Disaster-prone Regions

HC Deb 17 September 2004 vol 424 cc1779-80W

Mr. Lazarowicz

To ask the Secretary of State for International Development pursuant to the answer of 22 July 2004,Official Report, columns 383—84W, on disaster-prone regions, if he will set a date for the implementation of a disaster reduction strategy.[189111]

Hilary Benn

The scoping study designed to inform DFID's proposed strategy for Disaster Reduction is due to be completed within the next few weeks. DFID will then start to draw up a strategy and a plan for its implementation, but we also wish to take account of the outcome of the World Conference on Disaster Reduction to be held in Japan in January 2005 before finalising it. Therefore I envisage that DFID's strategy will be finalised by the end of March 2005. It will include information on an implementation.