ASIAN DISASTER REDUCTION CENTER
Visiting Researcher Program (FY2021)

COMMUNITY-BASEDDISASTER RISK MANAGEMENT IN JAPANA LESSON LEARNEDFOR VIETNAMADRC Visiting Researcher
THAI MINH HUONGDivision of International Cooperation and Science Technology
Viet Nam Disaster and Dyke Management Authority
Ministry of Agriculture and Rural Development

1

Disclaimer
This report was compiled by an ADRC visiting researcher (VR) from ADRC member
countries.
The views expressed in the report do not necessarily reflect the views of the ADRC. The
boundaries and names shown and the designations used on the maps in the report also
do not imply official endorsement or acceptance by the ADRC.

Table of Content
ACKNOWLEDGEMENT................................................................................................. 6
CHAPTER 1: INTRODUCTION ...................................................................................... 7
1. Background information and rationale ................................................................... 7
2. Objectives of the research .................................................................................... 8
3. Main activities ....................................................................................................... 8
CHAPTER 2: DISASTER RISK MANAGEMENT IN JAPAN ......................................... 9
1. General information .............................................................................................. 9
1.1 Geography ......................................................................................................... 9
1.2 Population .......................................................................................................... 9
1.3 Climate and river characteristics ........................................................................ 9
2. Japan disaster risk profile ................................................................................... 10
3. Major disasters in Japan ..................................................................................... 11
4. Japan disaster management system ................................................................... 12
4.1 Legal basis for disaster risk management in Japan .......................................... 12
4.2 Organizational structure for disaster risk management in Japan ...................... 14
4.3 Disaster Management Plans ............................................................................ 16
CHAPTER 3: DISASTER RISK MANAGEMENT IN VIETNAM .................................... 19
1. General information ............................................................................................ 19
1.1 Geography ....................................................................................................... 19
1.2 Population ........................................................................................................ 19
1.3 Climate............................................................................................................. 19
2. Vietnam disaster risk profile ................................................................................ 19
3. Major disasters in Vietnam .................................................................................. 21
4. Vietnam disaster risk management system ......................................................... 23
4.1

Legal basis for disaster risk management in Vietnam .................................. 23

4.2.

Organizational structure for disaster risk management in Vietnam ............... 24

CHAPTER 4: COMMUNITY BASED DISASTER RISK MANAGEMENT ..................... 27
1. Introduction ......................................................................................................... 27
2. Public awareness raising and community-based disaster risk management in Japan28
2.1 Awareness Raising and Knowledge Promotion on Disaster Reduction ............ 28
Hanshin Expressway Earthquake Museum ............................................................... 292

2.2 Promoting Community Disaster Management Plan at the Municipal level ........ 29
2.4

Successful models on CBDRM .................................................................... 30

3. Community-based disaster risk management in Vietnam .................................... 32
3.1 National Program on Public Awareness Raising and Community based disasterrisk management ............................................................................................................... 32
3.2 Challenges of Vietnam in implementing CBDRM approach .............................. 34
CHAPTER 5: LESSONS LEARNED FOR VIETNAM ................................................... 37
1. Lessons learned from Japan ............................................................................... 37
2. Recommendations .............................................................................................. 38
REFERENCES ............................................................................................................. 41
1. Japan .................................................................................................................... 41
2. Vietnam ................................................................................................................. 41

3

List of Figures
Figure 1: Map of Japan................................................................................................... 9
Figure 2: River gradients in Japan and the world .......................................................... 10
Figure 3: Number of Deaths and Missing caused by natural disasters in Japan .......... 11
Figure 4: the Great Hanshin-Awaji earthquake (1995). ................................................. 11
Figure 5: the Great East Japan earthquake (2011). ...................................................... 12
Figure 6: Cabinet Office and Related Ministries and Agencies ..................................... 15
Figure 7: Organization of National Disaster Management Council ................................ 15
Figure 8: Outline of the Disaster Management System ................................................. 16
Figure 9 : Structure of Disaster Planning System ......................................................... 17
Figure 10: Structure of Basic Plan for Disaster Risk Reduction .................................... 17
Figure 11: Map of Vietnam ........................................................................................... 19
Figure 12: Map of hazard zones in Vietnam ................................................................. 20
Figure 13: Damages and losses of disaster for the period 1990 – 2020 in Vietnam ...... 21
Figure 14 : Timeline of weather systems from 6 October to 15 November 2020. .......... 22
Figure 15 : Systems of DRM in Viet Nam ..................................................................... 24
Figure 16: Education on disaster risk management in schools in Japan ....................... 29
Figure 17 : Historical timeline of community-based organizations ................................. 30
Figure 18: Bokomi model .............................................................................................. 32
Figure 19 : CBDRM Training for the local community ................................................... 35

4

Abbreviation
ADB

Asia Development Bank

ADRC

Asia Disaster Reduction Center

CBO

Community based organization

CCA

Climate change adaptation

CBDRM

Community-based disaster risk management

DRM

Disaster risk management

DRR

Disaster risk reduction

DRRP

Disaster Risk Reduction Partnership

GEJE

Great East Japan Earthquake

JICA

Japan International Cooperation Agency

LNDPC

Law on Natural Disaster Prevention and Control also
known as Vietnam Disaster Risk Management Law

MARDMinistry of Agriculture and Rural Development of Vietnam

MLIT

The Ministry of Land, Infrastructure, Transport andTourism of Japan

NDPC

Natural Disaster Prevention and Control

NGO

Non-governmental organization

NSCDPC

National Steering Committee for Disaster Prevention andControl

VNDMA

Viet Nam Disaster Management Authority

UN

United Nations

5

ACKNOWLEDGEMENT
The study “Community based disaster risk management in Japan – Lessons
learned for Vietnam” is the final results of the Visiting Researcher Program of the Asian
Disaster Reduction Center (ADRC). During my stay in Japan, I have learned a lot about
the disaster risk management system of Japan. Like Vietnam, Japan is also prone todisasters. However, Japan has shown strong resilience in coping with disasters byapplying modern technologies, good governance, and effective international cooperation.
I also learned that Japan is famous for the community based disaster risk management(CBDRM) models and best practices that promotes the active involvement of thecommunity in preparing and responding to the disaster.
Thanks to the ADRC Visiting Researcher Program, I have a chance to witness
how Japan deals with disaster risks. By taking the program activities, I can update myknowledge and skills, and learn best practices in community-based disaster risk
management. After my time in Japan, when I return to Vietnam, I am excited to be able
to share my new knowledge with my colleagues and practice what I have learned in myown country.
Lastly, I would like to express my sincere thanks to my ADRC colleagues for their
help and support during my stay in Japan. I would like to convey my sincere thanks to Mr.
Sasahara Akio (Executive Director), Ms. Miki Kodama and Mr. Makoto Ikeda and otherstaff of ADRC that gave us the valuable lectures, kindness and guidance. Especially I
would like to thank Ms. Miki Kodama – my mentor who gives us the concrete guidanceand supports to fulfil my tasks in Japan.

6CHAPTER 1: INTRODUCTION
1. Background information and rationale
Over the past few decades, efforts by the international communities have graduallyshifted from disaster response to disaster prevention and preparedness. This highlights
the need for proactive disaster risk reduction approach and promoting the role of local
community by utilizing their traditional experience and knowledge. The new communitybased disaster risk management approach not only addresses local needs but also
overlooks the strengths of on-the-spot resources and capacities.
The term CBDRM (community-based disaster risk management) was firstcommonly used in the mid-1990s in Asia after realizing that (1) People living in high risk
areas will be affected the most when natural disasters strike and must take responsibility
in responding and supporting each other to reduce disaster impacts; (2) Local people
having best knowledge on their area’s disadvantages and obtaining practical experienceand skills on traditional responses suitable to the environment, economic, culture
conditions; (3) The CBDRM approach focuses on building the capacity of communities toassess their vulnerability and risks to both human-induced and natural hazards anddevelop strategies using available resources to prevent and mitigate the impact ofidentified hazards. According to this approach, the local community is not only a part ofplanning and decision making, but also becoming a key player in the implementation
process. Around the world, CBDRM models have been built and developed extensively,
consistent with the characteristics and capacity of each locality and country. Sharing
experiences and lessons learned contributes to reducing damages and strengthening thecapacity of vulnerable communities.
Vietnam is one of the most hazard-prone countries in the Asia-Pacific Region. With
the coastline of 3,300 km, the country is exposed to hydro-meteorological hazards.
Among them, flood, storm, flashflood, landslides and droughts are the recurring natural
disaster and claimed for the most damages. Over the past 20 years, disasters caused
500 dead and missing persons per year, and an economic loss to the GDP is about1÷1.5%.
Japan is located in the Circum-Pacific Mobile Belt where seismic and volcanic
activities occur constantly. Because of geographical, topographical and meteorologicalconditions, Japan is also subject to frequent natural disasters such as typhoons, torrential
rains, heavy snowfalls, as well as earthquakes and tsunami. Like Vietnam, every year
there is a great loss of people’s lives and properties in Japan due to natural disasters.
Both countries have a long standing experience of “self-help” and “mutual help”
during the disaster events. And of the reason make Japan more resilient to disaster is thefull use of the community participation in disaster risk reduction activities. With many bestpractices arises from all parts of the country, Japan is a famous DRM model for othercountries in the Asian in particular and the world in general to learn from. This report willsummary some of Japanese best practices in CBDRM which are applicable for Vietnam7with the purpose wide-spreading the effective DRR models in the joint effort of minimizing
disaster impacts.
2. Objectives of the research
The research will focus on the following objectives:- Provide an overview picture of disaster risk management system in generaland community-based disaster risk management activities in particular in Vietnam andJapan.
- Japan best practices on community based disaster risk management:
experiences and lessons learned for Vietnam.
-

Recommendations for Vietnam to apply successful CBDRM models of Japan.

3. Main activities
To obtain the research objectives, the following activities will be conducted:
Japan:•

Review and analyze relevant documents on DRM and CBDRM in Vietnam andJapan 2022 White Paper on Disaster Management (Cabinet Office,
Government of Japan).
• Disaster management in Japan (Cabinet Office, Government of Japan).
• Bokomi Guidebook – Sharing lessons learned by the City of Kobe from theGreat Hanshin – Awaiji Earthquake (JICA, Disaster Reduction Learning Center,
KOBE City Fire Bureau);• My TimeLine Project (Originally published in Journal of Japan Society of Civil
Engineers)• Decision No. 553/QD-TTg, dated 06/04/2021 of the Prime Minister onapproving the national program on community awareness raising andcommunity-based disaster risk management.
- Understand the relations between the Government organizations and local
communities in preparing the CBDRM Plan in Japan- Take part in the field visit to learn the community based disaster risk reduction
activities such as the town-watching for disaster risk reduction1, Iza! Mikaeru Caravan!
(disaster prevention education event)2, drills, etc.

1 https://www.adrc.asia/publications/TW/TownWatching.pdf
2 http://kaeru-caravan.jp/en.html

8

CHAPTER 2: DISASTER RISK MANAGEMENT IN JAPAN1. General information
1.1 Geography
Japan is an island country located in thewestern Pacific Ocean. Total land area is about
377,727km2 3 . Japan has a total of 6,852 islands
extending along the Pacific coast of East Asia. The
country, including all of the islands, lies between
latitudes 240 and 460N, and longitudes 1220 and
1460E. The main islands, from north to south, are
Hokkaido, Honshu, Shikoku and Kyushu. The capitalis Tokyo.
Japan is predominantly mountainous – about
Figure 1: Map of Japan
70% of the national land is mountain – and longmountain ranges form the backbone of the archipelago. The Japan Alps studded with3,000 meter peaks bisect the central portion of Honsu – the main island. Japan is locatedin the Circum-Pacific Volcanic Belt (also known as the “Ring of Fire”) where seismic andvolcanic activities occur constantly. Japan and its surrounding areas experience roughlya tenth of all earthquakes that occur in the world. Of the world’s active volcanoes, 7,1%
exist in Japan (JMA, 2016).
1.2 Population
The population is mainly concentrated in lowland urban areas especially in Kanto,
Chubu and Kinki districts along the Pacific coast of Honsu. Total population is about
127.77 million. Japan’s population density is 327 people/km 2 – one of the most densely
populated countries in the world.
1.3 Climate and river characteristics
A major feature of Japan’s climate is the clear-cut temperature changes between
the four seasons. In spite of its rather small area, the climate differs in regions from asubarctic to a subtropical climate. The side of the country which faces the Sea of Japan
has a climate with much snow in winter by seasonal winds from the Siberia. Most of theareas have rainy season from May to July by the seasonal winds from the Pacific Ocean.
Due to Japan’s extreme topographical and meteorological conditions, the rivers
exhibit distractive natural characteristics. Rivers in Japan are narrow, steep and short

3 Ministry of Land, Infrastructure, Transport and Tourism website,”the Disaster Risk of the Land ofJapan” https://www.mlit.go.jp/river/basic_info/english/land.html
9making them prone to flooding4. The ratio of peak flow discharge to the basin area isrelatively large, ranging from 10 times to 100 times. The water level rises and falls very
quickly and the volume of sediment runoff is large.

Figure 2: River gradients in Japan and the world

2. Japan disaster risk profile
Japan is located in the Circum-Pacific Mobile Belt where seismic and volcanic
activities occur constantly. Although the country covers only 0.25% of the land area on
the planet, the number of earthquakes and active volcanoes is quite high. Because ofgeographical, topographical and meteorological conditions, the country is subject tofrequent natural disasters such as typhoons, torrential rains, heavy snowfalls, as well as
earthquakes and tsunami. Japan is affected by typhoon mostly every year and volcanic
disasters triggered by eruption and volcanic earthquake.
Every year there is a great loss of people’s lives and properties in Japan due tonatural disasters. Until the second half of 1960s, large-scale typhoons with earthquakes
caused extensive damage and thousands of casualties. Thereafter, with the progress ofsociety’s capabilities to respond to disasters and mitigate vulnerabilities to disasters bydeveloping disaster management systems, promoting national land conservation,
improving weather forecasting technologies, and upgrading disaster information
communications systems, disaster damage has shown a declining tendency.

4 Ministry of Land, Infrastructure, Transport and Tourism, Water and Disaster Management Bureau

website, Overview of River Administration in Japan 2005.
10

Figure 3: Number of Deaths and Missing caused by natural disasters in Japan 5
Source: 2022 White Paper on Disaster Management in Japan

3. Major disasters in Japan
Japan is prone to natural disaster, especially earthquake. In 1995, more than 6,400
people died of the Great Hanshin-Awaji Earthquake. Also in 2011, more than 22,000
people died or went missing due to the Great East Japan Earthquake (GEJE). There isalso a high probability of the occurrence of large scale earthquakes in the near future
including impending possibilities of Nankai Trough Earthquake and Tokyo Inland
Earthquake. As such, natural disasters remain a menacing threat to the safety andsecurity of the country. Followings are the summary of major disasters in Japan:
Great Hanshin-Awaji Earthquake (January 1995)
On 17 January 1995, an earthquake with a 7.3 on the Richter scale occurred at Awaji
island of Hyogo Prefecture in Western Japan. It killed 6,434 people, injured 43,792 people,
destroyed 104,906 houses, half destroyed 144,274 houses, and partially destroyed
390,506 houses. By the fires broke out along with the earthquake, the area of 835,858
square meters was burnt down.

Figure 4: The Great Hanshin-Awaji earthquake (1995).
Source: Cabinet Office, White Paper on Disaster Management

5 With regards to the Hanshin-Awaiji Earthquake and the Great East Japan Earthquake, those

figures include earthquake-related deaths.
11

The Great East Japan Earthquake
A magnitude 9.0 earthquake hit the northeastern Japan on 11 March 2011,
recording the largest earthquake ever hit in Japan. Its epicenter was located in the coastof Sanriku and its epicentral area stretched from the coasts of Iwate Prefecture to Ibaraki
Prefecture. Massive shakes were observed particularly in eastern Japan including
Japanese intensity scale of 7 registered in the north of Miyagi Prefecture. Furthermore,this earthquake triggered seafloor movements and generated massive tsunami.
According to the National Police Agency, this earthquake and tsunami have left
unprecedented human suffering: 15,870 people death, 2,814 people missing and 6,114
people injured, as well as property damage: 129,472 totally collapsed buildings, 255,977
half collapsed buildings and 702,928 partially collapsed buildings. Furthermore, the valueof the destruction of the social infrastructure, housing, and corporate facilities wasestimated at 16.9 trillion yen and it had a great impact on Japanese economy.

Figure 5: The Great East Japan earthquake (2011).
Source: Ishinomaki City, "Great East Japan Earthquake Archive Miyagi"

4. Japan disaster management system
4.1 Legal basis for disaster risk management in Japan
Japan has had the progress in disaster management laws and systems since1945. It is a national priority to protect national land as well as citizens’ lives,
livelihoods, and property from natural disasters. The turning point for strengthening
the disaster management system came into effect in response to the immense
damage caused by Typhoon Isewan in 1959, and led to the enactment of the Basic
Act on Disaster Management in 1961, which formulates a comprehensive andstrategic disaster management system. Thereafter, the disaster management system
has been continuously reviewed and revised following the lessons learned from largescale disasters.
In order to applying to all of the disaster phases of prevention, mitigation andpreparedness, emergency response as well as recovery and rehabilitation, relevantlaws and regulations were enacted. They include Basic Act on Disaster Management(1961), Disaster Relief Act (1947), Building Standard Law (1950), Landslide
Prevention Act (1958), River Act (1964), and Act on Special Measures for Large-scale
Earthquakes (1978).
Japan’s legislation for disaster management system have addressed all of the12disaster phases of prevention and preparedness, emergency response as well as
recovery and reconstruction with roles and responsibilities among the national andlocal governments clearly defined. It is stipulated that the relevant entities of the public
and private sectors are to cooperate in implementing various disastercountermeasures.
The Basic Act on Disaster Management has constantly been reviewed andamended since its first enactment, and with lessons learned from the Great East
Japan Earthquake, provisions were added including enhancement of the measuresconcerning support activities mutually done by local governments in 2012 and themeasures for ensuring smooth and safe evacuation of residents and improving
protection of affected people in 2013. In 2014, provisions were added forstrengthening measures against unattended cars in order to promptly clear them fromthe roads for emergency vehicles. In 2021, in order to ensure smooth and prompt
evacuation in the event of a disaster and strengthen the implementation system fordisaster measures, evacuation information was reviewed, individual evacuation plans
were legalized, and consultation rules for wide-area evacuation were established. In
addition, the government has taken measures such as making it possible to establish
a disaster management headquarter for disasters of a scale that has not been able
to establish a national disaster response headquarters
Table 1: Outline of the Basic Act on Disaster Management

1. Clearer definition of the philosophy and the responsibilities for disaster management.
o Clarification of basic principles of disaster countermeasures: Clarification of basic policiesooincluding the concept of disaster reduction
Responsibilities of the government, prefectures, municipalities, and designated public
institutions: Formulation and implementation of the plan for disaster management, mutual
cooperation
Responsibilities of residents: Self-preparedness for disaster, stockpiling of basic necessities,
voluntary participation in disaster preparedness activities

2 Organization: Development and promotion of 3. Planning system: Development andcomprehensive
disastermanagement promotion of systematic disaster managementadministration
measureso National government: Central Disaster o National Disaster Management Council:
Management Council, major (extreme)
Disaster Management Basic Plan
disaster management headquarters
o Designated local government organizationso Prefectural and municipal governments:
and public institutions: Local Disaster
Local disaster management headquarters
management plano Prefectures and municipalities: Local
disaster management operation plano Residents: Community disastermanagement plan
4. Promotion of Disaster Countermeasures
5. Protection of affected people and theiro Definition of the roles and responsibilities to livelihood
be performed by each actor in each stage of o Prior preparation of the lists of the people
prevention, preparedness, response andrequiring assistance in the case of disasterrecoveryo Clarification of the standards for evacuationo Primary disaster response procedures
centers and facilities in the case of disasterincluding evacuation order by the head of o Improvement and expansion of protection
municipalities taking over emergency
measures for affected people through13

measures by prefectures or designatedadministrations in case of the large-scaledisasteropreparation of the certificates and the list ofaffected people
Stipulation of the framework for wide-scaleevacuation and goods transportation

6. Financial measures
7. State of Disaster Emergency
o Implementation of laws are funded by each o Declaration of disaster emergency state
responsible party→Cabinet decision of government’s policy
o Financial measures for extreme disasters(basic policy for countermeasures)by the governmento Emergency measures (restriction on
distribution of basic necessities, moratorium
on financial obligation, urgent enactment of
Cabinet Order related to acceptance ofinternational support, automatic enforcementof the Act on Special Measures concerning
Preservation of Rights and Interests ofVictims of Specified Disaster)

4.2 Organizational structure for disaster risk management in Japan
4.2.1 Cabinet Office and related ministries in DRM system
Since the reforms of the central government system in 2001, a Minister of State
for Disaster Management is placed to integrate and coordinate disaster risk management
policies and measures of ministries and agencies. With the revision of the Basic Act on
Disaster Management in 2021, the Minister of State for Disaster Management is legallyrequired, and the government's disaster prevention system is being further strengthenedin terms of organization. In the Cabinet Office, which is responsible for securing
cooperation and collaboration among related government organizations in wide-ranging
issues, the Director General for Disaster Management is mandated to undertake theplanning of basic disaster management policies and response to large-scale disasters,
as well as conduct overall coordination. To prepare for disasters, the National Disaster
Management Council with the Prime Minister as the Chair and all Cabinet members
decides the national government’s disaster management policies. Such decisions arecarried out by respective ministries and agencies, accordingly. In the event of a largescale disaster, the Cabinet Office is engaged in collection and dissemination of accurate
information, reporting to the Prime Minister, establishment of the emergency activities
system including the Government’s Disaster Management Headquarters, overall wide
area coordination concerning disaster response measures.

14

Figure 6: Cabinet Office and Related Ministries and Agencies

4.2.2 National Disaster Management Council
The National Disaster Management Council is one of the councils that deal withcrucial policies of the Cabinet and is established in the Cabinet Office based on the Basic
Act on Disaster Management. The Council consists of the Prime Minister as thechairperson, all members of the Cabinet, heads of major public corporations and experts.
The Council develops the Basic Disaster Management Plan and establishes basic
disaster management policies and plays a role of promoting comprehensive disastercountermeasures including deliberating important issues on disaster management uponrequests from the Prime Minister or Minister of State for Disaster Management.

Figure 7: Organization of National Disaster Management Council
15

Within the Cabinet Office, which is the secretariat for this Council, the Minister ofState for Disaster Management has been assigned as the Minister State for Special
Missions for this issue. This Minister is assisted by the department of the Cabinet OfficeDirector-General for Disaster Management his mandate being to handle planning andcentral coordination with regard to matters relating to basic policy on disaster risk
reduction, and matters concerning disaster countermeasures in the event of a large-scaledisaster.

Figure 8: Outline of the Disaster Management System

4.3 Disaster Management Plans
Japan is governed by a three-tiered administration: the national government,
prefectures and municipalities. The head of each level takes full responsibility for thatjurisdiction in a structure similar to that of a nation. Comprehensive disasterprevention plans are developed in accordance with the roles to be performed at eachstage. Followings are the disaster management planning system in Japan
3.4.1 Disaster Management Planning System• Basic Disaster Management Plan: This plan is the highest-level plan andconstitutes the basis for disaster management activities prepared by theCentral Disaster Management Council based on the Basic Act on Disaster
Management.
• Disaster Management Operation Plan: This is a plan made by each designatedgovernment organization and designated public corporation based on the Basic
Disaster Management Plan

16• Local Disaster Management Plan:
This is a plan made by each Prefectural
and Municipal Disaster Management
Council, subject to local circumstances
and

based

on

the Basic Disaster

Management Plan
• Community

DisasterManagement

Plan: This is a disaster management
activities plan at the community level
which is established by residents andbusinesses jointlyon a voluntary basis.

Figure 9 : Structure of Disaster Planning System

3.4.2 Basic Disaster Management Plan
The Basic Disaster Management Plan is a comprehensive and long-term
disaster management plan forming a foundation for the Disaster Management
Operations Plan and Local Disaster Management Plan. It stipulates provisions forthe establishment of the disaster management system promotion of disastermanagement measures, acceleration of post disaster recovery and reconstruction
measures, and promotion of scientific and technological research on disastermanagement.

Figure 10: Structure of Basic Plan for Disaster Risk Reduction

3.4.3 Community Disaster Management Plan
In order to encourage and promote proactive disaster management activities
among residents (including both individual and corporate residents) in a given area17

based on the spirit of self-help and mutual help, and to enhance the disastermanagement capabilities of the area in a bottoms-up manner, it is stipulated that acommunity disaster management plan should be mentioned in the municipal disastermanagement plan. In developing a community disaster management plan, more
active and proactive participation of the area residents is necessary at an early stageof the development. As such, it is stipulated that the area residents may jointly makea proposal to the municipal disaster management council that a community disastermanagement plan be stipulated in the municipal disaster management plan.
The 2013 amendment to the Basic Act on Disaster Management established
a community disaster management plan system for voluntary community disastermanagement activities. The characteristics of the community disaster management
plan system are as follows6:•

It is a bottom-up type of plan that adopts a plan proposal system,•

It is a “plan suited to the characteristics of the community” prepared byresidents who are familiar with the community, and•

It is a “plan to continuously improve community disaster preparedness”

that emphasizes implementation, periodic evaluation and review, and continuity ofactivities based on the plan.
Thus far, the plans reflected in the community disaster management plans arethat of 30 prefectures, 73 municipalities and 901 communities (as of April 1, 2020).

6

Extract
from
White
Paper
on
Disaster(https://www.bousai.go.jp/kaigirep/hakusho/h26/honbun/0b_3s_01_00.html).

Management

2014

18

CHAPTER 3: DISASTER RISK MANAGEMENT IN VIETNAM
1. General information
1.1 Geography
Vietnam is located in Southeastern Asia,
bordered with China, Lao PDR and Cambodia.
Vietnam comprises a total land area of 330,210
km2 including 310,070 km2 of land and 21,140
km2 of water. On a map, Vietnam appears as an
S-shaped strip of land. The terrain is
mountainous with coastal lowlands and forested
inland regions.
The geography of the land can be divided
into three major areas: The Red River delta to
the north, which is bordered by mountains on
three sides; a large plateau with a narrowcoastal plain in the middle of the country; andthe Mekong Delta plain to the south.
1.2 Population
Vietnam’s population is estimated to be
99.4 million people (as of January 2023). OneFigure 11: Map of Vietnam
third of the country’s total population lives inurban centers. The remaining two-thirds live in coastal areas and low-lying deltas. The
largest urban centers are in the major cities of Ho Chi Minh City and Ha Noi. Vietnam
recognizes 54 ethnic groups. The largest of them and their percent of the population are:Kinh (Viet) 85.3%, Tay 1.9%, Thai 1.9%, Muong 1.5%, Khmer 1.4%.
1.3 Climate
Vietnam has both a tropical climate zone and a temperate climate zone, with all of
the country experiencing the effects of the annual monsoon. Rainy seasons correspondto monsoon circulations, which bring heavy rainfall in the north and south from May to
October, and in the central regions from September to January. Vietnam’s climate is also
impacted by the El Niño Southern Oscillation, which influences monsoonal circulation,and drives complex shifts in rainfall and temperature patterns which vary spatially at a
sub-national level.
2. Vietnam disaster risk profile
Vietnam is one of the most hazard-prone countries in the Asia-Pacific Region. With
the coastline of 3,300 km, the country is exposed to hydro-meteorological hazards.

19

According to the Law on Natural Disaster
Prevention and Control 20207, According toVietnam’s disaster management law,
Vietnam is prone to over 22 types of natural
hazards. Natural hazards recognized bylaw include typhoon, tropical low pressure,whirlwind, lightning, heavy rain, flood,
flashflood, inundation, landslide and land
subsidence due to floods or water currents,
water rise, seawater intrusion, extreme hot
weather, drought, damaging cold, hail,hoarfrost, earthquake, tsunami, and othertypes of natural disaster. Among them,flood, storm, flashflood, landslides anddroughts are the recurring natural disasterand claimed for the most damages.
For 2022, the INFORM Global Risk
Index ranks Vietnam 91 out of 191
countries for disaster risk and assigned
Vietnam to a medium risk category. Thisranking is based on Vietnam’s high exposure to hazards but relatively low vulnerability
and above average coping capacity8
In addition, Vietnam is ranked among
Figure 12: Map of hazard zones in Vietnam
Source:Vietnam Disaster Management Authority
the five countries likely to be most affectedby climate change. The majority of thecountry is low-lying coastline and low-lying delta region are highly vulnerable to rising sea
levels. The statistics show that disasters tend to increase abnormally, with higher intensity,
wider scope, irregular and tend to increase in both danger levels, extremes and repeat
cycles.
Over the past 20 years, disasters caused 500 dead and missing persons per year,
and an economic loss to the GDP is about 1÷1.5%. The figures below showed thedamages and losses of disaster for the period 1990 – 2020.

7 As known as the Disaster Risk Management Law (DRM Law)
8 “Country Profile 2022: Viet Nam”, European Commission, Disaster Risk Management Knowledge

Centre (DRMKC), INFORM Global Risk index, https://drmkc.jrc.ec.europa.eu/inform-index/INFORMRisk/Country-Profile20

3,500

3,000

3,000

2,500

2,500

2,000

2,000

1,500

1,500

1,000

1,000

,500

,0

,0

1990
1992
1994
1996
1998
2000
2002
2004
2006
2008
2010
2012
2014
2016
2018
2020

,500

No. of dead and missing

Economic losses (million USD)

Figure 13: Damages and losses of disaster for the period 1990 – 2020 in Vietnam
Source: Vietnam Disaster Management Authority

3. Major disasters in Vietnam
The following is a list of major natural disasters in Vietnam since 2015:
October 2021 – Floods and Tropical Depression
Floods and landslides caused by heavy rain affected northern and central Vietnam,
resulting in casualties. In Quang Binh province, up to 1,903 residents across seven towns
and districts were evacuated, and more than 1,300 houses were damaged. In Quang
Ngai and Quang Nam at least one person died, 7,000 people were evacuated, and morethan 16,400 houses were flooded. Floods and landslides blocked many of the main roads
across central and north Vietnam, and power outages were reported in Thua Thien-Hue
Province9.
October to November 2020 – Central Vietnam Floods
In October and November 2020, Vietnam experienced the worst flooding in thepast decade with the Inter Tropical Convergence Zone combined with six consecutive
tropical depressions, storms, and tropical typhoons that resulted in widespread flooding
in most of central Vietnam, killing 291 people with an additional 66 persons reported
missing, and severely affecting 1.5 million people. The disaster destroyed over 500,000
houses, 144,000 ha of rice paddies, 787 km (489 miles) of dykes and canals, and erodedand damaged 272 km (169 miles) of coastline, resulting in economic damage worth
US$1,443,85010. The VNDMA reported that many areas in central Viet Nam recorded a
total rainfall of more than 2,400 mm, and in some locations, floodwaters exceeded the9Relief Web, 18 October 2021, accessed 28 October 2021, https://reliefweb.int/report/vietnam/viet-nam-flooding-landslide-storm-and-wind-central-regions-and-central-highlands-19;
10 IFRC, “Operation Update”, Vietnam Floods, Appeal No. MDRVN020, Report No.4, 7 July 2021,

accessed 28 October 2021
21

previous historical high recorded in 1979 and 199911. Figure below shows a timeline of
the weather systems involved in this disaster.

Figure 14 : Timeline of weather systems from 6 October to 15 November 2020.
Source: UNOCHA and VNDMA

Typhoon Molave, which made landfall on 28 October 2020 with winds up to145km/h (90 miles per hour (mph)), was one of the most devastating typhoons in the
country for decades.
February-April 2020 – Severe Drought and Saltwater Intrusion
During this period, 10 of the 13 provinces in the Mekong River Delta area wereaffected by drought and saltwater intrusion, resulting in water shortages, significant
damage to crops, and limited access to water for over 200,000 households. More than
685,000 people had access to livelihoods and basic services disrupted, with an estimatedloss of production from 460,000 ha of rice paddy12.
October 2019 – Typhoon Matmo, Floods, and Landslides
Typhoon Matmo passed over central Vietnam on 30 October, destroying 179
houses and damaging 2,314 others in the provinces of Quang Ngai. Binh Dinh, Phu Yen,Gia Lai, and Thua Thien Hue. As a result one person was reported missing and 14 more
people were injured13. In the same month, heavy rain caused flooding in other parts ofcentral Vietnam including Nghe An, Binh Dinh, and Ha Tinh, where three fatalities anddamaging to over 5,000 houses was reported. The heavy rain also triggered landslides,
which blocked major roads in several areas14.
November 2017 - Typhoon Damrey
The aftermath of Typhoon Damrey affected 4.3 million people in 9 provinces andleft 107 people dead. The typhoon destroyed approximately 3,400 houses and damaged

11 “Flood Response Plan”, UN Resident Coordinator Office Vietnam, Issued 31 October 2020
12 IFRC, Vietnam DREF Operation No. MDRVN019, Emergency Plan of Action, 5 February 2020,

accessed 28 October 2021
13 “Typhoon Matmo injures 14, leaving 1 missing”. Relief Web, 3 November 2019, accessed 28

October 2021
14 “Vietnam– Deadly Floods in Central Provinces”, Floodlist, 22 October 2019, accessed 28

October 2021
22

approximately 141,100 houses. The Government evacuated more than 36,000 people inthe coastal Can Gio district of Ho Chi Minh. The typhoon also submerged 5,296 ha of
paddy fields and nearly 15,000 ha of vegetables and fruit fields.
2015-2017 - Drought
The worst drought Vietnam had seen in 90 years started in 2015 and lasted until
2017. The drought was attributed to the El Niño weather event, with 52 out of 63 provinces
affected. In addition, the drought was aggravated by saltwater intrusion that extended up
to 90 km inland in some coastal areas, leaving river water too salty for human or animal
consumption, or to irrigate crops and continue fish-farming production. In total, 2 million
people including 520,000 children and 1 million women, were in need of humanitarianassistance.
4. Vietnam disaster risk management system
4.1 Legal basis for disaster risk management in Vietnam
Most of the laws and regulations on natural hazards are concerned with high-riskhazards such as floods and storms, while other hazards were addressed in separate laws
and regulations. This reflects the historical origins of Vietnam’s natural disastermanagement framework in 1946 when the Central Dike Protection Committee theforerunner of the present NSCNDPC was established by decree of President Ho Chi Minh.
The following are some of the key legal instruments relevant to disaster management in
Vietnam:● The Law on Disaster Prevention and Control, adopted by the National
Assembly of Socialist Republic of Viet Nam (Law No. 33/2013/QH13 on 19/06/2016) andthe Amendment of Law on Natural Disaster and Control and Law on Dyke Management(Law N0/60/2020/QH14 on 17/06/2020). The LNDPC is the first stand-alone law to set
out Vietnam’s institutional arrangements, functions, and mandates for disastermanagement. It is also the first law to cover all natural hazards in the country.
Other documents guiding the implementation of the Law include:● Decree No. 66/2021/ND-CP dated 06/07/2021 of the Government on theguidelines of the law on disaster prevention and control.
● Decree No. 79/2021/ND-CP dated 01/08/2021 of the Government on theestablishment of the Disaster Risk Management Fund.
● Resolution No. 76/NQ-CP dated 18/06/2018 of the Government on disasterprevention and control.
● Decision No. 553/QD-TTg, dated 06/04/2021 of the Prime Minister onapproving the national program on community awareness raising and community-based
disaster risk management.
● Decision No. 18/2021/QD-TTg, dated 22/04/2021 of the Prime Minister on
detailed regulations on the disaster forecast, warning and information transmission andrisk levels.
23

● Joint Circular No. 43/2015/TTLT BNNPTNT-BKHDT, dated 23/11/2015 of the
Ministry of Agriculture and Rural Development and the Ministry of Planning andInvestment on providing guidance on the statistical analysis, the collection of statistics
and assessment of damage caused by disasters.
● Circular No. 10/2021/TT-BKHDT, dated 22/12/2021 of the Ministry of Planningand Investment on guiding the integration of disaster prevention and control content into
the socio-economic development plans and sectoral plan and development plans.
4.2. Organizational structure for disaster risk management in Vietnam
Since the enactment of the Law on Natural Disaster Prevention and Control(LNDPC) in 2013 and its amendment by Law 60/2020/QH14 in 2021, Vietnam has further
systematized its disaster management apparatus.
The structure and responsibility for DRM and disaster response is set out in the
LNDPC and its supporting decrees (regulations), which lay out a multi-agency andhierarchical model for disaster management. The Government of Vietnam coordinates its
work at the national level under the umbrella of inter-ministerial committees, which are
replicated at the provincial, district, and commune/ward-level. The system of disaster risk
management in Viet Nam is shown in the figure below:

Figure 15 : Systems of DRM in Viet Nam

4.2.1 National Steering Committee for Disaster Prevention and Control
The National Steering Committee for Disaster Prevention and Control, formally theCentral Steering Committee for NDPC is the top body for the Vietnamese Government
disaster management policy development and decision-making. The Standing Office of24the NSCNDPC is the VNDMA, an agency under the MARD. Although the NSCNDPC isestablished under the LNDPC, its mandate and structure is further elaborated throughsupporting decrees issued by the Prime Minister, which has allowed the government torefine the role and responsibilities of the NSCNDPC over time through periodic
amendments.
The Deputy Prime Minister chairs the NSCNDPC. The Minister of MARD is thePermanent Vice-Chairperson of the NSCNDPC, and the Prime Minister has discretion toappoint other Deputy Chairs. In practice, the General Director of the VNDMA and theHead of the Ministry of Defense (MOD) have acted as effective Vice-Chairpersons of the
NSCNDPC. Members of the NSCNDPC include senior representatives of ministries,
ministerial agencies, and governmental agencies senior representatives of Vietnam
Television, Voice of Vietnam, Vietnam News Agencies, and the Chief of the Office of the
National Committee for Incidents and Disasters Response, Search and Rescue(VINASARCOM).
The mandate of the NSCNDPC is wide-ranging from policy and planning todirecting disaster response, and includes the following responsibilities:• Provide guidance for the formulation and implementation of national strategies
and plans, and policies and laws on natural disaster management;• Preside over the preparation of disaster response plans;• Direct and coordinate disaster response and recovery nationwide: direct
response to “Level 3” disasters;• Provide advice on directing response to “Level 4” and “Level 5” natural
disasters;• Coordinate and assist or direct local authorities to respond to “Level 1” and“Level 2” natural disasters if such disasters have unanticipated developments which may
result in serious consequences;• Depending on the natural disaster developments and actual situation, decide
to take urgent measures and mobilize resources of ministries, ministerial agencies,
governmental agencies, organizations and individuals to respond to and remedy theconsequences of natural disasters in accordance with regulations of LNDPC;• Direct the production of statistics on damage and local authorities andministries’ demands for emergency assistance, recovery and reconstruction;• Consolidate and consider proposing to the Government and Prime Minister for
their decision on measures, use of central government budget and other legal resources
for emergency response and disaster recovery nationwide;• Inspect, expedite and provide guidelines for natural disaster management by
ministries and local authorities as prescribed by law;
• Direct, organize drills and provide training for forces involved in natural disastermanagement; direct, implement and organize the implementation of measures togradually increase civil capacity for natural disaster response;25• Direct and organize the provision of infrastructure, equipment, materials andspecial-purpose vehicles; establish database to serve issuance of decisions on commandover disaster management at all levels;• Call for, receive and provide domestic and foreign assistance in case ofdisaster-related emergency due to natural disasters;• Provide guidelines, inspect, expedite and consolidate results of provision ofassistance resources and report same to the Prime Minister;• Direct and prepare documents, provide training, disseminate and communicate
information via social networks and raise community awareness of natural disastermanagement on an annual basis;• Provide guidance on activities of internal voluntary forces in charge of natural
disaster management;• Advise the Prime Minister on establishing a Front Line Steering Committee
responsible for provide directions in the areas affected by disasters in special situations;• Preside over developing and publishing a white paper on disaster management
on an annual basis;• Provide directions and formulate an operating plan and plan for provision offunding for performance of tasks on an annual basis.
4.2.2 Vietnam Disaster Management Authority
The VNDMA is the Standing Office of the NSCNDPC. From its origins 20 years
ago as the Department of Dike Management and Flood Control, VNDMA’s mandate has
widened to cover the 22 or so different types of hazards identified under the LNDPC.
VNDMA serves as a natural disaster management authority all year round. During the
October 2020 historical flooding in Central Vietnam, the VNDMA was as an active
responder and implementer of disaster relief funds. With the establishment of the Natural
Disaster Prevention and Control Funds (NDPCFs), to be managed by MARD/ VNDMA,VNDMA will have more authority to mobilize funds from domestic and international donors
to strengthen its role in supporting relief efforts.
4.2.3 Disaster Risk Reduction Partnership
The DRR Partnership is an initiative established under the NSCNDP, and has
members from key UN agencies, international NGOs, and bilateral and multi-lateral
partners. It provides a forum to effectively enhance cooperation and coordination
between the Vietnamese government, donors and development partner community,
NGOs, and private sector entities in a concerted effort for disaster risk reduction. The
ADB is co-chair of the DRR Partnership with the MARD/VNDMA in 2021 and 2022.

26

CHAPTER 4: COMMUNITY BASED DISASTER RISK MANAGEMENT
1. Introduction
Vietnam and Japan have traditionally experienced many natural disasters due to
its topography, climate, and other natural conditions. Both countries have the legislativeand institutional arrangements on disaster risk management and implement efficient
structural and non-structure measures to reduce the disaster impacts. In order to prepare
for the disaster, both Vietnam and Japan take structural measures to prevent or mitigate
damage from disasters, such as the construction of dyke system and improvement ofearthquake resistance capacities. Beside the structural measures, non-structural
measures are applied effectively such as awareness raising campaign, hazard mappingand education for disaster risk reduction. The role of community in disaster risk
management has been increased significantly in recent years. Instead of spending muchon mobilizing the resources from outside, the capacity building for the local residents to
response to disaster is more cost effective. That is also the main reason for the promotionof community based disaster risk management approach.
Throwback to the 1995 Great Hanshin-Awaji Earthquake, about 80% of thoseburied alive were rescued by “self-help” including family members and “mutual support”
by neighbors, and only about 20% were rescued by public rescue teams. As for the caseof the torrential rain of July 2020 that caused damage in Kumamoto and other prefectures,
many residents of Kuma village responded to a survey that the “trigger” for them toconsider evacuating outside their homes was not only the surrounding conditions suchas heavy rainfall and evacuation information or disaster prevention weather information,
but also evacuation calls from family, friends, acquaintances, neighborhood associations
and neighbors. This indicates that “self-help” and “mutual support” are as important as"public support".
In Vietnam, the CBDRM concept was adopted in 2000s by the international nongovernmental organizations. After nearly 10 years of piloting and implementing in
Vietnam, in 2009, the first time Vietnam approved the National Program on community
awareness raising and community based disaster risk management. It has been another10 years passed and Vietnam is on the way to enhance the community resilience bypromoting the best practices on CBDRM.
In the context of climate change, natural disasters are increasingly extreme,causing serious damage to residents and property, raising awareness and CBDRM is an
important activity that has been adopted in many parts of the world. The knowledge
exchange is a best tool for the disaster prone country like Vietnam to enhance its capacity
in DRM and reach the ultimate goals of reducing disaster impacts to the community. Thispart will partly summarize the community awareness raising and CBDRM activities inJapan and Vietnam. From that, lesson learned will be raised along with therecommendations for best applied Japanese models in Vietnam.

27

2. Public awarenessmanagement in Japanraising

andcommunity-based

disasterrisk

2.1 Awareness Raising and Knowledge Promotion on Disaster Reduction
Promotion of efforts for disaster reduction: In order to strengthen the community
resilience and reduce the disaster impacts, there must be close cooperation amongindividuals, families, local community and relevant entities, to build momentum for anationwide movement. The Government has designated the first day of September as
the “Disaster Preparedness Day” and the week including this day as the Disaster
Preparedness Week and carries out various events to raise awareness and readiness
about the disaster. Disaster drills and promoting events are held in various parts of Japan.
In 2011, the Act on Promotion of Tsunami Countermeasures was enacted, and November
5th was designated as the “Tsunami Preparedness Day.” In the 70th UN General
Assembly, November 5th was designated to be the “World Tsunami Awareness Day”.

Education for disaster risk reduction is quite important for enabling individuals tohave correct understanding about natural disasters and be able to act on their discretion
to prevent and reduce damages from a disaster. In the Great East Japan Earthquake, acase of an elementary school was reported to have safely evacuated based on their daily
education of the past disasters and training about evacuation. Thus, it is important toenhance education for disaster risk reduction at schools and in local communities so thatpeople are nurtured to be equipped with correct understanding about disaster awareness.
The Cabinet Office implements “Disaster Reduction Education Challenge Plan” to nurturea positive environment for more proactive disaster reduction education by picking up
active local groups, schools and individuals who demonstrated better disaster reductionplans and actions, give support to them, and publicize their achievements, through the
web site, intending that such plans and programs be widely recognized and utilized
throughout the nation. Also, the Cabinet Office and the Council for Promoting Disaster
Risk Reduction implement the award for posters with the aim of further raising awarenessof disaster prevention and reducing disaster damage by soliciting poster designs related
to disaster prevention from the general public. In addition, the Ministry of Education,
Culture, Sports, Science and Technology has enhanced contents regarding disaster
reduction in the new Curriculum Guidelines announced in 2017/2018. Further
improvement with disaster management education is promoted through development ofmaterials such as “Guide to Make a Disaster Reduction Manual for Schools (Earthquake
and Tsunami),” and “Development of a Disaster Reduction Education to Nurture Power
to Live On,” providing guidance for disaster reduction at schools.

28

Figure 16: Education on disaster risk management in schools in Japan
Source: https://web-japan.org/kidsweb/cool/20/202011_disaster-prevention-education_en.html

Transmission of the lessons learned from generation to generation: Japan is also
famous for the wide range of museums in disaster risk management. Although the natural
disaster cannot be resisted, the communities have been revived by human power andwisdom. For that reason, there is a strong need to pass on the experience of disaster tofuture generation. To learn from the earthquakes, tsunami, landslides in the pasts, there
are famous museum to exhibit the severe damages, build back better process as well as
the lessons learnt through Japanese spirit. Followings are some museums for theawareness raising and learning purposes:

Great Hanshin-Awaji
Earthquake Memorial - DRI

Hanshin Expressway
Earthquake Museum

Tsunami Takashio Station in Osaka

2.2 Promoting Community Disaster Management Plan at the Municipal level
Municipalities have also made good progress with their own initiatives to raiseawareness among local residents based on the model projects of the Cabinet Office. For
example, Ichihara City of Chiba Prefecture started the Ichihara Disaster Management
100 Members Meeting in February 2018. It comprises 60 residents recommended byvoluntary disaster management organizations and randomly selected 2,000 citizens andhold workshops for formulating a community disaster management plan once every
month as a place for residents to consider local disaster management.
To foster disaster management awareness, the Cabinet Office has collaborated
with municipalities to showcase effective ways of raising the community interest such as
publishing the Guide to Initiatives to Increase Awareness of Disaster Preparedness29among Local Citizens via Random Sampling in March 2017 based on the outcomes ofthis demonstration project. There are various methods to formulate community disastermanagement plans, which municipalities strive to disseminate to make a suitable plan incollaboration with each other while nurturing reliable relationships with local residents.
Disaster mitigation and prevention awareness may be fostered and propagated from one
community to another when municipalities provide rear area support for communities,
and prefectures and municipalities spread information horizontally in and out ofcommunities through seminars, etc. It is preferable for each of these communities to startplanning voluntarily; based on the model projects of the Cabinet Office and initiatives
taken by local governments. The Cabinet Office will also strive continuously to increase
public awareness by disseminating this system of formulating community disastermanagement plans as best it can.
2.4 Successful models on CBDRM
Community based organizations
In Japan, community-based organizations (CBOs) have existed for centuries.
They are Suibo-dan for ﬂood risk dating from the 17th century, Syobo-dan for ﬁre ﬁghtingfrom the 18th century, and Jisyubo for earthquake disasters from the 1970s. The
volunteer ﬁre corps (Syobo-dan) members have regular jobs but, when disaster strikes,
they take part in disaster management activities in their own communities, such as ﬁreﬁghting, issuing warnings, assisting evacuations, conducting search and rescue
operations, and operating facilities. There are currently some 890,000 active volunteers
across Japan, which is almost six times the number of career ﬁre ﬁghters.

Figure 17 : Historical timeline of community-based organizations

The Fire Defense Organization Act and its under law supporting documents
stipulate the corps’ roles, organizational structures, members’ status as part-timegovernment staff, and compensation and allowances. The local government has principal
responsibility for the corps, while the central government subsidizes their facilities. The
30

Syobo-dan responded to the GEJE at the risk of their lives. Some 250 members were
killed or are missing, including 51 in Rikuzentakata City. Based on lessons learned fromthe GEJE, the Fire and Disaster Management Agency requested local governments toreinforce the volunteer ﬁre corps in October 2011 with equipment, increased allowances
up to the level stipulated by law, and the recruitment of new members.
BOKOMI model of Kobe City
The Great Hanshin-Awaiji Earthquake occurred at 5:46 on January 17, 1995
caused numerous damages in Kobe City. It destroyed a large number of houses and fires
broke in many parts of the city. In this case, the rescue and firefighting units cannot reachand operate at all the disaster site. Therefore, the rescue operations were conducted bycitizens. Learn from the earthquake lessons, the Kobe city government focused on thedevelopment of the voluntary organizations for DRR in communities. The community
based disaster risk reduction organization was known as “Disaster Safe Welfare
Communities” which short name is BOKOMI 15 . The establishment of BOKOMI was
promoted after the Great Hanshin-Awaji Earthquake. Model organizations were
established in 11 districts in the city starting from 1995. Currently, 191 districts in the city
have their BOKOMI, covering the whole area of Kobe City.
Bokomi model was established based on the municipal elementary school districtsby the residents. The reason why Bokomi are based on elementary school district isbecause there is an existing “welfare community” organization established for welfare
purposes in each schools and a disaster risk reduction organization was integrated into
the existing organizations. Also elementary schools serve as evacuation sites forcommunity in emergencies in Japan. It is also the reason why Bokomi is established ineach school district. The process of establishing Bokomi in local areas is illustrated in thefollowing chart specifically:-

Firstly, the establishment of a community based voluntary organization for DRR
is discussed and decided by local authority such as local city office, local fire station,
leaders of local resident’s associations, women’s association, elderly associations,
volunteer fire corps, etc.
- Once the establishment of Bokomi is agreed, the equipment and materials
needed for the DRM activities are distributed from the local government. It is Kobe Cityin this case. And storehouses are installed in local parks in preparation for emergencies.

15 BOKOMI is the abbreviation of Japanese name “Bosai Fukushi Komyunithi”

31

Figure 18: Bokomi modelThis is a characteristic features of the community based voluntary organization fordisaster risk reduction in Kobe city which were established based on the lessons learned
from the Great Hanshin-Awaji Earthquake.
3. Community-based disaster risk management in Vietnam
3.1 National Program on Public Awareness Raising and Community based
disaster risk management
Before the National Program on Public Awareness Raising and Community based
disaster risk management adopted in 2009, the non-structural measures DRM in Vietnam
had many shortcomings, specifically:- The DRR activities were undertaken passively and heavily deal with situations.
- Insufficient response capacity when disaster strikes.
- Not fully used the local knowledge and experience.
- There were excess human resources on the spot but sometimes cannot
mobilize.
- DRM propaganda and education to raise public awareness was implemented
irregularly, unsystematically, mainly propagated through the mass media, not unified inbringing education programs on knowledge about DRM into schools.
Until 2007, the National Program on Disaster Prevention, Response and Mitigation
to 200716 adopted by the Government laid the foundation to the latter National Programon community awareness raising and community based disaster risk management.

16 Decision No. 172/2007 / QD-TTg of the Prime Minister in 2007

32

The National programme “Community Awareness Raising and Community-Based
Disaster Risk Management” was approved by the Prime Minister in Decision
No.1002/QĐ-TTg on 13 July 2009 (also known as the National Program 1002) with thespecific objective to ensure that by 2020 all relevant officials will have participated intraining and their capacities and knowledge in natural disaster prevention and response
have increased. In addition, 70 per cent of the population in disaster-prone areas will be
provided with knowledge and information on natural disaster prevention and response.
Through this process, people will actively participate in risk assessments, identifying
resources and developing natural disaster prevention and control plans focusing on the“four on-the-spot motto”. The Ministry of Agriculture and Rural Development’s (MARD)
assumed the prime responsibility for, and coordinate with, related agencies, nongovernmental organizations and donors in researching, summarizing and developing
guidelines on community-based disaster risk assessment. This will provide local
commune and village authorities with specific instructions on how to identify natural
disaster risks, vulnerabilities and resources ‘on the spot’, and how to develop suitable
solutions for disaster risk reduction. This National Program has the effective date to end
of 2020.
On 6 April 2021, in continuance with the National Program 1002, the Prime
Minister issued Decision No. 553/QD-TTg approving the new ten-year programme“Community awareness raising and community-based disaster risk management up to2030” (also known as the National Program 553). The main objectives of this programme
are to: raise public awareness on disasters and strengthen the DRM capacity of relevant
staff, local authorities and communities in disaster-prone areas; increase the climate anddisaster resilience of communities at the commune and district levels; and enhancedisaster preparedness through active participation in DRM activities and risk-informed
development. There are several specific goals of the new National CBDRM Programme,
including:- 100 percent of people in communes with frequent storms, flash floods,
landslides, floods, inundation, drought, saltwater intrusion and at least 50 percent ofpeople in other areas are disseminated knowledge about disasters and disasterprevention skills, especially the types of disasters that frequently occur in the area;- 100 percent of general training levels include disaster risk reduction (DRR) anddisaster prevention in some subjects for teaching;- 100 percent of communes develop disaster prevention and control plans withthe participation of the community; and- Striving for 100 percent of households to receive full information on disasters
and information on disaster prevention and control.
The program consists of three components that are closely related to each other,
specifically:- Component 1 focused on consolidating the mechanisms, policies and guiding
documents to organize the implementation of activities to raise public awareness and33

CBDRM. This includes capacity building activities and integration of DRM contents into
teaching materials at schools/universities.
- Component 2, focused on capacity building for staff involved in disasterprevention and control activities; target group 4 and the general community; andgovernment officials at all levels in managing and implementing community awarenessraising activities and CBDRM. In which focus on training activities, training; diversify formsof capacity building for forces engaged in disaster prevention and control as well as
individuals and organizations directly implementing the National CBDRM Programme.
- Component 3, focused on strengthening education and awareness, andbuilding capacity and skills for the community on DRR. This includes communication
activities on disaster prevention for all groups in the community, and mobilizing people todirectly participate in disaster prevention, response and recovery activities at thecommune level.
Programme 553 has inherited the lessons learned from National Programme 1002,
as well as adjusted and added some new points to be appropriate for the context andpractice of disaster prevention and control in the current period. For instance, adding
Component 3 on awareness-raising and communication activities; on funding sources for
implementing a number of additional activities from the Natural Disaster Prevention andControl Fund; Regarding the subjects participating in the training, target group 4 and local
people with high prestige in the community, reputable people in the residential
community; related universities; especially the team of propagandists and reporters at alllevels; Emphasizing the role of propaganda, media, reporters, press, and shock forces indisaster prevention and control.
3.2 Challenges of Vietnam in implementing CBDRM approach
In the history of disaster risk management, the Vietnamese people have had many
lessons and experiences handed down to their children and grandchildren in folk songs
when looking at natural events “around” to have proper responses. Residents living inriverside areas have built dyke system, prepared bundles of bamboo and sand to prevent
dyke failure in case of floods, those living in coastal areas where storms occur frequently
reinforce and support roofs, or select the direction of the house to avoid heat, cold, ...
Experience from major natural disasters shows that the community's awareness andskills of disaster risk reduction are a cost-effective non-structural investment solution low cost but high efficiency. The motto is that people know how to "protect" themselves,
their relatives and neighbors before receiving outside support. Every year, we have todeal with many types of natural disasters, so in order to minimize the damage, this workneeds to be done regularly, continuously, systematically and "smartly", and good lessons
need to be spread everywhere, every time.
Thoroughly grasping that importance, the National Program on CBDRM waspromulgated in the international context where it must be recognized that “structural”
solutions have not yet brought high efficiency. Changes from passive response toproactive prevention, towards "managing" disaster risks in a "proactive" way. Domestic
34and foreign organizations engaged in DRM in Vietnam are very interested in mobilizing
resources to organize the implementation.
Over the past 10 years of implementing the National Programs, there have been
about 200 documents in the central level and localities guiding, formulating plans, andorganizing the implementation; organized more than 3,500 training courses for about
1485 provincial trainers, and 109 thousand school teachers; more than 8,000 training
courses for nearly 4 million participants. Along with that, document development andcommunication activities were also promoted, more than 100 thousand documents andmanuals were distributed in the community, nearly 1,000 performances were organized,
1.6 million activities in communication of disasters are carried out. Construction activities
for community-based DRM works, and procurement of equipment to support
simultaneous implementation of NDPC work by localities. However, some objectives set
out in the National Program have not been completed due to a number of subjective andobjective reasons.

Figure 19 : CBDRM Training for the local community

In the first phase, the documents guiding the implementation of the National
Program are still slow to implement, the leadership level still disregards the effectivenessof the Program, and residents are not enthusiastic to participate or the activities are heavy
in form. While the support from international organizations and NGOs is very large,
accounting for more than 54% (compared to 40% of the Program) of the total
implementation budget for most of the Scheme’s activities at central level and localities.
One of the biggest difficulties in the process of implementing the Scheme is thefinancial resource, the financial allocation structure, the local's expectation on the central
support. Although the integrated projects have reached 120% of the plan; however, thebudget structure is about 48% lower than the plan of the Program. The main group ofactivities in training and communication exceeded the funding in the Scheme (reaching
VND 474.3 billion, exceeding 73.6 billion) due to a number of projects (ODA, technicalassistances, grants) with a large budget but concentrated in a few beneficiary communes.
This is one of the gaps for the Scheme for Lead agencies to consider and advise in termsof the effectiveness of the project and the achievement of the objectives in the Scheme.

35Decree No. 83/2019/ND-CP and No. 94/2014/ND-CP on the establishment andmanagement of the DRM fund at the provincial level and newly adopted DRM Law
required the establishment of a DRM fund at the central level, is an important source forall levels to implement the National Program in the period of 2021-2030.
One of the important activities in need of prioritization in implementation in the
coming period is the monitoring and evaluation of the National Program implementation
results. The Lead Agency is in charge of reviewing, correction and supplementing to
promulgate the set of indicators and request localities at all levels and organizations toparticipate in the implementation. Annually, reports together with the results of evaluationof the Program implementation must be sent to the VNDMA for monitoring, synthesis andreporting to the Government.

36

CHAPTER 5: LESSONS LEARNED FOR VIETNAM
1. Lessons learned from Japan
Japan is an island nation located in East Asia, which is known for many major
natural disasters in the world. The CBDRM has been built, promoting a “bottom up”
approach in harmony with the top-down approach, to address challenges and difficulties
caused by natural disasters. In order to effectively implement CBDRM, there must be acooperation among residents, local authorities, central authorities.
The legal basis for implementing CBDRM activities is based on legal documents
such as: Basic Act on Disaster Management, Flood Control Act, Disaster Relief Act, etc.
This is also the foundation for the establishment of Flood Response Team and Fire
Response Team in the community. While the Flood Response Team is responsible for
conducting preventive actions before a flood occurs, the Fire Response Team is
responsible for implementing response activities during and after a disaster (including
earthquakes, floods, fires, ...). Some localities have grouped these two tasks into one,
specifically, the Fire Response Team performed both tasks above. Followings are
summarized of responsibilities of relevant stakeholders in applying the CBDRM
approach:- Responsibilities of local authorities in response to floods: patrol the system of
NDPC works during the time when there is no flood; developing and issuing flood risk
maps and conducting drills.
- Responsibilities of the Flood Response Team in the community: implementing
flood prevention and control activities in the community on a voluntary basis. Team
members are appointed by the local government to perform part-time “special” duties asa local civil servant in addition to their main job.
- Financial resources for CBDRM activities: supported by local authorities fromthe allocated budget based on the team's activities. In addition, additional funding isprovided from the central budget for activities such as: building disaster hazard maps,
organizing drills, purchasing equipment. Funding from the central government throughthe regional representative agency accounts for about 50% of all expenditures. For major
natural disasters, the support from the central government will help local authorities
respond and recover more quickly.
With all the information collected, there are some lessons from the CBDRM modelin Japan for Vietnam:- Empower the community in communication activities to help achieve efficiency
and sustainability in CBDRM.
- Integrate safe livelihoods with CBDRM activities.
- Facilitate the community to develop the hazard map containing high risk areas,
the route to the evacuation centers, the information of contact persons. The hazard map
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developed by the community should be distributed to every house. The hazard map isalso used to develop the local DRM Plan.
- Get the involvement of community in developing the DRM Plan.
- Since natural disasters are difficult to accurately predict, the important thing ispeople's awareness of the disaster and how to prevent it.
- Make CBDRM activities transparent, disseminate knowledge and information
to encourage participation of people.
- Organizing trainings to raise awareness and knowledge about disaster risk
management for the next generation is very important. Japan has the wide range ofmuseums in which the visitors who are interested on DRR can see the image of pastdisasters and receive the messages from the victims of the disaster. The maintenance ofthe records (photos, documentary, and samples of broken physical features) about thepast disasters is very systematic.
- The institutionalization of CBDRM activities, clearly stating the responsibilitiesof the parties, especially the participation of the private enterprises sector plays animportant role in promoting more sustainable DRM programs.
- Successfully built up a model of Community Based Voluntary Organization for
Disaster Risk Reduction (“BOKOMI”) after the earthquake disaster in Kobe in 1995.
BOKOMI implements disaster risk reduction activities combined with community
development through cooperation between the above Response Teams and otherorganizations in the community (Association of the elderly, youth, women, parents,
students, enterprises, …). BOKOMI is being widely deployed in primary schools.
- It is necessary to ensure stable financial resources for implementing CBDRM.
- In the evacuation center, place the stockpiling items, chargers, blankets,heaters and some radio communication facilities which can be used in the emergency
case.
- Regularly conduct the DRM drills. Most of cities have the schedule for monthly
drills. The CBOs distributed the lists to every house and anybody who are interested toparticipate can join.
2. Recommendations
As mentioned earlier, Vietnam and Japan have long standing experience in copingwith natural disasters as well as implementing CBDRM activities. The experiences andtechniques that applied in Japan are useful in Viet Nam as well. Meanwhile, if theJapanese disaster management models were implemented in Viet Nam, knowledge
would be shared and created and it would make synergy, so that disaster management
power of both countries would be further improved.
To achieve the ultimate goals of DRM in reducing the people suffers due todisaster, CBDRM is considered as a cost effective measure. Of which raising people's
awareness and capacity on community-based DRM is the work of the whole society, so
it needs to be done regularly, continuously and systematically. During the implementation
process of the CBDRM activities, the legal framework should be regularly updated and38

adjusted based on practical lessons learned in the community combined with scientificand technical progress. Based on the successful models of Japan in raise community
awareness and CBDRM, followings are some valid recommendations that Vietnam canpick up to enhance the community resilience to disaster under the context of climatechange:- Most people saved from major disasters are rescued by relatives andneighbors within the first 24 hours—before professional responders can get there.
Statistics show that in the 1995 Kobe earthquake, 80 percent of those rescued were
saved by their neighbors. So, while local and national authorities have key responsibilities
for civil protection in hazard events, communities are always the first responders andshould be empowered in that role.
- Community plays a central role; therefore, the local DRM Plan should have thestrong involvement of the community in development process. In addition, creating equal
opportunities for men, women, and vulnerable groups to participate and benefit from
CBDRM activities.
- The establishment of the community based organization such as the flood
prevention team or firefighting team should be promoted. The in-place human resources
who understand the situation and people will be an advantage in effectively response todisaster.
- Strong and effective community-based DRM requires grassroots support andlinkages to the day-to-day life of the community. Linking disaster risk awareness andpreparedness activities to local cultural events can be extremely effective in maintaining
a culture of preparedness.
- In addition to grassroots support, building effective and sustainable capacity
for community-based DRM requires the formal recognition and support of local andnational authorities. In addition to providing financial and technical assistance, local andnational governments should develop legislation on and institutionalize the role of CBOs.
- Prioritize implementation in areas frequently affected by natural disasters;
promote the integration of CBDRM into the education program both official curriculumand extra curriculum.
- It is quite amazing when Vietnam is one of the most disaster affected countries
but the country doesn’t have any museum to display the disaster consequences as welllessons learned for the next generation. Vietnam should consider to develop one where
all the historical disaster events are recorded and disaster response measures can bepassed to everyone.
- Continue learning from BOKOMI model - a community-based disaster risk
reduction model widely implemented in Japan. In cooperation between Viet Nam andJapan, UNICEF Vietnam worked on disaster risk reduction by improving disastermanagement power and resilience of communities in Viet Nam, including theimplementation of BOKOMI model. This initiative should be continued in the effort of
reducing disaster risks for the children in Vietnam.
39-Vietnam is the member of ADRC since 1997. From the very first time joining
ADRC, Vietnam has attended all the activities initiated by ADRC. For FY2022, Vietnam
Disaster Management Authority sent its staff to join the visiting researcher program aswell as attending the Asia Conference in Disaster Reduction (ACDR) in Sendai. Since,
ACDR is a knowledge hub in disaster risk reduction, the strong collaboration between
VNDMA and ACDR should be realized in a joint project, especially focusing on thecommunity awareness raising and community based disaster risk management.

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REFERENCES
1. JapanWhite Paper on DM, Japan 2022 - Cabinet Office, Government of Japan(https://www.bousai.go.jp/en/documentation/white_paper/2022.html)
Disaster Management in Japan - Cabinet Office, Government of Japan(https://www.bousai.go.jp/1info/pdf/saigaipamphlet_je.pdf)
Bokomi Guidebook – Sharing lessons learned by the City of Kobe from the Great
Hanshin – Awaiji Earthquake (JICA, Disaster Reduction Learning Center, KOBE City Fire
Bureau, https://openjicareport.jica.go.jp/216/216/216_000_11980877.html)
The disaster Risk of the Land of Japan, Ministry of Lan, Infrastructure, Transport
and Tourist website (https://www.mlit.go.jp/en/mizukokudo/index.html)
Knowledge Note of Great East Japan Earthquake: Cluster 2 – Non-structural
measures: Community Based Disaster Risk Management by Japan Government, Global
Facility for Disaster Risk Reduction (GFDRR) and the World Bank(https://www.gfdrr.org/sites/default/files/publication/knowledge-note-japan-earthquake2-1.pdf)
Japan Meteorological Agency, 2016, Monitoring of Earthquake, Tsunami andVolcanic Activity (https://www.jma.go.jp/jma/en/Activities/earthquake.html)
Booklet of Tokyo Metropolitan government(https://www.bousai.metro.tokyo.lg.jp/1002147/1008042/1008046/index.html)
Shizuoka Prefecture:(https://www.pref.shizuoka.jp/bosaikinkyu/sonae/jishubosai/1030002.html)
Kochi Prefecture:(https://www.pref.kochi.lg.jp/soshiki/010201/files/2021072000154/file_20217202145525_1.pdf)
My TimeLine Project(https://www.mlit.go.jp/river/bousai/main/saigai/tisiki/syozaiti/mytimeline/index.ht
ml)
Presentation of Sasahara Akio – Executive Director of ADRC on Disaster Risk
Reduction Administration in Japan.
Presentation of Prof. Satoru Nishikawa, Disaster Mitigation Research Center,
Nagoya University on Mainstreaming Disaster Reduction and Enlargement of Scope andparticipation in disaster reduction.
2. Vietnam
Law on Natural Disaster Prevention and Control (2013) and the Law amending theLaw on Disaster Prevention and Control and the Law on Dike Management (2020);
National Strategy on Disaster Prevention and Control to 2030 with a vision to 2050;
Prime Minister's Decision No. 553/QD-TTg on raising public awareness and
CBDRM to 2030 (Programme 553) and National Programme 1002.
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