WFP/UN Foundation/Vodafone
Group Foundation News Release
WFP TRAINS EXPERTS FOR GLOBAL
DISASTER RESPONSE
First-ever emergency
ICT training programme for humanitarian workers-funded
by private sector leaders-prepares technical teams
to operate in highly dangerous conditions
PISA, ITALY - The United
Nations World Food Programme (WFP) graduated the
first class of emergency telecommunications team
leaders today after an intensive two-week training
course-the inaugural session of a new programme
for information and communications technology
(ICT) managers who are now set for deployment
to difficult and dangerous disaster zones.
“The ability to communicate within hours
of a crisis-whether it’s an earthquake,
a tsunami or a war-is key to the coordination
of relief efforts. In line with the huge demand
for extensive telecoms technology, ICT workers
are often among the first to arrive in a disaster
zone,” said Ernesto Baca, Director of WFP's
Information & Communications Technologies
Division. “Through this programme, we have
developed a specialised training that specifically
addresses the unique needs of ICT ‘first
responders’,” he said.
WFP has the largest ICT emergency response capacity
among United Nations humanitarian agencies, and
is the UN’s lead agency for communications
in support of humanitarian workers’ safety
and security.
WFP’s ICT Emergency Preparedness and Response
programme-funded by a partnership between the
Vodafone Group Foundation and the United Nations
Foundation-is producing three core outcomes: an
emergency communications deployment guide, a software
application and a cadre of ICT leaders trained
to operate in grave security conditions. It aims
to double the number of ICT managers trained and
on standby for deployment to the next disaster.
These include staff from UN agencies, non-governmental
organisations, and government stand-by partners.
"Effective communication is critical in enabling
humanitarian assistance when disaster strikes.
Our aim is to provide training and technology
to ensure aid workers can deliver effective humanitarian
relief as quickly and efficiently as possible
irrespective of the environment they have to work
in," said Andrew Dunnett, Director of The
Vodafone Group Foundation.
“We learned from the 2004 Indian Ocean tsunami
that a dollar spent in preparation for disaster
goes much further than a dollar donated after
the disaster,” said Paul Margie, Senior
Director of Technology Partnerships at the UN
Foundation. “The goal of this unique public-private
partnership is to strengthen emergency response
missions by creating greater technology coordination,
faster response times, and more lives saved,”
he said.
Twenty-one ICT experts participated in the programme,
bringing combined emergency response experience
that includes dozens of recent crises such as
the 2004 Indian Ocean tsunami, the 2005 South
Asian earthquake, the 2006 war in Lebanon, and
the ongoing crisis in Sudan. The two-week course
was held from 19-30 March at the Scuola Superiore
Sant’Anna, among the most prestigious universities
in Italy, which specializes in humanitarian training
programmes.
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WFP is the world's largest
humanitarian agency: each year, we give food to
an average of 90 million poor people to meet their
nutritional needs, including 58 million hungry
children, in at least 80 of the world's poorest
countries. WFP - We Feed People.
WFP Global School Feeding Campaign - For just
19 US cents a day, you can help WFP give children
in poor countries a healthy meal at school-a gift
of hope for a brighter future. Visit our website:
www.wfp.org
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About the United Nations Foundation
The UN Foundation was created in 1998 with entrepreneur
and philanthropist Ted Turner’s historic
$1 billion gift to support UN causes and activities.
The UN Foundation builds and implements public-private
partnerships to address the world’s most
pressing problems and also works to broaden support
for the UN through advocacy and public outreach.
The UN Foundation is a public charity. www.unfoundation.org
About the Vodafone Group Foundation
The Vodafone Group Foundation (VGF) was created
by Vodafone Group Plc to support charitable and
community work by all Vodafone companies and their
21 Foundations around the world, and to fund selected
charitable global initiatives directly.
Vodafone Group Foundation (VGF) aims to make social
investments that help people across the world
to have fuller lives by: Sharing the benefits
of developments in mobile communications technology
as widely as possible; Supporting local communities
in which Vodafone’s customers, employees,
investors and suppliers live; Protecting the environment.
The Vodafone Group Foundation is extremely proud
to have helped more than 1000 charitable partners
in less than three years, with donations of over
£37.8 million funding.
