PR-2146
September 24, 2021
The United States, Taiwan, Japan, Australia, and the United Kingdom Cohost
Virtual GCTF workshop on Building Disaster Resilience at Global and National Levels
On September 24, the American Institute in Taiwan (AIT), the Taiwan Ministry of Foreign Affairs (MOFA), the Taiwan Ministry of Science and Technology, the Japan-Taiwan Exchange Association (JTEA), the British Office Taipei, and the Australian Office Taipei co-hosted part two of the virtual GCTF workshop entitled “Building Disaster Resilience at Global and National Levels.”
Since the GCTF’s 2015 program launch, this is the third humanitarian assistance and disaster relief (HADR) workshop under the GCTF. 135 HADR officials and experts from 34 countries shared best practices for community resilience capacity building, technology applications for disaster risk management, recovery and reconstruction revitalization processes, and mechanisms for disaster risk finance.
AIT Director Sandra Oudkirk joined Minister of Science and Technology Wu Tsung-Tsong, Deputy Foreign Minister Tseng Ho-jen, JTEA Chief Representative Hiroyasu Izumi, British Office Representative John Dennis, and Australia Office Representative Jennifer Bloomfield in delivering opening remarks.
In her opening remarks, AIT Director Sandra Oudkirk emphasized, “The United States is committed to working with partners on disaster relief and response. At the G7 meeting in Cornwall, President Biden and partners announced a unified vision for global infrastructure development and introduced the Build Back Better World initiative. Build Back Better World is a value-driven, high-standard, and transparent infrastructure partnership aimed at mobilizing infrastructure investments in low- and middle-income countries to support sustainable infrastructure development in the areas of climate, health and health security, technology, and gender equity and equality. All are essential aspects to promote disaster-resilient societies and economies.”
AIT, Taiwan’s MOFA, and the Japan-Taiwan Exchange Association jointly administer the GCTF, which serves as a platform for Taiwan to share its expertise with partners around the world.