The main objective of the Partnership Initiative is to strengthen existing early warning systems as an element for disaster risk management strategies at global, regional and national levels and to highlight their important relation to sustainable development.

There is a growing recognition among many countries that natural disasters increasingly constitute a threat to sustainable development. The impact of natural disasters on increasingly vulnerable societies not only deprives gains in development but also constitutes a significant obstacle to the attainment of key goals identified in the UN Millennium declaration in 2000, in particular those related to environmental protection and poverty reduction.

Throughout the process of preparing for the upcoming World Summit on Sustainable Development (WSSD) early warning has received significant attention and the references are many. In general, the WSSD has called for the inclusion of disaster and risk reduction, especially the development and strengthening of early warning systems and information networks, within the ongoing dialogue of sustainable development.

UN System::
International Strategy for Disaster Reduction (ISDR) (Switzerland)
United Nations Inter-agency Secretariat for the International Strategy (Switzerland)
Global Fire Monitoring Center (GFMC) (Germany)
UNEP/OCHA Environmental Emergencies Section (Switzerland)

Other intergovernmental organizations:
Caribbean Disaster Emergency Response Agency (Barbados)
German Committee for Disaster Reduction (DKKV) (Germany)
Asian Disaster Reduction Center (ADRC) (Japan)
The Drought Monitoring Centre (Kenya)
UK Advisory Comm for Natural Disaster Reduction (United Kingdom of Great Britain and Northern Ireland)