There must be no let-up in aid flow to affected nations.

The developed world swung into action like never before during the just-ended five-day U.N. World Conference on Disaster Reduction in Kobe. The conference, held as Kobe observed the 10th anniversary of the Great Hanshin Earthquake, was attended by representatives of 168 countries.

As the extent of damage caused by the quake-triggered tsunami off the coast of Sumatra on Dec. 26 continues to rise, conference participants demonstrated the determination of the international community to work as one in disaster preparedness.

The first U.N. conference on disaster reduction was held in Yokohama in 1994. As recurring natural disasters had prevented poor nations from developing their economies, that conference sought to adopt measures to help them withstand nature's fury through cooperative efforts of the international community.

But the pledges made at the Yokohama conference were forgotten over time.

The number of people affected by natural disasters runs to about 200 million every year. Economic losses in the past 10 years alone exceeded $800 billion (84 trillion yen). Most of the damage was concentrated in developing countries, amplifying the endemic poverty in those areas.

Rich countries cannot be said to have paid sufficient attention to the miserable conditions prevailing in the developing world. The Asian tsunami catastrophe occurred against such a background. Images of the appalling conditions caused by the tsunami reached every nook and cranny of the world, evoking sympathy everywhere.

The Kobe conference adopted the Hyogo Declaration, which states that governments are primarily responsible for the protection of their people's lives and property. The conference also reached agreement on a ``framework for action,'' which will serve as a guideline for the next 10 years.

The tasks to be carried out include establishing a special organization in every country to handle natural disaster management; helping communities become resistant to disasters in cooperation with volunteers and local inhabitants; preparing maps of expected danger areas in the event of tsunami and other disasters; constructing disaster warning systems; building earthquake-proof schools and hospitals; and making local populations aware of disaster preparedness steps in general.

Out of penitence for the failure of the Yokohama conference, the framework of action also included a mechanism for the United Nations to check on headway being made in disaster-reduction measures in member countries.

We hope the Japanese government will take a fresh look at what it has done in this country for the sake of steady implementation of the world body's action program.

Many of the recent tsunami victims were children. They were swallowed up by the tsunami even though they did not know the word.

How are the mechanism of natural disasters and their horrors to be conveyed to the people? The experience of disaster-prone Japan can be put to a good use. We hope Japan will be able to extend assistance to developing countries in need so they can educate their people about disaster preparedness. In this regard, picture books and puppet shows can be a big help. Japan can also help nurture specialists in disaster reduction.

In the course of the Kobe conference, a special session discussed ways to fight tsunami. This led to the decision to build a tsunami early-warning system for the countries with Indian Ocean coastlines. The existing tsunami early-warning system for the Pacific Ocean will be expanded to cover the Caribbean. This will also be upgraded so that it will give advance warning for typhoons and flooding.

More than anything else, it is essential that the developed world share the pain of the affected countries and provide continuous assistance.

Jan Egeland, U.N. undersecretary-general for humanitarian affairs, said the number of natural disasters' victims in future would be halved as progress is made in those areas.

--The Asahi Shimbun, Jan. 23(IHT/Asahi: January 25,2005)