Stakeholders in the Disaster Management have appealed to households living in disaster prone areas to move to higher and safer places as weather experts have warned of normal to above normal rainfall in the 2022-2023 season.
The appeal was made on Thursday in Dedza, during commemoration of the 2022 International Day for Disaster Reduction, commemorated under the theme ‘Early warning and early action for all’.
Speaking at the event, Malawi Red Cross Society Director of Programs – Prisca Chisala – who also represented other development Agencies, applauded the Department of Climate Change and Meteorological Services for the timely release of the 2022/2023 rainfall seasonal forecast.
She said, “As partners to government, we are working towards supporting the department to disseminate the weather forecast to all the districts. This remains paramount as a preparedness action. We are also ready to support government financially and technically to effectively prepare for, mitigate and respond to the emergencies.”
On his part, Elias Chimulambe, Secretary for Water and Sanitation said it is sad that when the warnings are issued, most of those that the warnings are targeted at choose to take no action at all.
“It becomes surprising at times to see houses being constructed right in the middle of the river or river drainage channels. I have also observed business premises being constructed in very unsafe places. People have also occupied hilly areas and constructed houses that are almost on top of each other. And yet councils and other responsible agencies see all these developments. The “early action for all” should be seen beyond establishing and installation of the hydro-meteorological equipment, but also translating existing policies, strategies, and legal instruments into action.” Said Chimulambe.
Echoing Chimulambe, Charles Kalemba, Commissioner for Disaster Management Affairs in the Department of Disaster Management said this year’s commemoration aims to ensure that appropriate early warnings are timely and consistently received, well understood and acted upon by the intended audience with the goal of reducing losses and damages resulting from disasters.
In terms of preparedness, Kalemba said the department is raising awareness on the need for people to relocate to safer places.
“In a case that people are affected, DoDMA is stockpiling relief items and also has standby arrangements for deployment of search and rescue teams comprising the Malawi Defence Force, The Malawi Police Service, The Marine Department, the Malawi Red Cross Society (MRCS) and other stakeholders,’’ he added.
