Part of the Department of Humanitarian Affairs' core coordination function involves participation in the planning and execution of "proactive" humanitarian action, though this term carries different meaning when applied to the onset of complex crises, on the one hand, or natural disasters, on the other. Examples of humanitarian activities that might prevent or reduce the scale of suffering include the provision of assistance that could pre-empt mass population movements or support that facilitates the reintegration of demobilized soldiers. Prevention of natural disasters might involve the strengthening of structures against earthquakes or the resettlement of populations away from flood zones or earthquake fault lines.
A functioning early warning system is critically important for the timely planning and implementation of pre-emptive action. The Humanitarian Early Warning System has been created to provide up-to-date warnings of country crisis situations through analysis of its database, drawing upon the various early warning mechanisms of other United Nations agencies as well as non-United Nations information sources. The system is made up of a database that includes both statistical and other country-specific information, graphically presented trend evaluation and an analysis process that examines statistical and event information. The System completed its prototype in January 1995 and has expanded its country coverage as well as its depth of information on each country. It became fully operational in July.
In the field of natural disasters, activities generated by the International Decade for Natural Disaster Reduction are focused specifically on preventive measures. The momentum created by the World Conference on Natural Disaster Reduction, held at Yokohama in May 1994, has been successfully sustained by means of a participatory and continuous dialogue of traditional and new partners within the International Framework of Action. Consequently, the Yokohama Strategy for a Safer World: Guidelines for Natural Disaster Prevention, Preparedness and Mitigation, in particular its Plan of Action, has been transformed into a comprehensive and structured sequence of sectoral and cross-sectoral activities at all levels. During the second half of the International Decade for Natural Disaster Reduction, and commensurate with the proposals of the World Conference, emphasis is being shifted to concrete activities at the country and local levels. In order to maintain this broad-based inter-agency approach, the Inter-Agency Steering Committee has been extended until the end of the Decade.
Also in line with the Yokohama Strategy, the interdependency of natural disaster reduction, environmental protection and sustainable development is being reflected through improved cooperation between the International Framework and the major development activities inside and outside the United Nations system. Thus the Department of Humanitarian Affairs is acting, through the International Decade for Natural Disaster Relief secretariat, as task manager for natural disasters for the Commission on Sustainable Development. The process that has been outlined for the remaining years of the Decade will provide the opportunity to present its closing event with sound proposals for the full integration of disaster reduction into national planning and international development cooperation. It reflects the challenging objectives that have been laid out by the "Agenda for Development" (A/48/935).
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