Understanding Project Agos: Iloilo CSO’s to partner with Rappler
Ted Aldwin E. Ong
The Iloilo Caucus of Development NGO’s (Iloilo CODE-NGOs), a member network of the Western Visayas Network of Social Development NGOs (WeVNet) is up for partnership with Rappler, social news network, in a seminar-workshop which aim to introduce Project Agos, an online platform for sharing real time information that can aid in preparedness and response.
The seminar-workshop was conducted on April 10, 2015 at Century 21 Hotel in Iloilo City and was attended in by the disaster risk reduction and management officers from numerous local government units, government agencies, academe, church and civil society organizations from Western Visayas region.
The Iloilo CODE-NGOs facilitated the participation of CSOs in order to learn how to better utilize social media, among other forms of communication, for disaster preparedness and response.
According to Rappler, the Typhoon Haiyan revealed three major gaps: information, communication and preparedness. When it comes to informing the public about climate change adaptation, disaster risk reduction and management, we all need to speak a common language, shared by the social news network which was established in 2012 by veteran Filipino journalists.
Project Agos intends to address the barriers to communication by integrating social media tools for disaster management into one easy-to-use platform for disaster managers and responders.
(See Project Agos @ http://www.rappler.com/move-ph/issues/disasters)
“The Typhoon Yolanda shared a lot of lessons to us as far as communications is concerned,” said Mary Jane R. Homena, executive director of WeVNet. “We now recognize the vital role that communications play on times of disasters,” Homena added.
Faye Joy Pabiona, project manager of “Rebuilding for the Better,” a project funded by Christian Aid UK, believes that “accurate information once transmitted on time can preserve the lives of people especially those who are located in vulnerable areas.”
Pabiona further highlighted that “communications has become essential after Yolanda and it is important that we understand the different platforms of communications and know how it can be used effectively in order to respond to unfolding disaster situations or in confronting upcoming disasters.”
Iloilo CODE-NGOs and WeVNet are both involved on post Typhoon Yolanda projects as implementers of “Rebuilding for the Better” Project and in Advancing CSOs Engagement in Disaster Risk Reduction-Climate Change Adaptation (ACED), respectively.
It is in this context that we welcome this partnership with Rappler as we aim to improve our communications system in our respective hubs, said by the two officers of the networks.
Project Agos is a collaboration between the government, civil society, and the business sector to raise awareness on disaster risk reduction and management and climate change adaptation (DRR-CCA). ###
Ted Aldwin Ong is the Board Treasurer of WEVNet, to which Iloilo CODE-NGO is a member of. He is also the Vice-Chairperson of CODE-NGO’s Advocacy Commission.