TACLOBAN CITY- Officials from Leyte provincial government visited Germany to learn on their disaster management system.
The visit of the provincial officials was sponsored by the International Search and Rescue (ISAR) of the German government.
According to Vice Governor Carlo Loreto, who spearheaded the team, their visit was aim to develop and implement a disaster management system for Leyte, which is prone to natural disaster.
“Through this workshop, we were able to learn crucial information that will help the province prepare for any natural disaster,” he said.
The Leyte delegation, during the workshop, shared its first-hand experience before, during and after the onslaught of super typhoon ‘Yolanda’ which devastated the province.
The group also discussed how the province got back on its feet after Yolanda’s onslaught exactly five years ago.
Germany was among the foreign countries that provided assistance to the Philippine in the aftermath of Yolanda’s onslaught.
ISAR Germany has been doing a lot of humanitarian projects in Leyte which were focused on the reconstruction and the supply of rescue equipment like an ambulance or a rescue boat and providing education and training to rescuers and trainers with a focus on emergency aid.
Loreto said that ISAR Germany will apply for a research and development project for the promotion and implementation of a disaster management system for Leyte before the end of this year.
The said project will be a common scheme between the Philippines and Germany with run time of three years.
The BMBF is funding research and development projects within the International Disaster and Risk Management or IKARIM program. The goal of IKARIM is the common development and implementation of innovative and application-oriented solutions in the fields of disaster prevention, disaster management and restoration.
The program aims to strengthen the resilience of the partnering countries against natural and technical risks as well as the transfer of know-how and the form of international partnerships for disaster risk management.
As part of the project, several equipment will be provided to Leyte such as Unmanned Aerial Vehicles (UAVs) or drones, communications equipment, etc. Personnel from Leyte will also undergo actual trainings while developing actual solutions to actual challenges during calamities.
Aside from Loreto, other officials who went to Germany were board member Mesias Arevalo, police provincial director, S/Supt. Norberto Tuazon, fire chief Leonardo Bañago, provincial disaster risk reduction and management officer Arvin Monge and Major Marvin Caspillo.
Also part of the delegation were Office of Civil Defense assistant regional director Rey Gozon and Director Wilberto Rico Neil Kwan of the Bureau of Fire Protection.
(LIZBETH ANN A. ABELLA)
