On Dec 26, 2004, the world witnessed a devastating natural disaster with an impact that still reverberates nine years later. One of the strongest earthquakes ever recorded struck off the west coast of Aceh, Indonesia, triggering massive tsunami waves that cut a path of destruction across borders.
The lack of tsunami warning systems in the region left coastal communities unprepared for the enormity of the devastation as cascading walls of water swallowed up lives and livelihoods.
The Indian Ocean Earthquake and Tsunami killed more than 230,000 people, and up to five million people lost their homes or access to food and water.
The Thai government played an important leadership role in the aftermath of the disaster by hosting the Ministerial Meeting on Regional Cooperation on Tsunami Early Warning Arrangements in Phuket in January 2005. At the meeting, Thailand pledged a donation of US$10 million (327 million baht) as seed money to establish a voluntary trust fund to strengthen national and regional capacities for tsunami early warnings. Partnering with the Economic and Social Commission of Asia and the Pacific (Escap), Thailand established the Tsunami Regional Trust Fund to catalyse much needed regional cooperation in preparing for such disasters. Later, Sweden, Turkey, the Philippines, Bangladesh and Nepal joined as donors to the Trust Fund. This multilateral approach of countries coming together in times of great need was an excellent example of regional cooperation in action. Nine years later, the Trust Fund, renamed as the Trust Fund for Tsunami, Disaster and Climate Preparedness, continues to serve as a catalyst for strengthened early warning systems.
In Krabi, more than 2,000 local community members, civil society representatives and officials were trained in disaster risk management. In West Sumatra, Indonesia, the trust fund supported more than 40 villages in developing their own local disaster management plans.
Today, early warning systems in the region are more integrated and robust, and communities are better prepared, even though gaps persist and significant additional investments are still needed.
The pioneering Regional Integrated Multi-Hazard Early Warning System for Africa and Asia (Rimes) that was established by the trust fund provides early warning tools and services that reduce risks and save lives. Rimes works with governments and partners to build forecasting capacity and make warning information more timely and accurate.
In 2008, Myanmar was struck by Cyclone Nargis. In the immediate aftermath, the United Nations and Thailand worked closely with Asean and its regional frameworks in supporting the Myanmar government to respond to the needs of 2.4 million people.
Escap mobilised its multi-disciplinary expertise to bridge the gap between relief, recovery and development efforts and activated the trust fund to strengthen multi-hazard early warning. Earlier this month, Escap transferred ownership of the Sittwe seismic station to the Myanmar government. The Sittwe station plays a crucial role in regional and national tsunami warning systems, and has led to reduced risk along the coast of Myanmar and neighbouring countries.
In Asia and the Pacific, we know that natural disasters can strike at any time, anywhere, and with little warning. Just two years ago, Thailand experienced the worst floods in more than 50 years, which left thousands homeless and temporarily closed hundreds of businesses. In the midst of the disaster, Escap and Thailand worked closely with other countries and UN partners to obtain near real-time satellite imagery, which helped manage the impact of the floods.
It is therefore very timely that Thailand and member countries sponsored a resolution adopted at the 69th Escap Commission this year on "Enhancing regional cooperation for building resilience to disasters in Asia and the Pacific", to enhancing regional cooperation and strengthening the trust fund through financial contributions and technical cooperation. Together, Thailand and the region emerged stronger and better prepared for future floods and other disasters.
Building on this experience, in May 2013 countries in the region adopted a historic five-year plan of action for the use of space technologies to enhance disaster risk reduction. As part of the plan, it is now standard practice for spacefaring countries in the region to provide near real-time satellite imagery to affected countries in the immediate aftermath of disasters. This powerful regional mechanism, coordinated by Escap, assists relief and recovery efforts to the most vulnerable communities among us, most recently in Tacloban following Typhoon Haiyan.
And just last month, the region took another crucial step by putting in place a monitoring and warning mechanism for drought, a silent killer in Asia and the Pacific.
Over the past few decades, droughts have affected more than 1.3 billion people. This groundbreaking space application mechanism will enhance the capacity of countries to issue early warnings before the drought is visible.
Building resilience to natural disasters is one of the most pressing challenges facing our region. We must be prepared for future calamities caused by the impact of climate change, be they another large tsunami, another typhoon or another drought. We must ensure that the region is fully equipped with effective monitoring and early warning systems, so that vulnerable people are brought to safety and losses are minimised.
Noeleen Heyzer is under-secretary-general of the United Nations and executive secretary of the Economic and Social Commission for Asia and the Pacific (Escap). Sihasak Phuangketkeow is permanent secretary, Ministry of Foreign Affairs of Thailand.