Over the last decade, disaster incidents in Southeast Asian countries have been increasing due to rising vulnerability to multiple hazards and disaster risks. The increased vulnerability to climate change and associated local hazards in most ASEAN countries has often eroded economic gains and could be alleviated with comprehensive disaster governance. Disaster governance includes a range of economic, physical, historical, cultural and social dimensions to identify and manage “the root causes of disaster”The project aims to strengthen disaster governance system and adaptive capacity in ASEAN countries by exploring and coping with the challenges faced by each country, factors of vulnerability, and local disaster and hazard risks.

 

The program is in line with the ASEAN Agreement on Disaster Management and Emergency Response (AADMER). The AADMER has been effectively facilitating regional cooperation between and among ASEAN Member States (AMS) that seek to build a resilient ASEAN Community to reduce disaster losses and collectively respond to disasters. In addition, the project also works towards realizing the ASEAN Socio Cultural Community by 2025. The ASEAN Socio Cultural Community by 2025 states a resilient community with enhanced capacity and capability to adapt and respond to social and economic vulnerabilities, disasters, climate change as well as emerging threats and challenges.

 

Capacity Development on integrated disaster management is a key priority for National Disaster Management Office (NDMO) to enhance disaster risk reduction, governance knowledge on response and resilience, and multi-agency coordination skills of the senior, middle and entry level government officials. Building the capabilities of officials who represent the three levels working for the ASEAN member state governments is essential to strengthen local disaster risk governance for sustainable development.

 

In accordance with AADMER and ASEAN Socio Cultural Community, the project will offer a disaster management training course for AMS NDMOs on emerging technologies for effective planning and decision support. It will provide the training course to 320 officials from 10 countries, conduct integrated disaster management training for each type of disasters, and carry out the Training of Trainers (TOT) program by using Virtual Reality (VR) as an education tool for strengthening disaster risk governance

     The main objectives of the project are to:

i. Build capacity of local and central government officials of the ASEAN countries

ii. Improve disaster risk governance of ASEAN member states

iii. Facilitate the exchange of disaster risk management knowledge

iv. Promote AMS NDMOs to lead collaborative disaster risk information using advanced technology such as VR