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

6. The International Recovery Platform (IRP):
History and Current Activities
6-1. The Establishment of the IRP
While the capacity of the UN system for disaster response and humanitarian assistance arewidely recognized, there is currently a vacuum in terms of the UN's capacity and system-widemechanisms for post-disaster recovery efforts, particularly those with a risk reduction focus.
Experience increasingly affirms that the post-disaster recovery phase provides a critical
opportunity to shift the focus from saving lives to restoring livelihoods, and is an important time
for introducing measures to reduce future disaster risk. Recovery can help close the gap between
relief and development, and can transform disasters into opportunities for sustainable development.
This occurs when efforts are made to support local and national recovery processes at an earlystage, when risk reduction considerations are factored into all recovery activities, and when thesynergies between development, humanitarian, and other actors involved in the response phases
are properly channeled. A successful recovery effort, then, is predicated on having advanceagreements and mechanisms in place so that the recovery process is effectively conceived andmanaged, and is initiated in a timely manner. This includes such measures as appropriate
assessment methodologies, pre-established resource mobilization mechanisms, surge capacity tosupport UN Country Teams, and standing coordination mechanisms.
Shared concerns related to the UN approach and processes for post-disaster recovery haveresulted in the formulation of a joint initiative, the International Recovery Platform, by the UNsystem, ADRC, and other partners, with the encouragement and support of Japan as well as otherdonors and key program countries. This initiative was discussed at the World Conference on
Disaster Reduction (WCDR) during session 4.9 on Post Disaster Recovery. Representatives fromthe UNDP, UN-HABITAT, ADRC, ADPC, ILO, and other concerned UN agencies expressed
their respective agency commitments and support for the proposed international platform forrecovery. The meeting resulted in a recommendation for the establishment of the International
Recovery Platform (IRP)
Only four months after the WCDR, the International Seminar on Post Disaster Recovery, insupport of the IRP, was held at the JICA Centre in Kobe and at Hyogo House on 11-13 May 2005.
The IRP was officially launched in Kobe, Hyogo.

6-2. The Governance Structure of the IRP
The IRP currently consists of 15 governments, UN agencies, and international organizations
including ADRC (as of March 2013).* The IRP focuses on the following three priority activities
for recovery, respectively based in Kobe, Turin, and Geneva: (a)Knowledge Management andAdvocacy, Kobe, (b) Training and Capacity Building, Turin, and (c) Enhancing RecoveryOperations, Geneva.

63

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 in
Kobe, 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 for
DRR 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