ESCAP co-organized the 34th session of the ESCAP/WMO Typhoon Committee held in Honolulu during December 2001.

The thirty-fourth session was hosted by the Government of the United States of America and organized by the National Weather Services (NWS) of USA.  The session was attended by participants representing 11 (out of 14) Members of the Typhoon Committee, namely China; Hong Kong, China; Japan; Macao, China; Malaysia; Philippines; Republic of Korea; Singapore; Thailand; United States of America (U.S.A.); and Viet Nam.  The session was also attended by two observers from the WMO Commission on Atmospheric Sciences and the Secretariat of the International Strategy for Disaster Reduction (ISDR).

The Director of the National Weather Services of the United States of America and Permanent Representative of USA with WMO delivered a special address in which he highlighted the importance of bringing together multi-disciplinary experts for better coordination in typhoon disaster prevention and facilitating regional cooperation development plans.  He encouraged the introduction of performance-based results and wished that the three disciplines: meteorology, hydrology and disaster prevention and preparedness would work together for better servicing their communities.  

The Committee reviewed its activities during 2001, including the meteorological component, hydrological component, disaster prevention and preparedness, and training and research. The Committee discussed the programme of work for 2002 and beyond; reviewed support required for the Committee’s programme; and decided on the date and place of the thirty-fourth session.

The Committee at this session approved the Strategic Plan for the Committee’s operation during (2002-06), to endorse the key recommendations of the comprehensive review of the hydrological component, and the disaster preparedness and prevention activites undertaken with ESCAP’s assistance in 2001. It also recommended the restructuring of the Typhoon Committee Research Coordination Group to ensure progress of research activities in all components of its activities.  The Committee also approved the Terms of Reference for the  Working Groups on  implementation of the strategic plan and research coordination.

Experts from Japan and the Republic of Korea indicated their intention to increase cooperation with ESCAP in the fields of flood management and water-related disaster mitigation. ESCAP was requested to assist in the implementation of the Strategic Plan on the Hydrological and Disaster Prevention and Preparedness Components of the Committee, including the integration of risk analysis and management of water-related disasters into the development process.