Humanitarian logistics plays a vital role in disaster response and management since it enables the timely and efficient delivery of aid and support to affected communities during and after the onslaught of disasters. Given that the ASEAN region is no stranger to disasters, humanitarian logistics has been into play in numerous preparedness, response, recovery, and rehabilitation efforts in the region.
While there are a few ASEAN capacity-building programmes related to humanitarian logistics, there is no harmonised training curriculum that is based on ASEAN-agreed standards. Recognising the importance of filling this gap, an ASEAN Humanitarian Logistics Training Curriculum for Officer Level was formulated. This initiative builds upon the existing ASEAN Standards and Certification for Experts in Disaster Management (ASCEND) Competency Standards that was endorsed by the ASEAN Committee on Disaster Management (ACDM) in 2017. Furthermore, it incorporates valuable insights from the ASCEND Toolbox documents that were developed by the ASCEND Project in 2021. This curriculum is the result of collaborative efforts among the ASEAN National Disaster Management Offices (NDMOs), various humanitarian organisations, the ASEAN Secretariat, and the AHA Centre, through the support of the United States Agency for International Development (USAID).
In a special ceremony held at the AHA Centre on 27 June 2023, Mr Lee Yam Ming, Executive Director of the AHA Centre, was presented with the training curriculum by Ms Lana Oh, USAID Bureau for Humanitarian Assistance Regional Director for East Asia and the Pacific. At the event, Mr Lee conveyed his sincere gratitude to USAID for their invaluable support and extended his appreciation to the consortium of humanitarian logistics subject matter experts from Kuehne Foundation, HELP Logistics, and Thammasat University, who were involved in the development of the programme.
Mr Lee also expressed his confidence in the curriculum, stating, “I would like to highlight and commend the meticulous process undertaken in developing this curriculum. The curriculum development was preceded by a comprehensive needs assessment involving the ASEAN NDMOs and humanitarian communities from 2020 to 2021. The ASCEND Competency Standards approved by the ACDM was then used as the minimum standards for the curriculum development. As a result, we are confident that the training curriculum is highly relevant and well-suited to the ASEAN context.” Being the inaugural ASEAN training curriculum that aligns with the ASCEND Competency Standards, this serves as an important reference for future endeavours centred on developing disaster management curricula in the region.
The event was attended by representatives from USAID, Kuehne Foundation and HELP Logistics, the ASEAN Secretariat, and the AHA Centre.
