Dr. Jaime I. Manuel, Jr. officially ordered the establishment of Disaster Risk Reduction and Management (DRRM) Committees in the different campuses with a mission to ensure a healthy and safe learning environment in the University. This is in accordance with Republic Act 10121 or the Philippine DRRM Act of 2010, and Civil Service Commission Memorandum Circular No. 21, s. 2018, which mandates the mainstreaming of disaster risk reduction and management in all levels of government.

Acting on the recommendation of a technical working group from the three campuses led by the University DRRM Coordinator Jomar Lucena and University Planning Director Dr. Lilito Gavina, President Manuel issued Memorandum 2020-031.a on June 23, 2020 establishing the following in every campus: Campus DRRM Committee, Campus DRRM Officer, Safety Officer, College/Unit DRRM Facilitators, and Campus Emergency Response Team.

The DRRM Committee is a collegial body composed of faculty members, administrators, staff, students, and the community. Their main function is to develop and implement a DRRM plan in the campus. Correspondingly, the Campus Emergency Response Team (CERT) has the task of responding to emergencies in the campus and in the community as the need arises. The Safety Officer is responsible for ensuring a safe working environment and preventing injuries and accidents. The Campus DRRM Officer is the person-in-charge of all DRRM activities in the campus and supervises the safety officer and the response team. Each college will have a DRRM facilitator who will implement activities in the college.

With the coming of a new school year, the DRRM team hope to complete their line of activities including the recruitment and training of volunteers for the Campus Emergency Response Team. They hope to inspire volunteerism in the University by encouraging students and employees to volunteer as responders during emergencies. By offering trainings in emergency response, first aid, search and rescue, and basic firefighting, the University will have the capacity to respond to the community in case of a disaster.

Likewise, with a DRRM Committee in every campus, a disaster risk reduction and management plan can now be developed. The DRRM plan will include all contingencies, arrangements, and mechanisms to address emergency situations including programs and activities to reduce risk and adapt to climate change.

The institutionalization of DRRM in the University is both historic and timely. Historic because ever since DMMMSU has not had the structure and mechanism to address the need for disaster risk reduction in the university. Through this team, the University hopes to be able to effectively respond to the challenges of protecting the school community and ensuring a healthy and safe learning environment. (JPre)