As described in the Terms of Reference, the IRP Kobe functions as the IRP secretariat and is
responsible for convening IRP steering committee meetings and disseminating information on IRP
activities and outcomes.
* IRP members: Asian Disaster Reduction Center (ADRC), Hyogo Prefectural Government,International Federation of Red Cross and Red Crescent Societies (IFRC),
International Labour Organization (ILO), Ministry of Foreign Affairs of Italy,
Cabinet Office of Japan, Swiss Agency for Development and Coordination(SDC), United Nations Environment Programme (UNEP),United Nations
Development Programme (UNDP), United Nations Human Settlements
Programme (UN-HABITAT), United Nations Secretariat of the International
Strategy for Disaster Reduction (UNISDR), United Nations Office for theCoordination of Humanitarian Affairs (UN/OCHA), the World Bank, World
Health Organization (WHO), and Asian Development Bank (ADB).

6-3. IRP Activities in FY 2012
6-3-1. International Recovery Forum 2013
The International Recovery Forum 2013,“ResilientRecoveryinCities

andMunicipalities: Lessons on Integrating DRR
into Recovery and Development Planning –Tohoku and Global Experiences and the Post
2015 Framework for DRR”, was held inKobe, Hyogo, Japan on 22 January 2013. The
forum aimed to 1) further reflect on applying
the lessons on recovery from mega-disasters

Fig. 6-3-1 International Recovery Forum 2013

to inform Post-2015 Global Framework forDRR and recovery, 2) share knowledge and exchange experience on disaster recovery planningand recovery operations, 3) present recent experiences on recovery operations and the emerging
challenges in cities. 184 participants from 39 countries and 14 international organizations
comprised of national and local officials, experts on disaster reduction and recovery, andrepresentatives of various stakeholders, attended the forum.
Following the keynote speech on the current state of reconstruction in Sendai City by Ms.
Emiko Okuyama, 6 representatives from cities and a country including Mr. Rico Rentuza, Mayorof St. Bernard, Philippines, Mr. Kimiaki Toda, Mayor of Ofunato City, Japan, Mr. Francisco
Gaitan Aguero, Mayor of Cantarranas, Honduras and Mr. Hisan Hassan, Project Director ofNational Disaster Management Center, Maldives, etc. made presentations on the experiences andlessons on recovery from recent natural disasters. There were also special reports from Dr. ArturoPesigan, Technical Officer, WHO, Mr. Victor Poyarkov, Executive Director of European Centerof Technical Safety, Ukraine, and Mr. Yoichi Nozaki, Director General of Fukushima Prefectural646. The International Recovery Platform (IRP): History and Current Activities

Government. A panel discussion on “Recommendations to ensure that the 2015 GlobalFramework for DRR explicitly promotes disaster recovery as an opportunity to build back betterand safer cities” was coordinated by Mr. Andrew Maskrey, Chief and Coordinator of the United
Nations Global Assessment Report on DRR (GAR), UNISDR on the basis of the results of thegroup discussion at the workshop held as the 4th Expert Group Meeting on 21 January 2013.

6-3-2. Participation in the World Ministerial Conference onDisaster Reduction in Tohoku
The World Ministerial Conference on Disaster Reduction organized by the Ministry of Foreign
Affairs was held from 3 to 4 July 2012 in Sendai City. The objectives of the conference were toshare experiences of and lessons learned from recent large-scale natural disasters including Great
East Japan Earthquake and to support discussions on establishing post-Hyogo Framework forAction (HFA) in the 3rd World Conference on Disaster Reduction in 2015.
IRP set up its own booth throughout the period to showcase knowledge products and services
for resilient recovery. Posters were displayed tocommunicate key messages for "Build BackBetter". The Guidance Notes on Recovery and theCapacity Building Module on Resilient Recovery
drew a lot of attention from participants. Moreover,
IRP held "The 3rd Expert Group Meeting on theGreat East Japan Earthquake” as a side event incooperation with Cabinet Office of Japan, ADRC,
Fig. 6-3-2-1 IRP Boothetc.

6-3-3. Expert Group Meeting on the Great East Japan
Earthquake (EGM)
The Expert Group Meeting has been held since fiscal year 2011, with the participation of DRR
experts from abroad to share experiences and lessons on recovery from the Great East JapanEarthquake. In FY 2012, the 3rd Expert Group Meeting (EGM3) and the 4th Expert Group Meeting(EGM4) were held in Sendai in July 2012 and in Kobe in January 2013 respectively.
In conjunction with the “World Ministerial
Conference on Disaster Reduction in Tohoku”,
organized by the ministry of Foreign Affairs ofGovernment of Japan, EGM3 was organized on 3
July 2012 as one of the side events which gathered
70 participants from the national government,
municipalities,

internationalorganizations,researchers

NPO/NGO

representatives.

andFig.6-3-3-1 EGM3

Following the opening remarks by Cabinet Officeof Government of Japan, a representative from Sendai City delivered the keynote speech

65highlighting the city’s current stage of reconstruction. There were also presentations on the issues
relating to recovery from mega disasters by international organizations, and the panel discussion
on how lessons from recovery can be applied to reduce the impacts of future disasters. A field visit
to disaster affected areas in Sendai City was also organized on the next day, 4 July 2012.
EGM4 was held on 21 January 2013 in Kobe, prior to the International Recovery Forumorganized in cooperation with Cabinet Office of Government of Japan, Hyogo PrefecturalGovernment, International Recovery Platform, etc. 80 participants from all over the world sharedvital lessons learnt from recent experiences in Japan and elsewhere. Following the opening
remarks by Cabinet Office of Government of Japan, there were presentations by universities andorganizations which have engaged in the recovery project in Tohoku from the beginning stage.
Also presentations and a panel discussion on how the lessons on recovery from mega disasters areeffectively integrated into the post-HFA Global Framework were made.

Fig.6-3-3-3 EGM4

Fig.6-3-3-2 Field visit (EGM3)

6-3-4. Recovery Status Report on the Great East Japan
Earthquake
IRP published the Recovery Status Report on the Great East
Japan Earthquake to apply its experiences and lessons to disaster
reduction and recovery in the world in collaboration with Cabinet
Office of Japan, ADRC, UNISDR, Tohoku University and Kobe
University, etc.
The objective of the report is to document the process, successes,and challenges encountered in recovery planning and operations.
Specifically, it produces sectoral case studies that outline therecovery process, draws views from affected communities,
government officials, experts, and other stakeholders throughorganization of learning events including EGMs and national
consultation, and consolidates and analyzes the case studies andinputs from various stakeholders.

Fig.6-3-4-1
Recovery Status Report66

6. The International Recovery Platform (IRP): History and Current Activities

6-3-5. Workshop on Disaster Recovery Planning forIndonesia
The workshop on disaster recovery planningwas held in Jakarta, Indonesia, 29-31 October
2012. It was jointly organized by the National
Disaster Management Agency (BNPB), UNDP
Indonesia, UNISDR for Asia and the Pacific,
European Commission (EC), and IRP/ADRC. Theworkshop was designed to support the initiativesof the Government of Indonesia for better disasterrecovery operations, specifically at strengthening
the manuals on Post Disaster Needs Assessment

Fig.6-3-5-1 Workshop on Disaster Recovery
Planning for Indonesia(PDNA) and Monitoring of Recovery Projects thatwere developed by the national government. The role of IRP/ADRC experts at the workshop wasto provide technical assistance through sharing of lessons from global experiences.
Dr. Syamsul Maarif (Head of BNPB) and Mr. Bambang (Deputy for Reconstruction andRecovery of BNPB) are among the over 35 officials who actively participated in the workshop. At
the end of the event, participants outlined key recommendations for recovery planning, including
review of spatial planning blueprint and localization of revised manuals on PDNA and Monitoringof Recovery Projects.
To forward the recommendations from the participants, discussions between IRP/ADRC, AHA
Centre, ASEAN Secretariat, and AusAID were facilitated. One of the key follow up activities isto strengthen regional partnerships to further enrich knowledge of integrating disaster recoveryplanning into their national DRR plans and other planning instruments.

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