Asean needs to strengthen its disaster management capacity — Cayetano

Department of Foreign Affairs (DFA) Secretary Alan Peter Cayetano said there is a need to strengthen the Association of Southeast Asian Nations (Asean) Coordinating Center for Humanitarian Assistance on Disaster Management (AHA Center) as the region is usually affected by natural calamities.

“The AHA Center is an important part of the ASEAN Community as it is a manifestation of our solidarity in times of disasters, especially with natural and man-made disasters happening in our region almost one after the other,” Cayetano said in a statement on Wednesday.

During the secretary’s meeting with ASEAN Secretary-General Dato Lim Jock Hoi in Jakarta, he reiterated that the Philippines remains committed to pushing for measures that will enhance the capabilities of AHA Center.

“Because of this, the Philippines is supportive of proposals to strengthen the AHA Center in terms of manpower, training and reach,” he added. According to Cayetano, the center has helped different Asean member-states in during calamities, despite limitations.

He also thanked the AHA Center for helping the country when the city of Marawi was attacked by an extremist group.

Just recently, Laos was rocked by an earthquake, while other Asean countries experienced flooding due to typhoons and monsoon rains.

“Given its limited resources and manpower, the AHA Center has extended humanitarian assistance more than it has capacity for, such as in Marawi, in the Northern Rakhine in Myanmar, in Lombok and in Laos,” Cayetano said.   /vvp