| Hakim Hayat |
THE three-day regional disaster emergency drill, Asean Regional Disaster Emergency Response Simulation Exercise 2016 (ARDEX-16), concluded on a high note at the International Convention Centre (ICC) in Berakas on Thursday.
The large-scale simulation exercise featured the involvement of all Asean member countries. The exercise aimed to test and evaluate mechanisms pertaining to emergency response and disaster management.
The event was jointly hosted by Brunei Darussalam through its National Disaster Management Centre (NDMC) as well as the Asean Coordinating Centre for Humanitarian Assistance on disaster management (AHA Centre). Over 150 emergency response personnel from Asean and other international and regional bodies took part in the exercise.
In his remarks during the conclusion of the exercise, Haji Idris bin Haji Ali, Deputy Permanent Secretary at the Ministry of Home Affairs (MoHA), said that the table top and coordination exercises showed the complexity and involvement of many sectors of Asean, particularly the coordination between civilians and the military. He noted that the exercise also tested the mechanisms for coordinating between Asean sectoral bodies and the United Nations Office for the Coordination of Humanitarian Affairs (UNOCHA).
“It also tested the means of communication between Asean in the coordination of offering assistance through the Asean-Standard Operating Procedure for Regional Standby Arrangements and Coordination of Joint Disaster Relief and Emergency Response Operations. The role of the Secretary-General of Asean as the Asean Humanitarian Affairs Coordination was also tested,” he explained.
Haji Idris bin Haji Ali, Deputy Permanent Secretary at the Ministry of Home Affairs presenting appreciation letter to coordinating organisers of the exercise. – NDMC
He added that the coordination exercise also saw the cooperation between the AHA Centre and the UNOCHA as well as mobilising foreign military assets through the Multi-National Coordinating Centre, the Ministry of Defence. “It was also good to learn of the interoperability between our local and international responders; where they worked together using a common command structure,” he added. “It was seamless how they operate together in providing support to the affected authorities.”
Meanwhile, Said Faisal, Executive Director of AHA Centre reiterated that Asean Leaders and Head of States have agreed to materialise the ‘One Asean, One Response: Asean Responding to Disasters as One in the Region and Outside the Region’ to achieve faster response, mobilise greater resources and establish stronger coordination to ensure Asean’s collective response to disaster and added that they are pleased that ARDEX would be the first exercise as an embodiment of the vision of ‘One Asean One Response’.
He also highlighted that the way forward for disaster management in the bloc requires hard work and determination. “With the conceptualisation of the Asean Vision 2025 on Disaster Management, Asean will need to invigorate existing regional mechanisms embodied in the Asean Agreement on Disaster Management and Emergency Response (AADMER) accordingly to ensure that it would still be as relevant as it has been over the past 10 years and would continue to serve as a comprehensive regional framework and policy backbone for disaster management and emergency response in Asean,” he added.
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