Prime Minister of India, Shri Narendra Modi announced a global Coalition for Disaster Resilient Infrastructure (CDRI), at the UN Climate Action Summit 2019 held in New York City, USA, on September 23, 2019.

On the occasion of the announcement of the coalition, witnessed by global leaders, government functionaries, international delegates and diplomats from across the world, Shri Modi stated, “What is needed today is a comprehensive approach that covers everything including education, values to lifestyle and development philosophies. What we need is a global people’s movement to bring about behavioral change; need, not greed is our guiding principal. So, therefore India is here today to present a practical approach and roadmap…In order to make our infrastructure resilient in the face of disasters, India is launching a Coalition for Disaster Resilient Infrastructure. I invite all member states to join this Coalition.”

The partnership of national governments, UN agencies and programmes, multilateral development banks, financing mechanisms, private sector, and knowledge institutions will promote the resilience of new and existing infrastructure systems to climate and disaster risks, thereby ensuring sustainable development.

Developed through consultations with more than 35 countries, CDRI envisions enabling measurable reduction in infrastructure losses from disasters, including extreme climate events. CDRI thus aims to enable the achievement of objectives of expanding universal access to basic services and enabling prosperity as enshrined in the Sustainable Development Goals, while also working at the intersection of the Sendai Framework for Disaster Risk Reduction and the Paris Climate Agreement.

Established as a platform for generating and exchanging knowledge, CDRI will conduct country-specific and global activities. CDRI will provide member countries technical support and capacity development, research and knowledge management, and advocacy and partnerships to facilitate and encourage investment in disaster resilient infrastructure systems.

In its formative stage, CDRI will focus on developing resilience in ecological infrastructure, social infrastructure with a concerted emphasis on health and education, and economic infrastructure with special attention to transportation, telecommunications, energy, and water.

Within 2-3 years, the coalition aims to have a 3-fold impact of achieving considerable changes in member countries’ policy frameworks, future infrastructure investments and high reduction in economic losses from climate-related events and natural disasters across sectors. CDRI will uphold the UN Agenda 2030 principle of leaving no one, no place, and no ecosystem behind, focusing on the most vulnerable regions and populations, while enabling inclusive and deliberative processes that recognize national and local efforts as primal.

An event is also being co-hosted by the Government of India and the United Nations Office for Disaster Risk Reduction (UNDRR) on September 25, 2019 on the sidelines of SDG Summit 2019 to further deliberate on the significance of investing in resilient infrastructure to achieve climate and development goals. This side event will also provide an opportunity to the Government of India and UNDRR to provide an overview and objectives of CDRI, and establish key milestones for its work over the coming years.

The event is expected to witness address by eminent world leaders and dignitaries, including  Prime Minister of Fiji, Mr. Frank Bainimarama; Minister for Environment, Forest and Climate Change, Shri Prakash Javadekar; Special Representative of the UN Secretary General for Disaster Risk Reduction, Mami Mizutori; and, Secretary of State for International Development, United Kingdom, Rt Hon Alok Sharma.

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