"Safe community environments and disaster resilient societies"

Manu GuptaVice-Chairperson, ADRRNCo- Director, SEEDS India

The Asian Disaster Reduction & Response Network

"Safe community environments and disaster resilient societies"

CHALLENGES IN ASIA

• Asia is the most disaster prone continent• 90% of all natural disasters• 50% of all major disasters• Affects economies, lives, fabric of human society• Sheer scale and complexity of natural disasters in recent

times• Many countries struggling to recover

"Safe community environments and disaster resilient societies"

ASIAN NGOs

• Total number uncertain• Different definitions/classifications• Local vs International• Capacities vary• What is certain is the number is increasing and the roles

are more evident

"Safe community environments and disaster resilient societies"

• NGOs should complement each other• NGOs need to be responsible, transparent and

accountable• Benchmarking• Good practice guidelines

"Safe community environments and disaster resilient societies"

ADRRN• February 2002, Kobe, Japan• ADRC & UN-OCHA • More than 30 NGOs gathered from all over Asia• Asian NGOs wanting to take charge• Asian Disaster Reduction & Response

Network (ADRRN) was formed

"Safe community environments and disaster resilient societies"

28 member NGOs from 15 Asian Countries

• Chairperson– Dr. Jemilah Mahmood (MERCY Malaysia)

• Vice Chairperson – Manu Gupta (SEEDS India)

• Committee Members– Milet Mendoza (Tabang Mindanao, Philippines)– Amod Dixit (NSET, Nepal)– Naeem Salimee (CoAR, Afghanistan)– Dr. Tan K. (SiF, Singapore)

Current Strength

"Safe community environments and disaster resilient societies"

ADRRN MeetingsSubsequent meetings in December 2003, June

2004, WCDR 2005, August 2005, and June 2006 at Bangkok

"Safe community environments and disaster resilient societies"

Activities

"Safe community environments and disaster resilient societies"

Post Tsunami :Promoting Awareness

"Safe community environments and disaster resilient societies"Young Communities

"Safe community environments and disaster resilient societies"

Building Safety

Water Conservation

GovernanceTraining CHANGE AGENTS within communities

"Safe community environments and disaster resilient societies"

November 2005 : Penang

ADRRN/GOLFRE Asia Regional Learning Workshop

Disaster Risk Reduction: Learning from Tsunami Experience22 to 30 November 2005, University of Science Malaysia, Pulau Pinang

"Safe community environments and disaster resilient societies"

"Safe community environments and disaster resilient societies"

Workshop Methodology• Experience sharing through country case studies• Tools and Techniques

– Collapsed Structure Search and Rescue– Medical First Response– Relief distribution– Psycho-social aid– Shelter: temporary and permanent– Participatory rapid assessment– Livelihood recovery and rehabilitation– Non-Structural Mitigation

• Simulation Exercise (Group Work)• Field Exercise – Impact, Response, Mitigation &

Preparedness

"Safe community environments and disaster resilient societies"

Learning

Knowledge bank

Synthesize

Reflective Practice“developing with communities from and for

them”

Community

Generate information

"Safe community environments and disaster resilient societies"

2005-2007

"Safe community environments and disaster resilient societies"

PARTNERS

"Safe community environments and disaster resilient societies"

PROJECTS

INDIA : SEEDS

Micro credit program for immediate Livelihood recovery

INDONESIA : MERCY MALAYSIA

Development of Resource Center & Sustainable Knowledge Bank

SRI LANKA : SARVODAYA

Eco-village & Preparedness for long term Recovery

"Safe community environments and disaster resilient societies"

May 2006- March 2007

Training and Capacity Enhancement of Local Governments in the Earthquake Affected Areas

of Pakistan

To be Implemented by • United Nations Inter-Agency secretariat of the International Strategy for Disaster

Reduction (UN/ISDR)• Contribution from the Government of European Union through the Voluntary Trust

Fund for disaster reduction)• Asian Disaster Reduction and Response Network (ADRRN) and Kyoto University

Graduate School of Global Environmental Studies (KU GSGES)

"Safe community environments and disaster resilient societies"

• ADRRN member NGOs working in humanitarian sector are directly in touch with the “Change Agents” – workers, community leaders, school teachers, masons, health workers…..

"Safe community environments and disaster resilient societies"

ADRRN’s MISSION

“Promote coordination and collaboration among NGOs for effective and efficient disaster reduction and response in the Asia-Pacific region”

"Safe community environments and disaster resilient societies"

OBJECTIVES

• To develop an interactive network of NGOs committed to achieving excellence in the field of disaster reduction and response

• To raise the relevant concerns of NGOs in the Asia-Pacific region to the larger community of NGOs globally, through various international forums and platforms

• To promote best practices and standards in disaster reduction and response

• To provide a mechanism for sharing reliable information and facilitating capacity building among network members and other stakeholders

"Safe community environments and disaster resilient societies"

What has worked….

• Asian spirit• Strong & Committed Core Group• Volunteering time and efforts for the network• Implementing activities on the ground• Complementing each other’s roles• Regular communication, meetings, website etc

Member NGOs see great value in their participation in network activities

"Safe community environments and disaster resilient societies"

…….challenges remain

• Recognition at national level• Sustained funding for secretariat• Legal Status : Registration etc. • Membership criterion• Guiding principles

"Safe community environments and disaster resilient societies"

Every organization has its own unique identity

If we can encourage diversity….

"Safe community environments and disaster resilient societies"

….true unity can prevail!

Thank you

www.adrrn.net