US donates P11-M disaster response equipment to Cagayan

MANILA - The United States government, through the US Agency for International Development (USAID), donated PHP11.6 million worth of mobile storage units and mobile energy systems to help strengthen Cagayan province's disaster risk reduction capacity. The US Embassy in Manila on Thursday said the equipment was formally turned over between Sept. 9 to 10 to Cagayan Provincial Administrator Maria Rosario Mamba-Villaflor. The mobile storage unit can store up to 50,000 food packs and would be a huge boost to Cagayan's capacity to deliver life-saving assistance in the immediate aftermath of disasters. 'For many years, USAID has dispatched teams to Cagayan and other provinces in Northern Luzon to support local government units in providing life-saving assistance during calamities,' USAID Mission Director Ryan Washburn said. 'As your friend, partner, and ally, the US government remains committed to strengthening our partnerships and working with the Philippine government to rebuild and restore lives following di sasters,' he said. The USAID also formalized a partnership with Cagayan province and the World Food Programme to strengthen Cagayan's emergency response efforts through the Preparedness and Response Excellence in the Philippines (PREP) project. The project will help reduce disaster risks by improving irrigation canals, water systems, and water-harvesting facilities; set up community flood-control dikes; introduce climate-resilient crops; construct community evacuation centers; and provide cash-for-work training so communities can bounce back from natural disasters. 'People's empowerment is at the heart of the disaster preparedness and good governance program of the governor,' Mamba-Villaflor said. USAID also handed over mobile energy systems to provide clean and reliable power to support relief operations, essential services as well as help restart the power grid during disasters in Lal-Lo and Santa Ana. The systems are mobile and can be deployed anywhere they are needed, particularly in remote and off-g rid areas and would only need sunlight to recharge. While in Northern Luzon, Washburn also discussed USAID's work to support Tuguegarao City's solid waste management system with officer-in-charge City Administrator Juanito Calubaquib and city councilors. He also spoke with Cagayan Vice Governor Melvin Vargas Jr. about USAID's programs in the region and visited Santa Teresita town to see the Emergency Operations Center that USAID helped build more than a decade ago. Since 2010, the US government, through USAID, has provided around PHP19.6 billion in disaster relief and recovery aid, as well as boosted the disaster risk reduction capacity of over 100 cities and municipalities in the Philippines. Source: Philippines News agency