New research publication to receive funds from the Voluntary Organisations Project Scheme
Malta, 4th March 2024. The international humanitarian organization MOAS – Migrant Offshore Aid Station, will be putting together a Disaster Risk Reduction Research publication to provide useful information while enhancing voluntary organisations’ capacity building. As announced during the Grant Award Ceremony for the Small Initiatives Support Scheme (SIS) and the Voluntary Organisations Project Scheme (VOPS), MOAS has been awarded a grant to make this initiative possible.
Climate change and global warming have significantly impacted the environment, often causing extreme weather events such as flooding and drought. Therefore, countries must be prepared to deal with these phenomena and increase the methods and tools to respond efficiently to such threats and reduce their impact. MOAS has been active in the field of Search and Rescue and Disaster Risk Reduction and Prevention since 2014. Through this initiative, MOAS aims to document its experiences and create a publication to ensure that actors are better prepared and more cohesive. When disaster strikes, voluntary organisations are essential service providers in search and rescue, medical aid delivery, the provision of essential supplies and joint response coordination after the event. The research project will touch on these subjects, providing a useful guide to assist, support and better prepare organisations for such instances.
The research will focus on case studies from projects run collaboratively with other humanitarian organizations whose methods and feedback will contribute to the outcomes. A conference is being organised towards the end of the initiative where initial research and the initial draft and recommendations from the study will be presented to stimulate conversation and debate. The ultimate objective is to create a report for the consumption of other organisations outlining these findings, lessons and recommendations so as to increase sectoral capacity as well as contribute to cohesion of response for all. In essence, it is anticipated that good practice will demonstrate that cooperation is essential in expanding the scope and reach of Disaster Risk Reduction and Prevention activities.
MOAS received the grant award during the annual ceremony, hosted at the Grand Hotel Excelsior in Floriana, Malta, and presented by the Hon. Julia Farrugia Portelli (Minister for Inclusion, Social Wellbeing and Voluntary Organisations) and Gertrude Buttiġieġ (Chairperson for Malta Council for the Voluntary Sector.)
Christina Lejman, MOAS’ Director of Operations, stated: “MOAS is delighted and honoured to have once again been awarded the VOPS grant by MCVS. It fits that on this occasion of our 10th anniversary year; this project will give us the opportunity to reflect on our significant experience in Emergency Response Preparedness and Disaster Risk Reduction and share our lessons learned to develop a best-practice guide for all those operating in this specific and specialized field. It is also a chance to celebrate the incredible achievements of our technical advisors and in-country partners, from whom we will be harvesting the materials needed to prepare the publication for review during our consultation process. Our aim at MOAS has always been to innovate and provide proof of concept for others in our sector, and we look forward to sharing our knowledge and learning from them in return”.
This project has been funded by the Voluntary Organisation’s Project Scheme managed by the Voluntary Sector (MCVS) supported by the Ministry for Inclusion and the Voluntary Sector (MIV).
This project/publication reflects the views only of the author, and the MCVS cannot be held responsible for the content or any use which may be made of the information contained therein.
