‘Community awareness vital for disaster management’

The Eagles Relief and Development Programme (ERDP) has asked government and its development partners to enhance community awareness on climate change to effectively manage and mitigate risks associated with natural disasters.

ERDP executive director Victor Mughogho said this last week in Blantyre during the official opening of a training workshop on disaster risk reduction (DRR).

He said community awareness on climate change is fundamental to the fight against the effects of global warming.

“ERDP would like to see every community taking responsibility for its actions on climate change. We believe that every community is endowed with resources to enable it respond to natural disasters.

“However, that cannot be achievable if communities are not provided with adequate information on climate change,” he said.

Mughogho disclosed that ERDP organised the workshop to provide a platform for various stakeholders such as meteorological experts, agriculturalists and concerned communities to share experiences on successful interventions as well as devising best practices in managing risks from natural disasters.

Community leaders and farming families from disaster-prone Chikhwawa District formed a larger part of delegates to the workshop.

In his remarks, Traditional Authority (TA) Kasisi said the training would help communities in his area understand why charcoal burning is a hazard to the social and economic aspirations of the country, particularly Shire Valley districts.

“There’s too much charcoal business going on in Chikhwawa. All this is happening because people cannot count the economic gains they make from the trade against the impact the venture has on natural resources,” he said.

ERDP, which is a relief and development arm of Living Waters Church (LWC), organised the meeting with assistance from Danish Church Aid.