NGOs urge the European Union to step up child-centric efforts to reduce disaster risk

On the occasion of International Day for Disaster Reduction on October 13, SOS Children's Villages, Plan International, and World Vision issued a joint press release urging the European Union (EU) to make children a priority in that group of nations’ efforts to reduce disaster risk. In their plea to the EU to increase child protection measures prior to disaster, the civil society groups argue that too often disaster preparedness and mitigation activities are limited to infrastructural development, building codes, and policy reform, as reported by Reuters AlertNet.