On May 10^th, the UN Secretary-General Ban Ki-moon opened the Third Session of the Global Platform for Disaster Risk Reduction which was held at the International Conference Centre in Geneva, Switzerland. The meeting was attended by approximately 3,000 participants, including representatives from over 168 governments, 20 ministers, 100 non-governmental organizations (NGOs) and 30 mayors.

Of the many countries that participated in the Platform Palestine was represented by a delegation that consisted of Brigadier Ahmed Riziq, Director-General of Civil Defense in Nablus, Dr. Jalal Dabbeek, Director of the Earth Sciences and Seismic Engineering Center at An-Najah University, Ibrahim Mousa, Consultant at the Palestinian Ministry of Foreign Affairs, as well as Engineer Jumana Jaghub and Journalist Yahya Nafe’.

In the opening session the participants focused on the necessity to work on preventing global nuclear disasters from happening and emphasized the importance of reinforcing the policies followed with respect to the nuclear issue. They also discussed the importance of taking all safety measures when building nuclear structures and facilities especially after what Japan’s nuclear reactors and facilities have suffered during the recent earthquake and the subsequent tsunami that hit the country.

Ban Ki-moon stated that there are a number of gaps and weaknesses in the field of nuclear safety and stressed the necessity to have all countries abide by safety measures when building nuclear facilities so as to enable such structures to resist and survive earthquakes and other forms of disasters.

Moreover, Ki-moon considered this meeting as a major step toward linking nuclear programs with public safety and said it would help countries recover economically and accelerate reconstruction work after disasters.

Dr. Dabbeek presented a lecture about the reduction of disaster risks in cities and urban areas, in addition to preparedness for the earthquakes expected to take place in Palestine and the Arab world. He also highlighted the importance of conducting seismic risks assessment on the local and regional levels which would require, in addition to seismic studies, focusing on reducing the vulnerability of buildings to earthquakes.

Moreover, Dr. Dabbeek presented another lecture on the comprehensive strategic planning for land use and the reduction of the risks of site impact. He also displayed an applied Palestinian model that is considered the first of its kind in the region; the model was the Environmental and Seismic Studies of Rawabi City Site which earned the participants’ interest and admiration. Dr. Dabbeek was selected as a member in the Seismic Building Code and Seismic Strengthening of Existing Buildings Commission which will set the perceptions and work plan for the year 2013.

Dr. Dabbeek considered the meeting as a unique opportunity to exchange expertise and information in the different fields that the Platform addressed including the environmental and seismic field, desertification, floods and other issues. He added that this event prepares for a future stage that will enable the different Palestinian institutions to work based on the international systems related to the reduction of disaster risks according to the good governance principle, the institutional work and capacity building.

The Palestinian delegation also met with the Secretary-General of the International Protection Organization and discussed the prospects of mutual cooperation between Palestine and the Organization. Dr. Dabbeek also presented the An-Najah National University’s Shield to Ibrahim Khraisheh, Permanent Observer Mission of Palestine to the United Nations.