9th ASEAN Ministerial Meeting on Disaster Management (AMMDM) and Related Meetings
14 October 2021
The ASEAN Ministerial Meeting on Disaster Management (AMMDM) and related meetings took place virtually from 8 to
As the Chair of the ASEAN Committee on Disaster Management (ACDM) and ASEAN Ministerial Meeting on Disaster Management (AMMDM) this year, Singapore organised a series of meetings from 8 to 14 October 2021. The meetings included the 9th AMMDM and 10th Conference of Parties (COP) to the ASEAN Agreement on Disaster Management and Emergency Response (AADMER), the 39th Meeting of the ACDM and other related meetings. This year’s theme is: “Strengthening Partnership and Innovation for Disaster Management in ASEAN”.
Mr K Shanmugam, Minister for Home Affairs and Minister for Law, delivered the opening remarks earlier today as the Chair of the AMMDM. Minister Shanmugam said: “Managing this pandemic remains a great challenge, not least due to the high transmissibility of the Delta variant. While we deal withthe pandemic at the same time, we nevertheless still need to make sure that our disaster management response remains ready.”
Minister Shanmugam commended the ACDM and the ASEAN Coordinating Centre for Humanitarian Assistance on Disaster management (AHA Centre) for successfully mobilising a humanitarian assistance mission, with contributions from many ASEAN Member States and other partners, to deliver supplies and aid to Myanmar despite the challenges faced during the pandemic.
Minister Shanmugam also affirmed that ASEAN must continue to work together to strengthen governance, partnership, and innovation in disaster management. Some key developments of the ACDM in the past year contributed to the strengthening of governance and innovation. These included the launch of the ASEAN Mapping Exercise Report to Promote Synergy with Other Relevant ASEAN Sectoral Bodies, ASEAN Centres and Entities Associated with ASEAN on
Disaster Management; and the ACDM’s flagship publication entitled ‘ASEAN Disaster Resilience Outlook’.
Associate Professor Muhammad Faishal Ibrahim, Minister of State, Ministry of Home Affairs and Ministry of National Development, delivered Singapore’s country statement during the meeting. In the statement, MOS Faishal said that as
the ACDM Chair in 2021, Singapore took the lead in strengthening Governance, Partnership and Innovation for Disaster Management and Disaster Risk Reduction in ASEAN. With the support of ASEAN Member States, the ACDM has established permanent dialogue platforms with the People’s Republic of China, Japan, and the Republic of Korea. He said that Singapore’s ACDM and AMMDM Chairmanship reflects the success and support of all ASEAN Member States.
MOS Faishal also thanked Thailand, the Vice-Chair of the ACDM in 2021, for their close cooperation and guidance which contributed greatly to the success of the various programmes and projects undertaken throughout the year.
The 9th AMMDM was held in conjunction with the Commemoration of ASEAN Day for Disaster Management (ADDM). The ADDM is convened annually to raise awareness and remind the public of the importance of disaster risk reduction.
Six new initiatives were launched at this year’s ADDM as follows:
- the ASEAN Disaster Resilience Outlook publication;
- the Publication of the ASEAN Mapping Exercise;
- the Web-Based Monitoring and Evaluation System;
- the ASEAN-United Nations’ Joint Strategic Plan of Action on Disaster Management;
- the ASEAN Regional Plan of Action on Adaptation to Drought; and
- the ASEAN Regional Framework on Protection, Gender, and Inclusion in Disaster Management.
Singapore led the ASEAN Disaster Resilience Outlook publication and the ASEAN Mapping Exercise, contributing to the region’s efforts to strengthen partnership and innovation in disaster management.
During the ADDM, Dato Lim Jock Hoi, the ASEAN Secretary General delivered the closing remarks. He welcomed the finalisation of key documents which will further enhance cooperation in disaster management. He said: “We have witnessed today the remarkable progress that has been made through partnership and innovation. As we embark on the implementation of the AADMER Work Programme 2021-2025, we are capitalising on new technologies to chart our progress through the Web-based Monitoring and Evaluation System which will ensure that ASEAN is on-track towards meeting the goals of its five-year plans.”
Singapore took over as the Chair of the AMMDM and ACDM in 2021 from the Philippines. The chairpersonship of the 10th AMMDM and ACDM in 2022 was handed over to Thailand. In his speech, Minister Shanmugam thanked the Philippines for the smooth transition of the chairpersonship from the previous year, and Thailand for the support as Vice-Chair this year.