Ghana: International day for disaster risk reduction commemorated in Accra
International Day for Disaster Risk Reduction (IDRR), which is observed worldwide on the 13th of October, every year, was, yesterday, commemorated in Accra.
The Day was designated by the United Nations General Assembly to raise awareness about the importance of DRR and to encourage every citizen and government to take part in building more disaster-resilient communities and nations.
By Resolution 44/236 (December 22, 1989), the General Assembly designated the second Wednesday of October as an International Day for Natural Disaster Reduction to be observed annually during the International Decade for Natural Disaster Reduction, 1990-1999.
However, by another resolution 64/200 of December 21, 2009, the General Assembly decided to designate October 13 as the date to commemorate the Day and to change the Day's name to the International Day for Disaster Reduction.
The focus of this year’s celebrations is on Persons With Disabilities (PWD), hence the choice of the theme: Living with Disability and Disasters.
Ghana joined in the celebration of IDDR from 1997 after the establishment of the Disaster Management Organisation (NADMO) by Act 517 of 1996 as a requirement by the United Nations.
In an address delivered on his behalf to commemorate the Day, the Minister for the Interior, Mr Kwesi Ahwoi, noted that IDDR 2013 intended to bring to the fore the peculiar plight of PWDs in the event of disaster and also to tap into their unique contribution to disaster risk reduction.
Mr Ahwoi said IDDR provided an opportunity for PWDs to express their concerns, disclose their needs and make recommendations to be included in the planning process of reducing and managing disasters.
Mr Kofi Portuphy, National Co-ordinator of NADMO disclosed that NADMO would incorporate comprehensive accessibility in humanitarian action policies and ensure that relief operations were fully accessible to all including PWDs.
Mr Portuphy gave the assurance that NADMO would ensure that all stakeholders co-ordinated their efforts to have disability included in their projects as a cross-cutting theme, adding that NADMO would now include a physically-challenged person on its Relief and Reconstruction Technical Committee.
In an address, Mr Isaac Taggun, National Advocacy Officer of the Ghana Federation for the Disabled (GFD), said Ghana was more than 90% accessible to PWDs in terms of infrastructure, attitude, information and communication which impede the ability of PWDs to escape from any disaster.
Mr Taggun said Ghana had no credible data on PWDs and their geographical distributions—a situation which made the planning and designing of strategies for the effective evacuation of PWDs in case of disaster very difficult, if not impossible.
He said disability issues were human rights issues which should not be treated as issues of afterthought.
He, therefore, called for the implementation of all pro-disability legislations like the Persons with Disability Act, national disability policy of 2000 and the United Nations Convention on the Rights of PWDs (UNCRPD), among others, adding that no disaster-resilient plan could succeed without the contribution of PWDs.
He commended NADMO for partnering with the GFD to provide avenues for PWDs to contribute towards making Ghana disaster-resilient and to mainstream the needs of PWDs into NADMO’s plans, programmes and projects while urging government to support NADMO’s efforts in making Ghana disaster-resilient.
In a message, the United Nations Secretary-General, Ban Ki Moon, underscored the importance of inclusion which, he said, saved lives and empowered PWDs to take ownership of their own safety and that of their communities.
Notwithstanding their disabilities, some one billion PWDs around the world, representing one-fifth of the world's population, have unique contributions which are often overlooked.
While Article 4(3) of the UNCRPD— which Ghana has ratified— requires state parties to the Convention “to closely consult with and actively involve PWDs” in the implementation and decision-making processes, Articles 11 and 32 of the UNCRPD require that PWDs benefit from and participate in disaster relief, emergency response and disaster risk reduction strategies.
IDDR 2013, therefore, intends to switch on and amplify this critical issue of including the needs of persons living with disabilities now and for the post-2015 framework for disaster risk reduction.
Source: ISD (G.D. Zaney)