MIA Reactivates County Disaster Management Commettees Nationwide
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The Ministry of Internal Affairs, through the National Disaster Relief Commission (NDRC), has formally reactivated County Disaster Management Committees in each County.
Internal Affairs Minister and Chairman of the National Disaster Relief commission, Morris Dukuly officially launched the reactivation at a well-attended program held in Sanniquelle, Nimba County recently.
During the launch, Minister Dukuly lauded the NRDC, and all International partners for their support to the program.
He said as part of Government’s commitment to minimizing the effect of disasters, the National Legislature was on the verge of passing a bill in to law for the establishment of a National Disaster Management Agency in Liberia.
Representing UN institutions at the program were Mr. Amos Belleyan, program Officer of WFP, Mr. Romeo Nyentue Bloh, Program officer of UNMIL and Mr. Samuel Boakai of the UNDP, all of them pledge their respective organization’s continuous support to the establishment of a Disaster Management Agency in Liberia, and to the Government of Liberia commitment to better the lives of the people of Liberia.
According to a release, the reactivation followed a fourteen-day County Disaster Management Committee Reactivation meeting held in 8 counties.
The meeting which was the first phase of the exercise was organized to strengthen the preparedness and capacity of each of the fifteen Counties against the Remnants of Disasters ran from June 18 to July 2, 2015.
The 1st phase which was held in Sinoe, Grand Kru, Maryland, River Gee, Grand Gedeh, Nimba, Lofa and Rivercess, brought together Superintendents, the County Inspectors, Civil Society organizations, women Groups, the Liberian Red cross Society among others.
Also in attendance at each gathering were representatives of youth groups, the United Nation Mission in Liberia (UNMIL), WFP, UNDP, the Inter-Faith Council, the Ministry of Health, Liberia Marketing Association and other institutions that are relevant to Disaster preparedness and Management.
It can be recalled on May 22, 2012, a memorandum of understanding was signed between the Government of Liberia and the World food Program (WFP), for the WFP to strengthen the Government’s capacity in Emergency Preparedness and Response. Against this background, a project proposal identifying key areas of capacity development execution began in 2012 with a base line survey, identifying “Disaster prone” counties and the eminent risk they are unknowingly expose to.
Plans for the second phase of the Meeting which will target the rest of the seven counties are in progress and will be actualized very soon. The release concluded.