Regional Disaster Risk Reduction: Is there a Pacific Way?

• Author: W John Hopkins
• Position: Professor of Law, University of Canterbury
• Pages: 21-34

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REGIONAL DISASTER RISK REDUCTION:

IS THERE A PACIFIC WAY?

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Abstract

e 2015 Sendai Framework for Disaster Risk Reduction has re-armed the global

importance of D RR in the early years of the 21st ce ntury. Alongside a glob al recognition of

its importan ce, regional approach es to DRR have now become co mmonplace. is art icle

examines this ph enomenon in a South Pacif‌ic c ontext and critically ana lyses the limited

regional fram ework that currently exist s.

In common with regi onalism generally, di saster co-operati on in the South Pacif‌ic has

been underta ken primarily through s oft law frameworks sp onsored by the Pacif‌ic Isl ands

Forum (notably the Fram ework for Resilient Deve lopment in the Pacif‌ic). ese in clude a

signif‌icant ro le for donors (including th e metropolitan memb ers of the Forum) and NGOs.

As well as its use of soft law instr uments, the Pacif‌ic “mode l” is notable for its exclusive

focus on the devel opment of resilience within in dividual states rather than reg ional co-

operation. In addition, those South Pacif‌ic regional models developed to enhance co-

operation in th e f‌ield (notably the FRENZ arrangem ent) are notable for th e exclusion of

Pacif‌ic Island states.

e article examines this “Pacif‌ic Way” of DRR in the context of other regional

examples. It concludes by questioning whether regional DRR law in the South Pacif‌ic

represents a tr uly Pacif‌ic Way in the f‌ield or is yet an other instance of global n orms being

implemented through “transmission belt” regionalism.

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Risk Reduction

Disast er risk and its reduc tion have become an incr easing focus of int ernational

law and governance in the past decades. Both in the Pacif‌ic and globally this has

seen the development of international frameworks, guidelines and institutions

* Professor of L aw, University of Cant erbury. This art icle incorporates r esearch undert aken as

part of a New Zealand European Union Centres Network project into comparative regional

disast er response in the Asi a-Pacif‌ic region. The aut hor is grateful for the f‌inanci al support

provided by t he Europea n Commis sion without w hich thi s project would not h ave been possi ble.

The author a lso wishes to tha nk Professor Ki rsten Bookmi ller, Dr Katja Samu el and Dr Karen

Grant for the ir comments on ea rlier versions of p aper. The tradit ional discl aimer applies .