South Africa expresses its appreciation to the Government and people of the Republic of Namibia for the hospitality, warm welcome and successful hosting of the Africa Regional Platform for Disaster Risk Reduction from 22 - 23 October 2024. South Africa also extends its appreciation to the United Nations Office for Disaster Risk Reduction and the African Union for the organisation of the event and the support provided to delegates.
South Africa continues to make improvements to implement the Sendai Framework for Disaster Risk Reduction (SFDRR) 2015-2030 and in this regard the Country has developed robust legislative and policy frameworks that now permeates from the National to the municipal space that align well with the objectives of the SFDRR. Key achievements also include:
1. Early Warning Systems: South Africa has enhanced its early warning systems for severe weather, enabling communities and response agencies to make informed decisions and take early action. South Africa is also working to refine our standard operating procedures at provincial and local level to better understand which actions are needed based on what the weather is going to do rather than just understanding what the weather will be.
2. Institutional Capacity: The country continues to build strong institutional capacities for disaster risk management, ensuring better coordination and management of disasters. In this regard South Africa has established Disaster Management Centres in all nine provinces, all 8 Metropolitan Municipalities and in all 44 District Municipalities.
3. International Collaboration: South Africa has engaged in knowledge-sharing and collaboration with countries like India, Japan, Germany, Bangladesh, Russia, Mozambique, Brazil, Lesotho and Malawi to better understand the respective institutional systems and delivery modalities to improve its disaster management systems.
To further accelerate the implementation of the SFDRR and the Programme of Action, South Africa in the review of its disaster management system is seeking to focus on the following key areas:
1. Better analyse risk: South Africa is working to improve its systems to not only better assess risk in all its dimensions (Hazard, Exposure, Vulnerability & Manageability) but to centralise the information and avail it to stakeholders that requires the information to develop strategies to reduce risk and to develop preparedness, response and rehabilitation plans.
2. Improve prevention and mitigation measures: South Africa is working to continue to mainstream disaster management in development planning measures and in sector department operational planning.
3. Ensure better preparedness is made. South Africa is working to improve its contingency arrangements by integrating stakeholder plans through conducting exercises, conducting stakeholder training, developing mechanisms to establish stockpiles and taking early action.
4. Accelerate the delivery of response, recovery and rehabilitation measures. South Africa is working to optimise its measures to coordinate the response to disaster, providing integrated relief measures and to rehabilitated affected areas to become risk resilient by regionalising its national capacities to better support, assist and where needed lead local response efforts.
5. South Africa also seeks to improve cross cutting / enablers that support the above mentioned aspects. These include:
a) Enhancing Data Management: Improve data collection and management to better understand disaster risks and inform decision-making processes.
b) Community-Based Actions: Translate national and regional strategies into community-based actions to build local resilience.
c) Increased Funding: Secure more funding for disaster risk reduction initiatives, including domestic financing and international support. Develop and implement index and other similar financing mechanisms to transfer risk more effectively.
d) Capacity Building: Strengthen capacity-building efforts at all levels to ensure that local authorities and communities are well-equipped to handle disasters.
e) Integrate with Development Plans: Deepen the integration of disaster risk reduction into broader development and climate change adaptation plans to ensure a holistic approach.
f) Public Awareness and Education: Increase public awareness and education on disaster risks and preparedness, incorporating disaster risk reduction into educational curricula at tertiary levels.
By focusing on these areas, South Africa is making progress towards achieving the targets set out in the SFDRR and the Programme of Action, ultimately enhancing resilience and reducing disaster risks across the country.