Report of Regional Consultation on Early Warning Systems in Asia and the Pacific Presented by Ti Le-Huu, UNESCAP, On Behalf of Dr Toshikatsu Omachi, Executive Director, IDI-Japan, and Dr Yuichi Ono, UN/ISDR Secretariat

Organization of Asia-Pacific Regional Consultation Workshop Workshop was held in Bandung, Indonesia from May 2003 jointly organized by UN/ISDR, UNESCAP, DGGMR of Indonesia and BGR of Germany. 30 participants from Germany, Indonesia, Japan, Thailand, Viet Nam and international organizations: UNESCAP, UN/ISDR, UNDP, Mekong River Commission, GTZ and an NGO attended the Workshop

Main Points of Discussion Importance of natural hazards Disaster patterns Advances and constraints in dealing with the disasters; Experiences in related national planning Needs and recommended priority actions

Major Hazards in Asia & Pacific Workshops Results Floods Landslides Volcanic eruption Drought & forest fires Storm wind Earthquakes Land subsidence UNESCAP Surveys Floods Cyclones Earthquakes Droughts Tornadoes Debris flows Hailstorms Storm surges Tsunamis Haze

Factors in Successful Examples Awareness Institutional capacity Effectiveness of EWS Public education policy Budget and human resources Accurate forecasts, and Good planning

In India, it appears to be decreasing in recent years. In Thailand, overall trends are increasing, except damage slightly decreases in recent years All trends are increasing, except number of houses

Examples of Best Practices Cyclone and Flood EWS: Typhoon Committee, Panel on Tropical Cyclones, Mekong River Commission and several countries in the region Volcanic eruption EWS: Japan and several pilot schemes in Indonesia Forest fire EWS: Integrated Forest Fire Management Project - East Kalimantan Community-based disaster management: Typhoon Committee and DIPECHO

Recommended National Actions (1) to make available risk maps (2) to carry out awareness campaigns (3) to enhance institutional capacity (4) to develop national guidelines (5) to provide information to local people (6) to introduce EWS to schools (7) to enforce standard operation procedures (8) to increase budget resources (9) to enforce participatory planning (10) to improve monitoring in EWS.

Recommended region actions (1) Support forums for dialogue to share information, technology and best practices and to improve cooperation at all levels Support integration of disaster risk management into national development process Develop and implement EWS, especially for flash floods, landslides and forest fires Establish and develop community-based disaster preparedness programmes Establish a financial facility to enhance risk management of developing countries

Recommended region actions (2) Develop and strengthen database to facilitate resource allocation Improve public awareness on disaster vulnerability Enhance hydrologic and meteorological forecast capability Support projects to facilitate application of forecasts at the national, local and community levels Enhance research on earthquake risk analysis

Concluding Remarks on Follow-up Activities of EWC-II Activities be linked to Progress Review of Yokohama Action Plan Implementation Activities be built on expected achievements of existing regional efforts on EWS: Typhoon Committee Strategic Plan, GFAS of IFNet, MRC Flood Management Program, DIPECHO Partnership Disaster Reduction, UN/ISDR Radius Program, GTZ Forest Fires Management, etc Pilot projects are recommended for more effective impacts at the regional level