Sendai & Hyogo Framework — Set 4

Correct Answer: B. South Asia (SAARC member states)

The SAARC Disaster Management Centre (SDMC) was established to serve the South Asian Association for Regional Cooperation (SAARC) member states — Afghanistan, Bangladesh, Bhutan, India, Maldives, Nepal, Pakistan, and Sri Lanka. SDMC promotes regional cooperation in disaster management, including capacity building, training, and information sharing. The centre recognizes that many disaster risks in South Asia, such as floods from transboundary rivers, require regional cooperation.

Correct Answer: C. New Delhi, India

The SAARC Disaster Management Centre was originally located in New Delhi, India, and later relocated to Gandhinagar, Gujarat. India hosts the centre as part of its regional leadership in disaster management in South Asia. The centre conducts training programmes, provides technical assistance, and facilitates research on disaster risk reduction in the SAARC region.

Correct Answer: B. An online platform tracking progress on the seven Sendai Framework targets

The Sendai Monitor is an online platform maintained by UNDRR that enables countries to report and track progress against the seven global targets of the Sendai Framework. Countries voluntarily submit data on indicators related to disaster mortality, affected people, economic losses, damaged infrastructure, and national DRR strategies. The Sendai Monitor provides transparency and accountability in global disaster risk reduction efforts.

Correct Answer: B. SDG 11

SDG 11 — 'Sustainable Cities and Communities' — is most directly linked to making cities resilient to disasters, with Target 11.5 specifically addressing reducing the adverse impacts of disasters including water-related disasters. As urbanisation continues globally, making cities disaster-resilient is central to achieving sustainable development. The Sendai Framework and SDG 11 are strongly aligned in their emphasis on urban resilience.

Correct Answer: C. SDG 13

SDG 13 — 'Climate Action' — specifically calls for urgent action to combat climate change and its impacts, including strengthening resilience and adaptive capacity to climate-related hazards and natural disasters. Climate change increases the frequency and intensity of many natural disasters, making SDG 13 and the Sendai Framework deeply interconnected. Integrating climate change adaptation and disaster risk reduction is essential for achieving both goals.

Correct Answer: B. Reconstructing with reduced risk and improved resilience so disasters cannot repeat the same damage

'Build Back Better' (BBB) is the principle that post-disaster reconstruction should not simply restore what existed before but should reduce risk and improve resilience so that future disasters cause less damage. The concept is enshrined in the fourth Priority for Action of the Sendai Framework. BBB involves incorporating updated hazard assessments, improved building codes, and better land-use planning into reconstruction.

Correct Answer: B. Disaster Risk Reduction

DRR stands for Disaster Risk Reduction, which refers to the policy objective of anticipating, reducing, and managing the risks associated with disasters. DRR encompasses measures taken before disasters occur to reduce their likelihood, impact, and the vulnerabilities of people and assets. The Sendai Framework, Hyogo Framework, and Yokohama Strategy are all international DRR frameworks.

Correct Answer: B. Whole-of-government and whole-of-society engagement

The Sendai Framework explicitly calls for a 'whole-of-government and whole-of-society engagement' approach to disaster risk reduction. This means involving all government sectors (not just disaster management agencies), civil society, private sector, academia, and communities in DRR activities. This inclusive approach recognizes that disaster risk is created across all sectors of society and must be reduced through collective action.

Correct Answer: B. Measuring and comparing relative vulnerability of countries to natural hazards

The Disaster Risk Index (DRI) is a methodology developed by UNDP that measures and compares the relative vulnerability of countries to three major natural hazards: earthquakes, tropical cyclones, and floods. It considers not just physical exposure but also social and economic vulnerability factors. The DRI has been used to show that poor countries often face disproportionately high disaster mortality relative to their population and economic size.

Correct Answer: B. Climate change intensifies disasters, making Paris Agreement targets integral to DRR

The Paris Agreement on Climate Change directly relates to disaster risk reduction because climate change increases the frequency and intensity of climate-related hazards such as floods, cyclones, droughts, and heatwaves. Limiting global warming under the Paris Agreement targets would reduce future disaster risk significantly. Both the Sendai Framework and Paris Agreement were adopted in 2015 and are designed to be mutually reinforcing.