Disaster preparedness: NDMA, WFP join hands to set up humanitarian facilities

The two organisations sign MoU.

ISLAMABAD:

To ensure better preparedness for future emergencies, the World Food Programme (WFP) on Thursday signed a memorandum of understanding with the National Disaster Management Authority (NDMA) to construct nine humanitarian response facilities across the country.

The proposed facilities will be built at a cost of over Rs1.5 billion in strategic areas to provide training to humanitarian staff and facilities to ensure a prompt response in case of any disaster.

Based on historical disaster frequency, population density per region and consultations with stakeholders, WFP has proposed construction of new facilities in Gilgit, Peshawar, Lahore, Quetta, Muzaffargarh, Hyderabad, Muzaffarabad, Sukkar and Islamabad.

The facilities will house contingency stocks including food and non-food items, covered storage, mobile storage units and training areas with temperature-controlled spaces.

Upon completion of the project, there will be a dedicated humanitarian response facility in each province with two facilities in the larger provinces of Punjab and Sindh. The project is expected to be completed by mid 2013.

The MoU was signed by NDMA Chairman Dr Zafar Iqbal Qadir and Acting Humanitarian Coordinator and WFP Country Representative Jean-Luc Siblot.

The WFP country representative said, “I am confident that these facilities will ensure a robust, effective and timely response to possible future emergencies.”

Under the agreement, WFP will also enhance the storage capacity of the NDMA and the Provincial Disaster Management Authorities, enabling them to stock around 30,000 metric tons of emergency items including food, non-food and medical supplies for the humanitarian community.

Australia, Canada, Denmark, Japan and the Netherlands have provided funds to WFP to support the project.

Published in The Express Tribune, February 24^th, 2012.