Africa-Press – Zambia. Disaster Management and Mitigation Unit (DMMU) National Coordinator, Gabriel Pollen says government will continue to explore areas of synergies and opportunities with mining companies to ensure onsite disaster management initiatives are integrated into the national agenda of minimizing and avoiding potential disasters that may arise.
Dr Pollen says mining activities underpin the core of Zambia’s economic activities, adding that disaster management features as a fundamental portfolio in mining management.
He says one of the major issues being drowned from the international platform is how to encourage businesses to consider disaster risk as part of their response risk portfolio. Dr Pollen said this in Solwezi today when he called on the North-western provincial administration alongside his visit to the Kansanshi mine.
He said his visit to the mine is timely to also ensure they raise community awareness on the upcoming day of the disaster risk reduction on 13th October whose theme is focusing on early warning and early action.
“This is an opportunity for us to spread the word around disaster risk reduction as a radical fundamental shift in the way in which disaster risk management is being handled,” he said.
Dr Pollen said disasters cannot be managed if institutions work in isolation. And Provincial Deputy Permanent Secretary, Naomi Tetamashimba has called for the mines to have a linkage with government and work together in issues of disaster risk management.
Ms Tetamashimba said government has provided an enabling environment for the mines to operate hence the need to coordinate and work together. “I am also suggesting that if we could have some of the mine management to be part of some of the committees we have as government so that they can come as ex-officials,” she said.
Dr Pollen and his team are in Solwezi district at the invitation of Kansanshi mine to access and explore opportunities that are there between government and the private sector in terms of disaster risk management.
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