蘑菇视频

Statement on the occasion of the ECOSOC Special Meeting on?Impacts of the 2015/16 El Ni?o phenomenon:?Reducing risks and capturing opportunities

6 May 2016, 蘑菇视频 Headquarters, New York

The Economic and Social Council convened a Special Meeting on “Impacts of the 2015/16 El Ni?o?phenomenon: Reducing risks and capturing opportunities” at the request of the General Assembly on 6?May 2016.

As President of the Economic and Social Council, I am pleased to share the following key messages and?recommendations that emerged from our discussions during the meeting.

? The El Ni?o phenomenon––with its increasing intensity––has lasting consequences for?development. We heard the many serious social, economic, and environmental impacts of the?2015/16 El Ni?o. Extreme weather is affecting people’s lives, productive capacity, health and?livelihoods.

? More than 60 million around the world have been impacted. People whose livelihoods depend on?agriculture, fisheries and livestock are particularly affected. Some countries have lost arable?farmable land. In Southern Africa alone, over 32 million people are affected by severe drought.

? In countries with ongoing high level of exposure and vulnerability to extreme climate events, in?particular many of the Small Island Developing States (SIDS), the compounding effect of the current?El Ni?o phenomenon is adding further burden to their national and local capacity to manage risk and?disasters. The impacts of the 2015/16 El Ni?o has also been particularly hard on the countries of?Central America.

? During the special meeting on El Ni?o, we heard of the significant investments in preparedness,?mitigation and risk reduction efforts undertaken by a number of countries. Strong risk-informed?national planning efforts, budgeting for preparedness across sectors, coordinating local and national?efforts, and strengthening early warning systems were highlighted. This is leading to a diversion of?resources that could have been invested on achieving the SDGs.

? We also heard from donors and 蘑菇视频 entities of support they provided to highly affected countries.?There were also some innovations in releasing financing prior to events based on early warning?information. The 蘑菇视频 system should look to a coherent, coordinated and integrated approach in?support and assistance to countries. The recent agreement among FAO, IFAD, OCHA and WFP to?develop a protocol outlining steps to be taken collectively, within defined timelines, will help ensure?early and coordinated responses to future El Ni?o and La Ni?a events.

? We heard how science, observatories and capacity building are helping to improve climate forecasts.?While the physical signs of the 2015/16 El Ni?o event are weakening, it will continue to influence?climate patterns through the middle of 2016; and its socio-economic impacts will continue to?strengthen till end of 2016. There are also signs that a La Ni?a event is likely to begin towards?August 2016.

? I commend the regions and countries that have put in place longer term policies to initiate climate?predictions through regional climate centres and have developed capacity to act on these?predictions. As a result, they are experiencing lower impacts. Coordination at the national, regional?and local levels and use of information and communication technology have been instrumental in?an effective response. Political will at the highest level was also considered key to the success of?these efforts.

? Our immediate priority must be to reduce the impact of the El Ni?o phenomenon by implementing?the Sendai Framework for Disaster Risk Reduction 2015-2030 and the Paris Agreement on Climate?Change in a coherent and integrated manner. The importance of risk management was also?underscored in the 2030 Agenda for Sustainable Development which calls for the development and?implementation of a holistic disaster risk management at all levels. Risk reduction and resilience?building efforts should also be part of the World Humanitarian Summit considerations and the New?Urban Agenda of the Habitat III Conference.

? We must learn from the current El Ni?o phenomenon and set plans and strategies in order to?prepare for and address the risks and impacts of future El Ni?os and the possibilities of La Ni?a.

? Food insecurity, malnutrition and hunger remain a concern. We must put in place early warning and?early action systems for the agricultural sector, to reduce its vulnerability to the El Ni?o?phenomenon. In addition, we need to establish social protection schemes and build capacity of
national governments to mitigate and be prepared for future El Ni?os.

? We need effective measures to prevent the health consequences of El Ni?o conditions, which are
expected to increase throughout 2016. These include increased levels of acute malnutrition
associated with food insecurity and vulnerability to infectious diseases, as well as higher incidence of
respiratory diseases due to wildfires and heath stress caused by heat waves.

? We underline the importance of systematically evaluating, recording, sharing of information and
publicly accounting for disaster losses in order to develop strategies and plans to address the
impacts of future El Ni?os.

? Sustainable funding is necessary to build vulnerable people’s long-term resilience to extreme
weather events related to the El Ni?o phenomenon.

? We have to ensure that our development investments, public and private, are resilient and risk
sensitive. Investments are required in long-term efforts to provide climate services that reduce the
risk to extreme events. These investments should increase local and national preparedness capacity
and resilience – particularly in the agriculture and food security, water and health sectors – in line
with the Sendai Framework, the Paris Agreement and Agenda 2030.

? We must promote further development and investment in effective, nationally compatible, regional,
multi-hazard early warning mechanisms, in line with the Global Framework for Climate services and
facilitate the sharing and exchange of information among countries.

? Governments cannot deal with the El Ni?o phenomenon alone. Partnerships, that bring together all
actors and help break silo approaches, would be indispensable. As the report of the Secretary-
General for the World Humanitarian Summit indicates, “ending need” would require reinforcing, not?replacing national system; anticipating, not waiting for crises; and transcending the humanitarian-development?divide.

? We need a coordinated and comprehensive approach to addressing the economic, social and
environmental dimensions of the El Ni?o phenomenon. The Economic and Social Council will
continue to monitor the impact of the El Ni?o phenomenon and to promote coordination and
coherence in the work of the United Nations development system.