26 - 27 September 2011 (Yangon, Myanmar)
From 2 to 3 September 2011, Rescue and Resettlement Department (RRD) of the Government of Myanmar and the Asian Disaster Reduction Center (ADRC) jointly conducted a workshop to promote capacity building of local government officials in Myanmar. The workshop was held in Yangon in which more than 30 government officials from different localities participated.
This workshop was conducted as part of the ongoing project which RRD and the ADRC have been implementing since 2010 and has been financed by the Japan ASEAN Integration Fund. Prior to the workshop, training of trainers (TOT) was conducted in March this year. As a result, three out of the ten TOT participants delivered lectures at the workshop this time.
In the workshop, lectures on Total Disaster Management (TDM), Disaster Risk Reduction (DRR) measures and an incident command system in Myanmar, and other issues were delivered by the ADRC, RRD and the TOT trainees. Moreover, following these lectures, a hazard mapping exercise as a field activity and entailing discussion were also conducted.
The local government officials who participated in the workshop showed strong interest in exploring these issues thereby engaging very actively in close discussion and an exchange of opinions. The town watching conducted in areas which were severely affected by the cyclone Nargis in 2008 and activities for awareness raising on DRR for the villagers contributed to assuring the importance of DRR not only among the local officials but also the villagers.
Another two workshops are planned to be held this year, one in Mandalay and the other in Ayeyarwady. It is expected that the project will be useful for the capacity development of local government officials in the country.