5. Promoting Cooperation with Member Countries, International Organizations and NGOs

5-3. Promoting Cooperation with Member Countries,
International Organizations and NGOs
The Asian Disaster Reduction Center (ADRC) places high priority on the development ofinstitutional and personal network to share disaster information in the Asia region. Developing
personal networks between professionals and their counterparts in member countries, adviser
countries, and observer organizations is vital to promoting cooperation on disaster reduction
efforts in Asia. Therefore, the ADRC invites management level officials, including deputy
directors, directors, and managers, to its annual ADRC International Meeting to encourageinterpersonal exchanges.

(1) 4th Global Platform for Disaster Risk Reduction
The ADRC and International Recovery Platform (IRP) participated in the 4th Global
Platform for Disaster Reduction (GP), hosted by the UN International Strategy for Disaster
Reduction (UNISDR) from 21 to 23 May 2013 at the International Conference Centre in
Geneva, Switzerland. The 4th GP brought together more than 3,500 participants from 171
countries, including representatives of national and local governments, inter-governmentalorganizations, nongovernmental organizations, business, academia, and local communities.
The aim of the 4th GP was to continue the momentum on durable and sustained efforts by
all actors to take shared responsibility in reducing risks and reinforcing resilience in ourcommunities. The 4th GP provided an opportunity to review progress on the Hyogo
Framework of Action (HFA) and to consult on the framework for the next term, the so-called“HFA2.”Mr. Ueli Maurer, President of the Swiss Confederation, Mr. Jan Eliasson, UN Deputy
Secretary-General, the Deputy Prime Minister of Namibia, and the Civil Defense Minister of
New Zealand gave the welcome remarks at the opening ceremony. These were followed byabout 170 official events, such as the official statements by participant countries and reports
by participating organizations on their activities. That same afternoon, ADRC held a special
meeting entitled “Regional Mechanisms for Disaster Risk Reduction in Asia: Building
Resilience through Innovation and Partnerships,” which it co-hosted with the Asian Disaster
Preparedness Center (ADPC) and Asian Disaster Rescue and Response Network (ADRRN).
These three organizations introduced the typical activities undertaken to promote their
missions. And several participants stressed the importance of strong cooperation between
Asian regional organizations such as ADRC, ADPC, and ADRRN.
There were also meetings held among participants during the conference period. On 22
May, the executive director of ADRC had an opportunity to meet with the delegate from Iran,
Mr. Ghadami, Deputy Minister of the Interior and Head of the National Organization for
Disaster Reduction (NDMO). As Iran became an ADRC-member country last December, Mr.
Ghadami expressed high hopes of receiving support from ADRC to help it strengthen its
DRR capacity. Both sides reaffirmed their mutual interests in developing cooperation57

between ADRC and NDMO. Later that day, information about this meeting was posted on
the NDMO web site.
On the third day of the session, the Cabinet Office of Japan and IRP organized a side eventon “Lessons on Recovery from Mega-Disasters” which was attended by 124 people from
ADRC, IRP partners, international and regional institutions, governments, and NGOs. It
showcased effective recovery experiences from the governments of New Zealand, Japan, theUS, and Pakistan. The event further explored measures for integrating recovery indevelopment planning as well as efforts to achieve effective recovery strategy andframeworks. It also highlighted the key strategic recommendations on recovery for the Post2015 DRR Framework (HFA2).
At the closing ceremony, the chairperson, Mr. Dahinden, Director-General of the Swiss
Agency for Development Cooperation, released the draft of the Chair’s Summary, and Ms.
Wahlström extended her gratitude to the participants. The Japanese government's delegate,
Mr. Yoshitami Kameoka, Parliamentary Secretary for Disaster Management, declared that thenext UN World Conference on Disaster Reduction(WCDR) will be held in March 2015 in
Sendai City, Japan.

(2) 1st Meeting of the Executive Committee and Development
Support Group for the 6th Asia Ministerial Conference forDisaster Risk Reduction (AMCDRR)
United Nations International Strategy for Disaster Reduction (UNISDR) has hosted
AMCDRR every two years to discuss DRR topics in Asian countries. The 6th AMCDRR will
be held in Thailand in June 2014. For the purpose of deciding the framework of theConference, 1st Executive Committee (EC) of 6th AMCDRR was held on 5 to 6 August in
Bangkok.
The EC was hosted by UNISDR and the Thai Government. The Indonesian Government
which has hosted the 5th AMCDRR, the Government of Japan which will host the next
United Nations World Conference on Disaster Risk Reduction in 2015 (WCDRR2015), thedonor agencies such as USAID, AusAID and JICA, World Bank, Asian Development Bankand the Asian regional organizations such as ADPC, ADRRN and ADRC participated in thismeeting.
In the EC, the framework of 6th AMCDRR was discussed. In order to consolidate theproposal for WCDRR2015 from the Asian region, EC participants determined “Promoting
investments for resilient nations and communities” as the main theme of the Conference andselected three sub-themes; 1) Enhance resilience at local levels, 2) Increase public
investments for disaster and climate risk management to protect development gains and 3)
Private sector role – Public & private partnerships for disaster risk reduction.

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5. Promoting Cooperation with Member Countries, International Organizations and NGOs

(3) 2nd Meeting of the UNISDR Asia Partnership for 2013
The 2nd UNISDR Asia Partnership (IAP) meeting for the year 2013 was held on 5 to 7
November 2013 in Bangkok, Thailand. The main focus of this IAP was the substantive
preparation of the 6th Asia Ministerial Conference on Disaster Risk Reduction (AMCDRR);
engagement processes for stakeholder groups and partners in the AMCDRR and World
Conference on Disaster Risk Reduction (WCDRR); and the HFA2 (future DRR framework)
consultation and background preparation for the HFA2 input from the region.
At the meeting, ADRC expressed its contribution to the substantive in the “key area” suchas “reducing exposure/underlying risk factors” and “incentive for private sector in DRR”,
and to the consultation process through “the Asian Conference on Disaster Reduction(ACDR).”(4) 3rd Session of UNESCAP's Committee on Disaster Risk
Reduction in Bangkok
The 3rd session of the Committee on Disaster Risk Reduction, organized by the United
Nations Economic and Social Commission for Asia and the Pacific (UNESCAP), was held at
the United Nations Conference Centre in Bangkok, Thailand from 27 to 29 November 2013.
The forum's many participants included officials from UNESCAP member countries as well
as experts from intergovernmental organizations, and also ADRC.
During the session entitled “Mainstreaming Disaster Risk Reduction into Development,”
we praised the ability of the governments and people of UNESCAP member countries topromote recovery and reconstruction following large-scale disasters. We also noted that
ADRC and IRP have long been assisting ADRC member countries in their efforts to utilize
Japanese technologies, experiences, and lessons related to disaster risk reduction. This
assistance includes the Visiting Researcher (VR) Program, a capacity building program
wherein ADRC offers three months of training to government officials. In fact, ADRC has
been pleased to see many former VRs now playing a central role in the ministries in chargeof disaster management in their home countries.
We also emphasized the importance of everyday preparedness by citizens, in addition to
government efforts, when a massive disaster strikes. Two major events, ADRC’s “Asian
Conference on Disaster Reduction,” to be held in Tokyo on 4 to 6 March 2014, and IRP’s“International Recovery Forum,” to be held in Kobe on 21 January 2014, will present
evidence of the progress made in the areas of disaster reduction and preparedness in
preparation for the next UN World Conference on Disaster Reduction scheduled for 2015.
ADRC/IRP, together with UNESCAP and its member countries, will continue to support
efforts to strengthen the disaster reduction capabilities of affected communities.

59(5) 6th Asia-Pacific Economy Cooperation (APEC) Emergency
Preparedness Working Group (EPWG) Meeting
APEC is the premier Asia-Pacific economic forum whose primary goal is to support
sustainable economic growth and prosperity in the Asia-Pacific region, championing free andopen trade and investment, promoting and accelerating regional economic integration,encouraging economic and technical cooperation, enhancing human security, and facilitatinga favorable and sustainable business environment.
The EPWG was first established as APEC's Task Force for Emergency Preparedness(TFEP) by APEC Senior Officials in 2005 and mandated to coordinate and facilitate
emergency and disaster preparedness within APEC. In 2009 APEC Leaders reaffirmed theimportance of enhancing human security and reducing the threat of disruptions to businessand trade in the Asia-Pacific region. Recognizing the importance of its work, in 2010 the
TFEP was upgraded in status to a working group. Now the EPWG continues to play aconstructive role in enabling the region to better prepare for and respond to emergencies anddisasters by helping to reduce the risk of disasters and building business and community
resilience. By sharing expertise and collaborating on emergency preparedness issues, APEC
members strengthen their capacity to mitigate emergencies and disasters. In recent years, theglobal economic damage caused by the Great East-Japan Earthquake and Thai flood in 2011
urged APEC EPWG to disseminate the business continuity plan (BCP) especially amongsmall and medium-sized enterprises (SMEs). The 6th EPWG was held on 17 to 18 Feb in
Ningbo, China,and ADRC participated in the meeting.
Funded by APEC, ADRC has researched the BCPs among small and middle-sizedenterprises and edited the guidebook on BCP considering the rapid economic growth in Asia
region.
At the beginning of the meeting, Executive Director of ADRC was elected as co-chairmanof EPWG. Then the co-chair and member economies reported the activities in 2013 andproposed the work plan of 2014, which encourages to continue the dissemination of BCM
among SMEs and to enhance the resilience of supply-chain, and launches the new project
titled “The Workshop of a Space-and-ICT based disaster management system to enhance
supply-chain resilience and BCP.”(6) 8th Integrated Workshop of the Typhoon Committee
ADRC participated in the 8th Integrated Workshop of the Typhoon Committee held inconjunction with the 2nd Training and Research Coordination Group Forum jointly
organized by the United Nations Economic and Social Commission for Asia and the Pacific(UNESCAP), the World Meteorological Organization(WMO) Typhoon Committee
Secretariat, and the Macao Meteorological and Geophysical Bureau in Macao on 2-4
December 2013. The more than 100 participants who attended the meeting included
representatives of Cambodia, China, D.P.R. Korea, Japan, Lao, Malaysia, the Philippines, the60

5. Promoting Cooperation with Member Countries, International Organizations and NGOs

Republic of Korea, Thailand, the US, and Vietnam, as well as representatives of theorganizing institutions. The participants discussed“Forecasting, Warnings, and DRR
Strategies in the Mitigation of Tropical Cyclone Impacts in a Multihazard Environment,”
which was the main theme of the meeting.
For the Disaster Risk Reduction Working Group, Japan's Cabinet Office gave apresentation on the damage caused by typhoons in 2013 and on ADRC activities such as the
Visiting Researcher Program. Delegates from the Philippines and Vietnam gave apresentation on the damage caused by Typhoon Haiyan and the current status of response
efforts, and the WMO and Japan Meteorological Agency reported on the assistance they
offered, such as the provision of typhoon information. As a result, there were fruitful
discussions on such topics as the enhancement of cooperation among member countries.
During this session, the WMO suggested that a manual be developed for processing
emergency requests from member countries, as similar requests are likely to be made in the
future, and that an emergency network be constructed among the Typhoon Committee
Secretariat and member countries. A decision was made to investigate this issue further.
The Typhoon Committee has two other working groups covering meteorology andhydrology, in addition to the working group on disaster risk reduction. This time, the threeworking group meetings and the Training and Research Coordination Group Forum were
held together as an integrated event. For more information, visit the typhoon committee
website:http://www.typhooncommittee.org/8IWS_2TRCG/8IWS_2TRCG.html.

(7) International Forum on Recovery and Reconstruction Following
China's Sichuan Earthquake
The Forum on Post-Disaster Revival and International Disaster Reduction: Experience andLessons from 5-Year Wenchuan Post-Disaster Reconstruction and Lushan Earthquake Relief,
organized by Sichuan University and Hong Kong Polytechnic University, was held in
Chengdu, China from 8 to 9 May 2013. The forum's more than 300 participants included
experts ranging from government officials to academic experts across China as well as
ADRC and International Recovery Platform (IRP).
During the keynote speech, ADRC and IRP praised the ability of the Chinese government
and people to promote recovery and reconstruction efforts following the Wenchuan
Earthquake that struck Sichuan Province in May 2008, and we have long been involved in
facilitating China’s efforts to utilize Japanese technologies, experiences, and lessons related
to earthquake disaster risk reduction.
We also emphasized the importance of everyday preparedness by citizens, in addition to
government efforts, when a massive disaster strikes. In this regard, the Lushan Earthquakethat occurred in late April showed evidence of the progress that has been made in disaster
reduction and preparedness over the past five years.

61

In commemoration of the fifth anniversary of the Wenchuan Earthquake, the HK PolyU
Institute for Disaster Management and Reconstruction (IDMR) has been established at
Sichuan University. After the opening ceremony, a signing ceremony of the MoU between
ADRC, IRP and IDMR was held. Both organizations are committed to promoting theeffective

disclosureandsharingofinformation related to disaster prevention andpost-disasterdisasterreconstruction,

prevention

anddeveloping
post-disasterreconstruction programs, and educating people
in the field of disaster prevention andpost-disasterdedicatedreconstruction.
tocooperation

They
and

are
mutualparticipation in the following areas:
1) Promoting personnel exchanges among
research staff, faculty, and students

Fig. 5-3-1 Signing Ceremony of the MoU
between ADRC and IDMR

2) Giving priority to joint research projects to promote collaborative research
3) Promoting the sharing of research findings and professional knowledge
ADRC, together with the IDMR, will continue to support efforts to strengthen the disaster
reduction capabilities of the affected communities.

(8) Consultation Workshop on Developing a Capacity-Building
Strategy through the Establishment of a Disaster Management
Training Center in Myanmar
Myanmar is a disaster prone country. In May 2008, Cyclone Nargis left 130,000 people
either dead or missing. Subsequently, Myanmar was affected by natural disasters including
floods and landslides in 2010 and a heavy earthquake in 2011.
After those natural disasters, the government of Myanmar prepared the “Myanmar Action
Plan for Disaster Risk Reduction" in 2012, and has been promoting various DRR projects
based on that plan. The government of Myanmar decided to establish a "Disaster
Management Training Center" in order to enhance disaster prevention awareness and to train
personnel involved in disaster management, and planned to build the facility for the Center
over three years starting in 2013.
From 2 to 4 July, with the aim of offering proposals and advice to the government of
Myanmar regarding the training and educational content to be offered through the center, aworkshop was held in Nay Pyi Daw, the new capital city of Myanmar. It was sponsored by
the International Cooperation Agency of Japan (JICA) and the United Nations Development
Program. The workshop was attended by about 80 people representing Asian governments(including Myanmar), international organizations, and NPOs. ADRC staff member was also
invited to attend.

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5. Promoting Cooperation with Member Countries, International Organizations and NGOs

The workshop included introducing the education and training centers in Thailand andSingapore, as well as presentations by JICA and the Asian Disaster Preparedness Center on
their international capacity-building businesses. ADRC also presented information on its
capacity-building activities for Myanmar, including the Visiting Researcher program. Under
this program, young officials in member countries are invited to Japan to participate in a
DRR training program for local government officials sponsored by the Japan-ASEAN
Integration Fund.

Fig. 5-3-2

Opening Speech by the Union
Minister of Social Welfare,
Relief and Resettlement

63

Fig. 5-3-3 Presentation by Executive
Director of ADRC