Building resilient cities: Almaty's commitment to inclusion and Disaster Risk Reduction
An impactful one-day seminar, part of the Making Cities Resilient 2030 initiative, was successfully held on 4th of July in Almaty, Kazakhstan. The event took place at the Social Services House under the auspices of the Almaty City Hall.
Over the past 20 years, disasters have affected 4.4 billion people, claimed 1.3 million lives, and caused $2 trillion in damage. The risk of urban vulnerability to natural disasters has been increasing due to climate change and urbanization. Almaty, one of Kazakhstan's largest cities located in an active seismic zone and surrounded by mountains, faces significant risks from earthquakes, mudflows, avalanches, and landslides.
The seminar aimed to assess the current situation regarding the inclusion of people with disabilities in Almaty, focusing on various urban resilience sectors. The event saw active participation from representatives of the City Hall, government agencies, and civil society.
This assessment has contributed to achieving the Sustainable Development Goals (SDG), especially SDG 11: sustainable cities and communities, as well as other global agreements, including the Sendai Framework for Disaster Risk Reduction, the Paris Agreement, and the New Urban Agenda.
The event was organized by the public association "Society of Persons with Disabilities 'Kedergisiz KZ'", the Regional Office of the United Nations Office for Disaster Risk Reduction (UNDRR) for Europe and Central Asia, the "Social Innovations in Central Asia" program implemented by the Eurasia Foundation with financial support from the United States Agency for International Development (USAID), and the Almaty Employment and Social Programs Department.
This pioneering assessment in Almaty served as an introduction to the Making Cities Resilient Campaign and the use of resilience scorecards. Seminar participants explored the principles of urban resilience, identified key issues, and developed recommendations to enhance disaster risk reduction mechanisms and effectively integrate people with disabilities into the city's emergency plans. The insights gained will form the basis for further consultations and recommendations for the Almaty city administration.