The Expert Group Meeting (EGM) on ICT and Disaster Risk Reduction in Asia and the Pacific, was held in Bangkok from 25 - 27 March 2009.

This EGM was planned in parallel to the First Session of the Committee on Disaster Risk Reduction (CDRR), and had some joint activities with the CDRR session. It was aimed at identifying priorities, challenges and opportunities for actions to be taken by the ESCAP Secretariat, in cooperation with member States, for the implementation of recommendations made by the Committee on Information and Communications Technology (CICT) and the CDRR, focusing on recommendations related to the use of Information and Communications Technology (ICT) for Disaster Risk Reduction (DRR).

The most important joint session was the High-level Round Table on Regional Cooperation for Disaster Risk Reduction which discussed the status of existing disaster reduction efforts and made recommendations for the effective management of disasters in the countries of Asia and the Pacific by identifying regional cooperation needs for disaster risk reduction and promoting it, and provided guidance on the role of the Secretariat in equipping the developing member countries with the technical knowledge and expertise that will enable them to manage or reduce the risk of disasters effectively.

The EGM gathered experts from national disaster management offices, national science and technology offices, national environmental offices, ICT agencies and private sector representatives, who discussed actions beneficial to the member States.