Activity Report: Area & Country >> East Asia

10 November 2011 (Incheon, Korea)

The ADRC was invited to the International Conference on Disaster Risk Reduction Legislation and Policy as part of the Asian Forum of Legislative Information Affairs (AFOLIA). The Conference was organized by the Ministry of Government Legislation in cooperation with the National emergency Management Agency.

Specifically, the ADRC made a presentation on "Disaster risk reduction legislation and policy in Japan" at Part I "Disaster risk reduction legislation and policy in Korea, China and Japan and cooperative measures" of the Conference. Other participants include representatives from Chinese government, UN and various organizations and universities The Forum was the first of its kind organized by the Ministry of Government Legislation and encompassed many areas, not only disaster risk reduction but many other fields as well. It manifested a strong initiative being taken by Korean Government within Asia.

While an interest in a post HFA (Hyogo Framework for Action) 2005-2015 and a need to establish international disaster response laws (IDRL) were growing, discussion on disaster legislations at the Conference was indeed significant and meaning attempt.

(2011/11/12 13:10)

7-8 November 2011 (Taipei, Taiwan)

 The 2011 International Workshop on Emergency Management was organized by the Ministry of Interior, Government of Taiwan from 7 to 8 November 2011 in Taipei city.

　Ten government officials and specialists on Disaster Emergency Management, including a ADRC's researcher, were invited to the workshop to make presentations and　speeches.　The ADRC explained the importance of business continuity plan (BCP)　in the private sector for the regional resilience while other speakers presented case study on the response and recovery phase of large scale disasters both man-made and natural.

　　About 200 officials, experts participated in the workshop and actively exchanged views and opinions among them, demonstrating their strong interests in disaster risk management.

(2011/11/09 11:30)

31 Oct - 2 Nov 2011 (Beijing, China)

18 October -21 October 2011 (Beijing, China)

ADRC participated in the Seminar on East-Asia Earthquakes Studies - Earthquakes, Tsunamis and Volcanoes in Northeast Asia: International Collaboration and Regional Capacity Building for the Forecast, Preparedness and Early Warning.

The Seminar was organized jointly by the China Earthquake Administration (CEA), the Japan Meteorological Agency (JMA), and the Korea Meteorological Administration (KMA). It was a first attempt of this kind.

The Seminar addressed key scientific and technological issues in need of special consideration for forecast, preparedness and early-warning of earthquakes, volcanoes and tsunamis, especially for Northeast Asia. Experts from not only China, Korea and Japan but also from other countries in Asia and other regions participated and examined relevant issues based on their experiences, most notably the 2008 Wenchuan Earthquake in China and the 2011 Great East Japan Earthquake and Tsunami.. Mr. Atsushi Koresawa of the ADRC presented "Policy Response to Great East Japan Earthquake" in the "Communicating with the Public" session.

The Seminar was successfully closed by reaching a consensus that collaborate need to be continued and strengthened among China, Korea and Japan and with other countries in Asia to further enhance scientific knowledge and relevant technologies against seismic hazards.

(2011/10/22 13:10)

25-28 October 2010, Incheon, Republic of Korea

ADRC participated in the 4AMCDRR held in Incheon, Republic of Korea from 25 - 28 October 2010. More than 900 participants comprising ministers of disaster management from 53 Asia-Pacific and European nations, representatives from UN agencies, international organizations, and NGOs attended the conference. The Prime Ministers of Republic of Korea and Kingdom of Bhutan were among the high level participants.

Under the theme "Disaster Risk Reduction through Climate Change Adaptation" (DRR through CCA), the conference was organized into three sessions: Session 1 "Raising awareness and building capacity for DRR & CCA", Session 2 "Developing and sharing information, technology, sound practices, and lessons learned in climate & disaster risk management", and Session 3 "Promoting integration of DRR & CCA into development for green growth". ADRC chaired Technical Session 1 and co-chaired the High Level Round Table of Session 1 (HLRT1) with the Maldives and Bhutan. 

The outcomes of the technical session emphasized two key concerns. One is the need for training for both government officials and civil society organizations. The other is the need to learn from local and indigenous peoples on how they manage risk and the need to support their efforts in raising awareness. In this regard, it was suggested that DRR and CCA should be framed within local and national development planning. At the HLRT1, the ministers expressed problems of their countries, including issues on raising awareness and building capacity. HLRT1 recognized that problems vary from country to country, and that solutions need to be localized. HLRT1 had drawn commitments from delegates to work together and share technical knowledge. Recommendations from Technical Session and HLRT1 were reflected into the conference outcome documents: Incheon Declaration, Incheon Regional Roadmap or REMAP, and Incheon Action Plan aimed at establishing climate resilient disaster risk management systems by 2015 that will contribute to sustainable development at the regional, national and community levels.

ADRC also co-organized various side events at 4AMCDRR including "Incorporating space-based information and technologies into DRR and CCA" with UNOOSA, "Asian Film Festival on Disaster Management" with GFDR and ADPC, and "A tool for Better Recovery: Introduction to Guidance Notes on Climate Change Adaptation and Recovery" with IRP. The next AMCDRR will be held in Indonesia in 2012 and the progress of REMAP will be reviewed accordingly.

For more information on ADRC's activities during the 4th AMCDRR, please see the ADRC Highlights to be issued shortly.

(2010/10/25 16:50)

22-23 September 2010 (Chengdu, China)

The International Symposium "5.12 Massive Wenchuan Earthquake Reconstruction & Catastrophic Disaster Control" was held in Chengdu, China on 22 and 23 September 2010.  The event  was jointly organized by  the Provincial People's Governments of Sichuan, Shanx, and Gansu and the Chinese Academy of Governance. Mr. Onishi, Senior Administrative Manager of Asian Disaster Reduction Center (ADRC) was invited to participate.
Around 130 representatives from international organizations, national and local governments, and experts from 30 countries and organizations in America, Europe, and Asia attended the symposium. On day 1, the participants visited the reconstruction sites in Yingxiu town, Shuimo town, and Dujiangyan city to look at the progress of recovery. On day 2, presentations concerning the theme  "Scientific Reconstruction and Harmonious Development" were made. The title of Mr. Onishi's presentation is "From Resilient Recovery to Sustainable Development:  Development of Recovery and Rehabilitation Measures".

(2010/09/22 19:20)

15-17 September 2010(Seattle, USA)

This program was jointly organized by Peace Winds America (NPO) and the City of Seattle, and was held from 15-17 October at the Seattle Office of Emergency Management. The program aimed to promote the sharing of experiences and ideas regarding natural disasters and emergency management between local government officials in the US and Japan.

 The Asian Disaster Reduction Center (ADRC), at the request of the organizers, provided help with the coordination of the participating organizations from Japan. Also, ADRC gave a presentation on "Government Coordination" in Japan and facilitated discussions throughout the program.
The participants included Japanese officials from the Ministry of Defense, Osaka Prefecture and the City of Osaka, Hyogo Prefecture and the City of Kobe, and Hiroshima Prefecture and the City of Hiroshima, as well as American representatives from the Federal Emergency Management Agency (FEMA), the City of Seattle, King County, the City of Honolulu, Microsoft, Boeing, and other organizations. The participants gave presentations on their own experiences and the outlook for the future from the viewpoint of those who are doing practical disaster management work on the ground. The Japanese participants were particularly impressed with the collaborative frameworks that have been developed in the US to enable local governments, private companies, and NGOs to work together.
This exchange program is expected to become an annual event and thus is expected to prove highly useful to both US and Japanese local governments long into the future.

(2010/09/18 13:10)

13 August 2010 (Incheon, Republic of Korea)

Steering Committee for the fiscal year 2010 of Asian Disaster Reduction Center was held in Incheon City, Korea on August 13. Representatives of 19 member countries attended.
Mr.Tomoya Nagai, the new Director for Disaster Preparedness, Public Relations and International Cooperation, Cabinet Office of Japan, chaired the steering committee meeting. At the beginning of the meeting, he expressed sympathy to victims of recent disasters in Pakistan, China, and India and also expressed strong support to the affected governments on behalf of ADRC. The chair formally announced the Republic of Maldives as the 29th member country of ADRC, which officially joined in May 2010.
After the presentation of ADRC activities for fiscal year 2010, the member countries discussed on how to further promote ADRC activities.(2010/08/13 19:20)

11-13 August 2010 (Incheon, Republic of Korea)

The ADRC attended the ISDR Asia Partnership (IAP) Meeting held from 11 to 13 August 2010 in Incheon, Republic of Korea. The meeting was organized to speed up the preparations for the Fourth Asian Ministerial Conference on Disaster Risk Reduction (AMCDRR) scheduled on 25-28 October 2010 at Songdo ConvensiA in Incheon, Republic of Korea. The main themes, procedures, and expected outcomes of 4th AMCDRR were among the key items discussed and examined at the meeting.

The ADRC has been actively involved in drafting outcome documents, and will be chairing Technical Session 1 "Raising awareness and building capacity for disaster risk reduction (DRR) and climate change adaptation (CCA)" at the 4th AMCDRR. In addition, the ADRC has been also co-organizing few side events such as "Incorporation of space-based information to support DRR and CCA" and "Introduction to Recovery Guidance Notes on CCA" with UNOOSA and International Recovery Platform (IRP) respectively.

Following the discussions at the preparatory meeting, the ADRC will further strengthen the preparations for Technical Session 1 and side events.

(2010/08/11 16:50)

Songkla, Thailand, 19-20 July 21, 2010

Thailand's Department of Disaster Prevention and Mitigation (DDPM), Ministry of Interior and Asian Disaster Reduction Center (ADRC) organized a workshop targeting  local government officials in its southern province Songkla.

On 19-20 July 2010, a total of 30 local officials gathered at a Songkla Campus of Disaster Prevention and Mitigation Academy in the province to take lectures on disaster risk management and countermeasures and visit disaster-prone areas for making hazard maps.

With the lead by experienced Trainers, who are government officials themselves, the workshop brought about active participation in the program which was co-developed by DDPM and ADRC. The participants reassured the importance of both structural and non-structural measures during the activities.

This workshop is part of capacity building program of local government officials for ASEAN countries, under which DDPM and ADRC have prepared since 2009 for further promoting capacity development in the country. Followed by this batch, similar workshops are scheduled in northern and north-eastern provinces this year. 

 (2010/08/05 17:40)

5-8 July 2010, Manila, Philippines

Sentinel ASIA Joint Project Meeting（JPTM) was held in Manila, the Philippines on 5-8 July 2010. It was organized jointly by Japan Aerospace Exploration Agency (JAXA), United Nations Economic and Social Commission for Asia and the Pacific (UNESCAP) and Department of Science Technology (DOST), Gov. of the Philippines. 71 people from 22 countries (36 organizations) and 5 international organizations participated in the meeting.
ADRC functions as a single window to receive emergency observation request for their screening and onward transmission to space agencies in the framework of Sentinel ASIA. At the meeting, ADRC reported the status of the emergency observations that were implemented in the last ○○ months, the results of survey on how provided satellite data was utilized in each country, and the current situation of the ADRC GLOF project. The themes of discussion in this meeting are as follows:

　　　　Progress of Sentinel Asia step2
　　　　Current situation of each JPT member
　　　　Activities of Forest fire Working Group
　　　　Activities of Flood Working Group
　　　　Activities of Glacier Lake Outburst Flood (GLOF) Working Group
　　　　Collaboration with Sentinel Asia and International Disaster Charter

ADRC will continue to promote the use of satellite data utilization for disaster reduction in Asia in cooperation with Sentinel Asia secretariat. For more details of this meeting, please refer to the Sentinel ASIA web site.

2010/08/02　13:20

17-18 June 2010 (Bangkok, Thailand)

The ADRC participated in the "Orientation Training on the Use of DRR Project Portal" developed under the IAP initiative on Regional Stocktaking and Mapping of DRR interventions, held in Bangkok, Thailand on 17-18 June 2010. The training was organized by the Asian Disaster Preparedness Center (ADPC) in partnership with UNISDR and with support from the Asian Development Bank (ADB). Approximately 30 officers from IAP members and other organizations in Asia and the Pacific joined the training.

In the training, participants learnt about the DRR Project Portal, including its usage, and also discussed on possible ways to increase the use of the DRR Project Portal and challenges in updating information. This portal is expected to contribute to promoting coordination and collaboration among DRR practitioners in Asia and the Pacific, avoiding duplications of activities, and better planning and programming in Asia and the Pacific.

The ADRC would like to provide support to the portal and contribute to further promoting it among DRR practitioners in Asia and the Pacific.

 
(2010/06/30 16:50)

23-27 May (Sichuan Province, China)

IRP visited the site of the 2008 Sichuan Earthquake to study the current recovery status and conduct a field survey about the role of the local community in the recovery process over the last 2 years.  
After meeting with reprsentaives of the Civil Affairs Department of Sichuan Provincial Government to learn the government policies on recovery and reconstruction including the Twinning Assistance Program, the research team composed of IRP staff members accompanied by the provincial government officials visited Penghua village located in Mianzhu City. This visit aimed examine the current situation as well as explore the role of local industries, especially wall painting and silk embroidery in the post disaster livelihood recovery process. The team also visited the "Mianzhu Wall Painting Training Center" which was constructed under the Jiangsu Twinning Assistance Program. The team interviewed the village head of Penghua Village, and some local residents regarding the current situation of earthquake recovery.
Then, the research team visited other severely affected areas including Beichuan region, which is home to the ethnic Qiang people. The team interviewed several residents in Jina village where the stone houses are constructed according to the ethnic Qiang traditional style, and also interviewed residents in Shiyi Village located in a high mountainous area where people are engaged in ethnic tourism business especially after the earthquake.
Based on the findings from this field survey and interviews, IRP is now compiling a report titled "International Comparison of Community Governance" which will be of great use for government policy makers engaging in post disaster recovery across countries.

 (2010/06/04 14:00)

5-6 May, Singapore

The roundtable on Asian Regionalism was organized by the Asia Pacific Economic Cooperation (APEC) forum, Centre on Asia and Globalization (CAG) at the Lee Kuan Yew School of Public Policy and the Center for Strategic and International Studies (CSIS) on 5-6 may at the LKY School in Singapore. Many experts in the fields of energy security, climate change and natural disaster response attended the roundtable from across Asia.

The Asian Disaster Reduction Center had been involved in the preparatory process to some extent, but the organizers invited Mr. Atsushi KORESAWA of the ADRC as one of the discussants in the session "Response to Natural Disasters." He presented why ADRC was established and how ADRC has been conducting its activities as one example of many regional/sub-regional organizations in Asia, especially focusing on its comparative advantages. The head of SAARC Disaster Management Centre in New Delhi and the executive director of the Pacific Disaster Center in Hawaii also participated in the session as discussants.

CSIS will produce a report by reflecting discussions at this forum. It has become certain hat disaster management has been gaining its importance in the context of the non-traditional security areas. However, it has been recognized that there are many disaster management related activities conducted by many different organizations which have some similarities or commonalities and thus some rationalization is required to make them more effective and useful.
ADRC will continue to conduct its activities in good collaboration with other organizations and focus on areas which ADRC has comparative advantages.

Note) 

CAG:  Centre on Asia and Globalisation, Lee Kuan Yew School of Public Policy,   National University of Singapore
CSIS:  Center for Strategic and International Studies, Washington

(2010/05/12 13:10)

21-22 December 2009 (Luangnamtha, Lao PDR)

The National Disaster Management Office (NDMO) of Lao PDR and the Asian Disaster Management Center (ADRC) organized a workshop for local government officials in Luangnamtha province on 21-22 December 2009.  Some thirty officials from line departments of the province participated in the workshop together with three officials from the NDMO and one from ADRC.

This workshop is part of ASEAN project Capacity Building of Local Government Officials on Disaster Management, and the third one in the country followed by the workshops in Vientiane and Bolikhamxay provinces. 

During the two-day workshop, the local officials took lectures on disasters and risks, legal framework of national and provincial disaster risk management, risk assessment and flood management based on the subjects lectured in the Training of Trainers (TOT) in June 2009 where the trainers had participated. Owing to the assistance of NDMO and provincial officials, the trainers gave lectures in instructive and interactive manners, bringing about active discussion and fruitful feedback.

The ADRC hopes that the outcome of this project will be shared in other provinces and contribute to capacity development of local officials on disaster management throughout the country.

Similarly the workshops for local government officials are scheduled in early 2010 in Cambodia and Vietnam as the 1st year group countries in this project.

(2010/01/04 17:40)

28-30 October 2009 (Beijing, China)
 

The International Conference on the Social Mobilization for Catastrophic Disasters and the Formulation of Emergency Laws and Regulations was organized by the Ministry of Civil Affairs of China, was held on 28-30 October 2009 in Beijing, China. Mr. Fujieda, senior researcher of the ADRC was invited to participate in the conference.
 

Around 130 representatives from international organizations, ASEAN member countries, UK, USA, Canada, Australia, New Zealand, as well as Chinese government, regional institutions, NGOs, participated in the Conference.
 

The participants from different countries made presentations on the role of the government in the catastrophe emergency response, developments in the laws and regulations on disaster management and disaster-relief activities from their own perspectives. On the other hand, the participants from China including government, NGOs and other institutions, made presentations on roles of  volunteers, communities and enterprises in relief activities in the case of Whenchuan Earthquake.
Mr. Fujieda made presentation on disaster management laws and systems and disaster emergency response system in Japan in the session titled "the Role of Government in Social Mobilization on Catastrophic Disasters and Laws and Regulation Development".

(2009/10/28  17:30)

11-14 August 2009 (Incheon, Republic of Korea)

ADRC participated in this year's second meeting of the ISDR Asia Partnership (IAP) held in Incheon Metropolitan City, the Republic of Korea on 13-14 August 2009. The meeting discussed the follow-up action to the Second Session of the Global Platform on Disaster Risk Reduction (DRR), which was held 16-19 June 2009, the finalisation of the Kuala Lumpur Action Plan on DRR, and preparations for the Fourth Asian Ministerial Conference on Disaster Risk Reduction (AMCDRR), which will be held in Incheon Metropolitan City on 25-28 October 2010.

Dr. Yeon-Soo Park, Vice Administrator, the National Emergency Management Agency, the Republic of Korea, put forward his comprehensive proposal for the fourth AMCDRR in a very positive manner. He also detailed preparatory steps to be taken by various partners, i.e. member state governments, international organisations and other institutions.

Furthermore, participating organisations shared information on their recent attempts to follow up on the HFA midterm review, Kuala Lumpur Action Plan, etc. ADRC Executive Director Mr. Atsushi KORESAWA presented some of the ADRC's ongoing and future activities by putting a stress on the Asian Conference on Disaster Reduction 2010 (ACDR 2010) to be held in Kobe city, Hyogo Prefecture, Japan from 17-19 January 2010, back to back with other relevant meetings such as the IRP Recovery Forum. He also informed the participants that details of such events would be provided in due course on the website of ADRC.

In addition, ADRC had a chance to participate in the opening ceremony of the UNISDR Education and Training Institute for Urban Risk reduction and the UNISDR Northeast Asia Office, which was held on 11 August and the conference on "Building a Local governance Alliance for Disaster Risk Reduction" jointly hosted by UNSIDR and Incheon Metropolitan City.

(2009/08/25 17:40)

28-29 May 2009 (Chengdu, China)

ASEM (Asia-Europe Meeting) Workshop on Cooperation of Capacity Building of Disaster Relief, organized by the Ministry of Civil Affairs and the Ministry of Foreign Affairs of China, was held on 28-29 May in Chengdu, China.
In the opening ceremony speech, Mr. Li Xueju, Minister of Civil Affairs of China noted that Europe and Asia should reinforce the exchanges of knowledge and experience and cooperation in disaster reduction and relief. Asian countries have rich experience in disaster relief, while the European countries possess advanced technology and management concepts. Both sides should overcome their own shortcomings by learning from each other's strong points.
Total of 160 representatives from 32 member countries of the Asia-Europe Meeting and international organizations are present at the workshop.
The workshop focused on four core thematic areas: (1) disaster preparedness and emergency relief; (2) rehabilitation and reconstruction; (3) public-private partnership in disaster relief; and (4) disaster reduction and risk management. ADRC made a presentation entitled "Build Back Better" to introduce the activities of its own and IRP(International Recovery Platform).
Participants also visited the earthquake-affected areas in Dujianyan, Sichuan Province.

(2009/06/05 19:20)

28-29 April 2009 Seoul, KOREA

The ADRC participated in the 4th meeting of the Working-Group on Disaster Prevention and Preparedness which was jointly organized by United Nations Economic and Social Commission for Asia and the Pacific (UNESCAP), the World Meteorological Organization (WMO) Typhoon Committee Secretariat, and the National Emergency Management Agency of the Republic of Korea in Seoul on 8-29 April 2009.

The 22 participants who attended the meeting included representatives from China, Japan, Lao People's Democratic Republic, Malaysia, Philippines, Republic of Korea, Thailand, USA, Viet Nam, Hong Kong and Macao Special Administrative Regions, as well as representatives from the three organizing institutions.

During the meeting, participants discussed future activities of the working group, such as upgrade of the Typhoon Committee Disaster Information System (TCDIS), which is expected to be a useful typhoon- related disaster database for Asia. The ADRC gave a presentation on the role of GLIDE numbers, which are to be assigned to disasters contained in the individual databases of different organizations, and on the ADRC's contributions to the working group this year. The next meeting scheduled is the Integrated Workshop of the Typhoon Committee, to be held in the third week of September in the Philippines.

The Typhoon Committee has two other working groups on meteorology and hydrology, in addition to the working group on disaster prevention and preparedness.

(2009/05/13 12:20)

7-9 April 2009 (Chengdu, China)
The International Forum on Recovery and Reconstruction of Yingxiu, organized by Sichuan Provincial Construction Department, Guangdong Provincial Construction Department, Government of Aba Prefecture and China Academy of Building Research, was held in Chengdu, China, from 7 to 9 April, 2009. Three participants, headed by Mr. Suzuki, Executive Directive, from Asian Disaster Reduction Center (ADRC), one of the co-organizer, attended the forum. Please refer the file below for the detail.

Forum_Report_e.pdf

(2009/05/12 17:30)

25-30 May, 2008 (Sichuan, China)

The Asian Disaster Reduction Center (ADRC), in cooperation with the Disaster Reduction and Human Renovation Institution (DRI), investigated ways for the lessons and experiences of the Great Hanshin-Awaji Earthquake with regard to recovery and restoration of disaster-stricken areas to be utilized in response to the Sichuan Province Earthquake that struck Wenchuan County in China's Sichuan Province (GLIDE no. EQ-2008-000062-CHN) on 12 May 2008. To conduct this investigation, ADRC Senior Researchers spent 25-30 May visiting the cities of Dujiangyan and Mianzhu in the disaster-stricken area to assess the situation on the ground and to share nformation with officials from the Sichuan Provincial People's Government, the China Earthquake Administration, and the National Disaster Reduction Center (NDRC) of the Ministry of Civil Affairs.

Further information, please refer to : http://www.adrc.asia/highlights/NewsNo183

(2008/06/03 20:00)