Climate Change Resilience
Ms. Faumuina Felolini Tafuna’I writing for the Samoa Observer
23 July, 2015, Nuku’alofa, Tonga, PMC-3 - Women, children, elderly and disabled are often worst affected by disasters but are missing from the agenda of the Third Pacific Meteorology Council meeting this week in Nuku'alofa, Tonga.
Women, children missing from PMC agenda
At a press conference this week, the PMC Chair, Ofa Fa’anunu was asked why vulnerable groups had been overlooked on the programme.
“That is a good question. Gender is an important issue being raised here and one of the members should have raised it.”
Fa'anunu, who is also director of the Tonga Meteorology Services, said his country was aware of the high fatalities of vulnerable people during disasters.
When the MV Princess Ashika ferry sank in August 2009, all 54 survivors were men, 74 women and children died.
Then two months later, a tsunami struck Tonga’s northern-most islands, killing nine people, all women, children and elderly people.
He said last year Tonga started working on a new cluster system to that grouped communities by livelihoods.
Later, the head of the Samoa Meteorology Division Mulipola Ausetalia Titimaea said supporting vulnerable groups was one of the key principles in the Pacific Islands Meteorology Strategy, which advised that national services “operated and delivered services in ways that address principles of gender equality and the needs of the most vulnerable in society”.
Mulipola said his division was working on its national communication strategy to target vulnerable groups under the Climate and Oceans Support Program in the Pacific (COSPPac), which is funded by the Australian Government.
Ms. Janita Pahalad
COSPPac programme manager Janita Pahalad said it should be compulsory for school children to learn about weather, climate and how to be prepared.
“Awareness becomes a habit. When you think about it, they grow up into adults and will know how to keep the environment safe and what to do – knowing about tsunamis and that the last thing you do is stand on the beach.”
World Meteorology Organisation Assistant Secretary-General Elena Manaenkova said considering gender was important because women have different roles and social duties in different societies.
She said women are often agents of risk management in organising children and elderly people.
“They can also have less access to alerts such as mobile phones and radios, said Manaenkova.-#PacMC2015
Ms. Faumuina Felolini Tafuna’I is a freelance journalist writing for the Samoa Observer - www.samoaobserver.ws
This article was developed by a Pacific Media Team of Reporters currently providing coverage on the Third Pacific Meteorological Council in Tonga. This activity coordinated by SPREP is supported by a partnership including the Government of Tonga, SPREP, Finland Ministry of Foreign Affairs, Finnish Meteorological Institute (FMI), World Meteorological Organization (WMO) and the Pacific Media Assistance Scheme (PACMAS).
This article was developed by a Pacific Media Team of Reporters currently providing coverage on the Third Pacific Meteorological Council in Tonga. This activity coordinated by SPREP is supported by a partnership including the Government of Tonga, SPREP, Finland Ministry of Foreign Affairs, Finnish Meteorological Institute (FMI), World Meteorological Organization (WMO) and the Pacific Media Assistance Scheme (PACMAS).