Emergency training successful, says official

A disaster preparedness exercise was completed in central Tajikistan on Saturday as part of efforts to train local communities in how to respond to and cope with disasters. "The joint exercise was conducted by the Ministry of Emergency Situations and the Red Crescent Society of Tajikistan on 12 June in [central] Hissar district," Abdurahkim Radjabov, the country's deputy emergency minister, told IRIN from the capital, Dushanbe, on Monday. The exercise was held some five km from the district capital and supported by the European Commission Humanitarian Aid Office (ECHO) and the Austrian-based NGO, Hilfswerk. "Rescue centre staff members of the Emergency Ministry were seconded there [Hissar district], where they worked with the local population and trained 10 teams. They took part in an exercise in tackling the consequences of natural disasters and providing help to affected people. Local fire brigades, district authorities and populations were also involved," Radjabov said, adding that more than 400 people were involved in the exercise. In late May, the European Commission (EC) said that it would provide 2.5 million euros (some US $3 million) to help vulnerable populations in Central Asia prepare for, and respond to, natural disasters with most of the assistance being allocated for Tajikistan, the most disaster-prone and poorest country in the region. More than 100 local people have been trained as voluntary rescue workers along with some district officials being trained on how to manage these groups and coordinate them, observe the situation and report to the centre. "The event got highest marks and those who have been trained over the past six to seven months by the Emergency Ministry officials have proven to be very good. Emergencies are so complicated that coping with them requires involvement of not only special bodies but local people as well," the emergency official noted, adding that they had set a goal to increase the number of such groups and improve their capacity on the ground. ECHO's assistance is to ensure that local response capacities will be strengthened through local disaster management plans, early warning systems, disaster preparedness training, radio communication systems and public awareness campaigns. Also, vulnerable groups are set to be protected from avalanches, mud slides and flooding through the construction of protection barriers, the reinforcement of mountainsides and the strengthening of the beds and banks of flood-prone rivers. "International experience shows that no country, regardless of its level of political and economic development, can achieve a substantial reduction in [the effects of] natural and man-made disasters on its own. Therefore, we decided to unite the efforts of international organisations [with us] to improve the methods and forms of rescue works and coping with disasters. This campaign was held for that purpose," Radjabov explained. Commenting on the outcomes of the training and exercise, Radjabov said that they would improve disaster preparedness efficiency. "They [local teams] are provided with portable radios, equipment, generator, water pumps and so on. While professional rescue workers are on their way, they will be ready to help people on the ground. If the scale of an incident is not that big, they will be able to cope with it on their own." According to ECHO, natural disasters, including landslides, floods and earthquakes, have killed about 2,500 people and affected some 5.5 million (10 percent of the total population) in Central Asia over the past decade. ECHO provided more than $1 million for ad hoc disaster preparedness activities in Central Asia between 1998 and 2002. This support was stepped up in April 2003 when ECHO launched its first disaster preparedness plan for the region worth 3 million euros (some $3.6 million).