GNDR - Gambia is made up of 13 Civil Society Organisations (CSOs) that are implementing various forms of activities and intervention to reduce and mitigate the impact of disaster in The Gambia.
Emmanuel Tetteh, Focal Person for GNDR – Gambia, explained that disaster has become part of the human life. “Every year in The Gambia disaster claims lives, properties, livelihoods among others,” he says.
He highlighted the need for concerted efforts from CSOs, local and international organizations, and government to help address problems of climate change and disaster.
“Most of the time when disaster strikes, we approach these same people to seek help, but looking at the ways of addressing disaster-related problems it is not always about giving aid; it is about how we can mitigate the issue permanently,” he added.
He noted that organizations or CSOs should not wait for disaster to happen before they could provide assistance; rather they should work towards preventing it from happening.
Omar Sowe, a representative of the National Disaster Management Agency (NDMA), said his organization has engaged in the fight against disaster and climate-related issues, adding that civil society organizations should assist more on sensitization to the level of ordinary citizens to let them better understand how to collectively fight to prevent or mitigate the occurrence of disaster.
Global Network of Civil Society Organisations in Disaster Reduction (GNDR) is an international network of civil society organization established in 2019, working together to strengthen the resilience of communities most at risk of disasters.
