Solon Seeks Youth Participation in Disaster Preparedness, Rescue Efforts

In a country where natural calamities are a common occurrence, a lawmaker is urging the participation of the youth in the country’s disaster preparedness and relief efforts.

Rep. Anthony G. Del Rosario (1st District, Davao del Norte) filed House Bill 5774 which seeks to amend Republic Act No. 10121, otherwise known as “The Philippine Disaster Reduction and Management Act of 2010” by including youth participation as represented by the National Youth Commission (NYC).

Del Rosario said that in a country like the Philippines where natural disasters are normal occurrences, the effects of climate change have manifested in the worst ways possible.

“We witnessed several typhoons which caused massive damage to lives and properties, the deadliest of which was Supertyphoon Yolanda (Haiyan) that left over 6,000 people dead and affected over 14 million when it hit Leyte and its neighboring provinces in the Visayas Region in November of 2013,” he said.

Del Rosario said that it is not unusual for Filipinos to be one another’s source of strength and support during hard times as Filipinos have learned to cope with disasters through resilience and spirit of volunteerism.

“In the wake of typhoons, we can expect several volunteers who willingly take on jobs needed for rescue, relief and recovery operations,” he said.

Del Rosario said that it is mandatory to intensify the disaster preparedness efforts and make them proactive given the impending dangers that climate change is most likely to bring in the country.

“As we gear towards that direction, it is fitting to involve the youth sector in this discourse and institutionalize its participation,” he said.

The Mindanao solon further said that young people should be tapped in both the national and local disaster risk reduction and management initiatives.

“After all, they should be given the ownership and responsibility to advocate for their right to a balanced and healthy ecology,” he added.

Under the bill, “youth” refers to those persons aged 15 to 30 years old as provided under Republic Act (RA) No. 8044.

“Youth participation” on the other hand refers to the process of involving young people in the institutions and decisions that affect their lives including but not limited to organizing groups for social and political actions, planning their programs, and advocating their interests in the community to raise consciousness, educate others, and provide services.

One of the amendments to RA 10121 is the inclusion of the Chairperson of the National Youth Commission as one the members of the National Disaster Risk Reduction and Management Council (NDRRMC) or National Council.

The bill also amends Section 7 of RA 10121 which provides that Civic and Youth Organizations are among those instrumentalities or entities of the government and nongovernment that the Chairperson of the NDRRMC may call upon for assistance in terms of the use of their facilities and resources for the protection and preservation of life and properties in the whole range of disaster risk reduction and management.

The measure carries several amendments to RA 10121 which include the mandate of the provincial, city and municipal DRRMOs or Barangay DRRMC or BDRRMCs to monitor and insure the implementation of response and rehabilitation programs for children and youth, such as mental health and psycho-social services, gender sensitivity and security, livelihood, and education, among others.

The bill provides that not less than five percent of the Local Disaster Risk Reduction Maintenance Fund (LDRRMF) shall be allocated to support youth-oriented pre- and post-disaster activities included in the youth plan such as, but not limited to, tree-planting, information dissemination, and climate change adaptation efforts.

Del Rosario hoped that the youth would be empowered to take an active part in the decision-making and planning on prevention, preparedness, service and education on issues relative to climate change.

Congress Public Relations and Information Bureau