The National Disaster Management Agency (NDMA), Thursday spearheaded a daylong inter-agency meeting to orient its partners on the Disaster Risk Reduction (DRR), component in the country’s Programme For Accelerated Growth and Employment (PAGE).

The meeting, which was held at NaNA Conference Hall, Mile 7, Bakau was to orientate and sensitise the partner institutions and agencies about the DRR component within the framework of the country's PAGE with a view to broaden their comprehension so as to participate actively in DRR as collaborators.

The PAGE was presented by the Ministry of Finance and Economic Affairs exposing participants to the country's 2012-2015 blueprint and operationalisation of the DRR component and the role of partners. In his official opening statement, Mambury Njie, then minister of Finance and Economic Affairs, commended the NDMA and the vice president of The Gambia who is also the chairperson of the National Disaster Governing Council for aligning their programmes and activities within the framework of the country's current development plans.   

He said: “The focus of the PAGE is the right approach as it truly augurs well for The Gambia's quest for sustainable development through a comprehensive and nationally-owned development strategy.”He added that it is also right because that approach recognises the truism that as a developing country, the country's socio-economic development is only as good as its DRR and climate adaptation strategy.

Njie reminded participants that the PAGE is The Gambia's solemn pledge to improve the lives of its citizens and that it also highlighted how the president would lead the nation into 2015 and also on to the Vision 2020 blue print. He also stated his ministry's resolve to spearhead the national journey to vision 2020 and the economic superpower status. “We therefore, encourage all actors in the public sector including this forum to plan for result implementation and ultimately monitor and evaluate for result,” he added.

He told the gathering that participants from the Ministry of Finance & Economic Affairs would, during the meeting, share with NDMA and its partners the institutional arrangements that are being put in place for the implementation of PAGE that includes the DRR component as well as monitoring and evaluation framework. He also harped on the need for teamwork, saying it has always been important in any nation building. He finally expressed optimism that the output of the forum would help the Ministry of Finance and Economic Affairs as it embarks on comprehensive resource mobilisation for PAGE.

Ousman Yarbo, the executive director of TANGO, described the partnership with NDMA as a well-managed one. He noted that TANGO has been actively participating in DRR activities and would continue to do so. He also acknowledged that the thematic group on climate change would be very vital in this struggle as they play a significant role in disaster-related issues. He finally stated that it is always their priority to complement government's efforts and vowed that TANGO would continue working with NDMA.

For his part, Essa Khan, the executive director of NDMA highlighted the significance of engaging partners in DRR, saying the NDMA wants them to understand and comprehend what it takes to attain DRR. He also noted that the daylong orientation meeting would avail their partners the opportunity to collaborate with the NDMA in implementing strategies for DRR. Khan went on to dilate on the purpose of the forum in collaborative efforts towards DRR, pointing out that it seeks to protect the government and its people. He finally emphasised the importance of resources, without which, he said, there cannot be any implementation.