The press conference on the 11th ASEAN Ministerial Meeting on Disaster Management (Photo: VietnamPlus)The 11th AMMDM will beattended by eight ministers, four deputy ministers, and over 140 otherdelegates who are leaders and officials of disaster prevention and controlagencies of the 10 ASEAN member countries, the ASEAN Secretariat, the ASEANCoordinating Centre for Humanitarian Assistance on Disaster Management (AHA Centre),development partners of the bloc (China, the Republic of Korea, and Japan), andsome international organisations in the region. Timor-Leste will take part inthe event as an observer.
The meeting will see the presence ofthe largest number of ministers and deputy ministers so far, heard a press conferenceheld in Ha Long on October 6.
Pham Duc Luan, Director of theVietnam Disaster and Dyke Management Authority under the Ministry ofAgriculture and Rural Development, said Southeast Asia is a region hit hard byclimate change and forecast to face increasingly frequent and intensive naturaldisasters. Therefore, disaster risk management is a cooperation area attractingASEAN members’ attention for many years through various coordination mechanisms.
Vietnam has been establishing itselfas an active and prestigious member of ASEAN, he said, noting that thebloc’s cooperation in disaster management is part of the ASEAN Socio-Cultural Community.
Pham Duc Luan, Director of the Vietnam Disaster and Dyke Management Authority, speaks at the press conference. (Photo: VietnamPlus)Activities to be organised in thenext few days include the 11th AMMDM; the AMMDM Plus China, AMMDMPlus Japan, and AMMDM Plus RoK; the 43rd annual ACDM meeting; theACDM Plus meetings with the three Northeast Asian countries; the 19th meeting of the AHA Centre’s Governing Board; and the 4th ASEAN DisasterResilience Platform.
A running tournament with theparticipation of 1,000 people and another event in response to the ASEAN Dayfor Disaster Management (October 13) will also take place, Luan noted.
The 11th AMMDM isexpected to adopt a Ha Long declaration on early action in disaster managementin ASEAN, he went on, adding that the declaration is an initiative proposed byVietnam.
Luan said the hosting of the11th AMMDM and related events is both a responsibility and also a chancefor the country to promote its role in the ASEAN cooperation in disastermanagement, the building of the ASEAN Community, and the bloc’s relations withpartners. It will also help Vietnam make use of partners and international community’sexperience and resources to support disaster prevention and control efforts inthe country and contribute to the building of a disaster-resilient ASEANCommunity./.
VNA
