On 17 May 2017, Disaster Preparedness and Prevention Center (DPPC) organized International Symposium on Disaster Risk Management 2017 in collaboration with University of Tsukuba (Japan), Disaster Prevention Research Center (DPRC), National Cheng Kung University (Taiwan), and Gadjah Mada University (Indonesia).
The objectives of the symposium were to (1) identify capacity building needs in DRM of disaster managers, disaster management agencies and organizations and (2) understand how capacity building needs can be met through training, research and field practice utilizing experiences from Malaysia, Japan, Taiwan and Indonesia.
There were more than 130 participants in the symposium, ranging from government agencies, universities/research institutes, NGOs and companies.
In the morning session, welcoming remarks were given by Prof Datin Dr Rubiyah Yusof, Dean of MJIIT, followed by keynote speeches from YBhg. Dato’ Seri Ir. Dr. Zaini bin Ujang, Secretary General, Ministry of Energy, Green Technology and Water Malaysia (KeTTHA) Malaysia and PPj. (PA) Tuan Haji Norhafifi Haji Ismail, Director of Policy Planning and Coordination, Malaysian Civil Defence Force (APM). In addition, presentations by DRM experts from Japan, Taiwan and Indonesia attracted great interest from the participants.
In the afternoon session, the participants themselves broke out in focus discussion groups (FGDs) to provide inputs on DRM capacity building needs in the region. Facilitated by students of Master of Disaster Risk Management (MDRM), the groups discussed on three thematic issues including DRM Technology and Innovation (Group 1), DRM Policy and Planning (Group 2) and Community Resilience through DRM (Group 3).
Each group identified and listed out the capacity building issues, challenges, problems and needs based on each theme and proposed collaborative action plans between research institutes and DRM agencies and organizations.
At the end of the symposium, the establishment of the Regional DRM Capacity Building Working Group was announced to follow up the action plans suggested by the participants.
The next ISDRM 2018 is planned to be hosted by Gadjah Mada University in Jogjakarta, Indonesia
As one of the series of DPPC outreach activity, DPPC Director, Professor Masafumi Goto and team members, Dr. Khamarrul Azahari Razak, Master of Disaster Risk Management (MDRM) course coordinator, Dr. Aznah Nor Anuar, Certified Professional Training (CPT) coordinator and Dr. Shohei Matsuura, DPPC JICA Expert, visited the state of Penang and Kedah from 13-15 March 2017. The team had a series of meeting with the strategic partners including Universiti Sains Malaysia (USM) Penang, Department of Irrigation and Drainage (DID) Penang, Civil Defense Department (APM) Penang, APM Kedah and Disaster Management Institute (DMI) of Universiti Utara Malaysia (UUM) Kedah.
The objectives of the roadshow were to provide public talk with various stakeholders on current disaster risk management (DRM) issues, particularly from Japan, share information on DPPC activities, promotion of MDRM and CPT and discussion on possible future collaboration in research and training.
At USM, the team was received by Professor Dr. Habibah Hj. Lateh, Prof. Dr. Ismail Abustan and other USM faculty team members. The discussions ranged from future collaborative research activities that targets disaster-prone communities in State of Penang to strengthening partnership, especially with state level DRM agencies.
At DID Penang, the team had a series of discussions with Director Ir. Sabri Bin Abdul Mulok and his assistant directors about issues and activities of the department that focused on flooding situation in the region. The team was informed that DID is keen to know more on how their technical work are contributing to the DRM efforts of the first responders in the communities. Briefing on the MDRM/CPT program also drew interest for training mid-career staffs in the department.
Various DRM stakeholders, including Penang Meteorological Office and State Office, participated in the meeting with the Civil Defense Department Penang. The region as a whole suffers from constant flooding and landslides and faces risk from tsunami. Questions ranged from specifics on effective early warning system (EWS) and ways to raise public awareness for communities to take timely and appropriate actions.
The public talk at APM Kedah also attracted many stakeholders from the State Disaster Management and Relief Committee. Presentation on the Japanese case study from 2011 East Japan Earthquake & Tsunami aroused questions on how Malaysia DRM efforts compare with those in Japan and how the Firefighting Volunteer (Shobodan) system is helping communities to enhance their resilience to disasters.
The final program of the roadshow was the visit to Disaster Management Institute (DMI) of Universiti Utara Malaysia (UUM) Kedah. DMI being close to the field and having strength in the social science aspect of DRM could become a strong collaborator for DPPC for implementing on the ground research activities in the future.
DPPC would like to send its heartfelt thanks to all the partners who have warmly received the team and look forward to establishing a long-term relationship.
Malaysia-Japan International Institute of Technology (MJIIT), Universiti Teknologi Malaysia (UTM) Kuala Lumpur with the support of Japan International Cooperation Agency (JICA) and National Disaster Management Agency Malaysia (NaDMA) the Prime Minister’s Department hosted the UTM Disaster Risk Reduction Forum (UTM DRR Forum 2016) on the 20 October 2016 at Seminar Hall, Menara Razak, UTM Kuala Lumpur.
This forum aims at bringing together stakeholders, prominent figures, leading academic scientists, and researchers to discuss and advance our understanding on disaster risk reduction towards building a disaster resilient community in Malaysia.
This event was organized as part of Master Disaster Risk Management (MDRM) program. The event kick off with welcoming remarks from Assoc. Prof. Dr. Muhamad Ali Bin Muhammad Yuzir followed by two series of talks. The first series was talk was given by Dr. Shohei Matsuura, JICA Expert for Disaster Preparedness and Prevention Centre (DPPC) entitled Japan’s DRM Administration and JICA’s International Cooperation. The second talk starts after tea break which introduces Tuan Mohd Ariff Baharom, Deputy Director General, Planning and Preparedness Sector, National Disaster Management Agency (NaDMA) Malaysia. Tuan Mohd Ariff shared his thought and vision on Disaster Risk Management in Malaysia. Prof. Dr. Masafumi Goto, the Director of Disaster Preparedness and Prevention Centre (DPPC) delivered his talk on priority and perspective of Disaster Risk Management and Preparedness & Prevention at MJIIT followed by a talk by Dr. Khamarrul Azahari Razak on integrating disaster research and practice.
Before the event finished, two of the MDRM students shared their thought and experience during the Kelantan flood disaster on 2014 and town watching program at the UTM Disaster Risk Reduction Day 2016 at Rantau Panjang, Kelantan. This forum finished at 1.00 p.m.
“Bringing Science to the Local Levels” DPPC/MDRM participation to Asian Ministerial Conference on Disaster Risk Reduction (AMCDRR 2016), 3-5 November 2016, New Delhi India.
-ABOUT AMCDRR 2016- On 2-5 November 2016, the DPPC/MDRM team participated in the Asian Ministerial Conference on Disaster Risk Reduction (AMCDRR 2016) organized by the United Nations Office for Disaster Risk Reduction (UNISDR) and the Government of India in New Delhi India. AMCDRR has brought together over 3,000 participants that included decision makers, government officials, scientists/researchers, bi-lateral and multi-lateral organizations, community-based organizations and private companies to discuss on the implementation of the Sendai Framework for Disaster Risk Reduction (2015-2030) in making the Asia-Pacific Region more resilient to disasters.
-ROLE OF SCIENCE AND TECHNOLOGY FOR DRR- UNISDR’s Asia Science Technology Academic Advisory Group (ASTAAG) in particular, focused its discussion on the role of science and technology to further strengthen DRR. Together with the continuation of advancing technology and research for DRR, the group emphasized the importance of connecting science with different stakeholders in various sectors and especially linking it with the local authorities and communities. Utilizing the comparative advantage of universities and research institutions possessing both scientific knowledge and community linkages, the group acknowledged its increasing role to assist governments on evidence based decision-making and action planning.
-DPPC/MDRM AT THE AMCDRR- At AMCDRR, DPPC/MDRM team were able to exchange views about the role of academic researchers with various participants including officials of National Disaster Management Agencies, members of ASTAAG, researchers of other universities/research institutions, NGOs and students. The team members participated in thematic sessions on the four priority actions of the Sendai Framework and technical sessions such as Ecosystems-based DRR, Private Sector Engagement in DRR, Risk Assessment and Multi-hazard Mapping and Community Resilience. In addition, the team proactively promoted the DPPC and MDRM program, which received great interest from disaster professionals and students, allowing the DPPC/MDRM program to join and be a part of the DRR network in the Asia-Pacific Region.
-NEXT STEPS- While participation to such conferences commonly can become a one-time event, the DPPC/MDRM program is already planning next steps to “bring science to the local levels.” Such activities have already been taken, including field visits to Selangor Hulu Langat River Basin and community based DRR activities in Rantau Panjang. The program will continue to bring its research outcomes to communities and government agencies to assist facilitation of evidence-based actions for achieving the goals of national DRR plans and the Sendai Framework through training, research and field practices.
AMCDRR5 at New Delhi India, 3-5 November 2016
DPPC-MDRM-MJIIT-UTM Booth at the Asian Ministrial Conference on Disaster Risk Reduction (AMCDRR) in New Delhi India
Visitors at DPCC-MDR-MJIIT-UTM booth at the AMCDRR
DPPC team with the Malaysian Delegation at the AMCDRR
Dato’ Zaitun Ab Samah, Director General of the National Disaster Management Agency (NADMA) at our booth
DPPC team with Prof. Rajib Shaw, Executive Director of the International Programme Office of the Integrated Research on Disaster Risk (IRDR) Programme and Co-chair of UNISDR’s Asia Science Technology Academic Advisory Group (ASTAAG)
Our new friends at AMCDRR
DPPC team with JICA delegation at AMCDRR
DPPC team with MERCY Malaysia at AMCDRR
DPPC team with Dr. Laura Kong, Director of UNESCO-IOC–NOAA International Tsunami Information Center (ITIC)
Universiti Teknologi Malaysia (UTM) Kuala Lumpur with the support of Japan International Cooperation Agency (JICA) have organized the UTM Disaster Risk Reduction Day 2016 (UTM-DRR2016) which was held on October 13, 2016 in Rantau Panjang, Jajahan Pasir Mas, Kelantan. The purpose of this program is to actively support the International Day for Disaster Reduction of the United Nations Office for Disaster Risk Reduction (UNISDR), which is on October 13 every year.
In line with this international call, this program is expected to contribute to the realization of the goals stipulated by the Sendai Framework for Disaster Risk Reduction 2015-2030 in Malaysia. At the national level, the Government adopted the Melaka Declaration on Disaster Risk Reduction in 2011, and formalized the Malaysia’s National Platform for Disaster Risk Reduction in 2013. Strategic Thrust 4 of 11th Malaysia Plan on the strengthening of resilience against climate change and disasters also addresses the crucial need of actions and priorities to reducing disaster risk.
This community-based activities was organized with the technical support by various governmental agencies and non-governmental organization, e.g. National Disaster Management Agency, Malaysia Civil Defense Force, Fire & Rescue Department, Ministry of Health, local council, and also non-governmental organization (e.g. CDERT-C & Neighborhood Group), which will be technically beneficial to about 20,000 communities.
Overall, this program is organized to assist the ongoing efforts of DRM agencies in fulfilling their mandates for building resilience of communities to natural disasters. It also encourages academician, researchers, individual, government, and also community, e.g. Civil Defence Emergency Response Team-Community (CDERT-C), a local volunteer organization established in 2015 with capacity of about 1000 registered local communities, to take active part in building disaster resilience at national and local levels. This program highlights the model making for community DRM awareness (learning-by-doing), promotion of DRM at UTM, and also scientific- and technical data collection related to community-, flood risk assessment, and Disaster Business Continuity Plan (DBCP).
As for UTM, the Malaysia-Japan International Institute of Technology (MJIIT) has developed the Disaster Management Program that includes establishment of the Disaster Prevention and Preparedness Center (DPPC) in 2015 and the start of the new Master of Disaster Risk Management (MDRM) that will implement its first five (5) core courses in the first semester 2016/2017. As a high profile program at UTM, it is being supported by the Japanese University Consortium (JUC) with mission to help build disaster resilience at different levels, places importance of direct involvement and engagement with local communities. This program is designed in such a way that DPPC members and MDRM students will be able to actively participate in several localized program and activities during the UTM Disaster Risk Reduction Day 2016 on October 13, 2016 in the most annually affected flood region.
Universiti Teknologi Malaysia (UTM) Kuala Lumpur with its strategic international- and national partners plays a major role in developing an ecosystem of disaster reduction and building a resilient community in Malaysia. UTM Disaster Risk Reduction Day 2016 (UTMDRR2016) promotes multi-stakeholder- and transdisciplinary disaster approach in combating the issue of disaster risk and reducing fatality. It is one of long-term commitment to the International Day for Disaster Reduction, held every 13 October in the support of international disaster framework and national’s platform for reducing the exposure of people and communities to disasters and raising awareness about the important of reining in the risk that they face in a changing environment.
