CAPE TOWN - THE deadly KwaZulu-Natal floods, which also hit parts of the Eastern Cape, not only showed the devastating impact of climate change, but also exposed how unprepared governments, including ours, are to deal with it.
The deaths recorded and the trail of destruction that has been left by the floods serve as a stark reminder that more action and less talk is required to prepare communities to better deal with the effects of severe weather.
These events also remind us that climate change is no longer “coming”. It is here. A study by the African Centre for Disasters on the institutionalisation of disaster risk management structures in 279 municipalities found that many had yet to put the most basic disaster risk management structures in place.
Dr Robyn Pharoah from the Research Alliance for Disaster and Risk Reduction at Stellenbosch University says there is also a high degree of ignorance about even the most fundamental Disaster Risk Reduction (DRR) principles, which seek to reduce the potential for disasters by reducing vulnerability to the effects of hazards.
“Reducing the occurrence and toll of disasters requires enhancing the resources and capacities available to promote risk reduction and identify and implement risk-reducing measures.
“South Africa’s Disaster Management Act and the National Disaster Management Framework, which guides the implementation of the act, emphasise the importance of integration and co-ordination of risk reduction across all spheres of government. They promote the incorporation of disaster risk reduction into development initiatives and make DRR a statutory responsibility for all government departments.
However, research and practice show that this has yet to happen.” We have already seen how unprepared the eThekwini Municipality was for this disaster.
While thousands of residents begin to piece together the little of what is left of their lives, others, especially in the government, are already lining up to benefit from this tragedy. Perhaps it’s time that rebuilding efforts should be left in the hands of organisations like Gift of the Givers, which has a proven track record that it will use the resources for what they have been allocated for, or else this could be another round of looting by comrades, as we saw with the PPE scandal.
Cape Times