National Food Crisis Prevention System
TSF promotes and coordinates disaster prevention measures. Since early 2006 TSF has been offering communications in 34 remote and unconnected areas of Niger in order to implement an early warning system aimed at averting food crises and other disasters. Each site is connected, using TSF expertise and equipment, to the capital, Niamey. The data forms provide real-time information to the authorities on agricultural, nutritional and market indicators, including stock levels and measures of the adequacy of people’s diets. We are currently protecting 11 million people with this program. The system can be adapted to deliver a range of other types of early-warning information such as health or epidemic monitoring.
TRAINING PROGRAMS IN EMERGENCY TELECOMS
TSF is using its experience as the first NGO specialising in telecommunications to build the capacity of other relief organisations and of national disaster response agencies in telecommunications and information technology.
During general training sessions, the organisations are trained to deploy the latest satellite and IT technology in order to establish quick and reliable internet connections, and phone and fax lines in the field.
TSF also conducts longer term actions to improve communications systems at regional and national levels of a country. Beyond training sessions, TSF pre-positions emergency communication kits in vulnerable countries where it first deployed to respond to a humanitarian crisis. The objective is to strengthen governmental agencies’ capacities in emergency telecommunications so that regions regularly affected by disasters or epidemic threats have the appropriate communications and trained staff to respond adequately to future crisis. Improved communications systems, designed and implemented by TSF, enable timely information flow from affected regions to the capital city and to the humanitarian community and speed the response to better respond to the needs of those affected.
Moreover, TSF often shares knowledge on emergency telecoms equipment during general training sessions (UNDAC induction courses, IFRC FACT training, IFRC telecoms training, ECHO staff training…). Those trainings are conducted on a demand basis. Their objective is to train staff on the agency’s telecoms equipment (which is similar to TSF’s) as well as emergency procedures.
In August 2010, during a 5-day training session in telecommunications and information technology, TSF welcomed in Managua 25 emergency organisms from 10 countries of South America. A similar 5-day course will take place in early 2011 in Bangkok for agencies from Central Asia.