ICIMOD

INTERNATIONAL CENTRE FOR INTEGRATED MOUNTAIN DEVELOPMENT

On the occasion of the International Year of MOUNTAINS 2002

presents the:

ASIA HIGH SUMMIT VIDEOCONFERENCE

day four, Risk

(Understanding for Prevenction)

PRESS RELEASE No. 5

Kathmandu, 09 May 2002

Understanding risks for prevention and management was the theme for the fourth day of the Asia High Summit. Mountains are associated with risks such as erosion, floods and landslides due to the sheer verticality of mountain surfaces. Risks are thus a challenge for sustainable development of the mountains of Asia. The participants of this High Summit pointed out that a participatory community approach to hazard mapping and mitigation tapping indigenous knowledge is essential to reducing the vulnerability to risks and safeguarding the biodiversity so important to the livelihoods of mountain people.

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  • The ones that are most affected by mountain risks are the physically, spatially, and socio-economically vulnerable who are unable to anticipate, cope, resist and/or recover from the impact of disaster due to class, ethnicity, gender, age, and/or disability. Women as a vulnerable group were focused upon, as their marginal social status and economic dependence on men deters them from coping with disaster.

Policies should address the reduction of risk and vulnerability and must include strategies that promote gender-sensitive mapping, research on the role of gender in configuration of risk, and collection of sex-segregated data to improve women's ability to cope with risks.

The session emphasized the importance of collecting disaggregated mountain data as well as the socio-economic and demographic characteristics of victims for improved vulnerability assessment. Hazard mapping needs to be conducted, and monitoring systems put in place. There is also a need to create economic opportunities, through social protection, for vulnerable groups after disasters. Local level institutions need to be encouraged with political commitment to implement laws and policies on codes and standards that reduce risk.

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With regard to biodiversity, it was recommended that community-based management involving a combination of common property management for some types of land use and private rights for others (especially agricultural land) is most appropriate for mountain landscapes.

Papers authored by Narendra Khanal, Moushumi Chaudhury and Li Tianchi; Robert J. Fisher; and Damodar Bhattarai, Ryosuke Tsunaki and Amoda N. Mishra were presented at today's session chaired by Dr. Oi Hidetomi Senior Advisor to JICA.Duzgun.
     
 

chat moderator

 For further information please visit:

www.asiahs.org webcast and chat service
www.highsummit.org conference site
www.icimod.org ICIMOD site
www.montagna.org 2002 IYM Italian site

or contact:
Ms. Armila C. Shakya, Coordinator International Year of Mountains/Overall
Coordinator Asia High Summit
Ms. Moushumi Chaudhury, Assistant Coordinator Asia High Summit
E-mail: ashakva@.icimod.org.np mchaudhurv@.icimod.orgl.np Phone: 525317 (ext. 677/688)

ICIMOD
INTERNATIONAL CENTRE FOR INTEGRATED MOUNTAIN DEVELOPMENT
Mail: Po 0. Box 3226, Kathmandu, Nepal
Office: Jawalakhel, Lalitpur (Kathmandu)
Cable: ICIMOD, Kathmandu, Nepal
Tel: 977-1-525313
Fax: 977-1-524509/536747
e-mail : icimod@icimod.org.np
Homepage: www.icimod.org

released by Anju Shrestha ashrestha@icimod.org.np
Public Relations and Outreach Officer ICIMOD