United Nations
Economic and Social Commission for Asia and the Pacific (UNESCAP)

Workshop on Participatory Project Planning, Monitoring and Evaluation Course
   for Community Based Disaster Risk Management (CBDRM)
13-17 October, 2003, Manila, Philippines

Message from Mr. Kim Hak-Su,
Executive Secretary, UNESCAP

             I welcome you to the Workshop on Participatory Project Planning, Monitoring and Evaluation Course for Community Based Disaster Risk Management.

             At the outset, I should like to express our sincere appreciation for the continuing cooperation with our partner organizations, Asian Disaster Preparedness Centre (ADPC), European Community Humanitarian Office (DIPECHO), and the Government of the Philippines for organizing the Workshop.  In particular, I would like to acknowledge with appreciation the financial support extended by DIPECHO as well as the technical support from ADPC for the Workshop.

             This joint undertaking marks yet another important step forward in the strengthening of collaboration among DIPECHO, ADPC and UNESCAP in their common efforts to enhance capacities of DIPECHO partners and national disaster management offices to use practical tools to implement community-based disaster risk management (CBDRM) projects.  The Workshop is part of “Phase 2 of Partnerships for Disaster Reduction – Southeast Asia” (PDR-SEA 2) in Cambodia, Indonesia, Lao PDR, Philippines, Thailand and Viet Nam.  PDR-SEA 2 builds on the achievements of national disaster management offices and non-governmental organization partners during Phase 1 implemented by ADPC.

             According to a recent study, Asia and the Pacific is the region most severely affected by natural disasters, especially by water-related disasters, which affected over 1,500 million people and caused a total flood damage of over US$ 110 billion during the last decade.  It is important to note that the most severely affected people are the poor, a majority of whom live in this region.  The challenge in regional cooperation is therefore to mitigate the impacts of these natural disasters and to create opportunities to synergize national efforts for economic development in the region.  Enhancement of cooperation among the countries in the region could greatly reinforce the national efforts in mitigating the annual damages caused by natural disasters.

             In this respect, I should like to draw your attention to the three basic competencies in community based disaster management projects:

1.      Ability to plan projects;

2.      Ability to monitor projects; and

3.      Ability to evaluate projects and project activities.

The possession of the skills and knowledge described under the three competency areas will enable individuals to facilitate the process of participatory project planning, monitoring and evaluation for disaster risk reduction at community level.

I encourage the participants to take this opportunity to exchange experiences and views for achieving the ultimate aim of strengthening capacity to prepare and protect communities at risk from natural disasters through training and information exchange at community level in targeted Southeast Asian countries.

             I wish you fruitful deliberations and look forward to the successful outcome of the Workshop.

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