UNDP Hails Albay’s Mayon Disaster Preparedness Program

LEGAZPI CITY, Jan. 5 - The United Nations Development Program (UNDP) hailed Albay's Provincial Disaster Coordinating Council (PDCC) for its recent Mayon volcano eruption disaster preparedness and response strategy.

John English, Early Recovery Advisor, United Nations Coordination Office, in his letter to Cedric Daep, executive director of the Albay Public Safety Emergency and Management Office (APSEMO), said their office was very impressed with the planning and coordination that the PDCC and provincial authorities had put into the response to the possible Mayon eruption.

English said, "I have worked in disaster situations in many countries around the world and, in my own professional opinion, the provincial preparedness and planning of the province is amongst the best that I've seen."

Expressing his sympathies and the challenges that the province would have faced with an extended displacement and reintegration but with an effective Disaster Risk Reduction and Management Program the challenges and hazards where squarely faced by the province.

For this reason, English said that his office reiterated its support for an early recovery needs assessment for the Mayon situation and the possibilities of discussing with us the province disaster risk reduction model strategy used.

"I am giving a copy of this letter to my colleague, Mr. Richard Snellen who is co-ordinator of the early recovery cluster, as well as to Mr. Philiph Gautier (head of OCHA) for future collaboration," he said.

English said on suggestion of Daep, he coordinated with the Albay Milennium Development Office (AMDGO) the designated lead agency for early recovery, and discussed with the office some issues that would come up in early recovery process and the types of support that the UNDP could offer.

AMDGO intends to organize a damage and needs assessment early this year, as well as an inventory of skills-sets of the displaced in the evacuation centers. These are both initiatives the agency would strongly support.

Albay Governor Joey Salceda has written a letter to the U.N Humanitarian Coordinator, Dr. Jacqui Badcock, and requested for technical and financial support from UNDP for this process.

A joint UNDP-PDCC planning session will be held so that the details of this project could be discussed. (PNA)