Representatives from projects in Argentina, Bolivia, Brazil, Cuba, Ecuador, El Salvador, Guatemala, and Peru shared their lessons learned, good practices and
knowledge management products.
San José, July 26, 2023. In October 2022, representatives of the teams implementing the seven projects of the Disaster Risk Management (DRM) sector of the EUROCLIMA Program met in person at the Training Centre of the Spanish Agency for International Development Cooperation in La Antigua, Guatemala to share experiences and exchange best practices on the management, prevention and management of climate phenomena that impact the quality of life of people, especially droughts and floods.
The event brought together participants from Argentina, Bolivia, Brazil, Cuba, Ecuador, El Salvador, Guatemala, and Peru, who shared valuable lessons learned and conclusions regarding Disaster Risk Management in the Latin American context, which
were compiled for the publication "Sector Management and Disaster Risk Reduction: a common learning within the framework of EUROCLIMA".
This document developed by the Spanish Agency for International Development Cooperation (AECID) and the French Development Agency (AFD), executing agencies in the sector, includes a brief introduction to each of the projects being implemented under the flagship program of regional cooperation between the European Union and Latin America in the field of environmental sustainability, mitigation, and adaptation to climate change.
The alignment of these initiatives with the Sendai Framework was also an essential element of this meeting, where it was demonstrated that all of them are related to at least three of the four priorities established in the same, which shows the comprehensive vision that characterizes them. The results of each of the projects also contribute directly to the indicators of the different goals, particularly those related to the strengthening of governance, international cooperation and the availability of information and adequate tools for DRM.
The publication also brings together the testimony of people who have benefited from the projects around three themes: networks of volunteers for climate observation, the incorporation of interculturality into climate services and, finally, coordination strategies, both regional and inter-institutional or inter-sectoral.
Another of the main topics of the publication is the reflection on the mainstreaming of the gender approach in the DRM sector. Thus, the experiences developed within several of the projects are highlighted, but there is also a critical analysis of the necessary actions to achieve a certain degree of consolidation of the incorporation of this approach, turning EUROCLIMA into a reference program, not only in terms of "environmental sustainability and just transition", but also of the "effective promotion of gender equality" (EUROCLIMA+ Gender Strategy, 2022).
Finally, the conclusions and recommendations drawn from the experiences and reflections shared by the participants in this meeting in Guatemala include the importance of a comprehensive and multi-hazard perspective in disaster risk prevention, involving the participation of all sectors of the population, with emphasis on the participation of women. Likewise, the advantages of integrating networks of volunteers in the DRM cycle or the relevance of communication, networking and an effective promotion of Knowledge Management were made visible.
We invite you to read the full document of this valuable meeting at https://www.euroclima.org/seccion-publicaciones/tipo-de-documentos/doc-tecnicos-publicaciones/ultimas-publicaciones/sector-gestion-y-reduccion-del-riesgo-de-desastres-un-aprendizaje-comun-en-el-marco-de-euroclima.
About Euroclima
Euroclima is a program funded by the European Union and co-financed by the Federal Government of Germany through the Federal Ministry for Economic Cooperation and Development (BMZ), as well as by the governments of France and Spain through the Ministry of Foreign Affairs, European Union and Cooperation. The Program's mission is to reduce the impact of climate change and its effects in 33 countries in Latin America and the Caribbean by promoting mitigation, adaptation, resilience, climate investment and biodiversity. To this end, it is implemented according to the "Spirit of Team Europe" under the synergistic work of seven agencies: Spanish Agency for International Development Cooperation (AECID), AFD Group: Agence Française de Développement (AFD)/ Expertise France (EF), Economic Commission for Latin America and the Caribbean (ECLAC), International and Ibero-American Foundation for Public Administration and Policies (FIIAPP), Deutsche Gesellschaft für Internationale Zusammenarbeit (GIZ) GmbH, the UN Environment Programme (UNEP) and the United Nations Development Programme (UNDP).
