CCC seeks conduct of vulnerability assessment

MANILA, Philippines - The Climate Change Commission (CCC) urges the government to conduct a vulnerability assessment study to help the country cope with disasters.                                        

The CCC also called for the Department of Health to undertake a vulnerability assessment similar to the 2011 Global Assessment Report on Disaster Risk Reduction of the United Nations.                                                            

Commission vice chairperson Mary Ann Lucille Sering said the country urgently needs vulnerability assessment studies on sectors that are important not only to the economy, but also on public security.

“The country has already experienced several abnormal incidents and would sometimes rely on speculation rather than on science. This is dangerous because we cannot come up with a wise decision on what to do to cope with such situations,” she said.

Sering said the administration is moving towards the right direction when it created the Cabinet cluster on climate change.                                                                                      

“This means that government budget for 2012 will have to prioritize the conduct of a vulnerability assessment of important sectors which we have identified in the National Climate Change Action Plan (NCCAP),” she said.                   

She added that the NCCAP is now awaiting approval of President Aquino who also sits as chairman of the commission.                                                                                    

“Science-based information is important to guide not only government policy makers but also the private business sector on the vulnerabilities they are facing caused by a changing climate,” Sering said.