Participatory Training On Emergency Preparedness And Response

From November 24-25, 2010 a basic training on Emergency Preparedness and Response was held in the framework of ART “Organizational Capacity Development” Phase 2 project supported by ACT Alliance with participation of its partners representing Churches, church related structures and civil society organizations.
The facilitators of the workshop were Hamlet Matevosyan, the rector and Rudik Alaverdyan, a professor of Crisis Management State Academy.
The goal of the training was to raise awareness and improve knowledge of ART partners in the field that are already working in the communities; introduce the concepts of Disaster Preparedness and Response and Disaster Risk Reduction. The training applied participatory and inter-active mode of conduct. All the participants were involved and enthusiastically contributed to the group work and the discussions after each session.
The topics included in the training aimed to strengthen the overall capacity and capability of the participants and the communities in the future; to efficiently manage all types of emergencies, and bring about an orderly transition from relief through recovery; to reduce the loss of lives and suffering and to minimize the effects of a disaster. The focus of the first training course includes disaster preparedness. Instead of waiting for a disaster to occur, the participants, and the communities in the future are learning how they could be prepared in advance. High risk areas, such as Armenia, are most in need of preparedness efforts.
As disaster preparedness and risk reduction are programmes of long-term activities the trainers prepared a basic course for a beginner phase introducing high risk disasters and hazards in Armenia; and their effects. The participants worked out themselves how to manage all types of emergencies and as a result were given two tasks to elaborate for the next training – a) Regional mapping and b) Develop activities of community mobilization in emergencies.
The training consisted of interactive activities such as, role play; movie and cartoon shows, group work and discussions. All the participants were provided DVDs copied by ART and prepared by UNDP Armenia and Crisis Management State Academy. ART cooperates with these two organizations in the frames of the project.