APEC officials meet in Dalian to strengthen regional disaster preparedness

Senior disaster management officials from APEC economies and international organizations are meeting in Dalian, China, for the 19th APEC Senior Disaster Management Officials’ Forum. The meeting aims to strengthen regional cooperation on disaster preparedness and resilience following recent extreme weather and seismic events, including Typhoon Dolphin in China, an earthquake in Indonesia, and flooding in Korea.

The forum's agenda focuses on policy-driven solutions such as multi-hazard early warning systems, disaster risk financing, artificial intelligence, data governance, and community preparedness. Experts from the United Nations Office for Disaster Risk Reduction (UNDRR), the World Meteorological Organization (WMO), the Asian Disaster Preparedness Center (ADPC), and the International Federation of Red Cross and Red Crescent Societies (IFRC) are participating in the discussions.

Xu Jia’ai, Vice Minister of China’s Ministry of Emergency Management, emphasized the need for greater investment in early warning technology. The discussions aim to integrate artificial intelligence, big data, satellite remote sensing, and the Internet of Things to identify risks earlier and convert information into actionable responses to reduce impacts before they escalate.