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On October 13, in the NA Session Hall on the initiative of the RA NA Standing Committee on Defence and Security parliamentary hearings on National Capacity Building in Disaster Risk Governance were held, where the deputies of the RA National Assembly, the representatives of the RA Government, the political forces, the concerned departments and institutions, the expertise, academic and educational circles took part.

Welcoming the guests, in his opening remarks the Chairman of the RA NA Standing Committee on Defence and Security Koryun Nahapetyan has noted that the goal of the hearings to comprehensively touch upon the capacity building in disaster risk governance, assessing their legal, social, economic, institutional and organizational bases, to debate the national strategy of the disaster risk governance and its implementation procedure. The problems existing in the sphere and the ways of their effective solution are highlighted.

In his word, the RA Minister of Emergency Situations Davit Tonoyan touched upon the conceptual main provisions facing the disasters of the Republic of Armenia, the reforms of the sphere of the disaster risk reduction designed by the RA Government programme for 2017-2022.

The RA First Deputy Minister of Territorial Administration and Development Vache Terteryan referred to the amendments made in the legislative field.

The President of the Association For Sustainable Development/UNEP National Committee Karine Danielyan underlined the growth of the disaster risks.

Jo Scheuer, Director of UNDP Climate Change and Disaster Risk Reduction Bureau, has noted that the disasters by 80-90% are conditioned by climate changes. “The disaster risk reduction is everybody’s problem. And only by cooperating we can reach positive results,” Jo Scheuer said.

According to the UN Office for Disaster Risk Reduction Regional Office for Europe Paola Alberito, in 2015 357 disasters happened in the world, because of which 22.00 people died, damage was caused to 99mln people and more than 66bln economic loss was recorded.

The Chairman of the RA NA Standing Committee on Territorial Administration, Local Self-Government, Agriculture and Environment Vardevan Grigoryan, the Acting Director of Disaster Risk Reduction National Platform Ara Barseghyan, the Dean of YSU Faculty of Geography and Geology Marat Grigoryan, and the Chancellor of Crisis Management State Academy of the Ministry of Emergency Situations Hamlet Matevosyan also delivered speeches. In their speeches and interpellations the RA NA deputies and other participants of the parliamentary hearings presented the problems concerning them.

In the final speech the Chairman of the RA NA Standing Committee on Defence and Security Koryun Nahapetyan highlighted such inclusive discussions on the parliamentary platform, noting that the sphere of the disaster risk governance is a priority for them.