up to the challenges of the forthcoming rainy season and cyclone season.

"We consider that climate change can generate new and significant challenges for civil defense tasks , so I call on everyone to actively participate in prevention actions that will face the natural phenomena that are forecast for the rainy season and tropical cyclones in 2016," he said and called for a redoubling of risk reduction efforts in exposed locations.

Speaking at the same event in Mexico City, Mr. Robert Glasser, the head of the UN Office for Disaster Risk Reduction, said: "The National System of Civil Protection is clear evidence of Mexico's commitment to reducing disaster risk and disaster losses in response to both man-made and natural hazards as outlined in the Sendai Framework for Disaster Risk Reduction. Since it was created after the 1985 earthquake, Mexico has emerged as a leader in the field of disaster risk reduction."

Looking forward to next year's Global Platform, Mr. Glasser said: "This unique gathering will bring together government representatives and many other partners in an inclusive forum dedicated to implementation of the Sendai Framework. It will also be a first opportunity to create momentum to increase the number of countries with national and local strategies for disaster risk reduction by 2020. "