Beefing up disaster response mechanism
―2nd phase of Humanitarian Mapping Course wraps up
DPI, Guyana, Friday, January 31, 2020
On Friday, the Civil Defence Commission (CDC) and MapAction wrapped up the second part of a Humanitarian Mapping Course workshop.
The initiative, which is being funded by the United Nations Children’s Fund (UNICEF) saw participants selected from the various administrative regions of Guyana being prepared to support the regional disaster response mechanism.
Participants of the Humanitarian Mapping Course workshop after today’s session.
The first stage of the mapping exercise – an online modular course facilitated in a google classroom – was hosted in December 2019. The training covered mapping for humanitarian response, data collection using smartphones and Global Position Systems (GPS), updating the CDC’s caseload map using QGIS and several other areas.
Following the training exercise, the participants can now produce various Geographic Information Systems (GIS) related deliverables.
The second segment of the training commenced on January 27 and over the five days, focused on using QGIS for mapping purposes. This programme allows the user to visualise, manage, edit, analyse data, and compose printable maps.
CDC’s Senior Response Officer, Captain Salim October, told DPI the organisation has “been engaged on a journey to develop humanitarian mapping as a key thematic area to enhance and improve the work of the CDC.”
He explained that the main aim of the exercise is to have participants become familiar with the various tools used in mapping and to simplify data visualization.
After completing the exercise, participants will be able to use the skills gained in developing maps which will be used in disaster risk management.
Note: GIS is a framework for gathering, managing, and analysing data. It analyses spatial location and organises layers of information into visualisations using maps and 3D scenes.