The Kaduna State Emergency Management Agency (KADSEMA) has announced its five-year (2021 -2025) contingency plan on curtailing the impact of disasters in the state.
Presenting the document in Kaduna to relevant stakeholders in disaster management, on Tuesday, Abubakar Hassan, the Executive Secretary of the Agency, said the plan was a road map for organisational preparedness with roles assigned to the stakeholders in the document.
Represented by Aminu Adamu, Director of Administration, Hassan said that the impact of disasters on lives, properties and the environment depended on the state’s level of preparedness, which relied on efficient early warning systems.
He called on all stakeholders to always use the document as a reference point for proper coordination.
Gloria Bulus, Consultant for the project, said Kaduna state was the first state in the country to produce a contingency plan to assist in emergency response.
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She noted that the agency consulted and engaged stakeholders, residents of the state’s 23 local government councils and their 255 wards, to gather data to update and produce the document.
“We hope that this document will support us as different stakeholders to mitigate disasters in the state, while assisting SEMA in coordination,’’ she said.
Suraj Ahmed, Disaster Management Coordinator of the Red Cross, observed that the document encompassed all areas of disaster management in the state, which would be a reference for the various activities assigned to the various stakeholders.
“The document will make our jobs easier when it comes to emergencies, events or disasters, so, we knew who is responsible for what and what to do,” he said.
In his closing remarks, Yau Mahmood, KADSEMA’s Director, Relief and Natural Disaster Management, said the agency’s mandate was to coordinate all relevant stakeholders in the state on disaster mitigation and emergency response, hence the need for a contingency plan document as a guide.
“Management of disasters require collective efforts of all stakeholders, and the document has defined the role of each stakeholder in response to emergencies and mitigation of disasters,” Mahmood said.
He commended the Nigeria Early Recovery Initiative (NERI), sponsors of the project, and consultants for their efforts in ensuring that the state remained safe.
The News Agency of Nigeria (NAN) reports that the Nigeria Security Civil Defense Corps (NSCDC), the Red Cross, National Emergency Management Agency (NEMA) and other relevant stakeholders attended the event. (NAN)