Preamble
World BOSAI Forum 2023/IDRC 2023 in SENDAI was attended by 5,412 participants from40 countries. The Forum discussed tangible solutions for disaster risk reduction anddisseminated information to the world through dialogue among international organizations,governments, academia, private sector, NGOs, and citizens. The Forum voiced its desire tosee conflicts around the world resolved as soon as possible, since conflict is the biggest
impediment to disaster risk reduction. Conflict is one of the reasons why the Sendai
Framework for Disaster Risk Reduction, the Paris Agreement, and the Sustainable
Development Goals (SDGs) have fallen far behind in achieving their goals. On the other hand,
the Forum emphasized that international cooperation on disaster risk reduction may bebeneficial in resolving conflicts. The Covid-19 Pandemic took a tremendous toll, and theSendai Framework for Disaster Risk Reduction pointed out the importance of being preparedin advance and of maintaining the health care sector in times of emergency. A special session
on earthquakes in Turkey and Syria discussed challenges and solutions by academia andpractitioners. It was pointed out that while the development of new technologies is effective
for disaster risk reduction, we already have a substantial amount of viable technology; theproblem is that they are not being disseminated throughout society. A human-centeredapproach, including inclusiveness and sustainability in disaster risk reduction, was suggested
to address the problem that some socio-economic groups are more vulnerable to disasters.
Education and public awareness, including picture books and disaster storytelling associatedwith disaster-related museums, are useful to keep memories of disaster experiences alive in
the next generations. Several sessions emphasized that inclusion of the perspectives of women,children and the disabled would further reduce disaster risks. City of Sendai conducted a midterm review on the Sendai Framework which helps understand disaster risks at the local level.
The exhibition, called World BOSAI EXPO, introduced disaster risk reduction producttechnologies from private companies and activities of disaster risk reduction-relatedorganizations.

The forum came up with recommendations to the Mid-Term Review Process of the Sendai
Framework for Disaster Risk Reduction as below.
Our recommendations:
1. The Forum recognizes the high value of the Sendai Framework for Disaster Risk
Reduction and the need to accelerate its implementation. We respect the important roleof the United Nations Office for Disaster Risk Reduction for that goal. Ultimately,
promotion and review of the Sendai Framework must lead to practice of disaster risk
reduction in each country and to strengthen national and local mechanisms to implement
disaster risk reduction. This includes strengthening of the National Platforms and theirsecretariat, in many cases National Disaster Management Organizations/Authorities(NDMOs).
Understanding disaster risk (priority area 1 of the Sendai Framework for DRR)
2. We need sound and reliable evidence based on data collection and analysis, including risk
assessment, to further enhance the connection between risk information and DRR
decisions and actions.
3. To enhance credibility, we must fully utilize and refer to historical disaster loss anddamage data and statistics. We need to improve accuracy in the calculation of economic
losses, including those of infrastructures.
4. We need consistent and understandable metrics regarding disaster risk reduction andbuilding resilience. How resilient is resilient enough? There must be substantial
discussions among the relevant stakeholders within and across countries.
5. The Sendai monitoring should be done not only by national governments but also local
governments, including municipalities, to understand disaster risks at the local level.
Strengthening disaster risk governance to manage disaster risk (priority area 2 of the Sendai
Framework for DRR)
6. We need more robust education programs for securing skilled human resources dedicatedto disaster risk reduction. More transdisciplinary practical programs should beinaugurated to formulate an optimized set of DRR actions based on scientific evidence.
7. We must strengthen the National Platform for Disaster Risk Reduction and coordination
with national organizations that invest in disaster risk reduction such as the Ministry ofPublic Works, Construction, Planning, and Finance.
8. We must stress the importance of balance between structural and non-structural measures
to reduce disaster risk. An optimal combination of disaster risk reduction measures isneeded to maximize the effectiveness of disaster risk reduction by various stakeholders
with limited resources. A disaster risk reduction effectiveness metric needs to beestablished for this purpose.
9. We encourage further involvement of the private sector in investments in disaster risk
reduction. Private sector involvement would be more effective if there is a national
strategy and budget for disaster risk reduction at the local level.
10. Specific actions (tangible, measurable, visible, ‘mapable,’ GIS-based actions) are neededat the local level. The global level agenda should be for local level actions. Since alldisasters affect the local level, activities must be action oriented.
Investing in disaster risk reduction for resilience (priority area 3 of the Sendai Framework forDRR)
11. Continued investment in disaster risk reduction, including cooperation and guidance withprivate investors is necessary for substantial risk reduction. We need to secure asustainable budget to achieve resilience in the event of a disaster.
12. We need to link disaster risk reduction with urban and rural land use planning. The
continued investment in land use planning for disaster risk reduction will significantly
reduce the short-term impacts of climate change.
13. We need to develop better financial mechanisms for resilient infrastructure, including
insurance of public assets.
14. Pre-disaster investment and DRR actions should be optimized based on the economic andsocial development level of the countries and regions. While Early Warning Systems areeffective to achieve Sendai Framework’s global targets A and B, we also have to consider
combining with other effective DRR measures to attain Sendai Framework’s global targets
C and D.
Enhancing disaster preparedness for effective response and to Build Back Better in recovery,
rehabilitation and reconstruction (priority area 4 of the Sendai Framework for DRR)
15. Pre-disaster recovery planning derived from the Build Back Better principles learned fromthe Great East Japan Earthquake and Tsunami can reduce the recovery time and serve as
effective pre-disaster DRR investment.
16. Restoration in the "hard" aspects of recovery and reconstruction, such as infrastructure,
does not necessarily mean "recovery" for each and every one of the victims. For example,
the rate of suicide among disaster victims remains higher even several years after largescale disasters. In that sense "Build Back Better" should highlight individual victims'
psychosocial status and take necessary steps as well. Such steps will even encourage thosepeople's engagement in future risk reduction and enhance resilience of the localcommunity.
Cross-cutting and emerging issues
17. Scientific global collaboration networks should be strengthened with more involvementof academia to share successful cases and to improve the accuracy of disaster risk
assessment.
18. The forum identified a need for an intergovernmental venue to discuss key disaster risk
reduction issues from the NDMO’s perspective. These include sharing of national andregional good practices accumulated during the 2015-2023 period of the Sendai
Framework implementation period, periodic review of the Sendai Framework, and theclimate change adaptation issues mentioned above.
19. The forum concerned that disaster risk reduction issues related to climate change arecurrently discussed and decided without sufficient involvement of NDMOs in the global
process of climate change adaptation under the UNFCCC, especially in the COP series.
20. There is a need to bridge the gap and share knowledge between countries that have longdealt with climate change and those facing climate change as a new risk. Conventional
disaster risk reduction strategies are also effective for climate change-induced disasters.
21. There is a need for science-based discussions and evidence on the linkages between
climate change adaptation measures and disaster risk reduction, based on solid data on
disaster losses and damages at all levels.