Butaleja warned against misuse of the early flood warning system

Nov 25, 2015

The assistant commissioner for disaster in the directorate of disaster preparedness, Gerald Menhya has called for skills development among the Butaleja district officials on how to operate the flood early warning system.

By Agnes Nantambi 

The assistant commissioner for disaster in the directorate of disaster preparedness, Gerald Menhya has called for skills development among the Butaleja district officials on how to operate the flood early warning system.


The unit, which was installed on River Manafwa to alert locals in the flood prone districts of the raising water levels is part of the efforts to avert disasters in the region.

The system worth sh1b was procured by the Uganda Communications Commission (UCC) and the International Telecommunications Union (ITU) to help in mitigating the effects of floods in the region.

At a recent event where he handed over keys to the units to the Butalejja district Local government for management at UCC offices in Bugoloobi, Menhya explained that, capacity building and skilling of the personnel's is very crucial in enhancing sustainability.

"There is need for continuity and sustainability of the project even when ITU and UCC are not at sight.

The only way we can ensure this, is to have capacity built and skills passed on, otherwise we shall find this project a white elephant, "he said.

He added "As part of the handle over, we need to ensure that skilled personnel's are available to carry out the smooth running and management of this project".

He was optimistic that in the near future, the country will witness significant reduction in damages caused by flood related disasters as a result of delivering effective early warning messages that are consequently followed by early actions.

"In our office, we embrace the philosophy of investing one dollar in preparedness or mitigation saves seven dollars in response to disaster, "he said.

Menhya called upon the residents to make use of the warnings generated by the system to save their lives and better their livelihoods.

"The warning system will not stop floods but will keep you on guard to reduce on the degree of destruction of property, "he emphasized.

Menhya also asked the district leaders to ensure midterm evaluation of the project to assess the impact and performance of the project to the intended beneficiaries.

The acting director UCC, Patrick Mwesigwa explained that the system was set in Butaleja after it was identified as the most flood prone districts needing an early warning system.

"Now that the project is fully operational, we expect improved dissemination of early warning information in the flood prone areas of Butaleja district, "he said.

According to the project coordinator Rebecca Mayanja,the installation involved fixing of solar backup systems for the control units, fabrication  of the tools to remove silt and debris under the bridges and reinforcement of the window and door burglar proof among others.

The Butaleja district acting chief administrative officer Jacqueline Nankoma applauded UCC, ITU, Ministry of water and environment and the office of the prime minister towards solving what he said was the major problem for the district.

"Life is now better because the system helps in creating awareness to the community about occurrences of floods so that they get prepared to avoid mass destruction of property, "she said.

 
 

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