Special Representative of UN Secretary-General for Disaster Risk Reduction to visit Finland

Special Representative of UN Secretary-General for Disaster Risk Reduction Mami Mizutori, who is head of the United Nations Office for Disaster Risk Reduction (UNISDR), and Kirsi Madi, Director at UNISDR, will visit Finland on 11–12 February 2019.

UNISDR works to improve disaster preparedness especially in developing countries. Finland supports the organisations' activities by EUR one million a year.

Thanks to better preparedness in recent years, the death toll from disasters has declined, but the financial losses have increased significantly. Disasters include man-induced crises, such as chemical accidents and oil spills, and natural disasters.

Climate change leads to an increase in the occurrence of natural disasters, in particular, and to greater economic losses incurred from them. In 2018, nearly 60 million people were affected by floods, droughts, storms and wildfires. Significant savings can be achieved through proper preparedness.

Finland is an advanced country in crisis preparedness matters and takes an active part in work to reduce the risk of disasters done within the UN. During the visit, Mizutori will hold discussions with former President Tarja Halonen, Minister of the Interior Kai Mykkänen and representatives of the Ministry for Foreign Affairs and Ministry of the Interior. She will also meet Members of Parliament and learn about Finnish expertise in meteorology and environmental measurement.

Inquiries: Claus Lindroos, Director, Unit for Humanitarian Assistance and Policy, Ministry for Foreign Affairs, tel. +358 40 132 1416 (the visit), Eija Palosuo, Communications Officer, tel. +358 295 351 961 (requests for interview)

The Foreign Ministry's email addresses are of the format [email protected].