PESHAWAR: The Khyber Pakhtunkhwa Provincial Disaster Management Authority (PDMA) is working on the monsoon contingency plan 2023 in consultation with all stakeholders to identify monsoon hazards, vulnerabilities, risks and resource mapping for effectively reducing disaster risks and taking coordinated disaster response on time.

A statement issued here said the contingency plan’s outcomes reinforced prevention, mitigation and response to monsoon-related disasters.

A “pre-planning and orientation” meeting for it was held here with PDMA director (disaster risk management) Mohammad Amin in the chair. The participants included representatives of the relevant departments.

Mr Amin said the PDMA had begun the monsoon contingency planning for the current year by involving all stakeholders and that such meetings would continue next month.

PDMA promises effective disaster risk management and response

He said hopefully, the contingency plan would be developed by the end of May.

“The PDMA determines roles and responsibilities in the monsoon plan for each department. Tools for data collection are developed and shared with all stakeholders, including information regarding district and sector-specific hazards and vulnerability profile, hazard impact, damages, compensation paid, resource mapping, need assessment and coordination,” he said.

The PMDA director said natural hazards and subsequent disasters caused massive losses to people’s life and livelihoods.

He said Khyber Pakhtunkhwa had suffered massive financial and human losses due to last year’s floods.

Mr Amin, however, said better strategy and presence of the disaster risk management system in provinces led to the shifting of more than 400,000 people to safe places during the calamity.

He said the monsoon contingency plan would place the districts’ vulnerability and risk assessment into very high, high, medium and low categories.

“The peculiar geography, terrain and natural resources make this province vulnerable to a number of climate contingencies during both summers and winters,” he said.

Spokesman for the PDMA Taimur Ali said the authority had initiated the process of introducing a proactive preparedness regime under the guidelines given by the National Disaster Management Authority for streamlining response at provincial and district levels in coordination with all stakeholders.

Mr Ali said contingency planning for major hazards would lead to mitigation measures and a coordinated response to minimise the loss of life and property in the events of disasters.

He said it was the stakeholders’ inclusive exercise that took stock of what existed in terms of resources, hazards analysis to determine the likely relief caseloads as a planning assumption.

“Pakistan, especially Khyber Pakhtunkhwa, is vulnerable to various hazards due to adverse effects of climate change,” he said.

The spokesman said the PDMA was an active organisation at the provincial level for disaster management, disaster risk reduction, preparedness and planning.

He added that the authority had installed the flood early warning system in the upper catchment areas of seven rivers in the province to monitor water level.

Published in Dawn, March 29th, 2023