30 October 2014: The Expert Group on Disaster-Related Statistics in Asia and the Pacific, established earlier in 2014, has agreed to “core principles for establishing a common basic range of disaster-related statistics” at its first meeting. The principles are expected to move the region toward universal standards that will improve natural disaster preparedness and response.

According to the UN Economic and Social Commission for Asia and the Pacific (ESCAP) the historical gap in common standards has made it difficult to gather timely, reliable and comparable statistics, which could improve disaster risk management (DRM). Representatives from governments, academia and international organizations formed the Expert Group to work toward a system of statistics that will help decision makers in assessing risk and making targeted policy for infrastructure and support.

ESCAP, Tohoku University and the UN Development Programme (UNDP), with the Government of Japan and the UN Office for Disaster Risk Reduction (UNISDR), coordinated the first meeting of the Expert Group, which took place from 27-29 October 2014, in Sendai, Japan. Climate change has heightened the urgency of the Group’s work, with natural disasters becoming more frequent and intense.

Experts at the meeting also linked their work to the post-2015 development agenda, underlining the importance of disaster risk reduction (DRR) to achieving the sustainable development goals (SDGs). The Group plans to develop an agreed set of statistical standards on the occurrence and impact of natural disasters by 2016. [UN Press Release] [UNESCAP Press Release]