Post-crisis reconstruction in the built environment in Mediterranean countries

The event will delve into the case for shelter and emergency solutions, housing solutions to promote return, and solutions to build back better and increase resilience to mitigate future risk. On 6 February 2023, a series of earthquakes killed over 55,000 people in Türkiye and Syria, representing the worst seismic events the region has experienced in 20 years. On 8 September 2023, a powerful earthquake struck the High Atlas Mountains in Morocco, causing the complete or partial destruction of approximately 59,000 homes and a significant loss of life. These recent natural disasters have led national authorities in the affected countries to put in place comprehensive post-disaster urban reconstruction initiatives. Morocco implemented a national strategy to quickly and fairly rebuild affected areas, prioritising resilient housing and local communities. And, in Türkiye, Kahramanmaraş has undergone rapid reconstruction, addressing long-term goals such as urban quality, sustainability, and social inclusion. The Event will serve to put in common the tools, actions and responses that countries put in place to manage the natural disasters faced. It will also be an occasion to learn from each other by discussing the challenges currently being addressed to achieve both a successful reconstruction of the built environment and resilience to natural disasters in new housing and urban developments. The event will be organised in the form of brief presentations on the state of play in each country, highlighting successful programmes and actions, as well as the current challenges that remain. The round of short interventions will be followed by a moderated discussion in a question-and-answer format aimed at identifying lessons learned, exploring the transferability of successful actions, and considering potential follow-up bilateral collaborations among countries.