Humanitarian assistance forum focuses on strengthening cooperation

A humanitarian assis­tance forum was held on 7 September at the Wyndham Grand Hotel in Mingala Taungnyunt Township, Yangon Region.

The forum was part of the 23^rd South-East Asia Red Cross and Red Crescent Leaders Meet­ing, hosted by the Myan­mar Red Cross Society (MRCS).

During the forum’s first session, a panel dis­cussion was held under the theme “Partnership for Collective Impact.” Discussions focused on strengthening cooper­ation among Red Cross societies in the region, enhancing the role of national societies in hu­manitarian responses, and fostering greater con­nectivity and collaboration between the AHA Centre and the Red Cross and Red Crescent Movement.

During the second session, group discus­sions were held under the theme “Innovations in Humanitarian Action,” covering topics such as the application of artifi­cial intelligence (AI) in disaster management, the role of digital trans­formation in streamlining humanitarian operations, strategic approaches to countering misinforma­tion, and maintaining in­formation integrity during emergencies.

MRCS leaders, rep­resentatives of Red Cross and Red Crescent soci­eties from South-East Asian countries, as well as officials from the In­ternational Federation of Red Cross and Red Cres­cent Societies (IFRC), the International Committee of the Red Cross (ICRC), partner Red Cross so­cieties, and the ASEAN Coordinating Centre for Humanitarian Assistance on Disaster Management (AHA Centre) were pres­ent on the occasion. — ASH/TH