-
BANGLADESH – BDPC
organized the City level workshop on
“Development of City Disaster Management
Plan” held on April 23. Honorable Mayor
M. Manjur Alam inaugurated the program;
Dr. Md Jalal Ahmed, Civil Surgeon,
Chittagong City Corporation, were
present as Special Guests. Mr. Moloy
Chaki, program coordinator presided over
the workshop session. Ms. Maliha Ferdous
welcomed the participants and guest on
behalf of PROMISE-BDPC team. A total of
71 representatives from different key
departments of the city participated at
the event. The event had 2 parts: a
technical session where resource persons
made presentations on various natural
hazards and climate change issues, and a
workshop where the participants worked
in groups to identify the activities and
responsible authorities for the disaster
management. The implementation of the
community mitigation projects continued
this month, and is expected to be over
in May. Activities for next month
include a mock emergency response and
search-and-rescue drill, an advocacy
workshop, completion of the small-scale
disaster mitigation projects, and the
establishment of school disaster
management programs.
-
INDONESIA –
PROMISE-Indonesia concentrated on
meetings with the communities of the
selected kelurahan of Jakarta
province as part of the preparations for
CBDRR intervention at grassroots level.
-
PAKISTAN –
PROMISE-Pakistan continued the
implementation of the small-scale
disaster mitigation projects. The
projects will be completed by May.
PROMISE-PK finalized the arrangements
for the National Course on
Governance and Disaster
Risk Reduction scheduled for May 26 to
29.
-
PHILIPPINES –
PROMISE-Philippines conducted the 1st
LGU Course on Governance and Disaster
Risk Reduction from April 8 to 10 in
Dagupan City was organized. The event
aimed to promote the culture of disaster
safety and resiliency putting forward
the element of good governance among
individuals and groups involved in the
bureaucratic work. Thirteen (13)
representatives from eight
municipalities and cities attended the
course: municipalities of Alcala,
Asingan, La Union, Rosales, San Fabian,
Sta. Barbara, and Dagupan City and
Urdaneta City. Resource persons from
the City Government (Technical Working
Group), Center for Disaster
Preparedness, Guagua Municipal Disaster
Coordinating Council, and the Department
of Interior and Local Government (DILG)
of Region 1 imparted lessons learned and
good practices in disaster risk
reduction and good governance to the
participants. The course featured
interactive lectures, brainstorming
sessions; group workshops, Focused Group
Discussions, audio-visual presentations,
a half-day field trip to see the good
practices in CBDRM in the 8 pilot
communities under PROMISE-Philippines
(namely Mangin, Salisay, Tebeng, Lasip
Chico, Lasip Grande, Bacayao Sur,
Bacayao Norte and Pogo Grande) and to
interact closely with the community
people and learn from their rich
stories, and an action planning activity
to draft a plan which will showcase the
activities that they would like to take
on when they come back to their
respective communities. In particular,
they were asked to identify various
activities before, during and after a
disaster which they think would help
their communities become safer and
prepared. Copies of Safer Cities 20
were distributed to the participants.
A covenant signing among 42
representatives from different
municipalities, cities and province of
Region 1 in the Philippines was held on
April 10 after the course. This
ceremony was the start of a partnership
to promote and mainstream disaster risk
reduction into their plans and programs.
Signatories included the mayors, heads
of the local disaster coordinating
councils, staff of the various LGU
departments, officials from the DILG and
Office of Civil Defense regional
offices, non-government organizations
and civil society.
-
PROMISE-Philippines
had several networking and advocacy
activities this April. Ms. Mayfourth
Luneta of CDP attended the Trocaire DRR
Workshop from March 31 to April 4 in
Yogyakarta, Indonesia. Ms. Luneta
presented the CDP/PROMISE experience in
risk assessment, and the risk reduction
measures done as results of the risk
assessment. The workshop was attended
by different Trocaire partners in the
region. Ms. Lorna P. Victoria of CDP
attended the 5th Disaster
Management Practitioners Workshop in
Phnom Penh, Cambodia from April 2 to 4,
one of the events most attended by
different DM practitioners from the
region. Ms. Victoria presented
“Sustaining Partnership in CBDRR:
Experiences in Urban Areas”, with
Dagupan City and PROMISE-Philippines one
of the cases highlighted in the
presentation. She also distributed
copies of the PROMISE 2008 calendars and
Safer Cities 16. Oxfam GB launched the
ten-minute video of CBDRM good practices
on April 29 at the Shangri-La Hotel,
Makati. The video included the Barangay
Mangin-Dagupan Experience in CBDM
entitled “Strength in Numbers: The
Barangay as Building Block” that
showcased the PROMISE-Philippines
experience in strengthening the BDCC and
helping the community get involved in
CBDM. The early warning systems as well
as other CBDM components were also shown
in the AVP. Next month’s activities
include: the preparations for the
National Course on DRM and Governance,
and a sharing session of community
hazard mapping tools for high-risk
communities in Baguio.
-
SRI LANKA –
PROMISE-Sri Lanka
continued the
implementation of the small-scale
disaster mitigation projects. The
Mainstreaming DRR in Local Governance
project
saw meetings of the Joint
Committee for Mainstreaming DRM this
month to finalize the Strategy Paper for
Sri Lanka.
-
VIET NAM
– PROMISE-Vietnam
completed the small-scale
disaster mitigation projects. PROMISE-VN
also conducted the city-level
workshop on CBDRM
institutionalization and experience
sharing
on April 18. Key stakeholders attended
the meeting; Mr. Arambepola and Ms.
Karunaratne represented ADPC. PROMISE-VN
country project activities are finished
as of April 30; the remaining tasks are
the writing and submission of the final
report.
A.
From the Region
(1)
Indonesian volcano spews ash, residents
evacuated, April 15
(based on a report by
Reuters)
Authorities announced that
Mount Egon on Flores island started to erupt
late on Tuesday, emitting grey ash up to
4,000 metres (13,000 feet) above the crater,
after showing increased activity since early
this month. About 600 people living about
1.8 km (1 mile) from the peak of the volcano
were evacuated. Although the eruption was
not considered dangerous, nearby residents
were made to wear masks.
(2)
Bird flu in South Korea(based
on a report by Reuters)
South Korea extended its risk
level for bird flu to the second highest
nationwide on April 16 as it braces for the
worst influenza outbreak among poultry in
more than four years. In less than two
weeks, South Korea confirmed 11 cases of the
H5N1 strain with an outbreak at a farm in
Pyeongtaek city in Gyeonggi province, 60 km
south of Seoul, and at a farm in Sunchang
county in North Jeolla province. In late
2003, the country it had to kill 5.3 million
birds to arrest the spread of bird flu.
South Korea is investigating possible causes
of the spread such as migrating birds and
transport workers who have been moving
around the affected sites and other parts of
the country. The farm ministry will beef up
quarantine work and will conduct year-round
regular tests on poultry (rather than
concentrating on the November and February
period). They have also raised the risk
level for bird flu to 'alert,' extending
coverage nationwide from the southwest.
(3)
ASEAN+3 Satellite Image
Network to Aid Disaster Management and the
Environment
(based on a report from ASM)
The prototype of an
internet-based satellite image archives
sharing network for ASEAN+3 member countries
is expected to be completed by September
this year. Coordinated by the Thai space
technology and geo-informatics organisation
GISTDA, the ASEAN +3 Satellite Image Archive
for Environmental Study (ASIA-ES) project is
designed to aid scientists and governments
to tackle disaster and environmental
problems in the region. A data
clearinghouse will house earth observation
satellite data and other environment-related
information gathered by space agencies in
the region. To read more, please go to the
original article: http://www.asmmag.com/news/811.
(4)
ITU will lend mobile
satellites telecoms to the Philippines for
disaster preparedness
(based on a report from
UN-SPIDER)
The International
Telecommunications Union committed to send
mobile satellite telecommunications
equipment to the Catanduanes Provincial
Disaster Coordinating Council, Philippines.
The goal is to ensure voice communication,
high-speed data transmission and Internet
access for disaster preparedness for three
months during the typhoon season. The use
is for free, and the equipment will be
returned to Geneva for other countries to
use.
(5)
Asian countries battle with
malaria
(based on reports from IRIN)
Several countries are dealing
with malaria this month. Outbreaks of
malaria are being reported in various parts
of the southern province of Sindh in
Pakistan. In early April, the
Islamabad-based Directorate of Malaria
Control (DOMC) said 130,000 cases of malaria
had been confirmed in Pakistan in 2007.
In the Philippines, the Department of Health
marked World Malaria Day on 25 April
declared six more provinces malaria-free,
bringing the total to 22 out of 81. The
provinces of Marinduque, Sorsogon, and Albay
in Luzon; Eastern and Western Samar in the
Visayas; and Surigao del Norte in Mindanao
were declared malaria-free. This means no
indigenous cases were reported for five
consecutive years. Malaria cases have
consistently been declining: from more than
76,000 reported in 1990 to 46,000 in 2005,
with 150 deaths that year. In 2006, malaria
incidences declined a further 26 percent to
33,800, with 89 deaths.
Indonesia, where close to 100 million people
live in areas susceptible to malaria, has
embarked on a drive to eliminate the disease
by 2030. The program includes: a national
campaign on how to prevent and treat the
disease; malaria alert posts in villages to
improve surveillance; distribution of
insecticide-treated bed nets in endemic
regions, with two million to be supplied in
2008 alone; free immunization for babies;
and increased detection through microscopy
slides, rapid diagnostic tests and more
laboratories. In addition, is being
launched. Last year, 1.75 million
Indonesians were clinically diagnosed with
malaria and more than 300,000 people tested
positive for the disease. The fatality rate
in Indonesia is estimated at about 1 per
cent.
The malaria control program in Thailand will
set up special malaria services at the
Thai-Myanmar border and in the southern
provinces (Songkhla, Pattani, Yala, and
Narathiwat) experiencing insurgency. To
provide effective diagnostics, treatment and
prevention in the area, the Department of
Public Health collaborates with local health
authorities to set up special malaria posts
in the villages in the south. Local people
are trained to conduct rapid diagnostic
tests, give prompt treatment for positive
cases, and provide long-lasting treated bed
nets to villagers. The Malaria Task Force
established in 1995 collaborates with
Mahidol University, other research
institutes, and humanitarian agencies such
as the Keenan Institute Asia, American
Refugee Committee International, Malteser
International, International Rescue
Committee to provide malaria control
programs along the Thai-Myanmar border.
International NGOs provide malaria services
to approximately 140,000 people in nine
refugee camps. Outside the camps, IRC and
the International Organization for Migration
(IOM) offer malaria referral services to
migrants.
B. Calls for Submission
(6)
Call for Manuscripts:
Community Disaster Recovery and Resiliency:
Exploring Global Opportunities and
Challenges
Community Disaster
Recovery and Resiliency: Exploring Global
Opportunities and Challenges, an edited and
peer-reviewed volume, provides a forum for
policy makers, students, scholars, community
organizations, and citizens to discuss
community trauma during the pre- and post-
(immediate and long-term) disaster response
and recovery periods as it is experienced
around the globe. The editors of this volume
are calling for diverse community examples
as a framework to facilitate a candid,
in-depth comparison of the best practices
illustrating how communities experience
disaster, recover from it, and affect social
policies in such a way that the community’s
vulnerability to disaster is reduced.
Chapter proposals in reference to
opportunities and challenges to
international community recovery are being
accepted in the following areas: Building
and Public Infrastructure; Social and
Cultural Revitalization (including formal
and informal social support networks);
Economic Revitalization; Public Health and
Safety; Housing and Housing Policy; and
Private-Public Partnerships for Building
Sustainable Communities. Send a title, an
abstract, and a 3- to 5-page double-spaced
chapter proposal, in English, by June 1,
2008, to DeMond Miller at
millerd@rowan.edu.
C. Conferences and Courses
(7)
2nd Regional
course on the Use of GIS and RS in Disaster
Risk Management – Bangkok, Thailand: 5-16
May 2008
Organizer: Asian Disaster
Preparedness Center (ADPC). The course
provides an excellent opportunity for
professionals and practitioners to obtain
essential skills and knowledge in GIS and RS
and their current application in disaster
risk management. Participants will gain
practical and technical knowledge on the
uses of GIS and RS in disaster prevention,
preparedness and emergency response.
Extensive exercises and simulations provide
an insight into how GIS and RS tools are
applied in these fields, and the benefits
and solutions that can be presented. The
course is co-organized with the
International Institute for Geo-information
Science and Earth Observations and the Asian
Institute of Technology. Further
information and the application form are
available at the following links:
http://www.itc.nl/education/courses/course_descriptions/C08-ESA-TM-02.aspx
or
http://www.adpc.net/v2007/Downloads/2008/Jan/Leaflet%20GRSDRM2_final.pdf
or http://www.geoinfo.ait.ac.th/training/GRSDRM2.pdf.
For further information pls contact: Mr.
Falak Nawaz, ADPC, +66 2 516 5900 to 10, Ext
330, email:
falak@adpc.net,
tedadpc@adpc.net.
(8)
7th Annual Meeting of the
Regional Consultative Committee for Disaster
Management – Colombo, Sri Lanka, 8-10 May
2008
Organizer: Asian Disaster
Preparedness Center (ADPC). ADPC’s Regional
Consultative Committee (RCC) will hold its
7th meeting with the theme of rights based,
community led disaster risk management. The
meeting will also have sessions on lessons
learnt from recent disasters, progress made
on the implementation of the RCC Program on
Mainstreaming disaster risk reduction into
development (RCC MDRD), the ongoing global
campaign on Hospitals Safe from Disasters
and on progress on implementation of the
Hyogo Framework for Action (HFA). The event
is co-hosted with the Government of Sri
Lanka with support from the Government of
Australia.
(9)
8th Regional Training Course
on Earthquake Vulnerability Reduction for
Cities – Bangkok, Thailand: 9-20 June 2008
Organizer: Asian Disaster
Preparedness Center (ADPC). The course is
designed to impart greater understanding of
the causes and effects of earthquake and
collateral hazards, primarily focusing on
mitigating such impacts in order to reduce
damage and loss of lives with sustained
development. The designed course is a blend
of principles, concepts, case studies and
hands-on experience of seismic risk
reduction strategies. Further information
and the application form are available at
the following link:
http://www.adpc.net/v2007/TRG/TRAINING%20COURSES/Special%20Courses/2007/EVRC-8/Default-EVRC-8.asp.
For further information pls contact: Mr.
Falak Nawaz, ADPC, +66 2 516 5900 to 10, Ext
330, email:
falak@adpc.net,
tedadpc@adpc.net.
(10)
Multi-hazard Risk Assessment
– Enschede, Netherlands: 30 June – 18 July
2008
Organizer: Asian Disaster Preparedness
Center (ADPC). The course provides an
opportunity to enhance the capabilities of
executive managers and technical staff
involved in disaster risk management by
providing them with understanding on the use
of spatial information in disaster risk
management. The course is co-organized with
the International Institute for
Geo-information Science and Earth
Observations. For more information please
go to:
http://www.adpc.net/v2007/Downloads/2008/Jan/Leaflet%20GRSDRM2_final.pdf.
D. Useful Resources
(11)
Google Earth Outreach program
for non-profit organizations
Google Inc.
has unveiled a new feature for Google Earth
that gives NGOs and charities the skills and
resources to use Google Earth and Maps to
highlight their cause to a mass audience.
Once GoogleEarth is loaded onto your
computer, you can zoom in to different areas
of the world to get placemarks with
information. The placemarks are categorized
with different icons representing different
types of information It means campaigners
can overlay written, audio and video
information onto Google Earth and explain
their work to a worldwide audience.
Information provided by the United Nations
High Commissioner for Refugees, for example,
explain where the refugees have come from
and what problems they face while users look
at satellite images of refugee hot spots
such as Darfur, Iraq and Colombia. Other
organizations that have added layers include
Greenpeace and UNICEF. To access the Google
Earth Outreach program, click here:
http://earth.google.com/outreach/index.html.
(12)
Safer Cities 20: Community
Based Early Warning System and Evacuation:
Planning, Development and Testing, Luneta
and Molina, 2008
ADPC, through
the Program for Hydro-Meteorological
Disaster Mitigation in Secondary Cities in
Asia (PROMISE), published this latest case
study in the Safer Cities series. The case
study of Dagupan City illustrates the
significance of setting up and
operationalizing an early warning system and
evacuation plan for flood to draw people
together in pursuit of collective action
towards building safe and resilient
communities. To download, please go to:
http://www.adpc.net/v2007/Programs/UDRM/PROMISE/INFORMATION%20RESOURCES/Safer%20Cities/Downloads/SaferCities20.pdf.
(13)
Climate Variability and
Change: Adaptation to Drought in Bangladesh,
ADPC-FAO, 2007
A Resource
Book and Training Guide, this is a reference
and training guide for building the capacity
of agricultural extension workers and
development professionals to deal with
climate change impacts and adaptation,
specifically targeting drought-prone areas
of Bangladesh. Based on an initial needs
assessment and feedback from the national
and local-level technical working group
members, the manual is presented as a series
of modules containing background information
as well as suggestions for application of
the information. Technical definitions are
drawn from the “Climate Change 2001
Synthesis Report” of the Intergovernmental
Panel on Climate Change (IPCC). To
download, please go to:
http://www.adpc.net/v2007/Programs/CRM/Downloads/CCAandCV
_droughtBangladesh.pdf.
(14)
Climate Variability and
Change: Adaptation to Drought in Bangladesh,
ADPC-FAO, 2007
Within the
broader framework of climate change
adaptation, this report looks at past
drought impacts, local perceptions of
droughts, anticipated climate change and its
related impacts, and viable adaptation
options for drought-prone areas of
Bangladesh. This includes assessment of
current vulnerability, coping strategies and
future climate-related risks and adaptation
strategies. To download, please go to:
http://www.adpc.net/v2007/Programs/CRM/Downloads/FAO_ADPC_LACC.pdf.
(15) Towards Mainstreaming
Disaster Risk Reduction into the Planning
Process of Road Construction: Philippines,
ADPC, 2008
The ADPC Regional
Consultative Committee (RCC) on Disaster
Management under its program on
mainstreaming disaster risk reduction into
development (MDRD) have identified Roads and
Infrastructure, Agriculture, Education,
Health, Housing and Financial Services as
priority sectors to initiate mainstreaming
disaster risk reduction. Three country
documents are now available under this
program:
(16) Country Focus 8:
Thailand
This section is a focus on
online resources on the countries under the
GUGSA project or PROMISE program, both
funded by USAID. The countries that will be
featured are (in order): Bangladesh, India,
Indonesia, Nepal, Pakistan, Philippines, Sri
Lanka, Thailand and Viet Nam. Here is a
list of online resources on Thailand:
-
Thailand Country Study
under the Good Urban Governance in South
Asia project funded by USAID-India:
http://www.adpc.net/v2007/Programs/UDRM/PROGRAMS%20&%20PROJECTS/URBAN%20GOVERNANCE/downloads/GUGSA_Thailand.pdf
-
Safer Cities 13: What
is the Appropriate Mitigation Mix?
Structural and non-structural mitigation
in Hat Yai, Thailand, March 2005:
http://www.adpc.net/AUDMP/library/safer_cities/13.pdf
-
Safer Cities 17: Good
Governance and Post-Tsunami Recovery in
Patong, June 2007:
http://www.adpc.net/v2007/Programs/UDRM/PROMISE/INFORMATION%20RESOURCES/Safer%20Cities/Downloads/SaferCities17.pdf
-
Reduce Tsunami Risk:
Strategies for the Urban Planning and
Construction Design, Italian Ministry
for the Environment, Land and Sea and
ADPC, 2006
-
Guidelines:
http://203.159.16.18/adpc/Downloads/2007/March/HANDBOOK-%20Guidelines_for_construction_DMS_2007.zip
-
Risk Assessment and
Evaluation ArcGIS Toolbox users manual:
http://203.159.16.18/adpc/IKM/ONLINE%20DOCUMENTS/downloads/Manual%20of%20Risk%20Assessment%20and%20Evaluation.zip
-
Evacuation Routes Tools
ArcGIS Toolbox users manual:
http://203.159.16.18/adpc/IKM/ONLINE%20DOCUMENTS/downloads/Risk%20tutorial.zip.
-
Rapid Assessment:
Flashflood and Landslide Disaster in the
Provinces of Uttaradit and Sukhothai,
Northern Thailand, May 2006:
http://www.adpc.net/enewsjuly/Uttaradit_rapidassessment.pdf
-
Tsunami Damage and Loss
Assessment Report in Thailand, August
2005:
http://www.adpc.net/maininforesource/dms/
Thailand_AssessmentReport.pdf
-
Thailand-Tsunami Rapid
Assessment Report, February 2005:
http://www.adpc.net/v2007/IKM/ONLINE%20DOCUMENTS/downloads/Tsunami%20Rapid%20Assessment%20Report_15%20Feb.pdf
-
ISDR Profile of Thailand:
http://www.unisdr.org/eng/country-inform/
thailand-general.htm
-
AlertNet’s profile of the
Thailand:
http://www.alertnet.org/db/cp/thailand.htm
-
ADB Portal on Thailand:
http://www.adb.org/Thailand/default.asp
