Message from Ms. Irina Bokova, Director-General of UNESCO, on the Occasion of the World Tsunami Awareness Day
教科文组织总干事伊琳娜·博科娃女士在世界海啸意识日的致辞
5 November 2017
2017年11月5日
In 2017, on the second World Tsunami Awareness Day, we are committed to reduce the global number of affected people by 2030, so as to lower the average global figure per 100,000 between 2020-2030, as described in the Sendai Framework for Disaster Risk Reduction.
2017年，值此第二个世界海啸意识日之际，我们承诺在2030年到来之前减少全球受灾人数，以确保如《仙台减少灾害风险框架》所述，降低 2020‒2030年间全球平均每10万人受灾人数。
Our work is crucial, for more than 10 million people were affected by tsunamis between 2001 and 2015. In 2017, tsunamis affected Greenland (17th June), Greece & Turkey (12th June and 20th July) and Mexico (7th September). With recent storms in the Caribbean and Ireland, we see the vulnerability of many coastal nations. About 625 million people live in the low-elevation coastal zone and 189 million live in the 100-year flood plain.
我们的工作是艰巨的，2001至 2015年间有超过千万人受到海啸灾害的影响。2017年，海啸袭击了格陵兰(6月17日)，希腊和土耳其(6月12日和7月20日)，以及墨西哥(9月7日)。近期，随着加勒比地区和爱尔兰遭遇风暴，我们看到了许多沿海国家的脆弱性。大约有6.25亿人口居住在低海拔沿海地区，1.89亿人口居住在百年泛洪平原地带。
Education, community awareness of tsunami risk and preparedness are essential to act and react in case of a tsunami. All vulnerable regions need to adopt and develop more effective Tsunami Warning Systems. A perfect warning is useless if people do not know what to do, cannot recognize natural warning signs or do not evacuate immediately on higher grounds.
面对并应对海啸问题，关键在于提升教育、社区海啸风险意识以及备灾措施。所有脆弱地区都需要采用并开发出更为有效的海啸预警系统。另外，如果人们面对预警不知道如何反应、不能识别自然灾害预警信号或者不能迅速转移至高地，那么再完美的预警系统也不能发挥其功用。
Over the last 50 years, the Intergovernmental Oceanographic Commission (IOC) of UNESCO has coordinated the Pacific Tsunami Warning System. Following the 26th December 2004 Indian Ocean Tsunami, IOC/UNESCO has coordinated the development of a Global Tsunami Warning System, which now covers the ocean worldwide. Periodic exercises are organized and coupled with evacuation drills at the community level, to foster risk awareness, prevention and preparedness, to reduce exposure and displacements through capacity building, knowledge sharing and networking, early warning and policy advice.
过去五十年来，教科文组织政府间海洋学委员会协调了太平洋海啸预警系统。2004年12月26日印度洋海啸发生后，政府间海洋学委员会协调了全球海啸预警系统的发展，现在该系统已全面覆盖世界范围的海域。我们还组织了定期演习，与社区级别的疏散演练相配和，以培养风险意识和防灾备灾观念，并通过能力建设、知识共享和联网、预警以及政策建议来降低灾害风险，减少流离失所现象。
To do this, all countries need to work together. Tsunamis pay no heed to border, and no single country can tackle this challenge alone. This is why today, I call on all Member States to renew commitment and to share expertise and knowledge.
要达成这一目标，所有国家必须齐心协力。海啸无国界，一国之力不足以独挡海啸带来的艰巨挑战。所以今日，我在此呼吁所有成员国重申承诺，共享相关经验和知识。
