InAWARE AND DMRS
MARK A SUCCESSFUL PARTNERSHIP
BETWEEN THE AHA CENTRE, PDC, BNPB, AND OTHER PARTNERS
On January 26 2021 the AHA Centre, together with the Pacific Disaster Centre (PDC) and the National Disaster Management Authority of Indonesia (Badan Nasional Penanggulangan Bencana – BNPB), had the honour of witnessing the virtual handover ceremony of InAWARE and the Disaster Monitoring and Response System (DMRS). InAWARE and DMRS are the life-saving technology projects developed collaboratively and with funding support from USAID and its Bureau for Humanitarian Assistance. Both technologies have been customised for the specific needs of Indonesia’s BNPB and the AHA Centre, as well as being developed to support hazard monitoring, disaster response, regional cooperation, and early warning across ASEAN.
Deputy Executive Director of the PDC Mr Chris Chiesa highlighted that although these two projects officially closed this year, the relationship with all partners is only becoming stronger, and he also preferred to use the term ‘handover ceremony’ as opposed to ‘closing ceremony’. “This is a very proud moment for all of us to be handing over InAWARE and DMRS for their operational utilisation by the BNPB. I think you are all aware that the InAWARE grant ended recently in December 2020, and the AHA Centre activity that is part of the regional development capacity grant is also nearing its end. However, our relationship will be even stronger that when it started”, said Mr Chiesa. The PDC’s Executive Director Mr. Ray Shirkhoday also echoed these thoughts, when he stated “It’s a privilege to have had the opportunity to work with so many of the people joining us today. We see these relationships, developed over many years, as lasting partnerships, and we look forward to continued engagement with you all”.
Mr. Bambang Surya Putra, the Head of BNPB’s Emergency Operation Centre, highlighted the important of strong partnerships between the BNPB, PDC, and the AHA Centre. “We have been able to use InAWARE for our COVID-19 response, improving the quality of our operations, linking field and manager level, and helping us provide good information to the public” he said. He hopes that InAWARE can be utilised and maximised in the future by all provincial departments across the nation to provide accurate information related to disaster. Mr Bambang also agreed that this partnership should continue, saying that “we must continue to work side-by-side with our partners to further enhance the use of InAWARE within BNPB and provincial departments”.
For the AHA Centre this partnership forms one of its most important achievements. The DMRS has allowed the AHA Centre to better undertake its key function as the operational coordination engine of the ASEAN Agreement on Disaster Management and Emergency Response (AADMER), and also as the primary regional coordinating agency under the ASEAN Leaders’ Declaration on One ASEAN One Response. “It’s been a privilege for the AHA Centre to work with the PDC under ASEAN-US cooperation platform since our establishment nine years ago” stated Ms Adelina Kamal, the Executive Director of the AHA Centre, during the handover ceremony. “DMRS, powered by the PDC’s DisasterAware, is a customised near real-time disaster monitoring tool for the AHA Centre, and has been internalised and mainstreamed into our day-to-day disaster monitoring and response operations.”
The DMRS has already played a significant role in assisting ASEAN Member States and providing a common operating picture for multiple hazard situations across the region, as well as supporting the delivery of regional risk analyses assigned to the AHA Centre under the AADMER. From the DMRS, ASEAN Member States such as Indonesia, the Philippines, Thailand and Viet Nam have also been able to adopt elements to develop similar platforms at the country level, and the EOC’s in Lao PDR and Myanmar have also incorporated the AHA Centre DMRS.
Written by : Moch Syifa | Photo Credit : The AHA Centre
