Amazon Basin Disaster Risk Reduction and Water Management: Evaluating Strategies and Collaborative Efforts

This in-person presentation by UNU-CRIS Visiting Research Fellow Jazmin Chávez focuses on Disaster Risk Reduction (DRR) strategies and water management in the transboundary region of the Amazon Basin. The work entails comprehensive research, encompassing the basin's significance, spanning 7,351,000 km² across nine countries, housing 48.5 million inhabitants and 511 indigenous groups. The assessment delves into the escalating extremity of climatic events in the last two decades, emphasizing floods, droughts, and their impacts across various Amazonian nations, supported by visuals and data.

A crucial aspect is evaluating how these countries respond to such crises. While highlighting the diversity in their Disaster Risk Management (DRM) and Water Management (WM) institutional structures, detailing their legislative frameworks and concrete actions based on the priorities of the Sendai Framework. Importantly, we explored the collaborative strategies among Amazonian nations, emphasizing initiatives by regional organizations such as OTCA, Caricom, CAN, etc., addressing transboundary challenges in operationalizing agendas.

In conclusion, with observations and preliminary analysis, this presentation aims to showcase the complexities of DRR and WM and the necessity for coordinated efforts in this ecologically crucial region.

In case you would like to join in person, please contact Pascale Vantorre (pvantorre@cris.unu.edu).