Disasters: responding, rebuilding, reducing risk

Natural disasters further entrench poverty. Living in a region prone to frequent and seasonal natural disasters, Australia is involved in disaster risk reduction programs to protect the most vulnerable communities.

Australia is always among the first countries to respond to calls for help following disasters, both within its region and beyond. We rapidly release essential funds and deploy emergency supplies, rescue and relief teams, and recovery and reconstruction specialists. Our responses focus on providing life-saving assistance in areas that have the greatest impact on the achievement of the Millennium Development Goals: food and nutrition, water and sanitation, shelter and the protection of vulnerable populations. In 2009-10, Australia responded to more than 30 rapid-onset emergencies and conflicts in Africa, Asia, the Pacific, Latin America, the Caribbean and Europe.

Australia chaired the United Nations Office for Coordination of Humanitarian Affairs Donor Support Group in 2009-10. During the global food crisis, Australia and WFP signed a multi-year agreement which ensures WFP has greater control over food supplies and is able to buy commodities at lower prices and store them for rapid and efficient distribution. Australia is the eighth largest donor to the WFP and we contribute to its food assistance operations in 26 countries in Asia, Africa, Latin America and the Caribbean We are also the eighth largest contributor to the UN Central Emergency Fund which provides timely and reliable assistance in times of natural disasters and armed conflict.

In the wake of the devastating Indian Ocean tsunami in 2004 and other natural disasters in the region, Australia, with Indonesia, established the Australia-Indonesia Disaster Reduction Facility. The Facility supports the region's efforts to reduce the impact of disasters, including through risk mitigation and disaster response. The Facility collaborates with a range of international and regional organisations, including the UN, the International Federation of Red Cross and Red Crescent Societies, ASEAN, APEC and the South Asian Association for Regional Cooperation.

Australian Civilian Corps

The Australian Civilian Corps is a flexible and responsive rapid deployment facility, established to contribute to stabilisation and recovery in countries experiencing or emerging from conflict or natural disaster. Its trained civilian specialists aim to quickly and effectively stabilise and rebuild essential functions, including electricity, water, health, infrastructure and core government institutions.