Office of Civil Defense (OCD) Administrator, Undersecretary Ariel Nepomuceno called on the Filipinos to prepare for calamities and take disaster preparedness seriously “before it gets too late”.

In a statement on Thursday, Oct. 17, Nepomuceno said the United Nations Office for Disaster Risk Reduction (UNDRR) projected that disasters around the world will increase by 40 percent by 2030.

“I wish it weren’t true, but it’s a science-based prediction,” he said. “So we must give this primary importance and a sense of urgency. We must do what we can before it gets too late.”

Marco Toscano-Rivalta, UNDRR chief of the regional office for Asia and the Pacific, said during the recent Asia-Pacific Ministerial Conference on Disaster Risk Reduction (APMCDRR) in Pasay City that the stark projection indicates the world is “going off course” from the goal set in the global blueprint for disaster risk reduction, the Sendai Framework in 2015. 

The Sendai Framework for Disaster Risk Reduction is an international agreement which serves as a global blueprint to prevent new and reduce existing disaster risk.

Despite this, Nepomuceno highlighted the progress made by the government in fostering safer and more resilient communities nationwide. 

“We’ve made some gains, but we should not stop because the typhoons are also stronger. We should check if we have enough systems in place. If not, we must continuously improve,” he said.

He said the country is “eager to share its knowledge and experiences” in disaster management with other countries, and learn from other nations’ best practices as well.

He also underscored the importance of collaboration and cooperation during disasters.

“Not a single country in the world can face disasters alone. Even a rich country like Turkey needed assistance in dealing with a major disaster,” he said. 

In 2023, a series of powerful earthquakes struck Turkey and Syria which claimed over 15,000 fatalities and countless injuries, prompting the OCD to send rescue teams there.

Nepomuceno also stressed the significance of investing in disaster mitigation to lessen the impact of future calamities. 

“We should not regret our investments in disaster resilience. These investments will save our lives,” he said.