The Civil Defence Commission (CDC) held a disaster preparedness camp on Saturday for children ranging between the ages of five and eleven.
Some of the children participating in a fire drill
The camp aimed at teaching children the basics in what to do in the event of a disaster. They were taught first-aid, fire safety, water sanitation and hygiene, and solid waste management.
The one-day camp was held at Camp Ayanganna, the Guyana Defence Force Headquarters, Georgetown, under the theme “Planting the Seed for Disaster Risk Reduction and Preparedness”.
The camp is the first of its kind and was sponsored by Digicel (Guyana) and the United Nations Children’s Fund (UNICEF).
Head of CDC, Retired Colonel Chabilall Ramsarup said that the aim of the camp is to ensure that children are aware and equipped to handle disasters. The Retired Colonel pointed out that many times children lose their lives because they do not know what to do when a disaster such as a fire, occurs.
“I hope we can manage them and ensure that the seeds are really planted on fertile soil so that they can go home, teach their parents, brothers and sisters and schoolmates,” Colonel Ramsarup stated.
“We are hoping to do it every August. We don’t just want to do it in Georgetown, we also want to go out in other regions,” he added.
UNICEF representative for disaster risk management Ian Jones said that it is important for children to be participating in such camps. Jones noted that UNICEF continues to play a major role in the lives of children.
“We are very much involved in making sure that children are fully involved in disaster management,” Jones stated.
During the camp, the children were formed into groups and given small prizes after completion of each task.
The CDC continues to implement Disaster Risk Management Systems (RDRMS) across all 10 administrative regions of Guyana.
