Since 2000, ADPC has established a Regional Consultative Committee on Disaster Management (RCC) comprising of members who are working in key Government positions in the National Disaster Management systems of countries of the Asian region. The role of the Consultative Committee is to provide a consultative mechanism for development of action strategies for disaster reduction in the region and promotion of cooperative programs on a regional and sub-regional basis, so as to guide ADPC's work. The first two meetings of the RCC were held in Bangkok in November 2000 and October 2001, and the third meeting in New Delhi, India in October 2002.

This year, the 4^th Meeting of the ADPC Regional Consultative Committee on Disaster Management will be held from Monday the 29^th to Wednesday the 31^st March 2004 at the Dhaka-Sheraton Hotel, Dhaka, Bangladesh in collaboration with the Government of Bangladesh and supported by the Government of Australia.

   The meeting will feature a special session on Urban Risk Reduction in RCC member countries, a special ISDR Special Consultative Session for the Asian Region in preparation for the 2^nd World Conference on Disaster Reduction to be held in Kobe in January 2005 as well as a session on the Implementation of the Comprehensive Disaster Risk Management approach in the Asian Countries. Over forty delegates from twenty RCC member countries and observers representing international and regional organizations, UN and multilateral agencies and ADPC will attend. For the tentative agenda, please click here.

   The last day of the meeting falls on the commemoration of the National Day for Disaster Management in Bangladesh, which will see the participants of the RCC Meeting taking part in a public rally organised by the Government of Bangladesh followed by a special session on Disaster Management Experience of Bangladesh on the morning of the 31^st March 2004.

For more information on this meeting, please contact Mr. Loy Rego (ajrego@adpc.net) and/or Kai Kim (kaikim@adpc.net).