Realizing the importance of mainstreaming as identified by RCC, the ADPC program on
Advocacy and Capacity Building for Mainstreaming Disaster Risk Reduction into Development (MDRD)
was launched at the 4th Meeting in Bangladesh in March 2004. Based on the recommendations of
earlier RCC meetings, the program seeks to systematically promote the integration of disaster risk
management into sustainable development policies and practices amongst the RCC member countries
linked to other efforts at regional level and built on successful experiences with the region. The
program focuses on two separate approaches relating to mainstreaming DRM, namely, into overall
national development planning and into specific selected sector such as Agriculture, Health, Education,
Infrastructure, Housing and Financial Services.
Cambodia, Lao PDR and Philippines have xpressed their interest to take up priority
implementation project to mainstream disaster risk reduction in the education sector (i.e., MDRD
Education) by integrating DRR modules into the education curriculum. The MDRD Education project
includes four main activities, namely; i) Initiating Mainstreaming of Disaster Risk Reduction into
Secondary School Curriculum, ii) Report on Impacts of Disasters on Education Sector, iii) Advocacy
Workshop on Mainstreaming Disaster Risk Reduction into Education Sector, and iv) Stakeholder
consultation as follow up to the Advocacy Workshop.
This study on impacts of disasters on the education sector in Lao PDR aims to build an
evidence-based rationale to raise awareness on integrating DRR concerns into education policies,
programs and plans and to advocate for changing practices in school construction especially in
incorporating disaster risk resilient features in new school construction.
[ Any views expressed in this article are those of the writer and not of Reuters. ]
Anti-riot policemen arrest a protester during a scuffle with protesters who got near the U.S. embassy in Manila March 24, 2009. Protesters were demanding the immediate termination of the Visiting Forces ...
