Office of Coordination for Humanitarian Affairs

In 2016, the Office of Coordination for Humanitarian Affairs was set up in our institute. Prof. Taro Yamamoto, who also heads the Department of International Health and Medical Anthropology, was nominated as the first chief of this section. One year has passed since its inception during which time we have dispatched missions to natural disaster affected areas and yellow fever epidemic areas.

Members

Section Chief, Professor
Taro Yamamoto

Aims

The aims of this office are to provide support to both natural and manmade disaster areas. In order to undertake these missions, this office shall develop more human resources, do research, and become the center of an international humanitarian network.

Organization

  1. Office of Coordination for Humanitarian Affairs was set up in NEKKEN
  2. Appoint one section chief (professor)

Past, Present and Future

NEKKEN has dispatched missions to disaster afflicted areas such as Haiti in 2010, Tohoku region in 2011 just after the East Japan Great Earthquake, West Africa in 2014 and Nepal 2015. These activities make NEKKEN one of the leading organizations in Japan in terms of disaster relief activities.
Further, the infectious diseases team for Japanese Disaster Relief was decided in a cabinet meeting in October, 2015 based upon the fact that Ebola broke out in West Africa in 2014 and there was an international call for cooperation to help deal with it. NEKKEN is expected to serve as one of the main stakeholders in this field and was asked to participate on that team.
Because of all these events, setting up the Office of Coordination for Humanitarian Affairs was proposed.