NGOs call for disaster funds before cyclones, not after

Communities across Fiji should have disaster funds ready before a cyclone strikes and not after.

Pacific Islands Association of Non-Governmental Organizations (PIANGO) executive director Emeline Siale made the call before Parliament's Standing Committee on Foreign Affairs and Defence today.

Ms Siale called for a rethink of how disaster funding reaches ordinary Fijians, adding the current system is reactive.

"We need to change the way we think about financing our communities – not just wait until something happens and then give them support for recovery, but preposition our resources ahead of time so they can make use to save lives," she said.

She said pre-positioned funding would allow community organisations to act immediately — paying for vehicles to evacuate elderly people and people with disabilities from low-lying areas before a cyclone makes landfall.

PIANGO and the Fiji Council of Social Services (FCOSS) are already piloting this approach through a programme called FALE — Facility Aiding Locally Led Engagement — which places funds directly with community organisations ahead of disasters.

FCOSS executive director Vani Catanasiga said the model is built on the understanding that communities are the real first responders.

"When communities are better able to anticipate, withstand and recover from shocks, the impacts of crisis are reduced," Ms Catanasiga said.

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