National Disaster Management Organization
Encyclopedia
The National Disaster Management Organisation (NADMO) is the government
agency that is responsible for the management of disasters
as well as other emergencies in Ghana
. The board operates under Ghana's Ministry of Interior
.
(Act 517) to manage disasters and emergencies. This was after Ghana had responded to the United Nations
Declaration GAD 44/236 of 1989 declaring 1990 to 1999 as the International Decade for Natural Disaster
Reduction (IDNDR).
NADMO is part of the Ghana Ministry of Interior. The board was chaired by the late (Brig. Rtd.) Dr. G. K. Dei. Dr. Dei at the time was the Commanding Officer
of the country's 37 military hospital
s. The board included representatives from the Ministries of Health, Finance, Social Welfare, Interior, Information, National Mobilization Programme, Ghana Armed Forces, and NGOs
, among others.
Prior to the formation of NADMO, the National Mobilization Programme—set up after the 1982–1983 crises of drought, bushfires, famine, and the deportation of 1.2 million Ghanaians from Nigeria
—served as the implementing agency of the Disaster Relief Committee. After the formation, Kofi Portuphy, a member of the Relief Committee who had been instrumental in coordinating the drafting of the Act, became the first National Coordinator of NADMO.
Below is a table of all the coordinators of NADMO:
The organaization's mandate includes response to earthquake
s, flood
s and rainstorms, and market fires.
and 7,000 returnees from Cote d'Ivoire
overstretched the board's resources. During such periods, appeals are sent out to the donor community for aid in the form of food, medicine, clothing, tents, mattresses, and other materiel to enable NADMO to provide basic necessities to those in need.
that erupted after the Ivorian presidential elections of 2011. The results of the elections showed opposition leader Alassane Ouattara
won the majority of the votes cast. He was declared winner of the presidential election by the electoral body, but the then incumbent President Laurent Gbagbo
, who was declared winner by the Constitutional Council, declared he would not hand over power to Mr. Ouattara. In the wake of violent protests, thousands of Ivorian
s fled to neighbouring countries, including Ghana. It was announced in March 2011 that NADMO would establish five refugee camp
s in the regions that shared a border with the Cote d'Ivoire to aid these refugees. NADMO received support from other agencies such as the Ghana Refugee Board
, the Catholic
Secretariat, UN High Commissioner for Refugees
, UNICEF, UN Population Fund
, and other NGOs for the provision of humanitarian services to potential asylum seekers.
Government
Government refers to the legislators, administrators, and arbitrators in the administrative bureaucracy who control a state at a given time, and to the system of government by which they are organized...
agency that is responsible for the management of disasters
Emergency management
Emergency management is the generic name of an interdisciplinary field dealing with the strategic organizational management processes used to protect critical assets of an organization from hazard risks that can cause events like disasters or catastrophes and to ensure the continuance of the...
as well as other emergencies in Ghana
Ghana
Ghana , officially the Republic of Ghana, is a country located in West Africa. It is bordered by Côte d'Ivoire to the west, Burkina Faso to the north, Togo to the east, and the Gulf of Guinea to the south...
. The board operates under Ghana's Ministry of Interior
Ministry of Interior (Ghana)
The Ministry of the Interior is a ministry of the government of Ghana mandated to ensure internal security, as well as the maintenance of law and order in the country...
.
History
Ghana formed the National Disaster Management Organisation in 1996, backed by an act of ParliamentParliament
A parliament is a legislature, especially in those countries whose system of government is based on the Westminster system modeled after that of the United Kingdom. The name is derived from the French , the action of parler : a parlement is a discussion. The term came to mean a meeting at which...
(Act 517) to manage disasters and emergencies. This was after Ghana had responded to the United Nations
United Nations
The United Nations is an international organization whose stated aims are facilitating cooperation in international law, international security, economic development, social progress, human rights, and achievement of world peace...
Declaration GAD 44/236 of 1989 declaring 1990 to 1999 as the International Decade for Natural Disaster
Natural disaster
A natural disaster is the effect of a natural hazard . It leads to financial, environmental or human losses...
Reduction (IDNDR).
NADMO is part of the Ghana Ministry of Interior. The board was chaired by the late (Brig. Rtd.) Dr. G. K. Dei. Dr. Dei at the time was the Commanding Officer
Commanding officer
The commanding officer is the officer in command of a military unit. Typically, the commanding officer has ultimate authority over the unit, and is usually given wide latitude to run the unit as he sees fit, within the bounds of military law...
of the country's 37 military hospital
Military hospital
Military hospital is a hospital, which is generally located on a military base and is reserved for the use of military personnel, their dependents or other authorized users....
s. The board included representatives from the Ministries of Health, Finance, Social Welfare, Interior, Information, National Mobilization Programme, Ghana Armed Forces, and NGOs
Non-governmental organization
A non-governmental organization is a legally constituted organization created by natural or legal persons that operates independently from any government. The term originated from the United Nations , and is normally used to refer to organizations that do not form part of the government and are...
, among others.
Prior to the formation of NADMO, the National Mobilization Programme—set up after the 1982–1983 crises of drought, bushfires, famine, and the deportation of 1.2 million Ghanaians from Nigeria
Nigeria
Nigeria , officially the Federal Republic of Nigeria, is a federal constitutional republic comprising 36 states and its Federal Capital Territory, Abuja. The country is located in West Africa and shares land borders with the Republic of Benin in the west, Chad and Cameroon in the east, and Niger in...
—served as the implementing agency of the Disaster Relief Committee. After the formation, Kofi Portuphy, a member of the Relief Committee who had been instrumental in coordinating the drafting of the Act, became the first National Coordinator of NADMO.
Below is a table of all the coordinators of NADMO:
| Year | National Coordinator | |
|---|---|---|
| 1 | Jan 1997 - June 2001 | Kofi Portuphy |
| 2 | June 2001 - August 2006 | Brigadier General (retired) Joseph Odei |
| 3 | August 2006 - December 2007 | Hon George Isaac Amoo |
| 4 | January 2007 - December 2009 | DCOP Douglas Akrofi Asiedu |
| 5 | January 2009 - | Kofi Portuphy |
Functions
NADMO performs specific functions which are all aimed at ensuring that in times of emergency, the government is ready to support relief efforts. These functions are:- Rehabilitation services for victims of disasters
- MobilizationMass mobilizationMass mobilization refers to mobilization of civilian population as part of contentious politics. Mass mobilization is often used by grassroots-based social movements, including revolutionary movements, but can also become a tool of elites and the state itself...
of people at various levels of society to support governmental programmes - Ensuring the preparedness of the country in the management of disasters
- Coordinating the activities of various governmental and non-governmental agencies in the management of disasters.
The organaization's mandate includes response to earthquake
Earthquake
An earthquake is the result of a sudden release of energy in the Earth's crust that creates seismic waves. The seismicity, seismism or seismic activity of an area refers to the frequency, type and size of earthquakes experienced over a period of time...
s, flood
Flood
A flood is an overflow of an expanse of water that submerges land. The EU Floods directive defines a flood as a temporary covering by water of land not normally covered by water...
s and rainstorms, and market fires.
Presence
The mandate of NADMO stipulates that it offers relief support in times of emergencies in any location of the country. As such, the organization has structured its offices on the national, district, and zonal levels.Challenges
A major challenge that NADMO faces is lack of adequate resources to function effectively. This challenge was highlighted in March 2011, when the arrival of 16,700 Ghanaian returnees from LibyaLibya
Libya is an African country in the Maghreb region of North Africa bordered by the Mediterranean Sea to the north, Egypt to the east, Sudan to the southeast, Chad and Niger to the south, and Algeria and Tunisia to the west....
and 7,000 returnees from Cote d'Ivoire
Côte d'Ivoire
The Republic of Côte d'Ivoire or Ivory Coast is a country in West Africa. It has an area of , and borders the countries Liberia, Guinea, Mali, Burkina Faso and Ghana; its southern boundary is along the Gulf of Guinea. The country's population was 15,366,672 in 1998 and was estimated to be...
overstretched the board's resources. During such periods, appeals are sent out to the donor community for aid in the form of food, medicine, clothing, tents, mattresses, and other materiel to enable NADMO to provide basic necessities to those in need.
2011 Ivorian crisis
Over 5000 refugees entered Ghana during the post-election violence2010–2011 Ivorian crisis
The 2010–11 Ivorian crisis was a political crisis in Côte d'Ivoire which began after Laurent Gbagbo, the President of Côte d'Ivoire since 2000, was proclaimed the winner of the Ivorian election of 2010, the first election in the country in 10 years...
that erupted after the Ivorian presidential elections of 2011. The results of the elections showed opposition leader Alassane Ouattara
Alassane Ouattara
Alassane Dramane Ouattara is an Ivorian politician who has been President of Côte d'Ivoire since 2011. An economist by profession, Ouattara worked for the International Monetary Fund and the Central Bank of West African States , and he was the Prime Minister of Côte d'Ivoire from November 1990 to...
won the majority of the votes cast. He was declared winner of the presidential election by the electoral body, but the then incumbent President Laurent Gbagbo
Laurent Gbagbo
Laurent Koudou Gbagbo served as the fourth President of Côte d'Ivoire from 2000 until his arrest in April 2011. A historian by profession, he is also an amateur chemist and physicist....
, who was declared winner by the Constitutional Council, declared he would not hand over power to Mr. Ouattara. In the wake of violent protests, thousands of Ivorian
Côte d'Ivoire
The Republic of Côte d'Ivoire or Ivory Coast is a country in West Africa. It has an area of , and borders the countries Liberia, Guinea, Mali, Burkina Faso and Ghana; its southern boundary is along the Gulf of Guinea. The country's population was 15,366,672 in 1998 and was estimated to be...
s fled to neighbouring countries, including Ghana. It was announced in March 2011 that NADMO would establish five refugee camp
Refugee camp
A refugee camp is a temporary settlement built to receive refugees. Hundreds of thousands of people may live in any one single camp. Usually they are built and run by a government, the United Nations, or international organizations, or NGOs.Refugee camps are generally set up in an impromptu...
s in the regions that shared a border with the Cote d'Ivoire to aid these refugees. NADMO received support from other agencies such as the Ghana Refugee Board
Refugee Board (Ghana)
The Ghana Refugee Board was established under the Ghana Refugee Law 1992 , and is charged with the management of activities relating to refugees in the country. It is under the control of the Ministry of the Interior.-Functions of the board:...
, the Catholic
Catholicism
Catholicism is a broad term for the body of the Catholic faith, its theologies and doctrines, its liturgical, ethical, spiritual, and behavioral characteristics, as well as a religious people as a whole....
Secretariat, UN High Commissioner for Refugees
United Nations High Commissioner for Refugees
The Office of the United Nations High Commissioner for Refugees , also known as The UN Refugee Agency is a United Nations agency mandated to protect and support refugees at the request of a government or the UN itself and assists in their voluntary repatriation, local integration or resettlement to...
, UNICEF, UN Population Fund
United Nations Population Fund
The United Nations Population Fund is a UN organization. The work of the UNFPA involves promotion of the right of every woman, man and child to enjoy a life of health and equal opportunity. This is done through major national and demographic surveys and with population censuses...
, and other NGOs for the provision of humanitarian services to potential asylum seekers.