Marcos orders the creation of an info website on El Niño, La Niña

MANILA, Philippines — President Ferdinand “Bongbong” Marcos Jr. on Tuesday ordered the launch of an online platform for the public to learn about the El Niño and the La Niña phenomena.

Department of Science and Technology (DOST) Secretary Renato Solidum Jr. met with Marcos in Malacañang to discuss government efforts to address the weather systems.

Part of these efforts is a new website that can be accessed here: https://[email protected].

“The public can actually look at the platform to know more about these different sectors, what the government agencies are doing,” said Solidum in a Palace briefing.

“They can also look at information materials that can help them prepare for El Niño and later on La Niña, and to make sure that they contribute to the preparedness of their communities for these hazards,” he noted.

“The citizens can also report what they observe on the ground and there’s a citizen survey that can be used – there’s a QR code in the website – and this can be easily accommodated through a dashboard,” added Solidum.

READ: El Niño, La Niña together? What to know

Solidum said data can be stored in the platform, allowing users to see the condition in other parts of the country.

There is also a portion of the website that is only accessible to local government units.

“There will be another part of the dashboard or the platform that will be exclusive for local governments to have more detailed reporting and also the other agencies reporting so that the President and other executives can look at the overall response of government, so that we can have the same set of information to be shared also to the public later on,” said Solidum.

The El Niño is expected to hit its peak in May, but the dry season’s effects may be prolonged due to the development of the La Niña by June.