A delegation comprising National Coordinators and senior representatives of the Shanghai Cooperation Organisation (SCO) Member States, visiting Pakistan in connection with the first meeting of the SCO Council of National Coordinators (CNC) under Pakistan's Chairmanship, visited the National Emergencies Operation Centre (NEOC) at the NDMA Headquarters, Islamabad. The visiting delegation included representatives from Belarus, China, India, Iran, Kazakhstan, Kyrgyzstan, Russia, Tajikistan, and Uzbekistan.
Team NDMA comprehensively presented the NEOC's operational capabilities, highlighting Pakistan's innovative transformation towards proactive disaster management and strengthened response systems aimed at reducing recurring disaster risks. Chairman NDMA, Lt Gen Inam Haider Malik, briefed the delegation on various initiatives undertaken by NDMA to promote regional integration and global Disaster Risk Reduction (DRR) framework.
The delegation was apprised of NDMA's recent achievements, technological advancements and future plans for adopting next-generation technologies to enhance disaster early warning systems, strengthen coordinated response mechanisms and ensure timely dissemination of authentic and actionable information to the public.
NDMA's coordination with national leadership, provision of a regular guidance framework for provincial and local governments, and institutional linkages with leading global disaster management authorities, regional organisations, global academia, humanitarian organisations and other supporting agencies were also highlighted.
Team NDMA presented utilization of advanced digital technologies and data-driven systems for hazard monitoring, risk assessment and informed decision-making. The visiting representatives were also briefed on Disaster Early Warning (DEW) systems, response mechanisms and efforts to ensure the timely and localised dissemination of disaster warnings.
Chairman NDMA also highlighted opportunities for strengthening regional cooperation among SCO Member States in disaster risk reduction, early warning systems, knowledge exchange, capacity building and coordinated emergency response. He proposed the regionalization of proactive disaster management on standard DRR templates expanding the cooperation among SCO Member States to cope with common security threat of climate change and regional vulnerabilities. The importance of leveraging technological innovation and institutional collaboration to address emerging challenges posed by climate change and complex disasters was underscored.
The visiting delegation appreciated Pakistan's efforts to modernise its disaster management architecture and enhance the operational capabilities of NEOC. The visit provided a valuable opportunity to explore avenues for strengthening regional cooperation and facilitating the exchange of expertise among SCO Member States in disaster preparedness, early warning, emergency response and resilience building.
