ESCAP and RIMES Sign Memorandum of Understanding to Strengthen Regional Disaster Risk Reduction Cooperation

On 26 November 2025, H.E. Mr. Abdulla Ziyad, Minister of State, Minister of State for Tourism and Environment, Maldives, representing the Regional Integrated Multi-Hazard Early Warning System for Africa and Asia (RIMES), signed a Memorandum of Understanding (MoU) with the United Nations Economic and Social Commission for Asia and the Pacific (ESCAP).
The signing ceremony took place in Bangkok, during the Ninth Session of the Committee on Disaster Risk Reduction, a highlight of ESCAP’s Disaster Resilience Week 2025.

The MoU was signed by H.E. Mr. Abdulla Ziyad, Minister of State, Ministry of Environment and Energy of Maldives, on behalf of RIMES, and Ms. Armida Salsiah Alisjahbana, Under-Secretary-General of the United Nations and Executive Secretary of ESCAP.

This agreement formalizes a strengthened framework for collaboration between ESCAP and RIMES to accelerate science-based disaster risk reduction, multi-hazard early warning, and capacity development in support of resilient and sustainable development across Asia and the Pacific.

Under the MoU, both organizations will:

• Advance multi-hazard early warning systems and impact-based forecasting;
• Support institutional and technical capacity-building for member States;
• Facilitate joint research, training, and knowledge sharing; and
• Sustain outcomes achieved through the ESCAP Trust Fund for Tsunami, Disaster and Climate Preparedness.

Building on years of collaboration, this renewed partnership aligns with the 2030 Agenda for Sustainable Development and the Early Warnings for All initiative, reflecting a shared vision of a resilient, risk-informed Asia-Pacific region that is better prepared to address the growing challenges of climate change and disasters.