The Regional Centre for Mapping of Resources for Development (RCMRD) working primarily with the National Drought Management Authority (NDMA with financial support from United Nations Development Programme (UNDP) will developed a county multi-hazard atlases in Elgeyo Marakwet County.
Through the hazard atlases, the county will benefit from evidenced based or risk informed development decisions geared towards addressing the effects and impacts of climate change through utilisation of the atlases in county development planning.
Governor Alex Tolgos in a meeting with representatives from RCMRD, NDMA and the United Nations Development Programmes said upon inception, the county government will be able to develop stringent measures which will be able to help prevent or reduce adverse environment effects and conflicts in the county.
He said: “The atlases will help us mitigate and control disasters in our county. It will provide risk information and departments will be able to plan ahead say in the cases floods,human conflicts and human wildlife conflicts thereby reducing would be disaster.”
Deputy Governor Wisley Rotich said the information obtained will help the local communities, other state agencies and the county government in making informed decisions while undertaking development projects. “For example when the hazard mapping survey establishes that an area is likely to experience landslides,construction of buildings won’t take place in that place. This information will be relevant in our annual development planning reporting too,” he added.
Degelo Sendabo from UNDP said the atlases will form a core component of technical expertise required to fully integrate climate risk information in development planning.
Amos Nyakeyo who heads Drought contingency planning & response at the NDMA said the six-month exercise will capture key risk areas which will help the county in planning.”This is basically the capturing of expert information that will help the county government and other stakeholders mitigate disasters in the region, ” he said.
Environment, Lands and Climate CeC member Abraham Barsosio welcome the mapping saying it will help the department priorities areas of conservation. “We have a favourable forest cover at 38 percent so far but we still feel we can do more that this. The mapping will help us identity areas that are prone to poor farming activities like cultivation along the slopes among others.”
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