Building Urban Resilience. From Response to Anticipatory Action

Anticipatory Action is becoming a critical approach in disaster risk management, as there is a growing consensus on the value of acting early in terms of both cost-effectiveness and efficiency rather than waiting for hazards to cause impacts and then responding.

In line with this year’s theme of ASEAN Committee on Disaster Management (ACDM) “From response to anticipatory action and resilience: ASEAN’s journey towards global leadership in disaster management”, ADPC in collaboration with Viet Nam Disaster and Dyke Management Authority (VDDMA) organized a Lightning Talk titled “Building Urban Climate Resilience: From Response to Anticipatory Action”, on 15th June 2023 in Da Nang, Viet Nam, to share knowledge on Anticipatory Actions focusing especially on urban settings and cities.

The 30 min Lightning talk was inaugurated by Mr. Pham Duc Luan, the Director General of the VDDMA highlighting the need and importance of Anticipatory actions.

Mr. Hans Guttman, the Executive Director elaborated on the present status, challenges and good practices of designing and implementing Anticipatory Actions in order to minimize disaster losses. Moreover, he shared the ADPC’s approach applied in Viet Nam to enhance the resilience of two cities (Nam Dinh, Nam Dinh Province, My Tho, Tien Giang Province) against future anticipated climate extremes through its current program in the country, titled “Urban Resilience to Climate Extremes in Southeast Asia”. This program is supported by the Norwegian Agency for Development Cooperation (Norad) through ADPC.

Assoc. Prof. Tavida Kamolvej, Deputy Governor from the Bangkok Metropolitan Administration (BMA), showcased proactive strategies from Bangkok city for acting early to manage disaster risks and minimize disaster losses. She highlighted the city readiness and preparedness initiatives undertaken related to Flood & Water Management and Fire & Public Safety Management.

This knowledge-sharing platform was organized under the Program on “Urban Resilience to Climate Extremes in Southeast Asia” with funding support from the Norwegian Agency for Development Cooperation (Norad).