National Disaster Management
Authority (NDMA) of Pakistan and Asian Disaster Preparedness Center (ADPC) have
jointly launched a 16-month project aimed at strengthening institutions for
developing resilience in Pakistan. Senior government officials from NDMA,
Federal Flood Commission, Ministry of Climate Change, Geological Survey of
Pakistan, Meteorological Department, and Planning Commission attended the first
of an advanced disaster resilience training course in Islamabad today which
also marked the official beginning of the project. A highly-level policy
dialogue with development partners will also be organized this week.
The World Bank has provided
the financial support under the EU-South Asia Capacity Building for Disaster
Risk Management Program, which is administered by the Global Facility for
Disaster Reduction and Recovery. The Bank intends to facilitate a long-term
disaster risk management (DRM) and Climate Change Adaptation (CCA) capacity
development investment in partnership with NDMA.
The current project is expected to
engage with senior officials representing the federal and provincial
governments on a range of activities including national trainings, policy
dialogues, international trainings and exposure visits, and lessons-sharing
workshops.
“NDMA welcomes this very
timely support from the World Bank as it will significantly complement our
ongoing capacity building efforts across Pakistan. We believe the design of the
project will allow government officials to learn both conceptual and practical
elements of DRR and CCA in a more meaningful manner”, said Brig. Mukhtar Ahmed,
Member, Operations, NDMA.
As part of the capacity building
program, ADPC would be imparting training to senior government officers on
advanced concepts of urban and fiscal resilience to disasters and climate
impacts.
“We are partnering with
NDMA and key stakeholders for improving Pakistan's resilience to natural
disasters", said Haris Khan, Senior Disaster Risk Management Specialist of
the World Bank in Pakistan. "Building resilience to disaster and climate
impacts is critical to ensure reduction in extreme poverty and boosting shared
prosperity in the country”.
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