International Day For Disaster Reduction - DRR Knowledge Fair in BiH

Introduction

The UN in Bosnia and Herzegovina jointly with the Ministry of Security of Bosnia and Herzegovina and with support of the Embassy of Switzerland in Bosnia and Herzegovina will mark the International Day for Disaster Reduction (IDDR Day) on 13 October.

In light of this year’s IDDR global theme Live to Tell and the launch of Sendai Seven Campaign, the central activity planned for this day is the DRR Knowledge Fair that will take place at the square in front of the BiH Parliamentary Assembly building on Thursday, 13 October 2016, 11:00-15:00. The Fair will gather different DRR practitioners from Government, international organisations, the scientific community and NGOs with the objective to raise awareness, disseminate knowledge on DRR and showcase ongoing initiatives and progress made on reducing risks in Bosnia and Herzegovina to the wider public, with reference to the Sendai Framework for Action 2015-2030. This half-day public event is expected to contribute to informing citizens about risks, means of their reduction and provide information on active stakeholders who are addressing them through different mandates, projects, activities, initiatives etc.

Key components of the DRR Knowledge Fair

Exhibit/Information Booths

At the fair, stalls of 20 DRR-engaged institutions/organisations from Government, UN, international organizations, civil society,  branded with IDDR Day logo and adopted the message Knowledge makes us safe! will showcase their DRR activities and experiences by providing information and knowledge to general public through leaflets, posters, books and audio-visual records. For this component of the Fair, UN and Ministry of Security have prepared DRR fact sheet for dissemination to the wider public. The sheet contains key info on DRR, the risk formula and hazards and risk maps of BiH. to hazards, visualised in an easy- to -read and non-technical way.

Interactive Stage

This is a special corner, a strong experiential element to the Fair for those organizations  who will engage people with on-spot DRR attraction activities (depending on the organizational profile and area of involvement) such as: interactive quizzes/DRR lectures, preparedness exercises and mock drills, games for children, community mapping etc. All engaged citizens will be awarded with IDDR Day T-shirts and badges. During the entire event, Sendai Framework promotional video will be displayed, officially published by UNISDR for the occasion of the IDDR Day 2016 and Sendai Seven Campaign.

Specific Objectives in BiH

1. Increase public awareness and understanding on the hazards and risks specific for Bosnia and Herzegovina by interacting with citizens and disseminating relevant materials
2. Effectively promote and disseminate the key messages of the Sendai Framework for Disaster Risk Reduction 2015-2030 to general public;
3. Ensure information flows and free information sharing on DRR and emergency preparedness approaches to general public;
4. Showcase different DRR practices and tools to provide information on current developments in the field of DRR by gathered institutions
5. Promote and strengthen partnerships and collaboration  among all concerned stakeholders - government institutions, the scientific community, international agencies, NGOs  to advance DRR practices
6. Building new partnerships and networks among gathered organisations in order to increase inter-agency collaboration in the field of DRR

Target Audiences

•  Institutions/organisations as exhibitors at the DRR Knowledge Fair
•  Institutions/organisations as invitees at the DRR Knowledge Fair - DRR practitioners from various organisational backgrounds  
• Non-Government and Academic Entities
• Public audience randomly gathered at the Fair

For additional information about the event, please contact Irina Kulenovic, UN DRR Officer at irina.kulenovic@one.un.org