Background

The Meeting on Regional Cooperation on Early Warning Arrangement , Preparedness and Mitigation of Natural Hazards from 12-14 July 2006 held in Bangkok, Thailand brought together early warning national focal points of Bangladesh, Cambodia, China, Lao PDR, Maldives, Myanmar, the Philippines, Sri Lanka, Thailand, and Vietnam to:

1. Consider, for approval, an end-to-end multi-hazard early warning (EWS) program, developed subsequent to the Ministerial Meeting on Regional Cooperation on Tsunami Early Warning Arrangements in January 2005 in Phuket, with guidance from two expert consultation meetings in February and April 2005;

2. Consider the proposal to establish a regional severe weather forecast research support to national meteorological services, and develop an implementation plan of action; and
   iii) Detail the implementation arrangements of the ADPC-facilitated regional multi-hazard early warning arrangement, including funding support.

Outcomes of the meeting

Key agreements and recommendations of the meeting were documented in a resolution that was signed by designated national focal points in the presence of Mr. Sihasak Phuangketkeow, Deputy Permanent Secretary, Ministry of Foreign Affairs, Thailand. The participating countries of Bangladesh, Cambodia, China, Lao PDR, Maldives, Myanmar, Philippines, Sri Lanka, Thailand, and Vietnam:

• Agreed that ADPC, as facilitator of the regional early warning system, shall serve as a regional tsunami watch provider to participating countries in the Indian Ocean and Southeast Asia

• Endorsed for funding and implementation, the regional program on end-to-end multi-hazard early warning

• Recommended the phased implementation of program activities
  • Recommended to seek funding support from the UN Regional Tsunami Trust Fund
  • Emphasized the need for a program approach that integrates the technical and societal aspects of warning
  • Emphasized the urgency of establishing an operational tsunami warning system in the region
  • Targetted1 July 2007 to have the initial regional tsunami warning system in place
  • Recommended the establishment of a regional severe weather research support system as a sustainability strategy for establishing the tsunami warning system
  • Established the program implementation arrangement as consisting of a) a Regional Steering Committee consisting of heads of early warning national focal points of participating countries and select international experts in tsunami warning and severe weather forecasting, to provide policy and technical guidance; b) National Steering Committees consisting of forecast information providers and intermediary user agencies and stakeholder institutions, with the early warning national focal point as Chair, for national level program implementation and to guide sub-national and local level activities; and c), and Sub-national/ Local Steering Committees consisting of early warning stakeholders at the local level, to implement community level risk reduction projects.

Participants to the meeting elected Mr. Tun Lwin, Director-General, Department of Meteorology and Hydrology, Myanmar, as Regional Steering Committee Chair, and Mr. G.H.P Dharmaratna, Director-General, Department of Meteorology, Sri Lanka, and Ms. Sumalee Prachuab, Director, Seismological Bureau, Thai Meteorological Department, as Vice-Chairs.