Disaster Mitigation
in Asia

31 March 2008
Issue No. 57

The Program for Hydro-meteorological Disaster Mitigation in Secondary Cities in Asia (PROMISE), funded by USAID/OFDA, commenced from October 2005. Through consultations with a number of ADPC partners, five project countries have been selected – Bangladesh, Pakistan, the Philippines, Sri Lanka and Vietnam – for implementing demonstration projects in each country in a highly vulnerable city with recent history of hydro-meteorological disasters. Other components of the program consist of capacity building, risk management advocacy, networking and dissemination initiatives in the selected countries. The objective of the program is to contribute towards reduction of vulnerability of urban communities through enhanced preparedness and mitigation of hydro-meteorological disasters in South and Southeast Asia. The main activities from January to March 2008 are: implementing the small-scale mitigation projects for each city, preparing for city-level workshops on disaster mitigation, promoting school safety, planning for the conduct of national courses, and development of case study material.

PROGRAM ACTIVITIES for March and April 2008:

• BANGLADESH – BDPC organized a 3-day community-based emergency response course (C-BERC) on March 2 to 4 at Local Hotel Hall Room, Kapashgola Road, Chowk Bazar, Chittagong. The training was conducted with the aim to support emergency response structure at city level as well as to promote skill enhancement of community volunteers. The training was facilitated by Mr. Frederick John Abo, of ADPC and co-facilitated by a four-member team of the Bangladesh Red Crescent Society headed by Mr. Md. Nurul Amin, Junior Assistant Director. A total of 28 participants attended –20 Change Agents (two from each Ward), and two representatives each from Chittagong City Corporation, the Fire Service and Civil Defence, school teachers, and PROMISE-Bangladesh project staff. The training was conducted in English with Bengali translation. Participants learned cardiopulmonary resuscitation; dealing with bleeding, shock, fractures and dislocation; triage and mass casualty management; and improvising stretchers and other rescue equipment from locally-available material. The implementation activities of community mitigation projects are under process. The installation of pond sand filter has already been completed during this reporting period and the people are using the safe water from there. A formal meeting was held on March 16 between the Chittagong City Corporation, Ward Commissioners and PROMISE-BD team. The main agenda of the meeting was to give an update on the progress of PROMISE-Bangladesh. The Ward Commissioners presented the implementation of their respective small-scale disaster mitigation project. Activities for next month include a mock emergency response and search-and-rescue drill, the city workshop for stakeholders on hydro-meteorological disaster mitigation for Chittagong, and the conduct of emergency simulations in schools and the establishment of school disaster management programs.

• INDONESIA – PROMISE-Indonesia began in February, with a technical scoping/project orientation workshop held on February 15 as the official kick-off event. The workshop was held at the general meeting room of the Regional Planning Board (Bapeda) of the Jakarta Provincial Government (DKI). It was attended by 40 officials of JPG and related stakeholders; Mr. Yusak Oppusunggu of USAID-Jakarta; Tuty Kusumawaty, Secretary of Bapeda DKI; and Harkunti P. Rahayu, Project Coordinator for PROMISE Indonesia. The workshop was officially opened and inaugurated by the Secretary of Bapeda DKI. The main agenda was to inform the stakeholders about PROMISE- Indonesia; Ms. Rahayu made the presentation, which was followed by an open forum. Criteria for the location of the pilot site were discussed. The forum agreed that the location should be a flood prone kelurahan (an administrative area that consists of several neighborhoods, some schools, public health center, and some amenities). The proposed kelurahan included Bukit Duri, Mampang, Rawa Buaya and Cipinang Muara. Beside the location, some mitigation initiatives were suggested by the project stakeholders, emphasizing on non-structural flood mitigations – i.e. life skill education, emergency response for community health sectors, EWS, etc. After study of the proposed sites, it was decided that the pilot site will be Kelurahan Bukit Duri. Next month’s activities include: collation of studies of hydro-meteorological hazards and vulnerability assessments of Jakarta; and the mapping (identification) of flood preparedness and mitigation projects and programs being undertaken by various institutions.
   

• PAKISTAN – PROMISE-Pakistan continued the implementation of the small-scale disaster mitigation projects.  Work is continuing on the earth-filling of the streets of Ghera Hindu Basti and installation of communal latrines.  The latrines have been laid, and only plastering of the walls remains.  For the street improvement, storm water drainage pipelines have been laid down and the work is in the final touches.  The local government will build 12 more communal latrines to benefit the 300 families living in this 30,000 square-foot community compound.  In Aliabad Hyderabad, the street raising was completed this month, and the installation of covered storm water drains was started and is nearly completed.  For Thakur Colony, the street raising and latrine construction projects were completed, and work has begun on the waste cum storm water drainage.
        The necessary arrangements for a city-level workshop for finalizing the District Disaster Management Plan are underway.  A follow-up meeting was held with the District Nazim Hyderabad on March 14, and another meeting with Deputy District Nazim on March 23.  The PROMISE-Pakistan team discussed with the Nazims the current progress, and recognized the collaboration of District Government.  The district Government has agreed to convene the City Consultative Workshop and a Training on Governance and Disaster Risk Reduction in the month of April 2008.
   

• PHILIPPINES – The Department of the Interior and Local Government - Government of the Philippines (DILG) organized the 1^st National Conference on Mainstreaming DRR in Local Governance in Makati City last March 4 to 6. It was attended by representatives of different local government units (Dagupan City, Makati City, Leyte, Province of Albay), international organizations (EMI, DKKV German Committee for Risk Reduction part  of ISDR, ADPC), government agencies (Phivolcs, OCD) and local NGO’s (CDP and others).  The Dagupan PROMISE Team attended the conference: Mayor Alipio F. Fernandez Jr., Emma Molina and Ryan Rabanzo, other staff from Dagupan City, and Ms. Lorna Victoria and Mayfourth Luneta from CDP.  Mayor Fernandez presented the PROMISE-Philippines project and how it helped in mainstreaming DRR into local governance.
      PROMISE-Philippines participated in DILG’s Newly Elected Officials Training for Dagupan City’s barangays last March 10 to 13.  This training aimed to equip the newly elected officials in their service for the barangays.  The city’s 31 barangays were divided into 2 training clusters (March 10 to 11 for the first batch, and March 12 to13 for the second batch).  TWG member Rhoderick Dawis coordinated with the DILG to incorporate CBDRM by showing the Project PROMISE experience as an example during the NEO training.  Ms. Emma Molina, TWG focal person, gave the CBDRM orientation for the first batch, and Ms. Luneta spoke to the second batch.  The Barangay Captains appreciated the CBDRM orientation and hoped that the same process will be experienced by other barangays.
      CDP and the TWG created a Monitoring Team for the small-scale disaster mitigation projects of the eight barangays.  The team is composed of Engr. Camillo, Ms. Teresita Pascua, Ms. Felita Ugaban, Ms. Remy Peralta of Dagupan City Hall; and Ms. Mayfourth Luneta of the Center for Disaster Preparedness (CDP).  All except one (Lasip Chico) had started, Lasip Chico was not able to start because they lacked funds, their expected City Gov Fund was not yet approved so they reduced their scope of work.  The PROMISE-Philippines team had several meetings to prepare for the Dagupan DRR and Local Governance workshop.  TWG and CDP made the module for the Dagupan DRR and LG, and have divided amongst themselves the tasks for running the training.  Activities for next month include: Trocaire DRR Workshop, the 1st LGU Course on Governance and Disaster Risk Reduction in Dagupan City organized by PROMISE-Philippines, and the completion of the small-scale disaster mitigation projects.

• SRI-LANKA – Sarvodaya conducted a workshop on City Level Risk Reduction Plan Development was conducted on 20th March at Hotel White Haven, Panadura with the patronage of Hon.Minister Mahinda Samarasinghe, Minister of Disaster Management and Human Rights and with the participation of City Mayor- Kalutara, Mr. Al-Haj Mubarak, and Deputy Mayor Mr. Jauffer.  PROMISE-SL continued overseeing the implementation of the small-scale disaster mitigation projects.  In February, an awareness-raising event and a workshop were conducted relate to introduce the project on Water Resource Management & Solid Waste Disposal for Flood Mitigation.  This month, a workshop was conducted on organic farming.  PROMISE-SL jointly organized a workshop with SEEDS for the beneficiaries of the micro-credit scheme to discuss the purpose of issuing loans and the activities to support livelihood creation.  PROMISE Project signed an agreement with NBRO to develop map of land use planning. A workshop is scheduled to conduct for familiarization on guidelines and hand over the map to Kalutara Urban Council on May12.  As the first step of the school disaster management program, the first awareness program was conducted in February for three selected schools in Kalutara, with 200 selected students from each school.  In March, disaster management committees were formed in the schools, and planning is underway for first aid training.  Briefings were held on the small-scale disaster mitigation program with the mayor, Deputy Mayor, Technical Officer, and some staff officers.  Activities for next month include implementation of the Small-Scale Disaster Mitigation Projects, First Aid Training for School DM Committee members, and train communities on community-based early warning systems.
   

• VIETNAM – PROMISE-Vietnam had several awareness-raising activities this March.  Hoa Xuan ward initiated a contest on “Women with CBDRM” on March 8, International Women’s Day. More than 200 women from 11 sections attended the contest on CBDRM knowledge.  PROMISE-Vietnam received funding from the Uniterra programme of CECI to develop 2,000 posters and flipcharts.  The poster on “Things children should know in flooding periods” featured disaster mitigation information such as: including Dos and Don’ts for children; what the community should do before, during and after disaster. The flipcharts were on CBDRM and safer community plans. These posters and flipcharts will be distributed to schools and displayed at community meetings halls for awareness raising.  Preparations have begun for a training class on CBDRM for reporters of district and ward broadcasting stations, to enhance their knowledge on CBDRM and facilitate dissemination of news on disaster preparedness and mitigation. The training will be followed by a contest for the best article on disaster management and awareness raising on disaster mitigation.
      PROMISE-Vietnam continued the implementation of community based disaster mitigation subprojects.  Construction continued to proceed for the small-scale structural mitigation projects.  Construction is almost complete for the upgrading of inter-field dyke section 7A-7B; only a 17.5m section remains to be concreted.  Concreting of 175m of the dyke section 5-6 has been done, for a total of 236m completed so far.  Upgrading of the evacuation bridge and road in Hoa Xuan ward is almost finished, except for filling of berms on both sides of the road.  Finally, concreting of the deck slabs of the flood drain for intersection 16-29-33 was completed this month.  Several activities were conducted for the small-scale non-structural mitigation projects.  For the Community Awareness Raising on Disaster Preparedness and Building Practices project, 20 classes on Disaster Preparedness and Good Building Practices were done in the six wards of Cam Le district.  About 600 community representatives attended the two-day training classes, who will be the main agents to disseminate information to other people in the community.  Friendly materials with condensed content on CBDRM and safer community plans were given to local trainers to support their future training.  For the project Improving Emergency Response of Cam Le district that focuses on providing equipment and training to first responders of the district and wards, wireless first aid kits, loudspeakers and other equipment were delivered to wards PC and emergency response teams.  Training kits on basic emergency response skills were delivered to local trainers, who conducted seven training classes to the section emergency response teams.  These teams are the main actors for emergency response at grassroots level, and these classes were the first training attended by most of the team members.  A leaflet on simple basic emergency response steps was developed and will be distributed to these local resource persons.
      PROMISE-Vietnam developed picture books under the school safety program.  The books use as illustration the good entries to the drawing competition for the 4th and 5th grade pupils. These books are to be distributed to schools and serve as a study tool for the intended integration of disaster preparedness and environment protection into the school curriculum.  Activities for next month include: finalization of the small-scale disaster mitigation projects; workshop on evaluation of project activities and planning at district and ward level; workshop on CBDRM institutionalization and experience sharing.

 A. From the Region

(1) Floods displace thousands in Sri Lanka
(based on reports from IRIN and Reuters)

More than 50,000 people have been hit by flooding in northwestern Mannar District in Sri Lanka in early March.  Eight districts experienced flooding caused by torrential rains that killed five people and forced 54,000 to flee their homes, according to the National Disaster Relief Services Centre (NDRSC).  Forty houses were destroyed and 155 damaged.  The government had allocated three million rupees (US$27,000) as emergency funds for affected districts and Rs2 million ($18,000) only for Mannar District.  Initial reports indicate that there will be significant crop losses in the region.  Floods also occurred mid-March in eastern Sri Lanka that forced more than 7,000 people from their homes. 

(2) UAE to launch humanitarian satellite channel by end of 2008
(based on a report from IRIN)

The United Arab Emirates (UAE) will launch an independent humanitarian and environmental TV satellite channel by the end of 2008 - the first of its kind in the world.  The channel will target ordinary people as well as humanitarian workers and donors.  It will have programming in Arabic and English.  The channel will be financed by local and foreign donors, sponsors and partners.

B. Calls for Submission

(3) Call for Abstracts: UCLA Conference on Public Health and Disasters

UCLA invites abstracts from students for a poster session at the 6th UCLA Conference on Public Health and Disasters, May 18-21, 2008, in Torrance, California.  Poster abstracts should be authored solely by students and must be submitted either electronically or by fax no later than April 2.  For the abstract submission form and other information, please go to: http://www.cphd.ucla.edu/.

C. Conferences and Courses

(4) 4^th International i-Rec Conference – Christchurch, New Zealand: 30 April - 2 May 2008

Organizer: Resilient Organizations.  The 4^th International i-Rec Conference theme will be "Building Resilience: Achieving Effective Post-Disaster Reconstruction.” The i-Rec Conference brings together researchers and practitioners from a diverse range of professional disciplines, including civil engineering, architecture, urban planning, international development, humanitarian aid, and sociology.  The conference will be hosted by the University of Canterbury.  For more details, please visit: http://www.resorgs.org.nz/irec2008/. 

(5) Conference on Operationalising Public Private Partnerships for Disaster Management – New Delhi, India: 16-17 April 2008

Organizer: National Disaster Management Authority of India (NDMA), Government of India.  The conference will cover issues, experiences, practices and future for corporate resilience, preparedness, business continuity, risk management, techno financial strategies, opportunities, threats and many more areas for disaster management.  It has four themes: Corporate Resilience and Preparedness for Disaster Management; Business Continuity for Disaster Management; Risk Transfer through Techno Financial Strategies; and Operationalising Public Private Partnership for Disaster Management.  The conference partners are: International Federation of Red Cross & Red Crescent Societies, Regional Delegation for South Asia - USAID, IRG - Geo Hazards International - International Association of Emergency Managers - Tata Teleservices - Sphere India.  For more details, please visit: http://www.responsenet.org/show.detail.asp?id=8021. 

(6) 2^nd 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. 

(7) Regional Course on on Climate Risk Management: Science, Institutions, and Society – Bangkok, Thailand: April 21 to May 2, 2008

Organizer: Asian Disaster Preparedness Center (ADPC).  The course provides an opportunity to enhance the capabilities of professionals to manage risks associated with climate variability, change, and extremes.  For more information on this course, please go to: http://www.adpc.net/v2007/Programs/CRM/Downloads/adpc
_RegionalTrainingCRM.pdf.

D. Useful Resources

(8) Safe Hospitals online resource

The Pan-American Health Organization (PAHO) has developed a website for promoting the safety of hospitals against disasters.  The website includes descriptions of a safe hospital, the Hospital Safety Index, and relevant publications.  To view the website, please go to: http://safehospitals.info/. 

(9) Social Problems Perspectives, Disaster Research and Emergency Management: Intellectual Contexts, Theoretical Extensions, and Policy Implications, Drabek, 2007

This essay explores the intellectual contexts wherein disasters are defined as non-routine social problems.  Drabek is professor emeritus at the University of Denver.  Presented at the American Sociological Association meeting in 2007, the paper discusses disasters and their resolution as social constructions.  To download the paper, go to: http://training.fema.gov/EMIWeb/edu/docs/Drabek%20-%20Quarantelli%20Theory%20Award%20Lecture%20-%20Social%20Problems%20.doc.   

(10) World Water Day 22 March: Message from the UN/ISDR secretariat Director

"Natural hazards such as floods, droughts, tsunamis, tropical cyclones, and earthquakes have the potential for causing massive harm to vital infrastructure.  One of the most serious threats that face communities and nations directly after disasters is the disruption of access to safe water.  This problem is particularly serious for developing countries, due to their higher levels of vulnerability."  To read the full Message from the Director, please go to:  

(11) Country Focus 7: Sri Lanka

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 Sri Lanka:

• Sri Lanka 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_SriLanka.pdf

• Safer Cities 5: Community-based Disaster Risk Reduction in Central Sri Lanka, June 2003: http://www.adpc.net/AUDMP/library/safer_cities/5.pdf

•  Safer Cities 6: Promotion of Disaster Mitigation in Sri Lanka, October 2003: http://www.adpc.net/AUDMP/library/safer_cities/6.pdf

• Safer Cities 12: Demonstration Housing Construction for Landslide and Flood Prone Areas: A case study from Ratnapura, Sri Lanka, January 2005: http://www.adpc.net/AUDMP/library/safer_cities/12.pdf

• Safer Cities 18: The Boy Who Cried, “Wolf!” or Why a Community-based Alert System is a good idea, June 2007: http://www.adpc.net/v2007/Programs/UDRM/PROMISE/
  INFORMATION%20RESOURCES/Safer%20Cities/Downloads/SaferCities18.pdf

• Disaster Management Policy and Practice: Lessons for Government, Civil Society, and the Private Sector in Sri Lanka, Oxfam, October 2006: http://www.oxfamamerica.org/newsandpublications/
  publications/research_reports/disaster-management-policy-and-practice-lessons-for-government-civil-society-and-the-private-sector-in-sri-lanka/disaster%20management%20research%20summary.pdf

• Sri Lanka Urban Multi-Hazard Disaster Mitigation Project, Prepared by the Centre for Housing, Planning and Building, National Building Organization, and Urban Development Authority, August 2000: http://www.adpc.net/AUDMP/library/project_rpts/lk1.pdf

• ADB Economic and Political Update on Sri Lanka: http://mms.adb.org/e-Notification/url.asp?ID=18714&DOCID=11792

• ISDR Profile of Sri Lanka: http://www.unisdr.org/eng/country-inform/sri-lanka-general.htm

• AlertNet’s profile of the Sri Lanka: http://www.alertnet.org/db/cp/srilanka.htm

• ADB Portal on Sri Lanka: http://www.adb.org/SriLanka/default.asp