On December 15, Deputy Foreign Minister of Armenia Ashot Hovakimyan received Margareta Wahlström, the Special Representative of the Secretary-General (SRSG), Head of the UN Office for Disaster Risk Reduction (UNISDR), who is in Armenia to participate in the international conference “Public Awareness as a Cornerstone of DRR and Sustainable Development”, held in Yerevan on December 15-16.

Madhavi Ariyabandu, UNISDR Regional Coordinator, Ashot Sargsyan, National Disaster Response Adviser of the Office for the Coordination of Humanitarian Affairs, General-Mayor Nikolay Grigoryan, Deputy Director of the Rescue Service of the Ministry of Territorial Administration and Emergency Situations were present during the meeting.

During the meeting issues were discussed related to the broadening involvement of Armenia in disaster risk reduction processes and its initiative approach, as well as the comprehensive steps being undertaken in that direction. The sides touched upon the steps to be taken towards the implementation of priorities of the Sendai Framework for Disaster Risk Reduction 2015-2030 programme, including the rise of public awareness and organization of crisis communication.

Within this context SRSG Wahlström outlined the importance of education, disaster risk perception and management, adding that the cooperation of the Armenian responsible agencies with the local self-government bodies and members of community sets a good example of leading practices for other countries of the region, as well as other international players.

Deputy Foreign Minister Ashot Hovakimyan highly appreciated Armenia’s continuous and effectively developing cooperation with the Office aimed at establishing a disaster-resilient country and ensuring secure and stable development of the society.