Africa news #2

http://allafrica.com/stories/200811171365.html

Madagascar: Bracing for Storm Season

When winter hits Africa, Madagascar suffers the most. In Madagascar it's not a matter of if, but when. There, disasters are predictable: floods and cyclones happen every year. Cyclone season usually kicks off in December and runs through April, when storms hit some of the poorest regions of Indian Ocean Island. Around 70 percent of Madagascar's population lives on less than a dollar a day. Floods are also common and cause displacement of thousands of people every year throughout the island. Earlier in 2008 over 100 people died when Madagascar was hit by cyclones. The powerful winds, heavy rains and flooding affected over 340,000 people, of whom 190,000 lost their homes. 2007 was the worst year recorded for cyclones. While extreme weather events have always been part of Madagascar's history, the disaster management community is starting to take a new approach to them. Realizing the huge impact that natural hazards have had on development programmers, the focus has shifted from being reactive and limited to response and recovery after an event, to a more comprehensive approach centered on preparedness. Madagascar is starting to prepare for the hazards in big cities where a lot of people live.
This is news material because they want to tell people about the problems in Madagascar and also tell them of the country’s progress of trying to protect itself from the storms.