WHC Partners With ODPEM to Enhance Volunteer Programme
By: , January 8, 2016The Key Point:
Photo: Mark Bell
Minister of Local Government and Community Development, Hon. Noel Arscott (left), having a light exchange with Ambassador of Argentina to Jamaica, His Excellency Ariel Fernandez, at the Earthquake Awareness Month, launch held on January 5, at the Office of Disaster Preparedness and Emergency Management (ODPEM), in Kingston.The Facts
- The Ambassador said he has been impressed with the agency’s handling of disaster management and commended them on an excellent job in helping the Bahamas, which was affected by a hurricane, recently.
- Earthquake Awareness Week is being observed from January 1-30, under the theme: ‘Earthquake Safety: Don’t Be Scared…. Be Prepared’.
The Full Story
United Nations (UN) organization, White Helmets Commission (WHC), from Argentina, has partnered with the Office of Disaster Preparedness and Emergency Management (ODPEM), to improve the country’s volunteer programme that responds to disaster emergencies.
Jamaica’s National Disaster Risk Management Volunteers’ Programme (NDRMVP) brings together volunteers from various institutions across the island to render service in the pre and post impact phases of a disaster.
“The ODPEM is a pillar in the Caribbean in terms of helping the region with disaster management and providing aid/support during emergencies,” Ambassador of Argentina to Jamaica, His Excellency Ariel Fernandez, said at the launch of Earthquake Awareness Month 2016, at the ODPEM offices, in Kingston, on January 5.
The Ambassador said he has been impressed with the agency’s handling of disaster management and commended them on an excellent job in helping the Bahamas, which was affected by a hurricane, recently.
He added that with over 20 years expertise in designing earthquake and other natural disaster volunteer database programmes, WHC would simply add to the wheel at ODPEM, not reinvent it.
This would strengthen the national, parish and community plans, in keeping with the mandate of the programme, by assisting the public through education and mitigation before and when a disaster strikes.
Ambassador Fernandez said that in addition to the help given, the programme is to foster a culture that teaches how to work and learn together.
“When you can encourage people to be a part of a project that gives back, it builds resilience and unity among people. This is a spirit that is not constructed from the top, but in the hearts of the people when they work together to help others,” he said.
The Ambassador noted that when a natural disaster or earthquake takes place, it does not matter how good or well tested the structure is, the volunteers and the participation of others, especially emergency service groups, are what get things back to normal.
Earthquake Awareness Week is being observed from January 1-30, under the theme: ‘Earthquake Safety: Don’t Be Scared…. Be Prepared’.
Activities for the month include a media marathon from January 10-16; Earthquake Awareness Day for Schools on January 13; Earthquake Awareness Day for Businesses on January 14; Earthquake Awareness Open Day on January 20; and a Seismic Youth Forum in February 2016.