TEN LOCAL government units in Eastern Visayas received the Gawad Kalasag award, the highest government award for excellence on disaster risk reduction and management and humanitarian assistance.
The National Disaster Risk Reduction and Management Council awarded Northern Samar and Southern Leyte provinces and Catarman, Northern Samar with the Gawad Kalasag Seal of Excellence for getting a “beyond compliant” rating in the DRRM evaluation.
The NDRRMC also awarded the province of Leyte, Ormoc City, and the towns of San Roque, Northern Samar, Can-Avid and Balangiga in Eastern Samar, Tabango, Leyte and Hinundayan, Southern Leyte with Gawad Kalasag Seal for being fully compliant with the DRRM standards.
The NDRRMC, through the National Gawad Kalasag Committee, said that there are 135 beyond compliant and 436 fully compliant local government awardees this year.
Gawad KALASAG stands for “Kalamidad at Sakuna Labanan, Sariling Galing ang Kaligtasan,” a fully institutionalized program of the National Disaster Risk Reduction and Management Council. It aims to recognize the valuable contribution of the local DRRM councils to the nation’s disaster risk reduction and management programs and initiatives. Established in 1998, the Gawad Kalasag has served as the country’s recognition and award scheme for various stakeholders who promote and implement DRRM climate change adaptation (DRRM-CCA), and humanitarian assistance programs that protect and shield high risk communities against extreme hazards and render them more capable of addressing their vulnerabilities. By Elmer Recuerdo (EV Mail November 7-13, 2022 issue)
