The Keta Municipal Secretariat of the National Disaster Management Organisation (NADMO) has held a comprehensive stakeholder engagement with Churches across the Municipality.
The engagement was aimed at strengthening disaster preparedness and risk reduction at the community level.
The engagement, which took place on Wednesday, March 18, at the Keta Municipal Assembly Hall, brought together Church leaders particularly from the southern parts of Keta numbering about 30 participants to build their capacity in disaster prevention and mitigation within both church environments and surrounding communities.
Addressing participants, the Municipal Director of NADMO, stated the urgency of proactive preparedness, citing recent warnings from the Ghana Meteorological Agency about the likelihood of thunderstorms, windstorms, and heavy rainfall in the coming months.
“We must not wait for disasters to strike before we act. Preparedness is our strongest defense in safeguarding lives and property,” he stated.
Participants were taken through a series of practical safety measures, including fire prevention, flood control, and emergency response strategies with NADMO directing all Churches present to procure and install fire extinguishers as a basic safety requirement.
Discussions also highlighted the importance of engaging certified and licensed electricians to handle all electrical installations in church facilities to prevent fire outbreaks.
These included maintaining well-equipped first aid boxes, establishing volunteer response teams within churches to provide immediate assistance during emergencies, and organising regular community clean-up exercises – particularly the desilting of gutters to reduce flooding risks.
Church leaders also committed to intensifying education on disaster preparedness among their members through periodic sensitization programmes.
Mr Onegod Kwashie Dzotefe, the Deputy Municipal NADMO Director in charge of Operations, urged participants to translate the resolutions into action.
“The success of this engagement will be measured by the actions you take back in your communities. Let us work together to build a safer and more resilient Keta,” he said.
Also present was Mr Philip Abotsi, the Deputy Director in charge of Administration, who reiterated NADMO’s commitment to sustained collaboration with religious institutions as key partners in community safety.
Participating churches includes, Evangelical Presbyterian Churches, Global Evangelical Churches, Roman Catholic Churches, AME Zion Churches branches among others
The engagement was highly interactive, with participants expressing satisfaction with the training and demonstrating strong commitment to implementing the outlined safety measures.
The NADMO officials noted that continuous education and stakeholder collaboration remained critical in reducing disaster risks and protecting lives and property across the municipality.
Source:- GNA
