Lessons from a regional workshop on fragile, conflict-affected and violent settings in Asia-Pacific

The Asia-Pacific region has considerable experience with anticipatory action, and in 2024 a mapping exercise by the Asia-Pacific Technical Working Group on Anticipatory Action identified 137 anticipatory action systems, either operational or under development, across 15 countries. Increasingly, though, these systems operate in contexts affected by fragility, conflict and violence (FCV), in countries including Afghanistan, Myanmar and the Philippines, or in areas that host large displaced populations, such as Cox’s Bazar in Bangladesh.

In May 2025, the Asia-Pacific Technical Working Group on Anticipatory Action and the Anticipatory Action in Conflict Practitioners' Group convened a workshop in Bangkok, Thailand, to discuss the effective and conflict-sensitive implementation of anticipatory action and early warning systems in such settings, and to chart a course forward for coordinated action across the region. Participants came from humanitarian organizations active in anticipatory action across the region, as well as hydrometeorological services and disaster risk management agencies.

Linking anticipatory action and Early Warnings for All

FCV-related gaps in early warning systems present a major impediment to effective anticipatory action in FCV settings. In light of this, opportunities to link to the Early Warnings for All (EW4All) initiative were discussed extensively, building on ongoing work by the Asia-Pacific Technical Working Group. Four highly interactive sessions were dedicated to the implications of FCV for each of the EW4All pillars, as well as opportunities to enhance collaboration among relevant actors. 

Additional sessions covered: cross-cutting issues related to gender and the inclusion of hard-to-reach populations; displacement; anticipating the impacts of conflict; and the operational constraints and dilemmas of operating in areas of contested control.

During the workshop, participants received briefings on several practical resources related to anticipatory action and early warning systems in FCV settings, including the recently launched anticipatory action toolkit and the Centre of Excellence for Climate and Disaster Resilience’s handbook on early warning systems in FCV settings; there was also an update the ongoing development of operational procedures for the Climate Risk and Early Warning Systems initiative's programmes in FCV settings.

Priorities for FCV areas in Asia-Pacific

Throughout the two-day workshop, participants co-developed priority actions to strengthen anticipatory action and early warning systems in FCV settings across the Asia-Pacific region. During the closing session, these priorities were shared with Her Excellency Kristiina Kuvaja-Xanthopoulos, Finland's ambassador to Cambodia and Thailand, as well as representatives from the Dutch embassy in Thailand and the Swiss Agency for Development and Cooperation:

• Coordinate, don’t duplicate, to ensure the efficient use of available resources and capacities, for instance in the analysis and monitoring of FCV-related drivers of vulnerability.
• Develop shared standards and protocols to jointly address FCV challenges, such as extreme levels of vulnerability, humanitarian access, insecurity and the role of non-state armed groups.
• Strategically and practically integrate efforts towards anticipatory action and disaster risk reduction in FCV contexts, combining preparedness and anticipatory activities to strengthen local resilience.
• Enhance contextualization and localization, acknowledging that no two FCV contexts are the same and that established ways of working need to be carefully calibrated to the specific circumstances.
• Work closely with communities, building on existing structures and mechanisms, to strengthen local adaptive capacities and ensure culturally appropriate, conflict-sensitive and effective action.
• Ensure flexibility and adaptability in programming and financing mechanisms to allow for crucial adjustments in highly dynamic FCV settings, for instance to account for displacement or shifts in conflict dynamics.
• Strengthen the role of humanitarian organizations across all four EW4All pillars to leverage their access and trust in FCV settings, particularly in hard-to-reach areas.