Vol 42-DELSA II Project Steering Committee Meeting
DELSA II
PROJECT STEERING COMMITTEE MEETING
MANILA, THE PHILIPPINES, 24TH AUGUST 2018
Entering its second phase of implementation, the Disaster Emergency Logistics System for ASEAN (DELSA) Phase II project continues to contribute to the implementation of One ASEAN One Response, specifically in the area of stockpile deployment to disaster-affected countries. As the leading mechanism in the Phase II project, the DELSA Phase II Project Steering Committee (PSC) meeting was held on the 24th of August in the OCD-NDRRMC Office, Camp Aguinaldo, the Philippines.
As reported in the meeting, during 2018 the DELSA Phase II project has contributed to stockpile deployment and local procurement in response to the floods in Lao PDR, floods in Myanmar, and the earthquakes in Indonesia, providing relief items to a total value of USD 426,867. The remaining ASEAN stockpile, which is stored in the UN Humanitarian Response Depot in Subang, Malaysia, consists of 45 types of relief items amounting to the total value of USD 1,777,460.
This meeting also formed an opportunity for the DELSA Project Management Team to report the progress of the establishment of the satellite warehouses in the Philippines and Thailand. The satellite warehouse in the Philippines utilises a building owned by the Armed Forces of the Philippines in Camp Aguinaldo, which after some renovations, will be ready to house the satellite warehouse.
Meanwhile, the satellite warehouse in Thailand is planned to be fully operationalised by the first quarter of 2019, with a scheduled official launching during the ASEAN Summit in April 2019, coinciding with the induction of the Thailand Chairmanship of ASEAN.
A Memorandum of Understanding (MoU) for the establishment of the satellite warehouse in the Philippines was also signed during the meeting by Ms. Adelina Kamal, Executive Director of the AHA Centre, and Under Secretary Ricardo B. Jalad, Executive Director of NDRRMC and Administrator of the OCD Philippines. This MoU marks the strengthening of cooperation and commitment between the AHA Centre and OCD Philippines to support the readiness of ASEAN in responding to disasters. The meeting also resulted in other significant guidance and decisions on key resources, criteria and partnerships to support the network of the DELSA warehouses. A key study on stockpile identification was agreed, with results to act as a baseline that will serve as a reference for minimum types and quantity of stockpiles to be stored across all three DELSA warehouses, as well as specific stockpiles unique to each warehouse.
The DELSA Phase II PSC Meeting was attended by the AHA Centre, ASEAN Secretariat, representatives from Singapore and Malaysia as the Co-Chairs of the ACDM Working Group on Preparedness and Response, representatives from the Mission of Japan to ASEAN and Japan-ASEAN Integration Fund (JAIF) Management Team as the donor, and representatives from the Philippines and Thailand as the host countries of satellite warehouses.
Written by : Caroline Widagdo | Photo : AHA Centre
- Published in AHA Centre Diary 3
Vol 37-Kit of Hope Fun Crowdfunding
KIT OF HOPE
FUN CROWDFUNDING
SUBANG, MALAYSIA, 5 MARCH 2018
Collaboration lies at the heart of One ASEAN One Response solidarity. Beyond a slogan, such solidarity asserts that every individual can contribute in the development of a collective resilience towards natural disaster. Alumnae of the Ship for Southeast Asian and Japanese Youth Programme (SSEAYP) in Malaysia demonstrated a similar spirit earlier this year, through a fundraising drive to support emergency response efforts in the region.
In late 2017, the SSEAYP Malaysia Chapter ran an independent crowdfunding campaign to celebrate the 50th anniversary of ASEAN, as well as the 45th year of cooperation between Japan and the ASEAN region. The campaign successfully secured funding to provide 10 thousand hygiene kits for the ASEAN standby relief stockpile – warehoused in Subang, Malaysia. Each hygiene kit comprises of sanitised wet wipes, shampoo, soap, face towel, toothbrush, sanitary pads, and a plastic comb. Not only did they fund the procurement of the relief items, members of SSEAYP International Malaysia also volunteered to pack the donations – that were handed over to the AHA Centre on March 5th, 2018.
“This is a good example of ASEAN solidarity where students raised money and contributed relief items in the spirit of One ASEAN One Response. It is an inclusive platform so everyone is welcome to join and contribute,” said Ms. Adelina Kamal, Executive Director of the AHA Centre.
SSEAYP was launched in 1974 by the Government of Japan to promote cross-cultural understandings between youth of all ASEAN Member States and Japan. The annual exchange programme allows participants to get to know each other through a two-month voyage on the Nippon Maru vessel.
“It was a great relief to see corporations, government agencies and ministries to also chip into the crowd-funding campaign. We had also received individual contribution from students and visitors of the Open Ship of SSEAYP in December 2017. But biggest applause is to the SSEAYP International members attending the Reunion on Board dinner, of which part of the tickets sold were routed to this effort,” said Dyana Abas, the Deputy President of SSEAYP International Malaysia, who was also the 20K Kit of Hope Program Chairperson.
Written by : Shintya Kurniawan | Photo: SSEAYP International Malaysia
- Published in AHA Centre Diary 2
Vol 39-JAPAN ASEAN Integration Fund
JAPAN–ASEAN
INTEGRATION FUND
The Japan-ASEAN Integration Fund (JAIF), officially established in early 2006, is a specific funding mechanism developed by the Government of Japan to support the continuous development of the ASEAN Community. Since its establishment, with contributions totaling over 650 million USD, JAIF has strengthened the relationship between Japan and ASEAN across a range of areas. Guided through the implementation of the ASEAN 2025: Forging Ahead Together blueprint, JAIF has funded and supported multiple projects related to disaster management, counter-terrorism, economic integration, youth exchanges and cultural understanding. Based on this shared interest in disaster management, the Government of Japan through JAIF has been an integral partner for the AHA Centre (and by extension disaster management in ASEAN) since the programme’s founding years.
This shared interest has been a key platform for a partnership that was forged during the AHA Centre’s early days in 2011, with the Japanese Government’s support (as one of the ASEAN Dialogue Partners) materialising within the AHA Centre-JAIF partnership functions. Support has not only been in financial form, but also through capacity development and knowledge and skills sharing across a range of programmatic functions. Both parties hold extensive and relevant portfolios in disaster management – a reality which allows for mutual benefit within the partnership context. Due to Japan’s close geographic proximity to the ASEAN region, both parties are explicitly intertwined, with much to gain from a close and strong relationship. The Government of Japan and ASEAN use this context to increase the interoperability and interaction of processes, mechanisms and skills within their respective disaster management sectors. As a result of Japan’s deep experience in managing and responding to large-scale natural disaster within its borders, JAIF has allowed the AHA Centre to tap into some of the most extensive knowledge and resources in the world, while allowing Japan’s access to regional knowledge and contacts, and the opportunity to further engage with its closest neighbours.
“As a Dialogue Partner, Japan actively cooperates and takes initiatives to strengthen cooperation on disaster management in the ASEAN region. Since its establishment in year 2011, the JAIF Management Team (JMT) has been closely working with the AHA Centre to conceptualise and formulate project proposals and implement significant and successful projects in support of fulfilling the AHA Centre’s mandate. For JMT, the collaboration with the AHA Centre only makes JAIF supported projects in disaster management better and more aligned with the needs of the region,” said Zin Aung Swe – the Programme Coordinator of JAIF Management Team.
Historically, JAIF has been one of the key support mechanisms for a range of ASEAN disaster management functions – in particular elements such as the Disaster Emergency Logistic System for ASEAN (DELSA) and the AHA Centre Executive (ACE) Programme – throughout the AHA Centre’s first six years of existence. The finance, skills and knowledge provided through these original programmes helped ensure longevity and stability of disaster management resources for the ASEAN region. Due to such success in the implementation of these programmes during the AHA Centre’s first six years, trust and support between the Government of Japan and the AHA Centre has been evidenced through the recent approval of a second phase of the DELSA. Alongside this, JAIF has agreed to continue its outstanding support for the annual AHA Centre Executive Programme, which will continue to prepare future leaders of disaster management in the ASEAN region, as well as fourth phase of the Information and Communications (ICT) project for the AHA Centre. These three abovementioned projects are planned to continue until the year 2020. Meanwhile, the AHA Centre is also implementing the ASEAN-ERAT Transformation Project, being implemented between 25 November 2016 until 2019. Since its establishment in November 2011, the AHA Centre has benefitted from over USD 33 million for a range of projects, with over USD 7 million currently designated to projects in the pipeline, seeing the Government of Japan – through JAIF – forms the largest contributor to the AHA Centre’s programmes thus far.
Written by : Will Shea | Photo : AHA Centre
- Published in Partnership