February 14, 2019
On 14 February 2019, the ASEAN Committee on Disaster Management (ACDM) and Senior Officials’ Meeting on Education (SOM-ED) in coordination with the ASEAN Safe Schools Initiative (ASSI) and ASEAN Secretariat, conducted its 1st ASEAN Cross-Sectoral Coordination Committee Meeting on ASEAN Safe Schools Initiative in Jakarta, Indonesia. The representatives of Department of Disaster Prevention and Mitigation (DDPM), Mr. Saharat Wongsakulwiwat as the Co-Chair for ACDM Working Group on Prevention and Mitigation, of the Ministry of Education, Dr. Thet Thin Nyunt, as the Chair of SOM-ED, as well as Mr. Paolo Aquino, from Philippines’ Department of Education, as the country lead for ASSI in SOM-ED graced the meeting altogether with representatives from the ASEC Disaster Management and Humanitarian Assistance (DMHA) and ASEC Education, Youth and Sport Division (EYSD), ASSI PMT and ASSI Organisational Working Group (OWG).
The meeting discussed about the 10 agenda items including operational plan on the TOR on ASEAN cross-sectoral coordination committee on school safety and seeking advices and guidance on the organising of ASSI Project Phase 5’s forthcoming activities. ASSI PMT received inputs on ways forward to implement a number of activities: 3rd ASEAN Regional Conference on School Safety, operational plan to develop the resource mobilisation and sustainability strategy, a series of webinars, instructional video on school disaster preparedness and a research on multi-hazards school safety programmes in ASEAN. Some highlights of the meeting are the need to discuss more about the expansion of mandate of AADMER and ASSI into human-induced disasters, the need to disseminate ASSI information and research widely, and build engagements with local leaders in ASEAN.