Malaysia and 21 Asian countries today agreed to share Standard Operating Procedures (SOP) to improve disaster management procedures in the region.

The agreement was reached at the 3rd International Medical Emergency Forum (IMEF), an agency under the International Conference of Asian Political Parties (ICAPP).

The meeting was chaired by Minister in the Prime Minister's Department, Datuk Seri ShahidanKassim whotook the opportunity to present the SOP at the three-day ICAPP Committee meeting that started yesterday.

"Malaysia will also share the experiences encountered during the flood disaster in December last year and what approaches the government took to improve the disaster management, including warning systems and management of evacuationcentres," he told Bernama in Bandar Utama, here, today.

Shahidan, who is also chairman of the ICAPP Youth Wing, said the meeting provided an opportunity for Malaysia to learn how othercountries manageddisasters as was done in the Philippines, Indonesia, Korea and Japan.

Representatives from other countries presented the importance of protecting water resources and forest, to reduce the impact of worsening disasters.

A total of 85 delegates from 22 countries attended the three-day conference at One World Hotel in Bandar Utama. The Malaysian delegation was headed by Shahidan who is also Umno supreme council member.

ICAPP is a conference involving the ruling parties, the opposition and the independents inAsia whichwas formed in 2000, aimed to improve cooperation and understanding between them.

In conjunction with the conference, several papers will be presented by representatives of countries that have experienced environmental destruction caused by the tsunami, earthquake, volcanic eruption and landslide.