TEHRAN – The Iranian vice president for women’s and family affairs Masoumeh Ebtekar and the UN under secretary-general Shamshad Akhtar discussed the role of women in disaster risk reduction and resilience through empowering them in various areas including IT.

During a meeting which was held in Tehran on Wednesday, Ebtekar touched on the attempts to organize an international conference on women’s empowerment with the cooperation of ESCAP in the near future.

Akhtar, for her part, said women have a principal role in mitigating the damages caused by natural disasters, wars and terrorism and also preventing violence and establishing peace.

Ebtekar, the former chief of the department of environment, further emphasized the important role of women in improving the environment by dealing with water shortage crisis and climate change and enhancing efficiency in agriculture.

The meeting was held on the sidelines of the United Nations Economic and Social Commission for Asia and the Pacific (UNESCAP) conference, ISNA reported on Thursday.

Concurrent with UNESCAP conference, the Asian and Pacific Centre for the Development of Disaster Information Management (APDIM) office was inaugurated in Tehran raising hopes for improved fight against natural disasters in the country.

APDIM is mostly focusing on risk managements for earthquakes and other natural disasters, as well as regional cooperation for combating sand and dust storms in Asia and the Pacific.

MAH/MG