Philippine Red Cross Chairman Richard Gordon urged ASEAN countries to conduct regular joint disaster-response exercises and scenario planning to ensure that regional assistance can move quickly when disaster strike.
Speaking at the ASEAN High-Level Meeting on the ASPECT Framework in Manila on Thursday, Gordon said countries should practice together before a crisis, particularly on how responders, relief goods, medical personnel and equipment can cross borders.
“Interoperable, coordinated, timely and inclusive response should be the goal,” Gordon said.
He called for pre-agreed cross-border arrangements covering customs, entry of humanitarian personnel, medicines, relief goods and equipment so countries would not have to negotiate procedures in the middle of a disaster.
Gordon also cited the need for regular dialogue among ASEAN National Red Cross and Red Crescent Societies and regional simulation exercises that would test how one country receives assistance from another.
“Practice should be part of preparedness,” Gordon said, stressing that regional cooperation must be operational—not merely an agreement on paper.
Reference: Edison Enriquez 
