NADMO given impetus to deal with disasters

National Disaster Management Organisation (NADMO) has been given financial assistance by Norway and United Nations Development Programme, to enhance the organisation’s capacity to deal with disasters in a proactive way.

According to Dr Kingsford Asamoah, Project Manager of Community Resilient through Early Warning (CREW) project, told Ghana News Agency at a stakeholder consultative workshop at the weekend that the project was intended to save lives and property during disasters.

The project is going to be piloted in 10 districts selected from each region and will help reduce disaster risk by developing early warning systems to provide timely and effective information that enable people and communities to respond when tragedy hits.

Dr Asamoah said the CREW project would be implemented over a three-year period which would see NADMO working beyond giving just reliefs during disasters.

The project will help NADMO to be well positioned to reduce risk as a priority, build capacities, create awareness of risks in communities as well as prepare and ready to act in times of disasters.

He said NADMO would be equipped with both indigenous and scientific early warning systems to identity trigger events that cause flooding and help prevent needless loss of lives and property.

Mr Ebenezer Dosoo, Deputy National Coordinator of NADMO in a keynote address said the organisation is zeroing on preparedness rather than reaction to ensure effective early warning.

He said it is imperative to combine what people know about disaster and hook it on to the scientific approach.

He called on individuals and groups to get involved in disaster management since it is everyone’s business to manage it.

Mr Isaac Nii Djanmah Vanderpuye, Deputy Greater Accra Regional Minister said players in disaster management and prevention must follow up on workshops for effective implementation of decisions taken.