ASIA: REPORT AND REGIONAL BLUEPRINT FOR CHANGE Part I: Draft Concepts of a "Regional Blueprint for Change" Preamble: Asia, noted for its great diversity in culture and extremes of technological capacity, is one of the most disaster-prone regions in the world. Every year, disasters having geologic, atmospheric, hydrologic, `and technological origins cause huge economic loss, morbidity, mortality, and loss of function of property and infrastructure in the region along with adverse environmental impacts, collectively causing a severe setback to the development process. The region, which accounts for 30% of the world's landmass and 50% of the world's population, receives disproportionately higher disaster impacts in comparison with other regions. The annual average numbers of people killed (40,000); affected, made homeless and injured by disasters (150 million) indicate the urgency for implementation of disaster prevention, mitigation, and preparedness measures. Recent disasters such as the Gujarat, India earthquake in 2001 and the Kobe earthquake in 1995 are indicative of the threat faced by the region. Each country in the region (e.g., Japan, China, Russia, India, Iran, Bangladesh, Taiwan, Nepal, Thailand, Kazakhstan, Korea, Indonesia, Pakistan, Philippines, Vietnam, Cambodia, Mongolia, etc.) is susceptible to disasters. Each country has people, cities, megacities (e.g., Tokyo, Bombay, Manila), financial centers, international business enterprises, dwellings, low-and high-rise buildings, and infrastructure at risk from a wide range of slow- and rapid-onset natural hazards, technological hazards, and environmental impacts. Each country has urban centers and regions (e.g., cities in Bangladesh and India, Tokyo) that are highly vulnerable to the recurrence of a frequent hazard (e.g., floods) or an infrequent hazard (e.g., a recurrence of the 1923 Kanto-Tokyo earthquake, volcanic eruptions in the Philippines). The region has good reasons to be most concerned about earthquakes, floods, tropical cyclones, droughts, landslides, environmental degradation, industrial and technological accidents, global change, tsunamis, coastal erosion, and public health. To facilitate regional cooperation for coping with these hazards, the region now has many important centers that are focusing on disaster research, disaster prevention, and disaster preparedness. Many countries in the region are providing leadership for and participating in ongoing, long-term, bi-lateral and multi-lateral agreements and programs (e.g., ISDR, Millennium Program) World Seismic Safety Initiative, Crowding the Rim Initiative, ProVention Consortium) to improve cooperation and collaboration with developed and developing nations within and without the Asia region. Regional Leadership Team Tri-Chair: George Ritchie Tri-Chair: Tsuneo Katayama Tri-Chair: Mark Klyachko Secretariat; Moshen Ghafory-Ashtiany Secretariat: Ang-Sheng Wang Tahmeed M. Al-Hussaini Marat U. Ashimbayev Shou Shan Fan Kapil Gupta David T. Hollister David Howell Frances L. Kernoble V. Larionov Tinachi Li Leonid Roshal Horng-Syi Shen Marisa Sherard Chih-Hong Sun Ram Krishna Taparia Prakash Tewari Elena Tivadze Yi-Ben Tsai Kuniaki Uehara Krishna S. Vatsa
I. INTRA-REGIONAL ACTIVITIES--2002-2007 A. Create an Asia Blueprint for Change Purpose: To develop an Asia Blueprint for Change that will enable all countries in the region to improve their capacity for living with natural and technological hazards Who Will Have Primary Responsibility: The current Asia Leadership Team will start the process, enlisting additional experts from each country represented in the Workshop as well as from countries that were unable to have a representative at the Workshop, Objectives: After integration across the three themes and some consolidation of the 35 topics, to construct an Asia Blueprint for Change in the framework of thirty of the thirty-five topics of the first edition Global Blueprints of Change. The five topics that at present are considered to be most useful for an Asian Blueprint for Change are:
Enhancing Public Awareness · Integrating, consolidating, and expanding on the ideas contained in six (6) Theme A Blueprints (A.1, A.2, A.3, A.4, A.5, A.9, and A.13), four (4) Theme B Blueprints (B.1, B.2 plus B.5 plus B.6 plus B.7, B.8, and B.9), and five (5) Theme C Blueprints (C.2, C.3, C.4, C.8, and C.9) · Earthquake preparedness in schools · Sharing of knowledge · Expanding monitoring capacity · Convening "High Level Meetings" in the region through the auspices of the World Seismic Safety Initiative (WSSI)
Improving Emergency Management · Integrating across the three themes and expanding on ideas contained in Theme A, Topic A.6 · Developing programs through WADEM and WHO aimed at advancing medical aid and rehabilitation after disasters, especially for the benefit of children Data Collection, Integration, Management, and Dissemination · Integrating across the three themes and expanding on ideas contained in Theme C, Topic C.2 · Expanding the use of strong motion data through the WSSI and COSMOS programs Global Centers of Excellence · Integrating across the three themes and expanding on ideas contained in Theme C, Topic C.9 · Consideration of an International Center for Disaster Reduction · Consideration of a center to coordinate the strong motion arrays now being deployed in cities Reducing Vulnerability · Integrating across the three Themes and expanding on ideas contained in Theme B, Topics B.2, B.5, B.6, and B.7 · Focusing on technologies and professional practices for making the region's traditional homes constructed of bamboo and mud more resilient to earthquakes and severe windstorms, · Focusing on technologies and professional practices for making the infrastructure of urban centers more resilient to earthquake ground shaking, tsunamis, floods, landslides, debris flows, and lahars. · Focusing on technologies and professional practices for improving awareness, preparedness, and mitigation measures for oil and chemical facilities. Some countries, such as India, indicated that they need and want Blueprints for all 35 topics, and may take steps to enlist Blueprinters and develop more topics than at present. Others such as Taiwan have already contributed to nearly one-third of the thirty-five first edition Blueprint topics. Others such as Iran and China are prepared to make a substantial contribution during the second edition. Although protection of cultural heritage is very important to every Asian country, it was not selected as one of the top five priorities at this time. Strategy: · Build on current momentum created by ongoing programs such as those currently administered by the many highly qualified institutes in the region (for example, the Asia Disaster Preparedness Center (ADPC), Iran's International Institute for Earthquake Engineering and Seismology (IIEES), and Japan's National Research Institute for Earth Science and Disaster Prevention). · Build on and expand special programmatic activities such as the World Seismic Safety Initiative (WSSI), the Millennium Program, the new international strong motion program (COSMOS) and the World Association of Disaster Emergency Medicine (WADEM). · Build on programs administered by United Nations organizations such as the United Nations' ISDR, WHO, WMO, UNDP, and UNESCO · Build on 1994 Yokohama agreement forged at the mid-point the IDNDR · Build on bilateral and multilateral agreements · Plan for future inter-regional activities in global perspective. Potential sponsors/investors/donors (traditional and non-traditional): · International, regional, and national development-aid organizations such as UNDP, ADB,IDB, EU, USAID, · World Bank's ProVention Program · OFDA · UNESCO · Oil companies · Construction companies II. INTER-REGIONAL ACTIVITIES--2002-2007 We will use all potential gateways to other regions and consider all opportunities for inter-regional collaboration in a global perspective. This can be done best after the processes underpinning the intra-regional activity described above are well established and underway. Ongoing bi-lateral and multi-lateral agreements and programs will continue to provide a foundation for inter-regional outreach. PART
II: BACKGROUND 1. The need is great in Asia, where one-half of the world's population is living with earthquakes, floods, tropical cyclones, droughts, landslides, environmental degradation, industrial and technological accidents, global change, tsunamis, coastal erosion, and varied public health problems. 2. Recognizing the great need and the enormous variability within the Asia region of resources, technical capacity and political will, we recommend the development of a regional Blueprint that focuses on the five topics that are perceived to have the highest benefit for all: a) Enhancing Public Awareness, b) Improving Emergency Management, c) Data Collection, Integration, Management, and Dissemination, d) Centers of Excellence, and e) Reduction of Vulnerability.
3. We
want the current and potential new Blue printers to continue their work on
the second edition of the Global Blueprints for Change because the Asia
regional plan will use nearly ninety percent of the topics addressed in the
first edition. We are calling for integration of the three themes and
consolidation of some of the topics.
B.
PROPOSED "INTERNATIONAL
MEETING" IN 2002 1. We welcome the proposed congress and will help to design it and share in it so that not only Asia but also all regions can benefit from knowing about the goals, objectives, and success stories of the Asia Blueprint for Change. 2. The Asia region's objectives for such a meeting are to generate political good will and to form a basis for political decisions in each country on each of the five topics of the Asia Blueprint. 3. Our strategy will be to have the Asia Blueprint ready for presentation to the region's decisionmakers. We will have a list of achievable actions for every country in the region. We will obtain the commitments of sponsors/investors/donors to implement the necessary actions. We will seek opportunities to promote pre-disaster risk reduction measures as a way to minimize the requirements of post-disaster relief and to identify financial, legal, and political incentives for their implementation. 4. We expect the Blue printers to produce the second edition of the Blueprints in time for dissemination at the meeting for the benefit of professionals. All seven of the Regional Blueprints should be available in draft form. The meeting should produce measurable changes in the Asia region as well as in other regions, such as: a) an increase in understanding, engagement, and commitment of national and local policy makers, b) an increase in political commitment and professional involvement, c) a major increase in the exchange of new information and technologies, d) increased efficiency in sharing of knowledge and experience, e) increased political good will as a result of "High Level Meetings" conducted in conjunction with the meeting,
C. REGIONAL FORUMS, ONGOING PROJECTS, AND CENTERS OF EXCELLENCE 1. We will seek opportunities to undertake regional projects and to develop centers of excellence to meet the needs of the Asia region. |