IRC, PDMA launch disaster management information system in KP.

PESHAWAR -- The 'Disaster Management Information System' (DMIS) has been launched in Khyber Pakhtunkhwa province to ensure quick access of disaster management authorities to accurate actionable information and better handling of disasters with modern management skills to minimize losses to human lives.

This system has been launched as a result of extensive collaboration and work between the International Rescue Committee (IRC) and the Provincial Disaster Management Authority (PDMA) KP keeping in view the challenges encountered with information management previously.

While speaking at the concluding day of a two-day comprehensive training arranged by the IRC for 52 PDMA field assistants and divisional reporting officers from across the province here on Thursday, Director General PDMA-KP, Sharif Hussain explained that the DMIS system is developed as per geographic contextual needs and it entails comprehensive modules on incident reporting, relief management, monitoring of water levels in rivers, integration of weather updates with MET office and camp management information.

He further explained that the key innovation under the DMIS is the GIS component, which will enable PDMA to plot all the incidences on a map and generate a daily situation report. 'This information will support relief organizations in planning and implementation of humanitarian response. Moreover, the system can record public grievances, which are routed to the concerned district administration for corrective actions,' the DG said.

Sharif Hussain said these modules are designed holistically to address a pre and post-scenario where the DMIS serves as an early warning system and in the aftermath of a disaster provides timely information for a speedy coordinated response based on real-time information. The system is cognizant...