ASEAN Disaster Monitoring and Response System (DMRS)

When hazards threaten or a disaster strikes in any community, accurate and timely information is essential to disaster-response coordination. Information sharing and coordination become even more complex and more important when these threats and impacts cross national borders. The 2004 Indian Ocean Tsunami revealed Southeast Asia’s vulnerability to such widespread disasters.

To address these challenges, the Association of Southeast Asian Nations (ASEAN) Committee on Disaster Management (ACDM) has established ASEAN’s Coordinating Centre for Humanitarian Assistance (AHA Centre).  The AHA Centre is the trans-national Centre for information sharing and coordination during a disaster impacting one or many of the Member States. From its location in Jakarta, Indonesia, it promotes advanced disaster management tools, training, and action plans in support of its 10 Member States.

To enhance its disaster monitoring and early warning capabilities, the AHA Centre worked with PDC to develop and deploy the Disaster Monitoring and Response System (DMRS), based on the DisasterAWARE platform. This project was made possible under funding from the U.S. Agency for International Development (USAID).

DMRS provides situational awareness, early warning, and decision support capabilities encompassing the entire ASEAN region. It consolidates hazard data from international and regional sources in a single near real-time system, providing a “snapshot” of events and possible impacts. After a successful deployment, PDC also implemented DMRS training to national disaster management representatives of the Member States and the AHA Centre. This collaborative project increases stakeholders’ capacity to share a common, trans-national operating picture, which improves emergency coordination among  ASEAN Member States and between the international community.