Course on Community-Managed Disaster Risk Reduction held in Nairobi, Kenya

“A ‘must-attend' course for humanitarian actors. Appropriate for those in the field of humanitarian emergency assistance”. These were the remarks made by Opiyo Nixon of World Vision-Kenya at the end of the recently concluded Africa course on Community-Managed Disaster Risk Reduction. The course, held last March 2006 in Nairobi, Kenya, was organized by the IIRR Regional Center for Africa based in Kenya, and covering the African region.

The course had twenty eight participants from nine countries - Kenya, Zimbabwe, Ethiopia, South Sudan, Australia, Rwanda, India, DR Congo, and Uganda. Most of them were project staff from international organizations such as Food for the Hungry, World Vision, Care, Save the Children USA, Concern Worldwide, Oxfam Great Britain, UN Office for the Coordination of Humanitarian Affairs (UN OCHA), Caritas-Australia, Cordaid -CEFEVO and World Society for Protection of Wild Animals. Two of the participants were from the Disaster Prevention and Preparedness Agency of Ethiopia.

Aimed at equipping development workers on the philosophy, principles and practices of community-managed disaster risk reduction, the course received very positive feedback from all the participants who strongly recommended that IIRR should offer this course regularly to support efforts by UN Agencies, NGOs and governments in building safer and disaster resilient communities. The UN OCHA for Sudan has requested IIRR to conduct two CMDRR courses in Sudan in August and October for the various UN Agencies, International NGOs based there, as well as for local government and NGO workers. Project proposals on CMDRR will also be developed by OCHA for 2007 for the capacity development of communities for CMDRR.

Other international organizations and countries have also registered with IIRR their intention to have in-country trainings on CMDRR. “The course was very good and I wish it was organized in my country too” said Justin Mudekereza Bisimwa, General Director, CEFEVO, DR Congo.

The next International Course on Facilitating Community-managed Disaster Risk Reduction will be conducted by IIRR on October 23 - November 4, 2006 in Uganda, Africa.

More photos taken during the course appear below.

8 Posted on : April 4, 2006