2. Highlights of 2017/2018

2. Highlights of 2017/2018
2-1. Asian Conference on Disaster Reduction 2017
Information sharing among DRR practitioners and organizations is indispensable for enhancing
efforts for disaster risk reduction in disaster-prone Asia. ADRC convenes an annual conference
attended by disaster risk management officials from member countries and experts frominternational organizations to promote sharing of good practices and information, and to enhancefurther networks in Asia. The Asian Conference on Disaster Reduction (ACDR) 2017 was held in
Baku, Republic of Azerbaijan during 2-3 October 2017. The conference was jointly hosted by theGovernment of Azerbaijan, the Government of Japan, and ADRC. The ACDR2017 was attended by
68 participants including high level government officials from 18 countries, as well as
representatives of international and regional organizations, the academic community, and the private
sector.

Fig.2-1-1. Participants of ACDR2017

This year’s ACDR consisted of three sessions focusing on the following themes:
Session 1: Implementation of the Sendai Framework for DRR --- Develop national and local
DRR strategies
Session 2: Effective Emergency Response to Survive Mega DisastersSession 3: Advanced Technologies Facilitating DRR and CCA
The conference began with opening remarks by Dr. Masanori Hamada, ADRC Chairman,5followed by remarks from H.E. Mr. Kamaladdin Heydarov, Minister of Emergency Situations,
Government of the Republic of Azerbaijan, H.E. Mr. Mamoru Maekawa, Vice Minister, Cabinet
Office, Government of Japan, and Mr. Timothy Wilcox, Programme Management Officer, UNISDR
Regional Office for Asia and the Pacific.
The Session one examined the status of Sendai Framework implementation in Asia, particularly
what priority activities were undertaken to enhance understanding of disaster risk, what policies andstrategies were put in place to intensify DRR efforts, and how past lessons were integrated andmainstreamed in the government’s DRR strategies, plans, and programs.
The session two dwelt on how to further promote effective emergency response, with emphasis
on search and rescue, for extreme scenarios like mega-disasters or small-scale local rural disasters.
It examined: what improvements in human resources development (HRD) programs are needed tomake search and rescue effective in the face climate change, urbanization, and poverty; how toenhance search and rescue capacity beyond designated borders; and how to leverage support fromthe private sector in the area of search and rescue.
This session three further explored the application of advanced technologies to facilitate DRR
and CCA. It looked into how the new innovative tools can be brought down to the community level,
and to ensure that these are user-friendly and accessible.
Lastly, Mr. Badral Tuvshin, Chief/Major General, National Emergency Management Agency,Mongolia, introduced the preparatory process for the Asian Ministerial Conference on Disaster RiskReduction (AMCDRR), co-hosted by the Government of Mongolia and UNISDR in 2018. Themember countries expressed support to the AMCDRR and to track progress of the actions
recommended in this conference, and also confirmed that after the AMCDRR, the ACDR2018 will
be held in Awaji, Hyogo prefecture, Japan for the year of the ADRC’s 20th anniversary, and ADRC
invited member countries to explore its future activities throughout the preparatory process.
The ACDR2017 was a great success thanks to the important contributions of all the speakers andthe active involvement of all participants. The ACDR2017 documents and the final conference
summary are available on the ADRC website at http://www.adrc.asia/acdr/2017_index.html.

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