SAARC Disaster Management Centre - IU

SAARC Region

• One of the Most Disaster-prone Regions in the World

• Nearly 23% of the world’s population lives in the SAARC countries

•54% of the total disaster related deaths occurred in Member States in 2015

(UNISDR).

Principal Natural Hazards in SAARC Region

SAARC Disaster Management Centre

Set up in October 2006 at National Institute of Disaster Management

(NIDM) premises, New Delhi, India.

In November 2016, expanded the purpose by merging the other Regional

erstwhile centres namely SAARC Meteorological Research Centre (SMRC

Dhaka, Bangladesh); SAARC Forestry Centre (SFC, Thimphu, Bhutan);

and SAARC Coastal Zone Management Centre (SCZMC, Male, Maldives)

with SDMC.

Now, Operational from Gujarat Institute of Disaster Management (GIDM)

Premises, Gandhinagar, Gujarat, India

SAARC Disaster Management Centre

Vision

To be a Centre of Excellence for regional cooperation and specialised service

delivery to Member States for Disaster Risk Reduction, Response and

Recovery for Sustainable Development

Mission

To support Member States in their DRR initiatives through application of

Science & Technology, Knowledge from Multiple Disciplines, Exchange of

Good Practices, Capacity Development, Collaborative Research and

Networking in line with the Global Priorities and Goals and other relevant

Frameworks adopted by Member States

SAARC Disaster Management Centre

Functions

To act as a Regional Knowledge Management Hub on all aspects of Disaster Risk

Management;

Strengthen Regional Response Mechanisms to reduce loss of lives, injuries and to

provide timely humanitarian assistance to people affected by disasters

To foster Collaboration in the area of End-to-End Early Warning Systems, with a

particular emphasis on Exchange of Good Practices on Last Mile Connectivity;

To help Countries Maintain Quality Controlled Databases and Information Systems

required for Risk/Vulnerability Assessment, Mapping and general support to the

National/ Regional Disaster Risk Reduction Strategies;

To provide a Capacity Building Platform that periodically brings together Disaster

Response Teams for Joint Exercises and Simulations;

To support Collaborative Research on different aspects of Disaster Risk Management in

the Region.

Major Initiatives

Policy Level

SAARC Comprehensive Framework on Disaster Management

SAARC Road Maps on Risk Management in South Asia

SAARC Framework for Care, Protection and Participation of Children in Disasters

On going Studies

Integration of Disaster Risk Reduction and Climate Change Adaptation in SAARC Region

Documentation on Traditional Earthquake Resistant Building Technology available with SAARC Countries

(Lessons Learnt and Best Practices of Climate Change Adaptability in SAARC Countries)

Capacity Building & Information Sharing

More than 50 Training Programs/ Workshops, Mock Exercise (SADMEx)organized and Training Modules, Education Materials, Best Practices, etc. were developed for SAARC Region.

International Cooperation with various organizations like

Asian Disaster Reduction Centre (ADRC), Japan

United States Forest Service (USFS)

Asian Disaster Preparedness Centre (ADPC)

United Nations Environment Programme (UNEP)

United Nations Office for Disaster Risk Reduction (UNISDR); and many more…

Information/Data/Knowledge Sharing Platforms

SDMC Web Portal : saarc-sdmc.org

South Asia Disaster Knowledge Network (SADKN) : saarc-sadkn.org

South Asia Digital Vulnerability Atlas (SADVA) : saarc-dva.org

Major Initiatives

Major Initiatives

Programming Pillars for Expanded Role of SDMC

1. Regional Extreme Climate/ Weather Events Programme

2. Disaster Management and Space Technology Applications

3. DM Policy & Knowledge Management Mechanism

4. Regional Mechanism for Building Disaster Response and Recovery Capabilities

5. Regional Capacity Development Mechanism on Disaster Risk Management

Recent Programs on Capacity Building

Aim

Strengthen the knowledge base by providing a platform for sharing of knowledge from various SAARC Member States and facilitate exchange of experiences amongst the professionals

1. Application of Space Technology in Managing and Monitoring Risks – May 2017

2. Short Range Regional Early Warning System – June 2017

Recent Programs on Capacity Building

3. Advance Search & Rescue Techniques – August 2017

4. Disaster Resistant Construction Technologies – September 2017

5. Community based Approaches to Flood Management – October 2017

Thank You

SAARC Disaster Management Centre (IU)Gujarat Institute of Disaster Management Campus

Gandhinagar, Gujarat, Indiasaarc-sdmc.org

Ph. +91 79 23275804; Email. saarc.sdmciu@gidm.in