The Royal Thai Government, in collaboration with the United Nations, has agreed to expand the scope of the Tsunami Regional Trust Fund in the Indian Ocean and Southeast Asia to cover other climate change-related disasters.
On 7 March 2011, Mr. Kasit Piromya, Foreign Minister of Thailand and Dr.Noeleen Heyzer, Under-Secretary-General of the United Nations and Executive Secretary of the Economic and Social Commission for Asia and the Pacific (ESCAP), jointly signed the Agreement between Thailand and ESCAP on the Expansion of the Scope of the ESCAP Trust Fund for Tsunami, Disasters and Climate Preparedness. The said agreement was aimed at expanding the scope of the Fund to cover projects and activities in handling with the effects of other disaster resulting from climate change such as coastal zone flooding, storm surges, cyclone and other coastal hazards.
In his statement at the signing ceremony, Foreign Minister Kasit said that Asia and the Pacific remained the world’s most disaster-prone region. Today, climate related disasters have increased in both frequency and intensity. Therefore, the decision to expand the scope of the Fund was indeed very timely as it could help reduce the loss of lives and properties from other types of natural disasters which occur with more frequency than the tsunami. The Foreign Minister also added that Thailand has been working closely with other ASEAN members to expedite the implementation of the ASEAN Agreement on Disaster Management and Emergency Response, as well as under the framework of the ASEAN Regional Forum, which has recently been more focused on disaster relief. In addition, the Royal Thai Government has consistently provided humanitarian assistance to disaster-stricken countries, from Myanmar after cyclone Nargis to Haiti and Pakistan in 2010.
The Fund was established in 2005, one year after the devastating tsunami hit coastal areas of the Indian Ocean which killed over 200,000 people. Thailand and Sweden were primarily its main donors. Later on, the Fund has been supported both by financial and other forms of contributions to the Fund from the governments of Turkey, Nepal, Bangladesh and the Netherlands to implement projects and activities to prepare and set up tsunami early warning systems in the Indian Ocean and countries in Southeast Asia.
For further information, please contact the Press Division, Department of Information, Ministry of Foreign Affairs, Tel.02-6435170, Fax.02-6435169, E-mail: div0704@mfa.go.th