The Canadian government has expressed willingness to help the Philippines enhance its disaster response strategies and recovery plans.
This after Canadian Minister for the Pacific Economic Development Agency, Harijit Sajjan, visited the country’s Office of Civil Defense over the weekend.
OCD Assistant Secretary Bernardo Rafaelito Alejandro, in a statement Monday, said Philippine defense officials and the Canadian delegation discussed the mandate of the National Disaster Risk Reduction and Management Council as well as the country’s disaster response strategies.
“During the meeting, Minister Sajjan conveyed the Canadian government’s willingness to support the Philippines’ DRRM system, including the strengthening of search and rescue operation capabilities,” Alejandro said.
Sajjan was accompanied by Canadian Ambassador to the Philippines David Hartman and the Canadian diplomatic staff.
Alejandro said Sajjan’s visit was crucial to the country’s improvement of its disaster risk reduction and management systems.
“Our country’s experiences have highlighted the need for us to further strengthen our DRRM systems. Indeed, we continue to learn from the models and experiences of our foreign counterparts on the implementation of their DRR programs and we intend to fully harness the advantages of those best practices,” he said.
Alejandro said the OCD is striving to strengthen the country’s response, preparedness, and resilience against all future hazards.