14.09.2011

ADDRESS OF MR MEVLÜT ÇAVUŞOĞLU,

PRESIDENT OF THE PARLIAMENTARY ASSEMBLY OF THE COUNCIL OF EUROPE

ON THE OCCASION OF THE ROUND TABLE ON “PUBLIC-PRIVATE PARTNERSHIP IN THE SPHERE OF RISK REDUCTION – A BASIS FOR THE COUNTRY’S COMPETITIVENESS”

ROUND TABLE ORGANISED BY THE RISK REDUCTION FOUNDATION

WITH THE PARTICIPATION OF THE SUB-COMMITTEE ON SUSTAINABLE DEVELOPMENT

(COMMITTEE ON THE ENVIRONMENT, AGRICULTURE AND LOCAL AND REGIONAL AFFAIRS )

KYIV, Ukraine, Monday 19 September 2011

Dear Speaker, dear participants,

It is my great pleasure to open this Forum on “Public–private partnership in the sphere of risks reduction - a basis for the country’s competitiveness”, organised jointly by the «Risk reduction Foundation» and the Parliament of Ukraine.

This event is hosted by the Parliament of Ukraine during a very important period for this country - its Chairmanship of the Committee of Ministers of the Council of Europe.

Recent humanitarian crises caused by disaster situations have raised new challenges, in particular in relation to the protection of the basic human rights of disaster-affected populations and victims at times of disasters.

The subject of this Forum shows that the Ukrainian authorities have a deep understanding of the importance of the current global challenges and a readiness to contribute to their solution.

Every day we receive alarming news from different parts of the world about disasters, catastrophes, extraordinary situations, which lead not only to huge economic losses but also terrible situations of human victims, precariousness and loss of life.

We, as today’s politicians, bear responsibility for the conditions in which people will live in future decades and even centuries.

We are obliged to strive to preserve civilization, and to overcome difficulties linked to past errors of humanity .

We will define the direction in which the world community will evolve – either towards balanced development, observance of human rights and freedoms and development of democratic institutions, or to regress and move towards short-term interests, which will eventually lead to the destruction of civilization.

It is therefore clear that risk reduction in the fields of ecology, economy and in the social sphere has a wide perspective at the level of state policy.

It is also one of the objectives of the Council of Europe, as endorsed by its Plan of Action at the Warsaw Summit in 2005, which is to ensure security for all citizens and that everyone can live in a healthy and sustainable environment.

Our Parliamentary Assembly wishes to encourage progress in this area by including a right to a healthy environment in the European human rights protection system.

Whilst the concept of the protection of human rights is widely acknowledged to be a crucial element of humanitarian strategies in times of emergency and in disaster situations, the longer-term aspects linked to the promotion and definition of a human rights-based approach in disaster prevention and reduction is still limited.

The Parliamentary Assembly of the Council of Europe supports the initiative of national risk evaluations as it can contribute to a peaceful competition between regions and countries on the reduction of risks with the aim of improving citizens’ quality of life.

We have to engage in a genuine culture of risk reduction, to mitigate climate change. This will also be the main message of the Assembly’s report prepared by Mrs Marin on preventing natural disasters. This report will focus on the promotion of a new rural development policy, of legislation that will focus primarily on construction safety and rational use of soil, better protection of urban areas and increased control of existing infrastructures and, in particular s, dams, pipelines and rail and road bridges.

Our Sub-Committee on Sustainable Development will continue its collaboration with the Risk Reduction Foundation on the drawing-up of practical recommendations for our member States.

I wish you fruitful discussions and hope that this forum will be the starting point for a state-private partnership on the reduction of risks in Council of Europe member states, which will lead towards improved security in society.