In preparation for the upcoming educational and tabletop exercise this month, Ward met with key government and disaster management officials to reaffirm U.S. Agency for International Development as the lead U.S. agency providing disaster relief and reconstruction to the FSM.
On her three-day visit, Ward was accompanied by FEMA emergency analyst and Compact coordinator Kevin Clark and Colby Stanton of the FEMA Hawaii Office. USAID disaster assistance coordinator Bart Deemer accompanied the FEMA delegation.
On Tuesday last week, Ward and her delegation were accompanied by U.S. Ambassador Peter A. Prahar and deputy chief of mission Lori Dando for consultations at the national government in Palikir.
They first paid a courtesy call on FSM President Emanuel Mori who was accompanied by FSM Office of Environmental and Emergency Management Executive Director Andrew Yatilman.
During the meeting, Ward reinforced that the shift from FEMA to USAID as the lead disaster assistance agency would provide the FSM to utilize disaster-related resources in a more efficient and user-friendly manner.
Even so, the regional administration stressed that FEMA would still provide its full support, via USAID, to the FSM in times of crisis.
For his part, Mori thanked Ward and FEMA for its longstanding disaster-related assistance to the FSM, and appreciated both FEMA and USAID efforts to ensure a comprehensive disaster management plan is established.
Ward and her delegation then met with FSM Department of Foreign Affairs Deputy Secretary Jane Chigiyal and Yatilman.
The meeting discussion focused on the upcoming USAID-led tabletop exercise, simulating a disaster and implementing the operational blueprint, a document that provides guidelines, policies, and procedures under which USAID will administer disaster assistance programs following the issuance of a U.S. presidential disaster declaration.
In addition to consultations in Palikir, Ward called upon Pohnpei Gov. John Ehsa, Pohnpei state disaster coordinator/emergency assistance administrator Rick Herman, and International Organization for Migration country officer Ashley Carl.
Ward also toured the new USAID-IOM disaster storage warehouse in Sokehs, at which crisis response supplies can be stockpiled and utilized in a timely manner.
Following her visit to Pohnpei, Ward will visit the Marshall Islands.
