Brig Mukhtar Ahmed, Member (Operations) NDMA; Lt Gen Omar Mahmood Hayat, NDMA Chairman; Ali Muhammad Khan, Minister of State for Parliamentary Affairs; Sisira Maderapperuma, Director to PRR at ADPC; Sajid Naeem, Program Manager, ADPC, pose for a group picture

The National Disaster Management Authority (NDMA), Pakistan, launched the revised National Disaster Response Plan (NDRP-2019) in collaboration with ADPC on 29 April, 2019. The NDRP-2019 covers the full spectrum of disaster response; outlines a framework for emergency response by different tiers of the government; identifies roles and responsibilities, and lays down coordination mechanism between United Nations, INGOs / NGOs, civil society organizations, local humanitarian networks, the private sectors, and media.

The Minister of State for Parliamentary Affairs, Ali Muhammad Khan, assured NDMA of his full support for the implementation of the plan stating the preparation of NDRP-2019 was a very good step towards building a disaster resilient Pakistan.

"We have to learn from our history as the earthquake of 2005 killed 73,000 people, displaced over 3.5 million, whereas the 2010 floods badly damaged infrastructure, caused economical losses and above all killed 1,985 people. Our leadership is on to it, we have will and support at the back of NDMA and other stakeholders for disaster resilient Pakistan," Ali Muhammad Khan said.

NDMA Chairman, Lt Gen Omar Mahmood Hayat, presents Pakistan's past experience with disasters

Presenting an overview of the country’s experience in handling a multitude of disasters, NDMA Chairman, Lt Gen Omar Mahmood Hayat, said that NDMA had considerably enhanced its technical capabilities in forecasting and closely monitoring predictable hazards.

Brig Mukhtar Ahmed, Member (Operations), NDMA, said the NDPR-19 is an updated version of the NDRP-2010 and has been formulated to cope up with the changes that had evolved over the years in environment and disaster management mechanism of the country. NDMA was established through the National Disaster Management Ordinance 2006 in the aftermath of the 2005 earthquake that took 73,000 lives and caused economic losses of US $ 5.2 Billion.

"The plan is beneficial for the country and can be referred to by the other countries in the APP Network," states Sisira Maderapperuma, Director to Preparedness for Response and Recovery (PRR), ADPC.

Supported by the Bill & Melinda Gates Foundation and ADPC, the national chapter - Pakistan Resilience Partnership - of Asian Preparedness Partnership, facilitated the launch.