TACLOBAN CITY-Local government officials, disaster response agencies, community leaders, and civil society organizations gathered Wednesday, Nov.19, as the University of the Philippines Tacloban College hosted the “Pagburubligay Kontra Kataragman: Eastern Visayas Disaster Risk Reduction and Management (DRRM) Summit.”
The event was aimed at evaluating the region’s vulnerability to natural hazards and identifying sustainable strategies to strengthen disaster preparedness and mitigation plans.
Based on UP Resilience Institute’s now shelved Project NOAH, Dr. Alfredo Mahar Francisco Lagmay, the UPRI executive director, presented the disaster risk landscape of Eastern Visayas.
Launched in 2012, Project NOAH (Nationwide Operational Assessments of Hazards) was the government’s main disaster risk reduction and climate adaptation program. It combined real-time weather monitoring, flood hazard mapping, landslide risk assessment, and early warning systems. However, it was defunded during the previous administration.
With increasing risks brought about by climate change, rapid urbanization, and environmental degradation, Lagmay emphasized that the country remains one of the most disaster-prone countries in the world, making proactive action a top priority
At the country’s central zone is Eastern Visayas which is regularly battered by typhoons and is prone to earthquakes and flooding.
“We must confront the reality that our communities are becoming increasingly vulnerable. This summit is an opportunity for us to collaborate, innovate, and commit to long-term solutions that will protect lives and livelihoods,” Lagmay said.
In light of recent flooding, earthquakes, and other natural calamities, Lagmay noted that the high-risk zones identified by Project NOAH have been remarkably precise in assessing potential hazards across key areas of the country.
“It has been eerily accurate,” Lagmay said of the recent flooding in Talisay, Cebu after the Mananga River overflowed.
He also shared how Project NOAH was precise in its assessment of communities in Abuyog, Leyte and Baybay City which were affected by catastrophic landslides triggered by Typhoon Agaton in 2022.
Also highlighted during the summit’s presentation the importance of integrating science-based approaches into the LGUs’ Local Disaster Risk Reduction and Management Plan (LDRRMP), Climate and Disaster Risk Assessment (CDRA), and Local Climate Change Action Plan (LCCAP) and encouraged them to utilize the 5% LDRRM Fund not only for emergency response but also for research and innovation that strengthen local preparedness.
After the critical issues of disaster vulnerability were examined and actions and sustainable strategies for disaster preparedness and mitigation articulated, the summit called for nature-based solutions, resilient infrastructure, and capacity-building programs to reduce disaster impacts. (ACR/PIA Leyte)
