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The making of the Hyogo2 disaster prevention treaty
17 May 2013
(IRIN
),
A month after the Indian Ocean tsunami struck in December 2004, affecting millions, 168 countries signed on to a 10-year plan to make the world safer from natural hazards. Yet the plan, the Hyogo Framework for Action (HFA) 2005-2015, focused primarily on “what to do to prevent disasters, but not enough on how to implement it,” says Neil McFarlane, chief coordinator and head of all regional programmes at the UN Office for Disaster Risk Reduction (UNISDR).
http://www.irinnews.org/Report/98058/The-making-of-the-Hyogo2-disaster-prevention-treaty
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Microcredit helps small businesses buck the system in Madagascar
16 May 2013
(IRIN
),
Justine Sija, 60, begins her day at 4am, when she buys catch from local fishermen to hawk on the streets of St Augustin Village, in Madagascar’s southern Atsimo-Andrefana Region. The work is hard, but in the last year, access to microcredit has boosted both her business and her hope for the future.
http://www.irinnews.org/Report/98050/Microcredit-helps-small-businesses-buck-the-system-in-Madagascar
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Evacuation volunteers fan out in Bangladesh
16 May 2013
(IRIN
),
Some 50,000 volunteers in coastal communities across southern Bangladesh are out and about warning people to move to higher ground ahead of Cyclone Mahasen. Hundreds of thousands of people have been evacuated so far.
http://www.irinnews.org/Report/98046/Evacuation-volunteers-fan-out-in-Bangladesh
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Rohingya evacuation under way in Myanmar
14 May 2013
(IRIN
),
The government of Myanmar has launched a large-scale effort to relocate to higher ground tens of thousands of Rohingya internally displaced persons (IDPs) ahead of Cyclone Mahasen, says the UN.
http://www.irinnews.org/Report/98034/Rohingya-evacuation-under-way-in-Myanmar
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Analysis: Helping local aid workers build meaningful careers
13 May 2013
(IRIN
),
There has been much talk of decentralizing the northern-centric humanitarian aid sector to give more power to southern staff, but how much has changed over recent years?
http://www.irinnews.org/Report/98025/Analysis-Helping-local-aid-workers-build-meaningful-careers
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Bangladesh, Myanmar brace for Cyclone Mahasen
13 May 2013
(IRIN
),
Bangladesh and Myanmar are bracing for Cyclone Mahasen, a storm which could affect millions in the region, the UN has warned.
http://www.irinnews.org/Report/98024/Bangladesh-Myanmar-brace-for-Cyclone-Mahasen
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Analysis: Getting governments to cough up for DRR
9 May 2013
(IRIN
),
Investing in preparation for potential disasters is a “no brainer”, Elizabeth Longworth, director of the UN Office for Disaster Risk Reduction (UNISDR), told a recent disaster risk reduction (DRR) conference in Aqaba, Jordan.
http://www.irinnews.org/Report/98003/Analysis-Getting-governments-to-cough-up-for-DRR
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“Super-fly” threatens “Rambo” cassava, food security
7 May 2013
(IRIN
),
A tiny, rapidly breeding cyanide-munching insect, dubbed a “super-fly” by scientists, is threatening the food security of millions of Africans.
http://www.irinnews.org/Report/97986/Super-fly-threatens-Rambo-cassava-food-security
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Calamity planning - Bangladesh role-plays quake response
7 May 2013
(IRIN
),
As Bangladesh armed forces retrieve bodies from the country’s worst ever industrial disaster, a garment factory collapse killing over 700, contingency planning is taking place for something worse - a long-predicted earthquake striking the mega-capital of Dhaka.
http://www.irinnews.org/Report/97990/Calamity-planning-Bangladesh-role-plays-quake-response
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Zimbabwe short on climate change funds
7 May 2013
(IRIN
),
Inadequate funding and limited resources are frustrating Zimbabwe’s efforts to develop plans to deal with the impact of climate change, says a government progress report.
http://www.irinnews.org/Report/97994/Zimbabwe-short-on-climate-change-funds
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Analysis: “Wake-up call” for Bangladesh’s building industry
6 May 2013
(IRIN
),
Corpses are still being recovered from Bangladesh’s worst industrial disaster ever - a factory building collapse on 24 April that killed at least 600 workers near the capital. Government experts are scrambling to prevent a repeat.
http://www.irinnews.org/Report/97987/Analysis-Wake-up-call-for-Bangladesh-s-building-industry
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Aiming for climate change-resilient coffee in Uganda
3 May 2013
(IRIN
),
In Uganda, a new pilot project seeks to understand the threat climate change poses to coffee, which will enable growers to enhance the crop's resilience to extreme weather events.
http://www.irinnews.org/Report/97971/Aiming-for-climate-change-resilient-coffee-in-Uganda
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Pressure in Philippines to end ban on formula milk aid
30 April 2013
(IRIN
),
Health authorities in the Philippines were vigilant in keeping out infant formula donations when Typhoon Bopha hit last December, but activists are concerned the infant formula industry will succeed in pushing through legislative changes that will allow formula donations in future emergencies, making it harder to convince women in those crises to continue exclusive breastfeeding.
http://www.irinnews.org/Report/97943/Pressure-in-Philippines-to-end-ban-on-formula-milk-aid
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Can disaster risk reduction lessons be learned from China?
29 April 2013
(IRIN
),
China, which annually faces almost every disaster possible - including earthquakes, floods, cyclones and landslides - is doing something right in the field of disaster risk reduction (DRR), experts say.
http://www.irinnews.org/Report/97938/Can-disaster-risk-reduction-lessons-be-learned-from-China
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Imagining a major quake in Kathmandu
26 April 2013
(IRIN
),
It is the nightmare scenario aid workers and government officials have long feared: a massive earthquake striking Nepal’s densely populated Kathmandu Valley, with tens of thousands feared dead.
http://www.irinnews.org/Report/97925/Imagining-a-major-quake-in-Kathmandu
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A unified approach to climate change and hunger
24 April 2013
(IRIN
),
Studies out of Ethiopia, India, Kenya and Niger show that children born during natural hazards, like droughts or floods, are more likely to be malnourished. Yet as the climate changes, it is poor countries - already struggling with hunger and food insecurity - that are increasingly likely to face these natural hazards.
http://www.irinnews.org/Report/97913/A-unified-approach-to-climate-change-and-hunger
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Floods highlight disaster management challenges in Kenya
24 April 2013
(IRIN
),
Assistance to thousands of flood-affected families in Kenya has been curtailed by lack of a national disaster management body, poor coordination, poor rural infrastructure and other challenges.
http://www.irinnews.org/Report/97916/Floods-highlight-disaster-management-challenges-in-Kenya
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Slow retreat of monsoon floods in Pakistan hinders recovery
23 April 2013
(IRIN
),
It is seven months since the monsoon rains fell on Mohammed Qayyum’s village in the Taib area of Shikarpur District in Pakistan’s southern province of Sindh.
http://www.irinnews.org/Report/97904/Slow-retreat-of-monsoon-floods-in-Pakistan-hinders-recovery
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Political instability undermines disaster preparedness in Bangladesh
22 April 2013
(IRIN
),
Ongoing political instability in Bangladesh is undermining disaster preparedness efforts, experts warn. From January to April 2013, opposition parties have enforced 18 nationwide strikes throughout Bangladesh, with even more enforced at the regional and district level, according to security analysts.
http://www.irinnews.org/Report/97889/Political-instability-undermines-disaster-preparedness-in-Bangladesh
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Lifeline to “climate refugees”?
17 April 2013
(IRIN
),
The international community has steadfastly dodged the issue of recognition and protection for “climate refugees” - people forced to relocate to another country as a result of the risks and hazards of a changing climate. Now, the first global initiative to address humanitarian options is underway, with discussions focusing on the Pacific Ocean states to take place soon.
http://www.irinnews.org/Report/97862/Lifeline-to-climate-refugees
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