THE MINDANAO Development Authority (MinDA) is fast-tracking the comprehensive plan for the Mindanao Disaster Resiliency and Resource Center (MDRRC) which is set to be crafted before 2025.
MinDA chairperson, Secretary Leo Tereso Magno, said the MDRRC is “gaining headway” and received positive feedback from local government units and stakeholders.
“We are giving our office up to the end of the year to come up with a comprehensive plan that we will have approved by the national government,” he said.
On Nov. 16, MinDA conducted a benchmarking of Japan’s Rinkai Disaster Prevention Park during their visit to Tokyo.
The visit featured a mock disaster drill, replicating the 2011 Japan earthquake and tsunami scenario, to test preparedness for a magnitude 7 event.
Magno reported a meeting with the Asian Development Bank for collaboration in the last week of November.
“We are trying to market the resiliency and resource center. In fact, we have asked the assistance of the national government for the funding,” he said.
Magno acknowledged the center that MinDA is eyeing for Mindanao will not be “simple” as it will be a one-stop-shop for equipment that will monitor the weather movement, and a training center for response capacity-building, especially for disaster-prone areas.
In the early stage of the planning, it was initially studied that the center would be placed in the center of Mindanao. However, it was later decided to better place it in the eastern Mindanao side due to its high susceptibility to disasters.
The secretary added they will visit an expert in Region 10, a doctor known for his contribution to disaster resiliency, together with the Department of Environment and Natural Resources.
“Gusto natin sa paglatag natin ng proposal sa national government, sa office of the President, kompleto na siya,” he stressed.
The proposal will include the construction of temporary hospitals and clinics, storage of at least 200,000 food packs that are ready for deployment at any given time, take off of choppers as needed, and mobilization units.
MinDA envisions the establishment of the center will create a “more resilient and more prepared Mindanao” with its swift information dissemination and coordinated disaster response across the region.
