The second town of Dominica, Portsmouth, has been selected as a pilot community for a Community Alert Project (CAP) under the United Nations Development Program (UNDP).
The main focus of the project is to seek to build on the resilience and to reduce the vulnerability of the town of Portsmouth by strengthening and enhancing an early warning alert systems in case of a disaster.
The programme for the town was secured by the Office of Disaster Management (ODM) in collaboration with the United Nation Development Programme UNDP in 2013.
The project has secured the services of Judith Szabo under the CAP Project to undertake the design of a communications strategy that will be aimed at engaging the community and critical stakeholders in the roll-out of the project.
The communication strategy will include an early warning system strategy, public awareness and education components.
Szabo will be visiting Dominica on April 28th and 29th 2014 for an initial orientation exercise and to meet with a wide cross section of stakeholders critical to the success of the project.
The schedule of the visit is twofold, the first day being a fact finding mission that will see a transect walk of the Portsmouth area while the second day targets a meeting with the NEPO Sub- Committee responsible for communication and public education and awareness and other stakeholders.
The project is being funded by DIPECHO, an arm of the European Commission’s Humanitarian Aid department.
Everything has to sound like a UN project being committed to paper. Why the convoluted way of explaining everything every time. Plain English please, so that people can understand what’s happening.
The U.N. is the disaster. Keep it out of DA.
The U.N. is the disaster. Keep it out of DA.
Is it a coincidence, or what. Just about a few days after Mr. Martin sounded the alarm of an imminent danger to the people of the valley because of the digging at the Geothermal Project , it is only then Dominicans are told, fifty three individuals were trained as the Community Emergency Team and about the same time we are hearing that Portsmouth was selected for a Community Alert Project just in case of a disaster. Their are reports that a meeting is planned in the valley this month to discuss plans in case an evacuation is needed. I wonder whether Mr. Martin’s breaking news on Q95 on Monday and Tuesday, is a case of someone taking in front before in front take them, according to a local saying.
so they say,,,that we are the second town ,,,
But please dont let people know that ,,,and most importantly,
Please dont let them know that we are voting labour for the past 50 years,,,,, PLEASE,please please
I feel bitter today. Thus I could read this story as;
On the other hand – UNDP has created a job for a foreigner -Judith Szabo to perform a job in Dominica. Tow days and she will be an expert on the ‘best ways’ to avoid disaster in Portsmouth.
Any Dominicans getting paid????
Would life long Portsmouth residents not have a better idea how to ‘run’ in case of disaster? … maybe not.
Dominicans are getting a world class consultant with decades of experience to come down and assist them plan for disaster. They don’t have to pay a cent for it, I don’t see the issue.
Will this also include a tsunami early warning system? Will it include weather alerts, landslide alerts and other alerts for possible natural disasters? Alerts can be sent by way of cell phones, emails , sirens and other methods of communications. Let’s talk about it. Let’s start now.
Yes, it will. The project will include the installation of equipment at strategic locations around the town. The consultation with the residents have begun and will continue. The community must take ownership of this project and see it through. Hopefully very soon, the general public will be invited to participate. I look forward to seeing active participation in this pilot project.
I guess Dominica already having disaster with chikungunia…maybe its time to show some real measures how to deal with extreme situation rather than conduct theoretical: ‘engaging the community and critical stakeholders…’
You already have completely out of control crisis…roll-over anti-crisis measures – deal with problem!!!!
DIPECHO could use present chikungunia outbreak as a model for assessment of present incapability of Dominica to deal with any urgent situation. Test your programs now…if it were malaria outbreak or cholera..Dominica would have thousands and thousands in casualties and same hopeless Dominican pseudo-specialists (healthcare officials) would mumble their favourite nonsense and give empty pointless promises…
If Dominica ever has tsunami or massive earthquake with post outbreak of some tropical disease it will be perfect and deadly recipe for DISASTER…
isn’t it correct to say Portsmouth is the town and Roseau is the city?, it sounds silly to say we have two towns and no city…
IS this the second town???????