The Provincial Di
saster Management Authority (PDMA), Khyber Pakhtunkhwa under the guidance of Relief, Rehabilitation and Settlement Department is working on monsoon contingency plan 2023 in consultation with all the stakeholders in order to identify Monsoon Hazards, Vulnerabilities, Risks and Resource mapping for minimizing di
saster risks and timely coordinated
response.
Contingency Plan outcomes reinforce prevention, mitigation and
response to monsoon-related di
sasters. In this connection, a pre-planning orientation meeting was held with representatives of provincial line departments under the chairmanship of Director Di
saster Risk Management PDMA Muhammad Amin.
On this occasion, Muhammad Amin said “we started the process of Monsoon Contingency Planning 2023 by involving all stakeholders and these series of meetings will be continued in the month of April and hopefully contingency plan will be developed by the end of May 2023.
PDMA determined roles and
responsibilities in monsoon plan for each department. Tools for data collection are developed and shared with all stakeholders including information regarding district and sector-specific hazards and vulnerability profile, hazard impact, damages, compensation paid, resource mapping, need assessment and coordination”.
He added that natural hazards and subsequent di
sasters caused massive l
osses to people’s life and livelihoods. He further said Khyber Pakhtunkhwa had faced a lot of financial and human l
osses due to
floods in 2022. Due to the better strategy and presence of the system (Di
saster Risk Management) in the provinces more than 400,000 people were shifted to safe places.
Climate change has increased the vulnerability, as weather patterns are shifting. The Monsoon Contingency Plan will categorize the district’s Vulnerability and Risk Assessment into very high, high, medium and low categories. The peculiar geography, terrain and natural resources make the Province of Khyber Pakhtunkhwa vulnerable to a number of climate contingencies during both summers and winters.
Spokesperson PDMA Taimur Ali said that PDMA has initiated the process of introducing a proactive preparedness regime under guidelines established by National Di
saster Management Authority (NDMA) for streamlining
response at provincial and district levels in coordination with all stakeholders.
Taimur Ali further said, the process of contingency planning for major hazards shall enable initiation of requisite mitigatio
n measures and to undertake a coordinated
response to minimize the loss of life and property in the events of di
sasters. It is stakeholders’ inclusive exercise that takes stock of what exists in terms of resources, hazards analysis to determine the likely relief caseloads as a planning assumption.
He further said Pakistan and Khyber Pakhtunkhwa in particular are vulnerable to various hazards due to adverse effects of climate change.
PDMA Khyber Pakhtunkhwa is an active Di
saster Management Organization at the provincial level that deals with Di
saster Management, Di
saster Risk Reduction, Preparedness and Planning. PDMA has also installed
flood Early Warning System (EWS) in the upper catchment areas. This System has been installed on seven main rivers of the province to monitor the water level.