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When you live in a country prone to catastrophic natural disasters, learning how to prepare for disaster, respond in an emergency and recover quickly, is crucial for the whole community.
And with climate change increasing the risk of these events across the Pacific, it’s vital children are part of this conversation – not only as learners but leaders.
Video Link: https://www.youtube.com/embed/PoHBseFCdxI?autoplay=0&modestbranding=1&rel=0
Our Child-Centred Disaster Risk Reduction Programme
That’s where our Child-Centred Disaster Risk Reduction (CDRR) programme comes in, working to ensure that fewer children die or are injured as a result of natural disasters in Fiji and become more resilient and better able to recover when disasters hit.
Part of our Negotiated Partnership with the New Zealand Aid Programme, CDRR involves a number of activities at local, district and national levels, a long-term outcome of the programme is to ensure greater child inclusiveness and children’s voices embedded in national policy and decision-making processes.
"We would like to be leaders, advocates, agents of change and educators in the implementation of resilience activities and be included in the decision-making processes at all levels." - Tokasa Seinbiau, 16
How children are empowered to become agents of change
Meet Tokasa Senibiau, a member of our Valenicina DRR Club, an initiative that brings child-centred approaches to strengthen resilience within national and local disaster preparation and management processes. Tokasa, who lives in the Valenicina Settlement on the outskirts of Suva, was chosen to speak at the official opening of the inaugural Pacific Resilience Meeting Youth Forum in 2021. She spoke of the potential for anxiety in children and young people who are experiencing and observing environmental changes such as sea level rise and coral bleaching.
“This has now developed into a great concern, thus pushing many concerned children and youth to play an important role in disaster risk reduction, climate change (adaptation), disaster preparedness, response and recovery.”
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