At its 6th plenary meeting, on 29 April 2008, the Economic and Social Council decided that the theme for the humanitarian affairs segment of its substantive session of 2008 would be “Building capabilities and capacities at all levels for timely humanitarian assistance, including disaster risk reduction” and that it would convene two panels, the topics of which would be “Disaster risk reduction and preparedness: addressing the humanitarian consequences of natural disasters, including the impact of climate change” and “Humanitarian challenges related to global food aid, including enhancing international efforts and cooperation in this field”.
