SCI, DRC centre acquires N14m early warning system in NorthEast
By Tada Jutha, Maiduguri
Save the Children International (SCI) and Centre for Disaster Risk Management and Development Studies (DRMDS) have acquired a N14 million early warning system in the Northeast.
According to the director of the centre, the warning system was to reduce the levels of risks associated with natural and man-made disasters in the region.
Unveiling the disaster-warning system yesterday (Thursday) in Maiduguri, the Director of the Centre, Prof. Abubakar Monguno, disclosed: “Children and other vulnerable populations are at higher risks to various disasters that destroy people’s lives and property.”
He stated that the levels of preparedness with the early warning system should be scaled up to reduce the risks associated with disasters, including the recent floods of Maiduguri and its environs.
Additionally, Monguno said that children should be educated and aware of the dangers of disasters in communities and aware of measures that could secure their future.
He said as the International Day for Disaster-Risk Reduction (IDRS) is marked in October, children and future generations will be protected from any form of disaster in the Northeast.
The IDRS theme, “The Role of Education in Protecting and Empowering Youths for a Disaster-Free Future,” was to foster knowledge and collaboration against disasters in the country.
The Vice Chancellor, University of Maiduguri (UNIMAID), represented by Prof. Yahaya Aliyu, said that children’s education and advocacy are needed to overcome the challenges of various disasters, including the recent floods in Maiduguri.
“Risk-reduction measures are to be adopted to strengthen our preparedness and responses in protecting people’s lives and property in the region,” he said.
The SCI representative, Nuarie Ihechi, who doubles as the Food Security and Livelihood Sector Lead, said the adoption of the early warning system is for a “prompt and sustained” disaster risk reduction to both life and property.
He also lamented the loss of 5, 000 hectares of farmland in the recent floods in Borno State.
He added that the Children’s Parliament in the region, along with the early warning system, will also provide an enabling environment for children to learn and secure their future.
