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In a remote village in Jiwaka, extreme flooding that was once rare is now a seasonal certainty.  

Along the banks of the Busu River in Morobe, families lie awake listening to heavy rain, ready to leave at a moment’s notice. 

What were once rare environmental emergencies have become more frequent in Papua New Guinea and with the increase in natural emergencies has come greater demand disaster preparedness.  

 The International Organization for Migration (IOM) works with communities to mitigate the impacts of climate change through awareness and training on disaster preparedness and response.  

 

Diversifying Food Gardens in Jiwaka  

 

“Our weather was good,” reflected IOM’s Thomas Mek on growing up in Jiwaka. “We would continue to plant and harvest, plant and harvest. Food would go from the farm to the pot.”  

“Now, because of climate change, the floods and the drought, it’s really affecting food security because there are communities that can’t store their food.” 

Many families in rural Jiwaka rely on household gardens for their food. Crops that have traditionally thrived in the region are becoming more difficult to grow as the weather changes.  

“We usually grow traditional crops like kaukau, banana, and yam,” explains Stanley, a young community mobiliser from Sigiri, North Waghi. "Two or three days of sun and our soil will dry out and the kaukau and other traditional crops will struggle to grow.” 

In addition to drought, floods pose a significant risk.  

“We plant our food gardens near the river because that is the most fertile soil,” said Stanley. “So when a flood strikes, it destroys our gardens. The immediate need we usually face is food.” 

In nearby Parmel, villagers face similar challenges with food security.  

“We only eat fresh food, we don’t store food,” says Cathy, a women’s representative and subsistence farmer from Parmel. “When a disaster happens, we rely on our family in other areas for food.” 

Cathy also shared how these events can disrupt the earning potential for local coffee growers. “Coffee is one of the main cash crops in the region,” she said. “When flooding affects the coffee trees, it significantly affects those farmers.” 

IOM is working with communities in the Highlands region to mitigate the impacts of floods and drought through diversifying the types of crops being grown.  

“What IOM has been doing in recent programs is introducing crops that can be stored,” said Thomas. “One of these is rice. Another is corn.”  

IOM is also assisting communities prepare for disasters by introducing drought resistant crops and establishing gardens away on higher ground, in addition to those near the rivers. 

“We now need to build gardens on the mountainside, so that when the flood comes in and destroys the food garden on the riverside, we still have food crops on the mountainside,” said Stanley. “The training also encourages us to plant food that is suitable for the dry season.” 

 

Providing Emergency Shelters in Morobe 

 

Standing on the banks of the Busu River, Jonathon remembers how the water used to seem so far away. 

“We used to be about 800 metres away from the river,” said Jonathon. “Now, we are just ten metres away. We have so many sleepless nights. During the rainy season, we stay awake and we look at the river.” 

Just metres from where Jonathon is standing is a steep drop to what is now the riverbed. In the mud below are remnants of houses that once stood well away from the water’s edge. During recent flooding, the banks of the river were washed away, with many houses collapsing into the river. 

IOM, with assistance from the USAID Bureau of Humanitarian Assistance, was able to provide emergency shelter kits for affected families. 

“I would like to say a very big thank you to USAID and IOM for the support that has been given to us,” said Rachel. “IOM provided us with the kits that we needed, including all the housing materials like a hammer, saw, and nails. They also provided housing essentials like utensils and garden tools.”  

In thanking IOM and USAID for the support provided following recent flooding, Rachel shared that awareness of these disasters and how to prepare for them is essential. 

“We need to provide advice for all those living along the river that we need to be prepared for when these events happen,” she said.  

IOM officer visits flood affected community along Busu River, Morobe. Photo: IOM Papua New Guinea (2024)

Ensuring supplies are available when and where they are needed 

 

As part of the organization’s work in disaster preparedness, IOM has expanded prepositioning programs. Prepositioning emergency supplies better enables the organization to respond to emergencies, ensuring supplies can reach those who need them as quickly as possible.  

With support from USAID’s Bureau of Humanitarian Assistance, IOM has secured warehouse space in Lae for prepositioned emergency supplies that can easily be transported throughout the country.  

 

Supporting all voices to be heard 

 

“Usually, a disaster most affects women and girls,” said Cathy. “Because when a disaster happens, sometimes landslides destroy homes. Men, they are okay. They can wear pants and a shirt and that’s ok for them. But just imagine girls and women – we need all these other things. So, it badly affects girls and women."  

Following a disaster, some immediate needs are very apparent. Others may be less visible but are no less urgent. In facilitating community consultations on disaster awareness and preparedness, IOM works to ensure that all needs of a community are considered. 

“During the trainings, we organised our participants into groups, so they can identify their needs,” said Stanley of recent community discussions in Sigiri, Jiwaka. “Through our discussions we learned that the young people’s needs are not the same as the disabled people’s needs, the disabled people’s needs are not the same as the pregnant mother’s needs. So, it’s important to identify these differences.” 

“We probably had five or six groups involved including people with a disability, youth, mothers, and fathers.” 

Following those discussions in Sigiri, the need for an accessible, clean water supply was identified as the most immediate need shared by all members of the community

As the demand for disaster preparedness initiatives grows, IOM continues to work in partnership with provincial disaster coordinators and the National Disaster Centre to ensure communities most at risk can reduce the impact of, and more effectively recover from, natural disasters.