UNESCAP discusses establishment of regional anti-catastrophe center

Member countries of the United Nations Economic and Social Commission for Asia and the Pacific ( UNESCAP) has discussed a draft resolution on the establishment of a new disaster response center, local media reported here on Saturday.

The center is known as the Asian and Pacific Center for Information, Communication and Space Technology (ICST)-Enabled Disaster Management, said the Jakarta Post.

The draft is one of the 13 resolutions to be adopted during the 62nd Session of the UNESCAP in Jakarta.

The main objective of the center is to build the capacity of its members and empower them to use ICST for disaster management.

The center will comprise an early warning system aimed at reducing the impact of disasters, it added.

Iran said that it is ready to host the disaster management center.

The delegates also discussed on Friday a draft resolution to strengthen regional cooperation and coordination on systems designed to detect tsunamis.

The plan will be financed through a multi-donor voluntary trust fund on tsunami early warning system in Indian Ocean and Southeast Asia, said the paper.

Source: Xinhua