emi

Atty. Violeta Seva, EMI's General Secretary, introduced the rationale and objectives of the Partnership for Urban Risk Reduction (PURR) at the UCLG ASPAC 2nd Congress held on 15-18  July 2008 in Pattaya, Thailand. PURR is an ad-hoc initiative of UCLG, ICLEI, CITYNET, Metropolis and EMI to advance the DRR agenda at the local level.

Speaking on behalf of the PURR partners, Atty. Seva described the context why local governments should engage in DRR. She cited the international framework set forth by the HFA, highlighting the critical role of local institutions in DRR with examples from Metro Manila, Istanbul, Amman, and other cites worldwide. She further stressed that there is increasing interest among international organizations, including funding agencies, to work with local governments through existing facilities and mechanisms such as the World Bank's Global Facility for Disaster Reduction and Recovery, UN-ISDR's Global Platform for DRR, and PURR.

Atty. Seva explained that PURR is formed to support local governments respond to the challenges posed by the HFA. She mentioned that the partnership has a three-pronged goal: strengthen awareness and advocacy, reinforce local capacity, and build a coalition for a Global Forum on Urban Risk Reduction.

The UCLG ASPAC Congress was expected to attract about 1,000 participants from local governments, local governments associations, international organizations, NGOS, and other organizations interested in local government issues.

For more information about PURR and the UCLG ASPAC Congress, visit the following websites:

About PURR - http://www.emi-megacities.org/purr/index.html

About the UCLG ASPAC Congress - http://www.uclg-aspac.org/index.php