A statement delivered by the Secretary-General on the occassion of the launch of the 2015 Global assessment report (GAR). The Secretay-General recognizes the critical time of the launch of the report, just ahead of the Third UN World Conference on Disaster Risk Reduction with the highest expected attendance at any global gathering held on disaster risk reduction (DRR). The focus of the GAR report - sustainable development - fits well with the growing momentum dedicated to DRR, and outlines three main reasons why sustainability starts in Sendai: (i) the conference is a natural place to begin forward planning for DRR; (ii) investments in this area advance both sustainable development and climate action; and (iii) the vision for development and climate action is universal, capacity building needs to help the poorest and most vulnerable people and countries.
