Harvard group cites need for disaster preparedness among ‘less educated Filipinos’
By Arjay L. Balinbin, Reporter
THE Philippine government needs to “boost” its communication and disaster preparedness efforts, especially for “less educated Filipinos,” according to the Harvard Humanitarian Initiative (HHI).
In a statement on Wednesday, the HHI said it “finds the need for disaster risk reduction and management (DRRM) actors to ensure that information on earthquake are accessible and comprehensible to all.”
Based on the results of HHI’s nationwide household survey conducted in 2017 through its DisasterNet Philippines project, there were “very low levels of earthquake preparedness planning, especially among less educated Filipinos.”
“Households with more highly educated members were more likely to have an earthquake disaster plan (below 10%) than those with less educated ones (below 5%),” the HHI noted.
“Timely access to disaster information is essential as are plans for what to do in the event of an earthquake. Filipinos should be aware of the Department of Interior and Local Government’s (DILG) guidelines on disaster preparedness (Operation Listo) and acquaint themselves with evacuation routes, evacuation shelter locations and should have emergency kits prepared,” HHI Resilient Communities Program Director Vincenzo Bollettino was quoted as saying.
The research group said households with tertiary education and skilled professionals were more familiar with the Philippine Institute of Volcanology and Seismology (Phivolcs) Earthquake Intensity Scale (PEIS), a seismic scale used to measure the intensity of an earthquake.
It also noted that familiarity with PEIS among Filipino households with a member who completed tertiary education was at 62%, 49% for those with a member who finished secondary education, 35% for those with a member who graduated from primary school, and only 24% for households without members who either reached or finished any school level.
“The youth, ages 18-35, were also more familiar with PEIS than older Filipinos, at 51%. Familiarity with PEIS among ages 36-55 was at 48%, and only 43% for 56 and older,” it further explained.
Region III was severely hit by a magnitude 6.1 earthquake on April 22 this year. The HHI said it “was one of the regions with the lowest earthquake preparedness planning at the household level before the disaster happened with only 3%, along with Western Visayas.”
The survey showed that Ilocos Region and Cagayan Valley reported the lowest level of preparedness at 1%; while Bicol, Zamboanga Peninsula, and Soccsksargen at 2%.
Also affected by the recent earthquake was Metro Manila, which had “the second highest level of preparedness planning at 13%, while Central Visayas reported the highest level at 15%.”
Moreover, households in Central Luzon “reported less experience of earthquakes at only 40%; while Central Visayas and Caraga reported most experience of earthquakes at 98% and 97%, respectively.”
The survey also showed that households dependent on agriculture or fishing as their main livelihood are also “less likely to have an earthquake management plan (3%), than skilled/unskilled workers (8%).”
