Indonesian’s National Disaster Management Agency (BNPB) visited Japan

Indonesian’s National Disaster Management Agency (BNPB) is one of the main members of the SATREPS project. High level persons of BNPB (Secretary General, Inspector General, deputies and head) visited several locations in Japan to learn about various perspectives of disaster countermeasures in Japan and possible application to Indonesia.

BNPB and JICA members started their visit by visiting International Research Institute of Disaster Science (IRIDeS), Tohoku University, in the morning of the 26th September, including special lectures given by Prof. Fumihiko Imamura and Prof. Shunichi Koshimura. After that Prof. Taro Arikawa, Prof. Yuichi Ono, Assoc. Prof. Anawat Suppasri, Assoc. Prof. Daisuke Sasaki, Researcher (Specially Appointed) Miwako Kitamura escorted the group to the 2011 Japan tsunami affected areas in Miyagi and Iwate Prefectures including Sendai City, Sendai International Airport, Onagawa Town, Ishinomaki City, Minami Sanriku Town, Kesennuma City, Kamaishi City, Taro Town and Fudai village during 26-29 September. The group visited other locations about disaster monitoring and emergency response in Tokyo during 30 September and 1 October including Japan Meteorological Agency (JMA), Chuo University, Tokyo Metropolitan, and JICA Headquarter led by Prof. Nobuhito Mori. At the JMA, the group held a meeting with the Director General.

BNPB learned about mitigation effects of both green and gray infrastructures and their combination, emergency response, town planning, storyteller in many perspectives. We expect that information earned from this visit will be adapted and implemented in Indonesia through this SATREPS project which will be conducted over five years (2022-2026).