Tsawenu (Volta Region, ) 12Oct '98 This year's international decade for national disaster reduction in the Volta region has been launched at Tsawenu in the Ho district with an urgent call for collaborative efforts in disaster prevention and management.

Lt. Col. Charles Kofi Agbenaza, Volta Regional Minister, who made the call in a speech read for him said people must be educated on all aspects of disasters and the roles they can play in preventing or managing them.

He urged communities to be alert and identify what can cause disasters with the view to finding measures to curb them. This year's international decade for disaster reduction is under the theme "natural disaster prevention and the media" and its slogan is "prevention begins with information".

Mr M. Delali Ndo, Deputy Volta Regional co-ordinator of the national disaster management organisation (NADMO) said from January to June this year more than 7,000 people have been displaced by rainstorms and 906 others by fire.

He advised the people to desist from practices that induce disasters. A five-member disaster management committee was inaugurated for the Tsawenu community under the chairmanship of Mr Joseph Gordor. It is charged with identifying causes of rampant disasters in that community. GRi