COTABATO CITY—In observance of the National Disaster Resilience Month (NDRM), a planting activity for non-fruit bearing trees was organized on Thursday, July 21, at Brgy. Lomboy, Datu Odin Sinsuat in Maguindanao.
Dubbed as “Sambayanang Pilipino, Nagkakaisa tungo sa katatagan at maunlad na kinabukasan”, the activity was spearheaded by Ministry Environment, Natural Resources and Energy (MENRE), Ministry of Interior and Local Government (MILG), and non-government organizations.
Formerly as National Disaster Consciousness Month, the NDRM geared up towards building resilience by coping with the four thematic areas such as prevention and mitigation, preparedness, response and rehabilitation, and recovery as per Executive Order No. 29 issued on June 28, 2017.
MENRE Minister Akmad Brahim said the annual observance of the National Disaster Resilience Month emphasizes the importance of “collaboration in addressing the challenges of climate change and disaster risks reduction and management.”
He stressed that part of essential actions include unifying efforts of all sectors and communities toward sustainable development effort just like a tree growing activity
“We contribute to bringing back the lush of our forest to adapt and mitigate the alarming situation and effect of climate change and global warming,” Brahim added.
Brahim underscored that environmental protection and conservation is a responsibility of everyone, “be it government and non-government organizations, environmental groups and the general public.”
Meanwhile, BARMM READI Executive Assistant Norhashim Sinarimbo said the activity is a way of showing a collective approach towards resilience.
“Our hope is that mother nature will accept the tiny trees that we planted today and hope that in a few years’ time, it will grow and will help the sustainability of the watershed so our future generations will enjoy the clean water,” Sinarimbo said.
The ministries who also joined the activity were the Ministries of Agriculture, Fisheries, and Agrarian Reform (MAFAR), Ministry of Science and Technology (MOST), Ministry of Health (MOH), Ministry of Trade, Investment and Tourism (MTIT), and BARMM agencies from security sectors such as Police Regional Office-BAR, Philippine Army, and DOS-LGU. (Majid Nur/BIO)
