China: Early warning, survival skills emphasized as new keys to disaster relief

China has made disaster risk reduction part of its national sustainable development strategy, according to Jiang Li, China's vice minister of Civil Affairs. The Global Times reports that the enhancement of early warning systems and people's awareness of pending disasters "should be an important part in the country's disaster risk reduction efforts," as per Lai Zhouhong, director of the disaster reduction department of the Ministry of Civil Affairs. This announce comes as a UN report released Tuesday shows that the Asia-Pacific region is paying a huge price for extreme weather.