Mr. Chairman,

It is my honour to introduce on behalf of the Group of 77 and China the Draft Resolution in document A/67/L. 50 entitled "International cooperation on humanitarian assistance in the field of natural disasters, from relief to development''.

We are pleased to announce that the following countries have joined the list of co-sponsors: Germany, France, New Zeland, Italy, Norway, Luxembourg, Spain, Japan, Sweden, Australia, Finland, Russian Federation and Mexico.

Mr. Chairman,

By introducing this resolution, the Group of 77 and China reaffirms the importance of international cooperation in support of the efforts of the affected States in dealing with natural disasters in all their phases, in particular in preparedness, response and the early recovery phase. At the same time, it is recognized that the affected State has the primary responsibility in the initiation, organization, coordination and implementation of humanitarian assistance within its territory. The importance of the humanitarian principles contained in resolution 46/182 are also highlighted in this resolution.

The resolution also recognizes the clear relationship between emergency response, rehabilitation and development, and reaffirms that, in order to ensure a smooth transition from relief to rehabilitation and development, emergency assistance must be provided in ways that will be supportive of short- and medium-term recovery leading to long-term development.
 
Mr. Chairman,

Given the fact that the Hyogo Framework for Action is coming to an end in 2015, the Draft resolution calls upon Member States, the United Nations system and other relevant humanitarian and development actors to accelerate the full implementation of this framework , in particular those commitments related to assistance for developing countries that are prone to natural disasters.

Mr. Chairman,

The text in document A/67/L.50 is the result of the consensus reached through five informal consultations that were convened over the past few days, and which includes the most proposals made during those consultations. The Group has made a concerted effort to include the concerns of other groups and member states.

The text of this year's Draft resolution contains new elements based on the recommendations of the secretary general's report. We inserted for instance a new paragraph that highlights the importance of strengthening partnerships at all levels, in situations of natural disasters, in order to effectively cooperate to provide humanitarian assistance to those in need. Another important area that this resolution emphasizes is the importance to develop and to improve data collection and analysis in order to facilitate the exchange of information with humanitarian organizations of the United Nations, in order to support preparedness efforts and to improve the effectiveness of needs-based humanitarian response.

This year's Draft resolution also stresses the need to strengthen resilience at all levels, and in this regard encourages Member States, the UN system and other relevant actors to support efforts, as appropriate, to integrate resilience in humanitarian and development programming.

Moreover, this Resolution requests the United Nations humanitarian and development organizations to improve their coordination of disaster recovery efforts, from relief to development, by strengthening institutional, coordination and strategic planning efforts in disaster preparedness, resilience-building and recovery, in support of national authorities, and by ensuring that development actors participate in strategic planning at an early stage.

Lastly, Mr. Chairman, the resolution strongly encourages giving appropriate consideration to disaster risk reduction and building of resilience to disasters within the post 2015 development agenda and promoting a complementary and coherent approach between that agenda and the post 2015 framework for disaster risk reduction.

Mr. Chairman,

In closing, i would like to express the appreciation of the Group of 77 and China for the spirit of cooperation and collaboration shown by all our partners during the informal consultations which enabled us to agree upon the important issues addressed by this resolution.

The Group also wishes to thank all the Member States that are co-sponsoring this important resolution and looks forward to its adoption by consensus once again.

I thank you.