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mid the controversy on how Indonesia manages international assistance, ASEAN’s disaster management body has established a communication line between the government and international agencies that want to send aid to Central Sulawesi after the Sept. 28 earthquake and tsunami.

Being one of the first humanitarian agencies to arrive in Palu, the ASEAN Coordinating Center for Humanitarian Assistance on Disaster Management (AHA Center) is working with the National Disaster Mitigation Agency (BNPB).

AHA Center executive director Adelina Kamal said her agency was helping to support the government to coordinate assistance at all levels, in Jakarta, Balikpapan, East Kalimantan, which is serving as an entry point to the regions impacted by the disasters, and Palu as the worst-hit area.

She acknowledged that it was more difficult to receive assistance than to give it. “Just like when you’re sick, your friends offer all sorts of help […] but you have to decide what is good for you, and the government have been very clear on what they really need,” she told The Jakarta Post over the phone from Palu on Friday.

Also on Friday, United Nations Secretary-General Antonio Guterres and Vice President Jusuf Kalla visited Palu and spoke to survivors being treated at a field hospital and displaced person center. The UN has sought US$50.5 million for urgent relief to assist survivors in need.

President Joko “Jokowi” Widodo opened the doors to foreign aid on Oct. 1, days after the earthquake hit the region, which was followed by a tsunami and soil liquefaction, claiming more than 2,000 lives and displacing tens of thousands of people.

Inundated by pledges of international assistance, the government chose to carefully manage the inflow of aid and volunteers.

The government listed six priority needs that other countries could contribute, namely military transport aircraft, water treatment units, electric generators, field hospitals, tents and fogging equipment.

Earlier this week, the government denied entry to 22 foreign aid workers from China, Nepal, Mexico and Australia to Palu because they did not fulfill the required criteria.

Based on a 2018 government regulation on the role of international agencies in disaster relief, international agencies and NGOs are allowed to help in disaster relief efforts provided that they cooperate with local agencies.

The AHA Center, together with other international agencies, helped the BNPB set up the coordination structure for international assistance and establish clarity among agencies, Adelina said.

She said with Indonesia’s accumulated experience on disaster mitigation management, local aid workers were very capable, “so when foreign aid workers want to help, we have to make sure that they come with added value.”

The AHA Center has responded to 30 disasters in the region since it was formed in 2011, including the Laos dam collapse earlier this year.

“We have a standard operating procedure that is approved by all 10 ASEAN members on how foreign assistance should be received by the disaster affected countries, with all the appropriate forms telling what the countries need and how others can provide it,” she said.