GITEGA, November 28th (ABP) – The Ministry of the Interior, Community Development and Public Security, through its national platform for risk prevention and disaster management, in collaboration with the World Food Programme (WFP), has been organizing in Gitega (political capital and center of Burundi) from November 25 to 30, 2024, a national exchange workshop on the management of the watch room and operational center as well as risk communication and community engagement.
The training is being provided by three experts from Madagascar. On that occasion, the Permanent Secretary of the Ministry in charge of the Interior, Mr. Théophile Ndarufatiye, said that this training is provided to local stakeholders to build their capacities in communication and community engagement, for effective risk and disaster management, integrated into the global initiative “Eerly Warming For All” (EW4All), aimed at strengthening the resilience of Burundian communities to disaster risks.
The Permanent Secretary of the Ministry responsible for the Interior indicated that the establishment and operationalization of the monitoring room is part of the vision of strengthening institutional resilience to the multiple challenges faced by communities, without forgetting the capacity building amongst local stakeholders in communication and community engagement for effective disaster risk management.
According to Mr. Ndarufatiye, the activity is timely, given the recurrence of disasters due to climate change, including the landslides in the locality of Kirasa in Muhuta district, the rising waters of Lake Tanganyika, the floods of Gatumba, etc., which have caused loss of human lives, subsistence goods and massive internal displacements.
He did not forget to point out that despite the efforts of the Government supported by its partners to take care of the victims of these various disasters, the road ahead is still immense. He took the opportunity to appeal to other partners to become more involved in helping vulnerable populations.
Based on this, he indicated that the establishment of this equipped and operational monitoring room is part of equipping the country with modern technologies and advanced analytical capacities, which will improve the collection and analysis of data in real time for informed and rapid decision-making. This will also strengthen communication and coordination between the various services and institutions and ensure proactive management of risk crises, whether be natural, security, technological or social.
The monitoring room is not only an infrastructure, but it symbolizes a new way of working based on anticipation, responsiveness and transparency in disaster risk management, he added.
He invited the national body in charge of disaster management to properly take ownership of this very important tool, while working in synergy with other technically concerned actors and thus responding, without delay, to the expectations of Burundian citizens.
He finally reiterated the commitment of the government of Burundi to continue working to build institutional capacities and ensure effective management of population services.