BANGKOK, April 24 (Xinhua) -- A UN-ASEAN report unveiled on Wednesday warned that future scenarios of drought in many parts of Southeast Asia will aggravate if actions are not taken now to build resilience.
In the latest joint study by the United Nations Economic and Social Commission for Asia and the Pacific (ESCAP) and the Association of Southeast Asian Nations (ASEAN), it indicated "cumulative impacts of drought in the region strikes hardest at the poor and heightens inequality, as well as degrades land and increases the prospects of violent conflict."
"Droughts can also be particularly damaging in countries where many people rely on agriculture for primary employment," said the report, with 61 percent reliance on agricultural farming in Laos, 41 percent in Vietnam, 31 percent in Indonesia, 27 percent in Cambodia and 26 percent in the Philippines.
The study "Ready for the Dry Years: Building Resilience to Drought in South-East Asia," proposes three priority areas of intervention for ESCAP and ASEAN: strengthening drought risk assessment and early warning services, fostering risk financing instruments that can insure communities against slow-onset droughts and lastly, enhancing people's capacities to adapt to drought.
Over the past 30 years, droughts have affected over 66 million people in the region. Moreover, due to their slow-onset, droughts are often under-reported and under-monitored, resulting in conservative estimates on its impact in the region, said the report which was launched on Wednesday at the 34th Meeting of the ASEAN Committee on Disaster Management in Myanmar.
The study warned that with climate change, many more areas are likely to experience extreme conditions with severe consequences.
"The priority areas of intervention highlighted in this report will contribute to the development of policy responses to mitigate the impact of future drought and eventually will strengthen efforts on building the ASEAN Community that is resilient to drought," said Secretary-General of ASEAN Dato Lim Jock Hoi.
The study was produced as part of ESCAP and ASEAN's close collaboration on disaster risk reduction under the ASEAN-UN Joint Strategic Plan of Action on Disaster Management.
