Workshop Aims to Review Disaster Plans in Villages
Rex added that currently there are nine villages that have a disaster plan in place.
The Niue Disaster Management Officer (NDMO) is conducting a two-day Disaster Planning Workshop with village council members that ended today.
The main focus of the session was to create awareness with the village council on preparing for multi-hazards such as droughts and bushfires and also to help the village councils design and develop their respective disaster management plans; most of the villages don’t have a current plan in place.
Food and Agriculture Organization (FAO) Representative- Fiafia Rex says community based disaster response management and poor disaster village plans were seen as a priority and the need to have the training identified by the NDMO.
Rex added that currently there are nine villages that have a disaster plan in place.
She said one of these villages that has this plan is Avatele with a 2016-2026 plan, so it was a great opportunity to complement the NDMO activities and look towards launching and reviewing the old disaster plans just like the joint National Action Plan.
“This is a great opportunity for FAO to discuss other areas such as diseases and pests that are currently affecting other Pacific islands,” she said.
She added it’s all about empowering the community and helping them understand what sort of multi-hazards exist in their villages and how they can better prepare and document them so that the NDMO can communicate efficiently, so resources can be allocated efficiently and reach the most vulnerable in the communities.
According to NDMO, Niue is expected to have about 2 to 4 cyclones this season, with a normal to elevated Tropical Cyclone risk.
The workshop was organized by NDMO in collaboration with the Food and Agriculture Organization, Niue Police Department and the Niue Fire and Rescue.
