By Christopher Tetteh
Sunyani (Bono), Oct. 13, GNA – The Bono Regional Office of the National Disaster Management Organisation (NADMO) has held a stakeholder’s meeting to devise realistic strategies to avert recurring disasters and flooding as the rains set-in.
The meeting which was attended by security services, heads of departments and agencies and other stakeholders, was to commemorate the 2025 celebration of the International Day for Disaster Risk Reduction (IDDRR).
The commemoration of IDDRR commenced in 1989, after a call by the United National General Assembly for a day to promote a global culture of risk-awareness and disaster reduction.
The day is marked annually on October 13th, to show how people and communities around the world are reducing their exposure to disasters and raising awareness about the importance of reining at the risk that they face.
The 2025 celebration is on the theme: “Fund resilience, not disaster,” as the 2025 Global Assessment report on Disaster Risk Reduction reveals the cost of disasters to be approximately $202 billion annually.
Mrs Fati Kine-Lam, the Bono Regional Director of the NADMO, urged the government, private sector players, policy makers, development partners and donors to rather prioritise, and invest in resilient and incident-free systems than recovery and relief items support.
She said: “We are pleading with all stakeholders to see the need to invest and improve disaster mitigation measures like tree planting, modern drainage systems and proper sanitation and waste management.”
Mrs Kine-Kam affirmed that NADMO remained a disaster management, and not a relief organisation saying, “We don’t have to wait for disaster to happen before we act”.
She said the 2025 celebration of the IDDRR highlighted the urgency to tackle the escalating costs of disasters by shifting focus from reactive response to proactive investments.
“The shift focuses on long-term solutions like improved infrastructure, early warning systems and risk-informed development to build communities that can withstand shocks and stresses and ultimately save lives and resources,” she stated.
Mrs Kine-Lam urged Ghanaians and estate developers to desist from building on waterways and flood prone-areas to avert disasters.
GNA
Edited by Dennis Peprah/ Christabel Addo