EDITORIAL: Act now on disaster risk

The rallying call for East African nations to step up their efforts in disaster risk management is timely. It comes as the deputy secretary-general of the East African Community (EAC), Ms Jessica Eriyo, revealed last week, that in the recent past, natural disasters have played a big role in the displacement of at least 400,000 people from across the region.

While some of the factors behind the disasters are pure acts of nature, human beings are also partly to blame for the calamities that range from urban fires and disease outbreaks to landslides and earthquakes. There also several conflicts in the region that have led to a significant increase in the forced movement of people seeking peace and a better life.

With an official 38,000 recently internally-displaced people, Tanzania has its fair share of the problem. Kenya has 40,000, Uganda (23,000) and South Sudan (218,000).

The numbers are telling – and the need for action to stop this negative trend cannot be understated. There are now fresh calls for member states to implement the EAC Disaster Risk Reduction Act, and the United Nations endorsed Sendai Framework for Disaster Risk Reduction (2015-2030).

Tanzania cannot be caught napping. There is need to ensure engagement and ownership of action by all stakeholders, and strengthen accountability in disaster risk reduction.