Recalibrating disaster governance in ASEAN after the 2018 central Sulawesi earthquake and tsunami
The 2018 Central Sulawesi earthquake and tsunami highlights the complexity of simultaneous disasters, their compounding effects and cumulative impacts. It also emphasises the challenge of responding to disasters in a multi-hazard prone archipelago. More importantly, it underlines the need to protect and assist exposed and vulnerable communities from emerging and evolving disaster risks. From January to March 2019, the RSIS Humanitarian Assistance and Disaster Relief (HADR) Programme conducted desk research, key informant interviews and field observation in Indonesia to examine the humanitarian efforts during the emergency response phase in Palu from 28 September to 26 October 2018. This report summarises and presents the main challenges, good practices, broad trends and key opportunities that emerged from the study. It offers policy recommendations for developing key partnerships and enhancing disaster governance in Indonesia and the wider Southeast Asian region.