Tufulele village now has a fair understanding of community disaster and climate risk management after four days of training which was run as part of a project. 

As the start of Samoa’s cyclone season is just a month away, the participants have hailed the project as timely for the community.

The project was coordinated by the Ministry of Natural Resources and Environment (M.N.R.E.) through the Disaster Management Office with the aim to build capacity and enable the safety and resilience of communities vulnerable to disasters.

Mau i le To’o is a project that consists of three components and was funded by the United States Agency for International Development (USAID) through the Pacific American Fund. It is being implemented by the Adventist Development and Relief Agency (ADRA) of Samoa.

Tufulele is the third out of 20 villages to be selected for the project with eight from Savai'i and 12 from Upolu.

The village chiefs, orators and youth, along with participants from Nuanua O Le Alofa, were part of the training that was delivered by experts from the Fire and Emergency Services Authority (F.E.S.A.), Samoa Red Cross Society, Samoa Meteorological Office (MET), Ministry of Police, Samoa Family Health Association, Faataua Le Ola, and the Ministry of Women, Community and Social Development.

Toligataua Moimoi Tauave, who is the Project Manager, said the program consists of the toolkit delivery, training of village response teams and testing the response plans through the simulation exercises. He also highlighted the importance of this program and its impact on the villagers.

“This is an important project for our people because it is a great opportunity for them to be trained about safety and awareness to build up confidence, preparedness and response knowledge towards the severe impacts of natural disasters, and the evolving risks of climate change,” said Toligataua. “We do not always have to depend on the government for assistance during times of disasters, that is why we need to train our people in ways to respond quickly whenever any disaster strikes whether it's a tsunami or a cyclone.”