By VIOLET MENGO
ESTHER Muwamba of Lusaka’s Misisi Township has just lost her housing structure due to floods caused by heavy rains. The house collapsed after a heavy downpour destroying all her household goods.
Ms Muwamba, whose husband died in 2009, has been living with her three children in Misisi Township since 2000.
Little did she know that she would one day be left in the cold as this was the only property left by her late husband.
“I had gone to the market when the rains started and I did not have the chance to rush home because the rains were quite heavy. I lost all my property in the process, including the house due to heavy rains,” Ms Muwamba said.
Ms Muwamba and her three children now live with a relative in Chawama and her children have unfortunately dropped out of school.
Ms Muwamba’s situation is one among many in Zambia which receive minimal or no publicity because the media often prefer reporting on political issues than such human interest stories.
It is against this backdrop that the need for a cadre of journalists to highlight humanitarian and disaster issues has prompted United Nations Educational, Scientific and Cultural Organisation (UNESCO) to train journalists on reporting disasters.
The workshop was an interaction between journalists and the United Nations family as a joint capacity building measure within the framework of communication for development.
It helped build capacity of local radio stations in particular and other media houses in the field of communication for development and in providing humanitarian assistance, information relating to disasters and emergency situations.
Speaking during a media training workshop in Lusaka recently, UNESCO Resident Coordinator Simon Cammelbeeck noted that the media can play an important role in informing the public on humanitarian, disaster situations and disseminating warnings.
Mr Cammelbeeck said people need information as much as they need water, food, medicine or shelter as it can help save lives and resources.
“At times information is the only form of disaster preparedness the most vulnerable can afford. Sensible information in the face of natural hazards has demonstrated, cost effective means of saving lives, reducing property damage and increasing public understanding,” Mr Cammelbeeck said.
He said the role of the media can and should be an integral part of each of the phases related to humanitarian and natural disaster situations.
Mr Cammelbeeck urged the media to take up an equally responsible role during the humanitarian response phase by providing accurate information on disaster situations and aid relief.
“Timely, accurate and sensitive communications can educate, warn, inform and empower people to take practical steps to protect themselves from natural calamities,” Mr Cammelbeeck pointed out.
The UN is working with government to promote community based disaster risk reduction solutions, aimed at increasing community resilience to natural disasters.
And Zambia National Commission for UNESCO chief programme officer Brenda Muntemba said using various information communication technology (ICT) tools in journalism can ensure facilitation of knowledge and information management in newsrooms.
Ms Mutemba said Zambia has benefited from capacity building programmes as evidenced by the training of journalists from five local community radio stations.
She said the programme will later be extended to more journalists from other radio stations.
“I wish to echo the advice that journalists ought to be careful and always verify their sources of information. We should always remember the main aim for communication is to complement developmental efforts in many areas,” Ms Mutemba said.
The objectives of the training workshop included strengthening the capacity of local radio stations and other media to enable them effectively report on humanitarian assistance, disaster relief and emergency interventions.
The training also aimed at enhancing understanding of the United Nations Development Assistance Framework (UNDAF) as a blue print of the role and contribution of the UN towards Zambia’s National Sixth Development Programme.
It also helped increase media access to UN news sources and advocacy on humanitarian and development issues
Every year, humanitarian disasters take a devastating toll on people affecting their well-being and future.
The 2013 World Disasters Report, belabours that there is urgent need to improve and innovate ways to make disaster preparedness, mitigation, response and recovery more effective and accountable.
The report examines the potential of technology to improve humanitarian operations and increase resilience to disasters.
It also focuses on risks and unintended consequences of ‘technology influx’ and provides recommendations on how to maximise opportunities, while minimising risks.
Published annually since 1993, the World Disaster’s Report brings together the latest trends, facts and analysis of contemporary catastrophes and their effect on vulnerable populations worldwide including people in Ms Muwamba’s predicament.