Natural Disaster in Africa and Disaster Management Program

Natural disaster in Africa can be caused by various factors, such as natural factors, climate change, and human activity. Compared to natural disasters, Africa is more vulnerable to climate disasters due to its extreme climate change.

Natural Disaster in Africa and Their Causing Factors

Natural disasters occur due to contributing factors. They have different factors and risks. Africa has many natural disasters that have occurred, along with their causing factors.

1. Floods

Heavy rainfall and a lack of water catchment areas are the causing factors of flooding. Current extreme climate change is increasing rainfall, making it often happen.

2. Landslide

Landslides are caused by natural factors and human activities that encourage the collapse of higher slopes due to the loss of retaining power. Highlands are prone to landslides.

3. Drought

Climate change causes drought. These changes are becoming more extreme, resulting in increasingly severe drought in the long term. The risks include fires and health problems.

4. Earthquake

An earthquake is a rare disaster in Africa because only a small part of the region is vulnerable. In Africa, there is the Afar Triple, the junction of three active tectonic plates. In there, tectonic plate movement occurs actively.

5. Volcano Eruption

Only a few active volcanoes in Africa, so the volcanic eruptions only occur in some areas. The East African Rift Valley is a vulnerable area.

Potential Disaster Due to the Afar Triple

An earthquake is rare in Africa. It only occurs in a small part of Africa, specifically at the junction of active plates, so earthquakes are rare. It is the area where the three active tectonic plates meet, like the African Plate, the Somali Plate, and the Arabian Plate. These plates are moving apart and causing racks also faults in the outermost layer, namely Earth's crust.

Disaster Management Program in Africa

A disaster management program applies to all countries. African Regional Strategy for Disaster Risk Reduction (ARSDRR) is a program that is implemented by the African government to address the risk of natural disaster in Africa. It consists of risk adaptation and mitigation programs.

1. Adaptation Program

Adaptation is a fundamental natural disaster management program. The aim is to encourage the government and disaster management agencies to be aware of and understand the potential for natural disasters, which are increasingly threatening. They also need to understand the factors of disasters and the evolution of their frequency and intensity.

Adaptation facilitates risk mitigation for preventing or reducing risks. Various disaster management programs continue to develop if there is a willingness to adapt or accept the potential for disasters.

2. Mitigation Program

Risk mitigation is a follow-up step that involves preventing or reducing risks. It also ensures people's safety. African governments have national programs for risk mitigation, starting before, during, and after a disaster. Risk mitigation is formulated by the government and implemented in collaboration with various parties and implemented across the region.

Some risk mitigation programs include monitoring and identifying risks to identify changes in signs of natural disasters. This stage is carried out with the help of monitoring sensors. If a natural change occurs that could potentially cause a disaster, the sensor sends a warning signal to a detector. This detector is part of the disaster warning system.

Thus, the sensor is connected to the disaster warning system. The disaster warning system consists of early warning and evacuation. The warning system will issue a warning signal if the detector indicates a potential disaster. In this stage, the early warning is provided so that the public is aware of the impending disaster and prepares to protect themselves.

The warning signal consists of an alarm or siren, followed by an emergency message. After the early warning is issued, an evacuation warning is issued moments later. This serves to advise the public to immediately evacuate through the provided routes. The public is also advised to bring sufficient supplies in an emergency bag. All of this will provide supplies for some time until the situation is completely safe.

The evacuation process is assisted by a rescue team. After a disaster, the rescue team returns to the scene to assess the disaster. They carry out rescue operations and clean up the damage. The final stage in risk mitigation is recovery. It is implemented after the evacuation process to repair any damage and the facility will be restored to normal condition.

African governments have coordinated a disaster management program for natural disaster in Africa for the long term. Through adaptation and mitigation, natural disaster risks can be predicted and effectively addressed. In these programs, warning systems play a crucial role in reducing risk by sending emergency signals. The signals are the sounds of an alarm or siren accompanied by an emergency message.

Detailed information about the predicted disaster and necessary actions is provided in emergency messages. The high-end technology is needed to deliver emergency messages effectively.

A message-sending system based on SMS (Short Message Service) is available now. It can send messages in real time and directly to mobile phones. It also has a wide range of sending, from 500 m to 2 km, for all operators. The product is available at smsbroadcaster.com.