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March 23 2021

NEMO Initial Damage Assessment (IDA) Workshop with Stakeholders

08th March, 2021 The National Emergency Management Office (NEMO) operating under the Ministry of MEIDECC conducted a two half-day workshops with the stakeholders specifically the Clusters, first responders and civil society organizations on Monday 15th and Thursday 18th of February 2021.

The goal of the workshop is to utilize the existing Cluster system in place, which leads by government Ministries and where civil society organizations are part of one or more of the 10 Clusters currently exist in Tonga to co-design an IDA process and implementation in order to improve the its efficiency and effectiveness.

IDA is a process that carried out to obtain an initial evaluation of the damage to each sector and is typically carried out within the first 48 hours after the disaster has occurred. It involves a numbers of trained assessors making observations of the extent of damage to each item or structure. It is the second step of the three main steps in disaster damage assessment process where the last step is typically the detailed sector assessment which involves a more detailed follow up of IDA following the 48 hours after the disasters.

The processes, roles and responsibilities before and during implementing of the IDA were discussed during the workshop thus the Clusters, first responders and the civil society organizations reviewed and co-design them by setting common goals and objectives taking into consideration the people, process and technology framework. This co-designing IDA process and implementation workshop helped to achieve the following outcomes:

The end to end process for IDA is understood and agreed by NEMO/Cluster Coordinators as well as co-design of the IDA process the overall national IDA team structure, roles and responsibilities are able to be mapped and are ready to be communicated across Clusters
Following on from the workshop individual Clusters in conjunction with NEMO will be able to develop their specific processes for IDA response
NEMO is able to produce operating procedures, conduct capacity building workshop and offer IDA training across all of government and partner agencies
Implementation has a clear focus on people, processes and technology and recognizes that all three of those elements need to be visible in the IDA implementation plan

NEMO is positive that after these two workshops, the purpose and scope of IDA will improve its understanding and its implementation across all sectors in order to save lives and improve the resilience of the affected communities after disasters. NEMO is thankful for the ongoing support and partnership across various sectors of the society from government to community level to ensure a resilience Tonga in times of disasters and extreme weather events.

March 23 2021

His Majesty King Tupou VI opens Vava’u Emergency Coordination Center

nemotonga News

17th March, 2021 His Majesty, King Tupou VI officially opened the new Vava’u Emergency Coordination Center this morning at Neiafu, Vava’u.

The new center is expected to contribute to the resilient and sustainable economic and social development of Tonga through the strengthening early warning systems.

Prime Minister of Tonga Hon. Rev. Dr. Pohiva Tuíónetoa welcomed their Majesties and presented the overview of the Project. He said that Vava’u, like the rest of Tonga, is vulnerable to hazards that have caused serious destruction such as tropical cyclones, earthquakes and tsunamis, which can cause damages to people, their livelihoods, environment, and the development of Vava’u.

Her Majesty Queen Nanasipauú Tukuáho planted the Mateuteu Heilala Tree. — Her Majesty Queen Nanasipau’u Tuku’aho planting a Heilala she named Mateuteu.

“This Center is primarily to strengthen early warnings and preparedness to withstand and be resilient to the negative impacts of hazards and emergencies; and to minimise the possibilities of damages to occur. It is 594 square meters, and is equipped with hi-tech equipment. The Meteorological Department and the National Emergency Management Office will work collaboratively to achieve its objectives.”

The World Bank representative Mrs. Natalia Palu Latu outlined the objective of the project as a “multifaceted approach and plan, both at the regional and national level to strengthen multi hazard early warning systems, support resilient investments to meet internationally recognized standards and financial protection for Tonga.”

The facility was co-funded by the World Bank; Global Environment Facility; Global Facility for Disaster Reduction and Recovery (GFDRR) through the Japan- Bank Program for Mainstreaming Disaster Risk Management and the Government of Tonga and implemented under the Pacific Resilience Programme (PREP) at a value of TOP$1,952,303.04. The centre is equipped with office equipment valued at TOP$152,411.14. It is intended that this center will continue to be developed so that in the event of failure or partial failure of the Fua’amotu Warning Centre or the NEMO, the Vava’u Emergency Coordination Center will be the backup center where national warnings and response for Tonga will originate and operate from.

The Design and Supervision Firm was ITS Pacific Tonga Limited, and the Contractor was the Puloka Construction Ltd. The construction took 13 months to complete and is built to Important Level 4 (IL4) Standards which is a higher standard of construction to ensure the building will be able to withstand severe weather events and earthquakes.

The event was also attended by Diplomatic Corps; Ministers of the Cabinet; Government’s Chief Executives, Directors, and Officers in Charge; Nobles of the Realm; members of the Clergy; District and Town Officers; MEIDECC employees; and PREP PMU members were also present to celebrate this momentous occasion.

The building is a two story facility and will operate under the auspices of the Ministry of MEIDECC.

ENDS

Issued by the: Ministry of Meteorology, Energy, Information, Disaster Management, Environment, Climate Change and Communications

February 16 2021

Building Tonga’s resilience further with the support of the Government of Australia

nemotonga News

16^thFebruary, 2021 On Tuesday 16^th February 2021, the Australian High Commissioner to Tonga, His Excellency Mr Adrian Morrison with the Minister for MEIDECC, the Honourable Mr Poasi Mataele Tei officially commissioned the new warehouse.

This newly built warehouse is for the National Emergency Management Office (NEMO) and their humanitarian partners in Tonga, to be better prepared to support Tongan communities with their relief efforts in the event of a disaster.

The CEO of MEIDECC, Mr Paula Ma’u advised that, “the new NEMO warehouse was designed and built, to consider the hazards that Tonga is prone to, such as tropical cyclones, earthquakes, tsunami and droughts, and to hopefully withstand some of these extreme elements.”

Commissioning of the new warehouse for NEMO by the the Minister for MEIDECC Hon. Poasi Tei and the Australian High Commissioner to Tonga HE Mr. Adrian Morrison — Commissioning of the new warehouse for NEMO by the Minister for MEIDECC Hon. Poasi Tei and the Australian High Commissioner to Tonga HE Mr. Adrian Morrison

The opportunity for increased storage in preparation for disasters is warmly welcomed. The people of Tonga as well as Tongan humanitarian agencies will also benefit from the building of this new warehouse.

His Excellency, Mr Morrison also presented a container filled with shelter related items to be used by affected communities, if required, following a disaster. The Honourable Minister for MEIDEC gratefully accepted the donations from the Australian High Commissioner. MEIDECC CEO reiterated, “in receiving these goods, we gratefully accept Australia’s contributions and wish to acknowledge the continuous warm relations between our two governments.”

Container of non-food items donated by the Government of Australian — Container of non-food items donated by the Government of Australia

The Minister of MEIDECC also used the opportunity to launch the new website for NEMO. The new NEMO website is at www.nemotonga.gov.to.

Mr Paula Ma’u shared, “We hope the NEMO website is used as an important communication tool for Tongans, the Tongan diaspora and also to those who have made Tonga their home. We hope the information provided assists everyone living in Tonga in building their resilience at the individual level, with their families, communities, villages, districts, island groups and across the Kingdom of Tonga.”

The CEO also advised that, “It is still a work in progress and will continue to be updated, with opportunities to receive feedback from our communities to guide us”.

The NEMO warehouse and donated container of goods, along with the launch of the NEMO website will support NEMO’s ongoing role to build a resilient Tonga.

The total cost of the warehouse was AUD $605,000 and the donated container of non-food items was AUD $8,2000.

ENDS

Issued by the National Emergency Management Office (NEMO) (MEIDECC)