Post-Yolanda rehab to take up to five years – NDRRMC chief

Even with the help of the private sector, it will take the government up to five years to fully rehabilitate the areas hit by Typhoon Yolanda, which flattened towns and cities in the Visayas on November 8 and left over 5,000 people dead.

“We're talking about a long-range rehabilitation plan that will take two to five years,” said National Disaster Risk Reduction and Management Council (NDRRMC) executive director Eduardo del Rosario at a press briefing in Camp Aguinaldo on Tuesday.

A masterplan will be drafted in two to three months detailing the rehabilitation of the damaged infrastructures, del Rosario said, adding it will be done by the NDRRMC in coordination with the Department of Public Works and Highways (DPWH).

The masterplan will also have inputs from private organizations, including foreign entities, that are helping in the rehabilitation, the NDRRMC chief also said.

“The substantial amount in dollars that we have been receiving are all pledges. These countries have yet to see the rehabilitation plan of the national government,” he said.

Better communities

Del Rosario, who is also the administrator of the Office of Civil Defense (OCD), said the objective is “to build back better communities.” The OCD is the implementing arm of the NDRRMC.

He said the masterplan would also cover other provinces affected by disasters this year, and will be based on the NDRRMC's post disaster needs assessment that will be conducted second week of December.

Aside from killing over 5,000 people, Yolanda, a super typhoon by description, affected almost 10 million people, according to the latest figures from the NDRRMC. Damage was estimated at P24.5 billion, including P11.4 billion in agriculture and P13.2 billion in infrastructure.

Del Rosario said businesses have normalized in Tacloban city, the worst-hit area by Yolanda, noting that 12 banks have resumed operations and public-utility vehicles have started plying their routes. Five radio stations have also resumed operations.

At least 77.8 percent of debris have been cleared in Tacloban city, del Rosario added. — KBK, GMA News