Fragility and response to natural disasters

The massive earthquakes and flooding that struck Libya, Morocco, Syria and Türkiye in the course of 2023 killed thousands of people and made many more homeless. Disasters like these, which occur on every continent, also put enormous pressure on international agencies to effectively coordinate deliveries of humanitarian aid. Less well-known, however, is that such disasters require long-run  and sustainable support for months and years to come. 

Our session will consider the short, medium and long-term needs of affected countries in their recovery from disaster, before discussing ways to build local preparedness and resilience in the context of worsening climate change. 

The target audience includes affected governments and development partners who are involved in delivering emergency assistance. Overall we aim to bring together various stakeholders such as funders, NGOs and private sector representatives to discuss how the international community can respond to “natural” disasters in a more coordinated and sustainable manner.

Our panelists include:

1. Musab Alomar, Director MENA, Eastern Europe & Central Asia, OPEC Fund
2. Xavier Castellanos Mosquera, Under Secretary General for National Society Development and Operations Coordination, International Federation of Red Cross and Red Crescent Societies (IFRC)
3. Seçil Yıldız, Executive Vice-President, Development Investment Bank of Türkiye
4. Alessandro Fracassetti, Resident Representative, United Nations Development Programme (UNDP), Egypt

The OPEC Fund approved a US$50 million Food Security and Resilience loan to Türkiye in November 2023. That followed a US$1 million emergency aid grant in February 2023, channeled through the International Federation of Red Cross and Red Crescent Societies (IFRC) to support immediate and medium-term humanitarian relief efforts relating to shelter, livelihood, health, water and sanitation as well as coordination of the relief operation along the border between Türkiye and Syria.