Rosebank Hotel, South Africa

Thank you, Programme Director. Excellencies, colleagues from the Government, friends from the media and corporate sector, Red Cross colleagues, ladies and gentlemen, good morning.

It is an honour and pleasure for me, to welcome you all, for the third year in a row, to another global launch of the World Disasters Report. The International Federation of the Red Cross and Red Crescent Societies are to be applauded for having started this project, some thirteen years ago, and for continuing to expose us all to such valuable information. This is one of their laudable attempts to share information pertaining to our roles in limiting the effects of disasters on vulnerable communities.

 

We meet at a time when the world is still reeling from some of the most dreadful calamities seen in this decade: The Tsunami of December 2004; Katrina and Rita of a few weeks ago, and the ongoing onslaught of poverty, HIV/AIDS, Malaria, Cholera, political instability and population displacements the world over. Indeed, disasters of unprecedented magnitude.

 

In the 2003 World Disasters Report, we noted that “disasters seek out the poor …..destroy them.” We also know now, since the Tsunami , Katrina and Rita, that disasters leave in their wake, much poorer and more vulnerable families, communities, countries and, in some cases, entire regions. This is distressing knowledge, which could easily force the faint hearted to give up and say, “ What good is it to us, anyway; what’s the point?” and walk away in defeat.

 

However, in the 2005 WDR, there are various examples of answers to the question: “ What could we have done differently if we had had accurate and timely information?” The report forces us to ponder on how we package and use the information obtained from the following: Early Warning Systems; Vulnerability and Capacity Assessments; Rapid Rural and Urban; Appraisals; Community Needs Assessments; Risk Reduction and Hazard Mapping Exercises; Rehabilitation and Recovery Reports; Media Reports, etc.

 

The report also questions our ability to change the scientifically generated graphs, maps and matrixes, into valuable user-friendly survival tools for vulnerable communities. Simply put: do we use the high tech information only for our own organizational reports, or do we involve the vulnerable people in mapping their own hazards, creating risk awareness, and thus making them the custodians of their homegrown disaster management?

 

To this end, I challenge you all, to think of the number of times you see us, the leadership of Relief agencies in the media, and compare that to the occasions when an actual disaster victim has graced your screens – to tell their story, get their voice heard, for their experiences to be witnessed first hand by the entire world. Agreed, we do what we think is best, we care for them, but they know best, their experiences and emotions are real, from the heart.

 

The report also highlights the importance of using information as a tool for better planning in preparation for mitigation, relief and rehabilitation. If we do not know the coping mechanisms and recovery capacity of a community, we end up providing incompatible relief solutions. I know of relief items that would be more of an embarrassment than relief to the affected communities – sent with the best intentions, but totally insensitive to the lifestyle, culture and needs of communities.

The December 2004 Tsunami, the recent Katrina and Rita, have reminded us of the powerful role the media plays, in mobilizing the resources needed by disaster-stricken communities. These disasters, and the overwhelming humanitarian response to them, have added to the wealth of information we already had, about the strength of a united force of humanity – irrespective of location and size of your country.

 

The global mobilization of a humanitarian chain was in response to reports and appeals in the electronic and print media. The challenge posed by the 2005 WDR is the involvement of affected communities - before, during and after the disaster. It is a reminder to us all, that if we spend time, resources and effort in and with the vulnerable communities during their development phase, we stand a better chance of helping them lessen the impact of disasters.

 

Conclusion

One of the critical recommendations of the 2005 WDR is : “ Improve public accessibility to basic and summary impact data.”

Now, Excellencies, ladies and gentlemen, allow me to do my own version of Rudyard Kipling’s If:
If this very important report will gather dust on our shelves;
If this information is not simplified and packaged for easy use by communities;
If this report is not included into the planning and policy formulation documents of Governments, NGO’s and Corporates;

Then, surely, we will have failed our vulnerable communities.

Thank you

Mandisa Kalako-Williams
National President: The South African Red Cross Society
Mobile: 083-286-2933