Dear Colleagues,

Six months have passed since the Indian Ocean tsunami, yet that catastrophe for the entire human race left us much food for thought. The international community is still seriously reflecting upon and drawing lessons from this scourge to make sure that there will be better preventive measures to avoid greater damages by natural disasters in the future. I am glad to see that the international community has conducted in-depth and careful discussions on a raft of subjects including the current situation and existing problems in disaster reduction and preparedness as well as a mechanism for disaster prevention and management, reached broad consensus and carried out fruitful cooperation. I would like to take this opportunity to offer a few suggestions on post-disaster recovery and development.

First, international community's consensuses, agreements and commitments should be earnestly translated into actions to ensure that relief and reconstruction operations are efficient, orderly and sustainable. Once we meet the immediate need of the victims in water and medicine supply and food security, we shall gradually shift our priority from short-term emergency relief to long-term post-disaster rehabilitation and development, helping the tsunami victims rebuild their homes and recover economy.

Second, the United Nations should play the leading and coordinating role in strengthening communication and coordination. The United Nations has its advantages in the field of disaster prevention, relief and preparedness and has a wealth of experience in formulating policies and designing and implementing programmes. In his report submitted this year, the UN Secretary-General Kofi Annan proposed to improve the UN humanitarian emergency system, expand the emergency fund, and set up a global early warning system for natural disasters. The Chinese Government highly commends these proposals and supports the United Nation in its leading and coordinating role in disaster relief and post-disaster reconstruction. We are ready to strengthen cooperation with the United Nations and take an active part in the reconstruction and development in the afflicted areas within the UN framework.

Third, all the countries, the developing countries in particular, should build up their capacity to cope with natural disasters. Since the developing countries are weak in countering natural disasters, they should be helped to establish, as soon as possible, international and regional mechanisms to monitor, prevent and assess major natural disasters. And since monitoring and early warning are important means to prevent and minimize possible damages of natural disasters, the international community needs to promptly help the developing countries with capacity building in these two areas.

Dear Colleagues,

After the tsunami struck, China launched its biggest ever overseas relief operation. Its government and individual donations added up to well over RMB 1.2 billion yuan, and Chinese rescue and medical teams helped the afflicted countries overcome difficulties and rebuild homes.

In order to promote international and regional cooperation in disaster relief, China hosted the China-ASEAN Workshop on Earthquake-Generated Tsunami Warning in Beijing last January. At the Workshop China and the ASEAN signed the Action Plan to Formulate a Technology Platform for Earthquake-Generated Tsunami Warning System aimed at enhancing the capacity of Southeast Asia for earthquake monitoring through closer international cooperation and coordination. At the World Conference on Disaster Reduction in Kobe, Japan, China proposed to set up a mechanism to monitor, prevent and assess major natural disasters. It is believed that this proposal will exert a positive impact on natural disaster management.

To work for stronger cooperation among Asian countries in disaster prevention and relief, China will host the Asian Conference on Disaster Reduction in Beijing on 27-29 September. The purpose of this conference is to identify priority fields for cooperation among Asian countries in disaster reduction for the next ten years and push for regional cooperation in specific areas. To ensure that it bears fruit and to facilitate the implementation of its follow-ups, the Chinese side will sponsor the conference in conjunction with the ESCAP, the International Strategy for Disaster Reduction and the Office for the Coordination of Humanitarian Affairs and other relevant UN agencies as well as the Asian Development Bank and the Asian Disaster Preparedness Centre. We will invite all Asian countries and international and regional organizations to the conference, which is also open to countries from other regions. The Chinese side is now coordinating with various parties and making active preparation for the event.

Thank you.