Statement by Ms. Rabab Fatima at the World Tsunami Awareness Day 2025

H.E. Kazuyuki Yamazaki,
Excellencies, 
Distinguished Colleagues,  

I thank the Permanent Mission of Japan, UNDRR and the other co-sponsors, for the kind invitation to address this important event.
I commend you for your commitment and relentless effort to raise awareness and invest in tsunami awareness.
A decade since the international community established “World Tsunami Awareness Day” and adopted the Sendai Framework for Disaster Risk Reduction, one lesson remains unmistakable: when the ground shakes and the ocean withdraws, seconds decide lives.

I join you in remembering the victims of tsunamis, especially of the deadly Indian Ocean tsunami of 2004. I also extend my sincere condolences and solidarity to those affected by recent disasters, including Hurricane Melissa which devastated Jamaica, Cuba and the wider Caribbean region, as well the rising death toll from Typhoon Kalmaegi which hit the Philippines yesterday.

For the countries that my Office serves – the LDCs, LLDCs, and SIDS, the human and economic toll of disasters is disproportionately high. 
In the last decade, disaster-related mortality (per 100,000 of the population) was 2.0 in LDCs, 2.69 in LLDCs and 2.85 in SIDS - considerably higher than the global average of 0.75.

Over the same period, direct economic losses reached 2.98% of GDP in LDCs, 1.44% in LLDCs and 1.52% in SIDS - far above the global average of 0.28%.

Too many high-risk coastlines still lack multi-hazard early warning systems; robust last-mile communication; risk-informed urban planning; and inclusive evacuation protocols that protect women and children, the aged, and persons with disabilities. 

A joint assessment done by my Office with UNDRR and WMO found that fewer than half of LDCs have operational multi-hazard early warning systems in place.  And the situation is not much better for the LLDCs and SIDS - reflecting persistent gaps in finance, data, institutions, infrastructure, and technical capacity.

Yet what works is clear. 

Every dollar invested in early warning, yields at least tenfold returns by saving lives and preventing losses. 

Excellencies,

The respective programmes of actions of the LDCs, LLDCs and SIDS - which are aligned with the Sendai Framework and the Secretary-General’s Early Warnings for All initiative – reflect the importance of addressing disaster risk reduction.

My Office is stepping up efforts in this regard.

With the generous support of the Government of Qatar, OHRLLS will invest US$5 million over five years to strengthen multi-hazard early warning systems in LDCs. 

We are also allocating US$6 million to support National Adaptation Plan implementation in LDCs, and US$10 million to establish food stockholding systems to bolster crisis resilience. 

We will work with UNDRR, WMO and Resident Coordinator Offices to turn these resources into capabilities on the ground. 

Similarly, many LLDCs and SIDS lack multi-hazard coverage.   

As a member of the Advisory Panel for the Secretary-General’s Early Warnings for All initiative, I will continue to press for these vulnerable country groups to be prioritized.

Excellencies,

I would like to commend the leadership and trail-blazing role of the Government of Japan in addressing disaster risk reduction and tsunami awareness.  

Japan’s pioneering role in shaping and implementing the Sendai Framework and its continued support for tsunami awareness and capacity-building efforts worldwide, have been instrumental in saving lives and shaping global resilience policy, especially in many of the countries that my Office supports. 

We also acknowledge the work under UNESCO-IOC’s Tsunami Ready Programme, which has empowered communities to act swiftly and effectively in the face of coastal hazards.

Looking ahead, allow me to highlight four priorities. 

First – we must meet the EW4All target by 2027 to ensure every person is protected by accessible, people-centred, multi-hazard early warnings.

Second - it is important to scale up predictable and concessional finance for disaster preparedness and prevention, including through risk-pooling and innovative finance tailored to small and vulnerable economies.

Third – we must close the last-mile gap by funding community drills, accessible alerts, and inclusive evacuation planning- where the difference between warning and survival is measured in seconds.

Finally - we must prioritize the data needs of LDCs, LLDCs and SIDS, some of them highly disaster prone, by accelerating risk-data sharing and building interoperable, open hazard data platforms that are integrated into national emergency operations.

Excellencies,

If we act with urgency, tsunamis need not become tragedies. 

My Office will remain a determined partner – advocating, convening, and investing - to ensure that the next warning heard is not a lesson learned too late, but a life saved in time.

 I thank you.