Media Update: United Nations Pakistan, 12 October 2020

THE SECRETARY-GENERAL

VIDEO MESSAGE ON THE INTERNATIONAL DAY

FOR DISASTER RISK REDUCTION 

13 October 2020

The COVID-19 pandemic has brought renewed attention to the importance of strengthening disaster risk reduction.

Many countries are facing multiple crises simultaneously.

We will see more of this.

Extreme weather events have risen dramatically over the past two decades.

Yet, we have seen little progress on reducing climate disruption and environmental degradation.

Bad situations only get worse without good disaster risk governance. 

Disaster risk isn’t the sole responsibility of local and national authorities.

COVID-19 has shown us that systemic risk requires international cooperation.

Good disaster risk governance means acting on science and evidence.

And that requires political commitment at the highest level to deliver on the Sustainable Development Goals and the Sendai Framework for Disaster Risk Reduction.

To eradicate poverty and reduce the impacts of climate change, we must place the public good above all other considerations.

For these reasons and more, this year’s International Day for Disaster Risk Reduction is all about strengthening disaster risk governance to build a safer and more resilient world.

Video Link: https://s3.amazonaws.com/downloads2.unmultimedia.org/public/video/evergreen/MSG+SG+/MSG+SG+DISASTER+RISK+REDUCTION+05+OCT+20+/MSG+SG+DISASTER+RISK+REDUCTION+05+OCT+20.mp4

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UNODC

PRESS RELEASE

UNODC HANDS-OVER CRIME SCENE VEHICLES TO GUJRANWALA POLICE

12 October 2020, Gujranwala: A ground-breaking ceremony of handing over state-of-the-art purpose-built Crime Scene Vehicles to Gujranwala Police concludes among a lot of applause at the Gujranwala Police Lines on 12 October 2020. It brought together a cross-section of criminal justice sector stakeholders, including district police Gujranwala, Punjab Police and key representatives from UNODC. The event was appreciated as one of the milestones among a stream of transformative activities supported by the partnership between the Punjab Police and UNODC with the generous support of the Government of Norway.

Speaking on the occasion, Mr. Jeremy Milsom, Representative, UNODC Country Office in Pakistan stressed the importance of equipping first responders with technology that helps to minimize the potential contamination of evidence in crime scene investigation. As the first-ever intervention of its kind for the Gujranwala Police, Mr. Milsom mentioned that this will go a long way in modeling investigation techniques and skills of front-line police personnel through access to state-of-the-art crime scene vehicles. He further affirmed UNODC’s commitment towards delivering peace and justice to the people of Pakistan

Through the Crime Scene Vehicles, Gujranwala Police will have the means to deploy better support in the gathering and processing of physical and forensic evidence in line with international standards. The ceremony was well-represented by senior representatives of Gujranwala Police. The participants appreciated the intervention as a refreshing and long-awaited step towards modernizing a speedy and efficient gathering of evidence in crime scene investigations.

The intervention is part of the four-year project, “Enhanced Capacities of Criminal Justice Actors in Punjab, Pakistan supported by the Norwegian Ministry of Foreign Affairs and is expected to conclude in 2021.

For further details please contact: Ms Rizwana Rahool, Communications Officer UNODC via 0301-8564255, rizwana.asad@un.org