From 9 to 11 May 2022, UN-SPIDER carried out an Expert Mission to Ghana to meet with staff of the National Disaster Management Organization of Ghana (NADMO). The mission allowed UN-SPIDER to gain more insights into the efforts that NADMO and other government agencies are carrying out to prepare a simulation in case of earthquakes, to be carried out in June. The simulation exercise is organized by the Government of Ghana and benefits from the technical assistance of the North Dakota National Guard. NADMO and UN-SPIDER are raising awareness regarding the usefulness of emergency mechanisms such as the International Charter Space and Major Disasters and the Copernicus Emergency Management Service in the context of this simulation. These mechanisms provide space-based information free of charge to national disaster management agencies such as NADMO in case of disasters including earthquakes.
UN-SPIDER also took the opportunity to have meetings with the Director General of NADMO and with staff of NADMO in charge of implementing a project to improve the flood early warning system in the Black Volta River using space technologies and in-situ information to incorporate impact-based forecasts. In addition, the opportunity was used to share some lessons regarding disaster management efforts in countries like Haiti, Chile and Indonesia that experienced severe earthquakes in recent years.
