Task Force El Niño reactivated

President Ferdinand Marcos Jr. issued Executive Order 53, reactivating and reconstituting Task Force El Niño in response to the intensifying weather phenomenon that is expected to stretch into the second quarter of 2024.

Under EO 53 issued on 19 January 2024 but was only made public on Monday, Marcos said the Task Force El Niño will be under the Office of the President.

“The recurrence of the El Niño phenomenon calls for the implementation of both short and long-term solutions to ensure food, water, and energy security, safeguard livelihoods, and improve the country’s disaster and climate resilience,” Marcos said on its EO.

The El Niño, characterized by warmer sea surface temperatures in the Pacific Ocean, brings with it severe droughts, water shortages, and agricultural losses.

With recent predictions suggesting its persistence until mid-2024, Marcos said the government is taking proactive measures to mitigate its impact.

According to the EO, the Department of Science and Technology Secretary will co-chair the Task Force with the Department of National Defense Secretary.

The Secretaries of the National Economic and Development Authority, Department of Agriculture, Department of Health, and Department of Environment and Natural Resources are among the members.

To strengthen communities against El Niño’s effects, the government established a National Action Plan Framework last year.

It focused on five key sectors: public safety, health, agriculture, electricity, and water supply. Correspondingly, key priority interventions were created and will be carried out by relevant government agencies.

The DoST-Philippine Atmospheric, Geophysical and Astronomical Services Administration has conducted recent monitoring and analysis, and as of July 2023, the warm sea surface temperature in the central and eastern tropical Pacific has fully matured into El Niño.

El Niño is still showing signs of amplification, according to PAGASA, and most global climate models predict it will last until the second quarter of 2024.

PHOTOGRAPH BY KING RODRIGUEZ FOR THE DAILY TRIBUNE STUDENTS from the Eulogio ‘Amang’ Rodriguez Institute of Science and Technology take up the whole pathway along Nagtahan Street in Manila as they participate in the parade to celebrate the school’s foundation day on Monday.