By Joyce Ann L. Rocamora | Philippine News Agency
MANILA – The United Nations announced Thursday (Oct. 7) a contribution of over P380 million to fund the pilot test for anticipatory action against typhoons in the Philippines.
The announcement was made by UN Resident and Humanitarian Coordinator in the Philippines Gustavo Gonzalez during a high-level meeting co-chaired by the Defense Secretary and chair of the National Disaster Risk Reduction and Management Council Delfin Lorenzana.
The pilot’s framework is designed to support 270,500 most vulnerable people in 44 municipalities across the Bicol Region and the Eastern Visayas three days before landfall of a category four or five typhoon.
With the two-year funding from the UN Central Emergency Response Fund mechanism (CERF), the pilot’s anticipatory interventions will be executed by different UN agencies, while the UN Office for the Coordination of Humanitarian Affairs (OCHA) will provide overall coordination.
“This work would not be possible without international collaboration and I welcome the resource partners and recognize their commitment, both globally and nationally, in advancing humanitarian response, disaster risk reduction and addressing climate change,” Gonzalez said.
“The United Kingdom, Germany, European Union and Canada are key contributors to the CERF and these resource partners, together with the World Bank, are also pioneering supporters of anticipatory action,” he added.
Lorenzana said the Philippine government is “inspired to embark on this joint anticipatory action program” and is eager to further explore how to contextualize the pilot and ensure it empowers the local government units.
The UN is launching a series of anticipatory pilots this year, including in Burkina Faso and Niger for drought; Nepal and South Sudan for floods; and Madagascar for the plague.
According to the UN, there is a “compelling amount of evidence” that acting before the disaster hits “cuts the costs of humanitarian response, preserves people’s dignity and allows for faster recovery by protecting hard-won development gains that were already achieved”. (PNA) – bny
