Metro Manila (CNN Philippines, November 8) — Ten years after the onslaught of Super Typhoon Yolanda, President Ferdinand Marcos Jr. said the Philippines is now “better prepared” as it has boosted its efforts to prevent and respond to disaster risks with the development of more technologies.
Marcos said Wednesday that Yolanda stressed the importance of disaster risk reduction in the country.
The monster storm in 2013 left over 7,300 people dead and missing, flattening villages and damaging more than a million homes.
“[We will] make sure that such devastation will be mitigated or somehow prevented because we are now better prepared, and we are now better adapted to the vagaries of very severe weather events,” the chief executive said in a speech at the 2023 Handa Pilipinas Visayas Leg in Tacloban.
“The government remains committed to advancing the country’s disaster resilience,” he added.
The chief executive said the Department of Science and Technology has developed technologies for disaster risk prevention, mitigation, preparedness, response, and recovery.
Marcos said these innovations would be useful during relief and rescue operations.
He also said the government must partner with the private sector to commercialize the available tools.
“I implore everyone to maximize the use of these technologies, to fast track the widespread adoption and commercialization,” he said.
