Media Role in Disaster Risk Management

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Media Role in Disaster Risk Management

• PRESENTATION BY KEPHER OTIENO
• STANDARD JOURNALIST, MEMBER OF THE AFRICAN
  JOURNALIST NETWORK ON DISASTER RISK MANAGEMENT

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• FREQUENT drought witnessed in the Horn of Africa
  is retarding development gains made by African
  governments.
• The disasters have destabilized the African
  economies and exposed thousands of vulnerable
  communities to abject poverty as they contend
  with the situation.
• Even though in African states economies have
  recorded slight economic growth the effects of
  the natural hazards are eating into their
  achievements.

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• This remains one of the biggest challenges not
  only to the African states but to the African
  journalists as well.
• Disasters such as floods, storms, environmental
  degradation, road carnages, marine,urban
  pollution,desertification, landslides, among
  others that have continued to increase in the
  continent exposing millions of the residents to
  suffering and sheer poverty.

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• This warrants a developmental approach and the
  media must play a essential role in realizing the
  concept.
• To cushion the effects of this disasters there is
  need for African Journalists to use the barrel of
  the pen to push the policy makers to
  developmentize disaster risk management.
• The question is how?

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• Follow, 
• The media can increase lobbying for political
  commitment to make the leaders be more responsive
  to the vulnerable communities needs and demands
  through consistent reporting.

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• Media can also influence the government to
  prioritize disaster risk issues into a
  development component through expanded research
  and regular reports on natural hazards.

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• The media can also help create early warning
  systems by providing to policy makers adequate
  information on risks which can be integrated into
  a development or management concept.

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• They can also trigger donations from the
  international community as well as push the
  African governments to increase budgetary
  allocations for disaster response programmes.

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• The media can also engender and improve
  integration and coordination of risk assessment
  by the policymakers and donor communities to save
  lives of the affected population or vulnerable
  communities.

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• How can this be achieved? 
• There is need for journalists to be more
  proactive in reporting on drought or disaster
  risk related issues.

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• Journalists needs to be trained regularly on
  disaster preparedness to enhance their
  understanding of the key disaster terms and scope
  of the hazards. 
• The policy makers should work closely with the
  press to broadcast or write positive stories that
  can trigger change and offer solutions in the
  disaster prone areas.

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• Capacity building for journalists with close
  monitoring of their progress should be
  developed. 
• Journalists advocacy stories should target the
  government line ministries for quick action. 
• There is need to develop a journalist disaster
  risks guide book besides holding workshops for
  them to make them more pro-active in reporting
  disaster issues.

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• Establish an online magazine for disaster stories
  from the Horn of Africa as first step. 
• Appoint a team of online editors and sub editors
  to receive the stories from the journalists in
  the field and post them in Web magazine. 
• Identify a sponsor and staff permanent
  journalists to help coordinate the process to
  show a sign of commitment in managing disaster.

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• Keep a data base of disaster prone areas in The
  Horn of Africa and their calendar of happenings
  to help in monitoring of the hazards impacts. 
• Remunerate journalist writing stories used in the
  website. 
• Create a forum of competition and give annual
  awards for best researched stories on disaster by
  journalists as a token of appreciation to their
  efforts to help combat disasters.

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• Conduct periodical trainings of journalists with
  interest in the DRR issues to enhance their scope
  of reporting. 
• Create exchange programmes where journalists can
  move from one country to the other to share the
  experience of the effects of disasters affecting
  their countries. 
• Give the journalists specific assignments on DRR
  issues in the Horn of Africa to follow up.

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• The central function of the media should be to
  remind the policy makers and influence them to
  act by exposing the high dangers or risks facing
  the people and finding out what the African
  governments are doing about rationalizing the
  problems affecting the vulnerable communities.
• End..

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• Thank you for your attention
• Looking forward to your positive response