Influence the debate on global disaster relief and resilience

NGO News Desk :: Some 350 representatives from UN, Government and intergovernmental organisations, Red Cross, NGOs, donors and foundations, military, relief agencies and the private sector involved in the delivery of aid relief will gather in Washington D.C. for the Global Disaster Relief Summit next week.

The aim of the Summit is to exchange best practice and lessons learned (including mistakes made) from recent disasters and conflicts, as well as explore innovations for better, safer and more efficient humanitarian relief, and facilitate high level networking for building and strengthening partnerships among public, private and civil society stakeholders.

More than 70 recognised experts will share updates on UN procurement strategy, innovations in data management and communication technology, best practice in humanitarian logistics, lessons learned from recent disasters, global initiatives in health resilience, good practice in emergency health & WASH, innovations in cash-based programmes, and financing of disaster relief projects.

This year’s programme consists of panel debates and interactive roundtable discussions to discuss the most pertinent questions around emergency response and resilience. The Summit features world-class keynote addresses including Harvey Johnson, Senior Vice President, Disaster Cycle Services, American Red Cross and Elizabeth A. Zimmerman, Associate Administrator, Office of Response & Recovery (ORR), Federal Emergency Management Agency (FEMA).

Humanitarian technology expert, Patrick Meier, Co-Founder, WeRobotics, Digital Humanitarian Network; Founder, Humanitarian UAV Network, who will deliver the keynote presentation on humanitarian technology and robotics and Dr Thomas R. Frieden, Director, Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) who will discuss preparedness and response to Zika virus.

With over 8 hours of unparalleled networking opportunities and diverse exhibition area with innovations from over 30 selected product and service providers, the Global Disaster Relief Summit provides an interactive platform for stimulating cross-sector collaboration and high-level industry discussions.

Participants are also invited to join Virtual Disaster Simulation, an interactive learning lab, which uses virtual and live action role-playing to simulate post-disaster supply chains for key commodities to better understand and build a resilient supply chain. The session is hosted by NRS International and facilitated by the American Logistics Aid Network (ALAN).

Global Disaster Relief Summit will take place on 7-8 September 2016 at the Ronald Reagan Building and International Trade Centre in Washington D.C. providing plenty of opportunities to exchange experience and ideas for developing technically sound international humanitarian and development assistance.

For more information about the Summit, please visit https://disaster-relief.aidforum.org

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