A 3-day workshop for 25 members of the West Coast
Regional Disaster Management Committee recently ended in Brikama, West Coast
Region.
The training, held at the governor’s conference hall, was implemented by the National Disaster Management Agency (NDMA) in collaboration with the West Coast Regional Disaster office.
It was bankrolled by FASDEP Technical Assistance and the Food and Agriculture Organisation (FAO) with the aim of building the capacity of members of the West Coast disaster committee to better understand issues surrounding disaster.
Governor of West Coast Region Aminata Sifai Hydara commended the participants for their commitment, dedication and hard work during the workshop.
The deputy executive director of NDMA, Serign Modou Joof, said the training had enabled participants to better understand issues of disaster.
He said the knowledge gained from the training would help the participants to develop their district contingency plans for the prevention and mitigation of disasters.
It would also help in coordinating ward plans, Mr Joof added.
The participants were also equipped with knowledge of how to disseminate information to educate the public on issues of hazards and natural disasters, which could affect the West Coast.
Yankuba Sawo of the FASDEP Technical Assistance programme said the training had built the capacity of the regional disaster management committee members to be able to utilise the indigenous knowledge to bring about risk reduction.
“It also empowered regional disaster committee members to work better with local communities in order to consolidate and support more resilience,” he said.
The regional disaster coordinator, Binta Sey-Jadama, told the participants that disaster management has changed from response to mitigation.
She urged them to always ask and share information before giving any answer to victims in terms of disaster response and preparedness, for better coordination.
