The Association of Southeast Asian Nations (ASEAN) is many things – a group of countries with a lucrative market waiting to be tapped, home to a large and young population and at the precipice of economic greatness as it seeks to capitalise on a rather bullish global economic outlook. One thing ASEAN cannot seem to shake off though is its vulnerability to natural disasters. Collectively, the area encompassing the 10-member organisation is one of the most disaster-prone regions in the world.