Guyana completes National Disaster Preparedness workshop

The United States Southern Command and the Guyana Civil Defence Commission (CDC) last week completed a National Disaster Preparedness workshop, bringing the curtains down on a baseline assessment of Guyana’s disaster risk and readiness.

The workshop was conducted by the Pacific Disaster Center (PDC), a University of Hawaii research centre that is a specialised Disaster Risk Management (DRM) organisation. In addition to the CDC, other DRM stakeholders also participated in the workshop held last Wednesday at the Marriott Hotel in Georgetown.
The workshop culminated in a National Disaster Preparedness Baseline Assessment (NDPBA) which was carried out in Guyana over a number of months.
Using a collaborative, stakeholder-driven approach, PDC’s National Disaster Preparedness Baseline Assessment utilises scientific data and evidence-based practices, integrating the national priorities of Guyana with stakeholder feedback to effectively reduce disaster risks.
The discussions on key risk reduction recommendations and procedures emanating from the baseline assessment will serve to improve Guyana’s preparedness and response capabilities in the event of a disaster and aid planning for future climate-driven disaster impacts.

Data from a myriad of agencies such as the Health Ministry and the Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) was collected in order to produce findings on risk and vulnerability, and exposure and coping capabilities when managing hazards and disasters in Guyana.
Director of Global Operations, Dr Erin Hughey said that such an undertaking by the CDC to utilise her entity’s expertise was both innovative and necessary.
Dr Hughey indicated that PDC has years of global experience that can enhance Guyana’s capacity to prepare for, manage and respond to various hazards and disasters. She also said that she was very impressed with the strides made locally to alleviate many issues revolving around DRM but acknowledged that we as a nation have a far way to go.
Meanwhile, Director General of the CDC, Col (Ret’d) Nazrul Hussain lamented on the importance of such programmes, particularly when all DRM stakeholders are involved. He went on to say that hazard management is a collective effort “and we must all learn from the actions of the past if we are to make consistent progress.”
Col (Ret’d) Hussain also expressed gratitude to PDC for the NDPBA and assured the participants that the Government of Guyana will appreciate the guidance offered in the findings.
PDC, whose base of operations is in Hawaii, also provided those in attendance with a glimpse of their DisasterAware application. This app is poised to monitor and report in real-time any hazards that may face a particular area for a specific period of time. They explained that the DisasterAware platform was precisely designed for Disaster Risk Managers so that effective preparedness, response and mitigation can be achieved and maintained.
Training opportunities were also showcased by the American organisation so that local agencies can build capacity for the future. A report compiled by PDC is expected to be presented soon to the CDC which will outline the strengths and weak points in Guyana’s DRM.
These activities are part of continued US support to Guyana in the areas of energy governance, regional security, and enhanced disaster response capabilities.
This partnership between Guyana and the US augments an already strong bilateral cooperation on disaster response between the two countries and sets the stage for the regional Tradewinds exercise scheduled for July 2023. (G8)