Disaster Plan To Rely on Local Citizens During Crises

Disaster Plan To Rely on Local Citizens During Crises
April 28, 2009  
Nurfika Osman

Disaster officials on Tuesday called on Indonesians to be ready to help during natural calamities in their region because local people are the key to a fast response to emergencies.

The comments were made during the launching of a sweeping disaster plan, the National Platform for Disaster Risk Reduction, or Planas PRB, which was developed by the National Disaster Management Agency, or BNPB. The scheme seeks to mobilize officials at all administrative levels of government to drum up public awareness of disaster protocols.

The plan draws on representatives of government, civil society, academia, the private sector, media and even the United Nations.

BNPB head Syamsul Ma’arif said “we are here to cooperate with all levels, especially local citizens so that they become more aware and have enough knowledge to handle disasters.”

He said local groups such as Forum Merapi in Central Java Province had already been helpful in monitoring activity levels for the Mt. Merapi volcano and touted the group’s ability to inform and assist local residents during a serious eruption.

“Forum Bengawan Solo will be established in the near future as a river passes through 10 districts and is prone to floods,” Syamsul said.

“We hope that disasters can be prevented or their impact reduced, thus ensuring the achievement of sustainable development program objectives and increasing national welfare.”

He said the Planas PRB scheme indicated a strong commitment from Indonesia in adopting the Hyogo Framework for Action, or HFA 2005-15, agreed by the country along with 167 other countries at the 2005 World Conference of Disaster Reduction in Japan.

“The platform is also in line with [a 2007 law] on Disaster Management which noted that disaster management was a collective responsibility among government, communities and the private sector, with the main responsibility remaining on the government,” he said.

Syamsul said Indonesians were increasingly aware of the need to prepare for disasters after the devastating tsunami which struck Aceh Province in 2004.

“We are also aiming at creating experts of disasters in the country as we are living in a country prone to disasters,” he said. “And it does not mean they should be engineers or academics. All citizens should be the experts.”

Statistics from the last three years indicate an increase in the number of annual natural disasters, based on data from the Health Ministry’s Crisis Center.

Sumber: Harian The Jakarta Globe