President Aquino recently signed Resolution No. 2 approving the National Climate Change Action Plan (NCCAP) which is reportedly the first ever government action plan to respond to the challenge of climate change in the next 18 years. Corollary thereto, the office of the President issued a press release stating that President Aquino inaugurated on November 25, 2011 the Climate Change Academy of Albay as part of the government thrust to combat climate change and its ill effects particularly on the economy.
The Academy, built inside the campus of the Bicol University, aimed to contribute in the national effort to fast track development of climate adaptation capabilities of the country particularly local government units (LGUs). The academy will empower and train LGUs for disaster management, evaluation of climate risk hazards and adaptive capabilities, planning and programming.
Its strategic approach reportedly included raising awareness on disaster risks, progressive training on scenario building, climate and disaster risk assessment and management, and technical assistance for local management and planing. Albay Governor Joey Salceda emphasized the importance of institutionalizing the fight against climate change through the academy as well as raising public awareness with the help of media. Per Governor Salceda, the Climate Change Academy is first of its kind in the world and essentially a knowledge management institution. He further said battling or reducing the impacts of climate change is a paramount concern of the government considering the vulnerability of the Philippines as the third most vulnerable country in the world.
This Climate Change Academy established by the Provincial Government of Albay is a step in the right direction which if replicated in all other provinces nationwide will certainly accomplish much in fighting or minimizing the adverse effects of climate change on the economy, the people and the country. Nevertheless, as the existence of this academy has come to public knowledge just recently, whether it will deliver the expected results is definitely very iffy.
0 comments:
Post a Comment