Los Angeles, CA – March 9, 2019 – On Wednesday, March 13th, 2019, the Global Bank Disaster Risk Reduction and Reconstruction Fund – An Umbrella Trust Fund (the GB-DRRRF) will be participating in the G-20 Development Working Group's Meeting. The Ministry of Foreign Affairs of Japan (MOFA) has co-organized the Side-Event entitled "Prospects on Achieving Disaster Risk Reduction Agenda" with the United Nations Office for Disaster Risk Reduction (UNISDR), the United Nations Development Programme (UNDP), and the Japan International Cooperation Agency (JICA) in the margins of the second G-20 Development Working Group (DWG) meeting under the Japanese Presidency.
The Global Bank Group delegation to the G-20 Development Working Group will be headed by the Chairman of Global Bank Group1 Ron Nechemia. He will be accompanied by Bruce A. Harbin the Acting Senior Vice President and Interim General Counsel of Global Bank, and Mr. William R. Thomson the Chairperson of the Board of Directors of the Global Bank Infrastructure Project Preparation Facility. Mr. Thomson is a Senior Advisor to the President and the Chairman of the Board of Governors, Ron Nechemia. The delegation will deliver the message of “Build Better Before,” which resonances with the philosophy and guiding principle of Global Bank Group of Building Better Before a natural hazard has turned out to be a disaster, instead of “Build Back Better” which is the current state of affairs.
“The Global Bank Disaster Risk Reduction and Reconstruction Fund – An Umbrella Trust Fund is collaborating with a broad array of partners including the G-20, the World Bank Group, the United Nations Office for Disaster Risk Reduction (UNISDR), the United Nations Development Programme (UNDP), and the Japan International Cooperation Agency (JICA),” says Ron Nechemia, the President of the Global Bank Group. He added, “This allows for enhanced action to address ambitious adaptation and mitigation finance, including coordinated support for country-driven long-term strategies for low greenhouse gas emissions and respective technologies for climate-resilient development. As well as client countries’ efforts for Nationally Determined Contributions (NDCs) implementation and enabling environments, the development of risk-pooling and the enhancement of harmonized reporting of Global Bank Group’ climate finance.”
G-20 Japan 2019 Summit
On the 28th and 29th of June 2019, the leaders of the G-20 will gather in Osaka as Japan hosts its first-ever G-20 Summit. Concurrent with the Summit meeting, the Finance Ministers and Central Bank Governors’ Meeting, the Foreign Ministers’ Meeting, and other ministerial meetings will also be held at eight different locations throughout Japan.
During its presidency of the G-20 Summit, the Japanese government is determined to carry out strong leadership in advancing discussions toward resolving the myriad issues now facing the international community including measures to battle poverty, covering economic disparity in both developed and developing countries.
Interesting facts about the G-20:
G-20 Development Working Group
The Group of 20 (G-20) Development Working Group (DWG) meeting is held in the margins of the second G-20 Development Working Group (DWG) under the Japanese Presidency's priorities of "buttressing sustainability."
The Japanese Presidency of the G-20 is placing Sustainable Development Goals at the center of its sustainable development agenda for the G-20 2019. The G-20 Development Working Group was established in 2010 under the Korean Presidency of the G-20 and is responsible for implementing the G-20 Development Agenda and reporting progress to the Sherpas. Under its pillar of buttressing sustainability, the Japanese Presidency is also focusing on climate change finance and energy.
The main objectives of the Side Event are as follows;
- To enhance the coherence between the Sendai Framework, the Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs) and the Paris Climate Agreement.
- To explore further innovative actions that G-20-member states and international organizations can take to achieve this agenda.
- To reaffirm the importance of multiple efforts including inclusiveness, formulation of National and Local Disaster Risk Reduction (DRR) Strategies (Plans), steady DRR investment, and Build Back Better.
- To come up with a summary paper to provide substantive inputs for the G-20 process.
The outcome would contribute to upcoming discussions at international fora such as G-20 as well as Global Platform for Disaster Risk Reduction 2019 and for calibrating the activities and programmes of the Global Bank Disaster Risk Reduction and Reconstruction Fund – An Umbrella Trust Fund.
“Natural disasters are a serious threat to human security and obstacle to poverty eradication and sustainable development,” says Ron Nechemia, President of the Global Bank Group. He added, “Japan has provided international cooperation in the area of disaster risk reduction with its knowledge and expertise acquired through experiences of various natural disasters.”
1 Global Bank Group, consisting of five institutions, represents, develops and supports the collective interests of its business interests around the world. One of these institutions is The Bank for International Development and Reconstruction known as the Global Bank,(“BIDR,” “Global Bank,” or “Bank”). Global Bank is a full-fledged private sector global development bank, in formation, with legal and regulatory rights including formal approval to utilize the term "Bank" pending – the world’s second global development bank – positioned next to the World Bank and the preeminent regional development banks (MDBs). The Bank for International Development and Reconstruction borrows in the international capital markets.
