Abdulla Shahid, President of the 76th session of the United Nations General Assembly (UNGA) has stated that the Covid-19 pandemic has shown that disaster risk reduction is everybody’s business.

He made the statement in his remarks at the side event of the High Level Political Forum, ‘A Risk-informed Approach to Development in a COVID-19 Transformed World’.

PGA Shahid, who is also the Foreign Minister of Maldives stated that the Global and Regional Platforms on Disaster Risk Reduction have taken stock of efforts, and provided guidance on how to reduce risk and its drivers, and pursue risk informed development.

The PGA urged to work together to ensure that all countries, particularly those most in need, have the capacity and financial support needed to make meaningful progress. Highlighting the midterm review of the Sendai Framework next year in the General Assembly, PGA Shahid urged to seize the opportunity to renew commitment to implementation, and to fortify our development efforts with a risk-informed, resilience driven approach.

Minister Shahid in his remarks noted that the event, on risk-informed development, and on “Building back better from the coronavirus while advancing the full implementation of the 2030 Agenda for Sustainable Development,” is indeed welcome.

He stated that the world and its 8-billion people are longing for peace of mind, for change, and for a safe harbor after nearly three long, challenging years.

Noting that we can help to give them this, Minister Shahid stated that Covid-19 exposed the underlying vulnerabilities that pervade our society. He stated that it is on us now to take steps to rectify those gaps and to not just build back what was, but to build what can be.

PGA Shahid in his remarks noted that the implementation of the Sendai Framework is our best chance to ensure a prevention-oriented and risk-informed approach to COVID-19 recovery, one that helps to address climate change, and to make progress against the SDGs.