As the Municipality of San Nicolas takes into heart the aspirations of the yearly celebration of the ๐๐๐ญ๐ข๐จ๐ง๐๐ฅ ๐๐ข๐ฌ๐๐ฌ๐ญ๐๐ซ ๐๐๐ฌ๐ข๐ฅ๐ข๐๐ง๐๐ ๐๐จ๐ง๐ญ๐ก, which guides local government units and communities to further enhance their disaster risk reduction and management programs, it kicked off on July 5 this yearโs NDRM celebration with array of partnerships with the private sector, shared its blueprint for disaster risk reduction and building resilience, and launched the โ๐๐ง๐ ๐๐ซ๐จ๐ฐ๐ง๐ข๐ง๐ ๐๐จ๐ฐโ program aimed at making San Nicolas a drowning-free municipality.
Gracing the event, ๐ ๐ฎ๐๐ผ๐ฟ ๐๐น๐ถ๐ฐ๐ถ๐ฎ ๐. ๐ฃ๐ฟ๐ถ๐บ๐ถ๐ฐ๐ถ๐ฎ๐-๐๐ป๐ฟ๐ถ๐พ๐๐ฒ๐, who chairs the Municipal Disaster Risk Reduction and Management Council, underscored the strengthening of collaboration and linkages among the cross section of San Nicolas community as an important part in attaining a resilient community.
โWe recognize the importance of partnerships and collaborations to support a coherent approach to disaster risk reduction and climate adaptation for sustainable development. It is indeed vital to build resilience into every sector in our locality that is why we invited the representatives of the significant sectors and stakeholders in our municipality to continue to support our DRRM agenda,โ she noted.
โWe are at a point where we should roll up our sleeves, put words into action and get down to specifics to get to our target. Our agenda is that by 2025, we should have had a community where risk governance has been fully strengthened, community with increased resilience to disaster and climate risks, and where investment in disaster resilience has been clearly established,โ she adds.
๐๐ข๐๐ ๐๐๐ฒ๐จ๐ซ ๐๐ฅ๐ฏ๐ข๐ง ๐๐ซ๐๐ฏ๐จ, for his part, acknowledged the support of the multi-stakeholders composed of school DRRM pointpersons, barangay officials and BDRRMCs, including Civil Society Organizations and private companies who then signed a MOA to further the DRR programs of the municipality.
Among the signatories were ๐๐ ๐ ๐๐๐ญ๐ข๐ง๐ ๐๐ซ๐๐ง๐๐ก ๐๐๐ง๐๐ ๐๐ซ ๐๐จ๐๐จ๐ฅ๐๐จ ๐. ๐๐จ๐ซ๐ฉ๐ฎ๐ณ, ๐๐ซ๐ข๐ฌ๐ญ๐ข๐ง๐ ๐๐๐ซ๐ช๐ฎ๐ข๐ง๐ ๐๐๐ฌ๐๐ซ ๐จ๐ ๐๐๐ซ๐ช๐ฎ๐ข๐ง๐ ๐ ๐ฎ๐ง๐๐ซ๐๐ฅ ๐๐จ๐ฆ๐๐ฌ, ๐๐ง๐ ๐๐จ๐๐จ๐ฅ๐๐จ ๐๐ช๐ฎ๐ข๐ง๐จ ๐๐ฌ๐ญ๐ซ๐๐๐ ๐ฃ๐ซ ๐๐ก๐๐ซ๐ ๐๐ข๐๐ฐ ๐๐ง๐ญ๐๐ซ๐ฉ๐ซ๐ข๐ฌ๐๐ฌ.
Another Memorandum of Agreement was signed by the LGU with ๐๐ฎ๐ซ๐ฏ๐ข๐ฏ๐๐ฅ๐ข๐ฌ๐ญ ๐๐ก๐ข๐ฅ๐ข๐ฉ๐ฉ๐ข๐ง๐๐ฌ, ๐๐ง๐. represented by its national president and founder, ๐๐จ๐๐ฅ ๐๐๐๐จ๐๐จ๐ฌ, as official launching of the municipalityโs โEnd Drowning Nowโ program which commenced since April this year. Representing the LGU in the MOA are ๐๐๐ฒ๐จ๐ซ ๐๐ฅ๐ข๐๐ ๐๐ซ๐ข๐ฆ๐ข๐๐ข๐๐ฌ-๐๐ง๐ซ๐ข๐ช๐ฎ๐๐ณ, ๐๐ข๐๐ ๐๐๐ฒ๐จ๐ซ ๐๐ฅ๐ฏ๐ข๐ง ๐๐ซ๐๐ฏ๐จ, ๐๐ง๐ ๐๐๐๐๐ ๐๐๐๐ข๐๐๐ซ ๐๐ก๐๐ฅ๐ฅ๐จ๐ฆ ๐๐ข๐๐๐จ๐ง ๐๐๐ฅ๐จ๐ฅ๐จ๐ง๐ .
The program involves Water Safety and Survival Training of Trainers participated in by the pointpersons of BDRRMCs to capacitate them to teach Water Safety and Survival in their respective communities. Eventually, they would become the Water Survival Champions in their respective communities.
According to Mayor Alice, the program will now also roll in the schools within the municipality by capacitating the DRRM in-charge of every school to be trainers themselves on Water Safety and Survival.
“Then with their support, we will soon download to every student in our town this very important life skill,” she said.
At the moment, the swimming pool project of the LGU located at Agpay Eco Tourism Park is nearing completion, which, according to Mayor Alice, will be the official venue of the practical lessons for the โEnd Drowning Nowโ program. โWe will have all the requirements in place in order to sustain this program towards a drowning-free San Nicolas.โ
โWe have to train more to become trainers to help us spread the advocacy. But while we are building more warm bodies to support us, I understand that Survivalist Philippines has already started to teach free survival lessons targeting a lot of sectors in our municipality–young and old alike–as long as they are interested to become water survivalists themselves. We have to take note that drowning is a serious public health issue in our country and no less than the ๐๐จ๐ซ๐ฅ๐ ๐๐๐๐ฅ๐ญ๐ก ๐๐ซ๐ ๐๐ง๐ข๐ณ๐๐ญ๐ข๐จ๐ง noting that drowning is often not equately addressed in our country with over 3,000 Filipinos die of drowning every year, or an average of 10 a day,โ she said, adding โwe are launching this project as we aim not only to diminish but eliminate drowning incidents in our municipality.โ
For schedules of the Free Water Survival Lessons in San Nicolas, please refer to the website of Survivalist Philippines (www.end-drowning-now.com).
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