Another task force: Marcos signs order creating gov’t body for disaster preparedness
MANILA, Philippines — President Ferdinand “Bongbong” Marcos Jr. has signed an executive order creating a task force dedicated solely to disaster preparedness and response, with members drawn from government agencies related to health, defense, social welfare and development, local government, among others.
Executive Order 24, signed on April 30, forms the Disaster Response and Crisis Management Task Force, which will oversee the “preparation, monitoring and evaluation of disaster risk management (DRRM) plans and programs on disaster preparedness and response.”
The task force is also mandated to establish a “calibrated national disaster mobilization system,” which includes a “pre-disaster risk assessment as a decision-making tool, in coordination with relevant agencies.”
The following agencies form the task force:
- Office of the Executive Secretary
- Department of National Defense
- Department of the Interior and Local Government
- Department of Social Welfare and Development
- Department of Health
- Department of Trade and Industry
- Department of Science and Technology
- Department of Public Works and Highways
- Department of Transportation
- Office of Civil Defense (OCD)
Among task force's responsibilities is the management and implementation of national and local disaster resilience programs, convening members of the National Disaster Risk Reduction Management Council for declaring and lifting the declaration of a state of calamity, and approving disbursements from the National Disaster Risk Reduction and Management Fund.
Under the executive order, the task force is also required to organize quick response groups to be deployed during or in anticipation of disasters.
The Philippines remains one of the countries most vulnerable to disasters, with previous estimates that 60% of the country's land area and 74% of its population are exposed to numerous hazards like floods, cyclones, droughts, earthquakes, tsunamis and landslides, according to the World Bank.
Typhoons have exacted a more devastating toll on the country in recent years despite occurring less frequently—a phenomenon exacerbated by the effects of human-induced climate change as seen in warming temperatures, rise in sea levels three times the world average and destruction of natural habitats and ecosystems.
The World Risk Index 2022 ranked the Philippines first on the list of global disaster hotspots. The report, which measured a country’s exposure and vulnerability to hazards, assessed 193 countries. — Cristina Chi with reports by Gaea Katreena Cabico
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