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President Ellen Johnson-Sirleaf has dedicated the first multipurpose Disaster Management (DM) Center of the Liberia National Red Cross Society (LNRCS) in Harper, Maryland County.
The Disaster Management Center, which comprises storage and office facilities, was constructed with funding from the Danish Red Cross.
Performing the dedicatory ceremony Sunday, as part of her tour of projects in Maryland County, President Johnson-Sirleaf said recognizing the enormous challenge disasters continue to pose would help mitigate the effects of disaster in the South Eastern Liberia.
She commended the Liberian Red Cross for the project, saying it would contribute meaningfully to the country’s disaster response capability.
The Chairman of the LNRCS Maryland Chapter, Adolphus Blayon said the essence of the facility in Maryland county is to reduce transaction time and to enable the national society provide quick response to emergency situations that may occur in South Eastern Liberia, which is often difficult to reach.
“In addition to establishing a strong presence of the Red Cross in this region, the facility will be a support base for disaster relief activities in Grand Kru and parts of River Gee Counties.”
He also called on local governmental and other humanitarian actors to make use of the center’s warehouse space to store items that are intended for humanitarian purposes.
Mr. Blayon said the LNRCS remains committed to its vision of empowering communities through voluntary services with the aim of alleviating human suffering, poverty and promoting peace, saying, “We too are a part of the solution in Liberia.”
The Danish Red Cross supported the project, which is worth more than US$100,000.00.
Recognizing that disasters are inevitable, the Liberian Red Cross is striving to reduce the number of deaths, injuries and impact from disasters through preparedness, mitigation, response and recovery. With these interventions, communities gain increased capacity in risk reduction mechanisms; they receive relief assistance and are provided with the necessary input to increase food security.
James Kpargoi
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