As a first response, emergency funds were decentralised to the UNESCO Tehran Office for immediate priorities such as children in need and damaged cultural heritage. Technical missions will however be undertaken in the coming weeks to assess the needs that fall within the Organization’s fields of competence and that need to be included in a global Organizational Plan of Action for Bam. Mr Matsuura stressed the necessity of such a Plan ensuring an appropriate response to the immediate requests already received from the Iranian Authorities, corresponding to the joint United Nations efforts for Bam, and including medium to long-term needs such as awareness raising on disaster prevention and preparedness.



In the field of culture, the Iranian Authorities have requested that UNESCO coordinate all international efforts for the rehabilitation of cultural heritage. Contacts have therefore been established with competent institutions for technical and financial support. UNESCO is working closely with Iranian Cultural Heritage Department and with ICOMOS and ICCROM to assess the state of damage of the Historic City of Bam with a view to preparing an action plan for the city’s rehabilitation. Technical guidelines on conservation practice are also being developed for the city. In addition, the World Heritage Centre will examine the possibility of the inclusion of Bam on the Heritage in Danger List under Article 67 of the World Heritage Convention, at the June 2004 session of the World Heritage Committee.



Concerning education, all 131 schools in Bam and its surrounding area have been severely damaged and rendered unusable. UNESCO is therefore working with other competent United Nations agencies to provide emergency assistance to ensure the continuity of the Bam children’s education, as well as elaborate a plan of action for the rehabilitation of the education system in the region.



The Director-General underlined the Natural Science sector’s specific role, particularly in relation to the inclusion of awareness raising on disaster preparedness and prevention elements in any future Plan of Action for Bam. While post-disaster response and recovery represent the priority of the moment, the international community should reflect upon the need to encourage measures devoted to reducing the exposure to future inevitable hazards and disasters. Given the increased vulnerability to natural hazards in the world today, UNESCO will enhance its advocacy role in the need for a shift in emphasis from post-disaster reaction to pre-disaster action and prevention, in the framework of the United Nations International Strategy for Disaster Reduction and in concert with other United Nations Partners.



As such, UNESCO’s action in Bam in the field of the Natural Sciences will concentrate on:

· cooperation with competent Iranian institutions for the promotion of preparedness for future earthquakes and other hazards, as well as the mitigation of their effects;

· provision of technical advise on the process of reconstruction in order to ensure the earthquake-resilience of future construction;

· partnership enhancement with scientific and technical institutions including the International Institute of Earthquake Engineering and Seismology in Tehran which was established in the late 1980s under UNESCO’s impetus with a focus on integrating earthquake risk prevention in reconstruction and development; and

· encouragement of the analysis of lessons learnt from the present earthquake, including recommendations to prevent future losses.



The next meeting of the Task Force, scheduled to take place after the official launch of the joint United Nations Flash Appeal, will examine this document in order to ensure coherence between UNESCO’s intersectoral response, and any action the Organization is requested to take within the interagency response to the Bam earthquake.