BRIDGETOWN, Barbados – A delegation comprising of The Barbados Ministry of Tourism [Mot}, the Saint Lucia Hotels and Tourism Association [SLHTA] and the Secretariat of the National Emergency Management Organisation [NEMO] attended the 2nd Caribbean Conference on Comprehensive Disaster Management in Barbados from December 10 – 14, 2007.
The delegation was honoured to make a presentation during the session on “Multi Hazard Contingency Planning for Tourism Sector”
In 1999 the Hospitality Industry together with the Office of Disaster Preparedness [later NEMO] finalized the first Hospitality Industry Response Plan. Over the years it has been reviewed and improved. In May 2007 the Organisation of American States [OAS] hosted one in a series of regional meetings aimed at the Tourism Industry on the very theme of Multi Hazard Contingency Planning for Tourism Sector – the OAS Program presents the Tourism Industry with the opportunity to again review its protocols not only for Hurricanes but for all hazards.
Recently the revised Hurricane Plan for the Industry was approved by the National Emergency Management Advisory Committee [NEMAC]. In keeping with all National Response Plans it too will be forwarded to Cabinet for final approval.
The 2nd Caribbean Conference on Comprehensive Disaster Management was hosted by the Caribbean Disaster Emergency Response Agency (CDERA) in association with its Partners and was held under the theme “Changing Landscape of Caribbean Disaster Management – Vision Becoming Reality”. It was a high level forum for assessing the region’s progress in disaster risk reduction and charting the way forward in building disaster resilience through the Comprehensive Disaster Management Strategy [CDM]. This event also contributed to the International Strategy for Disaster Reduction’s (ISDR) global platform.
High ranking Government Officials from CDERA Participating States addressed key issues of CDM implementation in relation to the Caribbean Single Market and Economy (CSME), safety and security within a single space in emergency management and response and disaster management within the national development portfolio. Senior representatives of the donor community as well as other CDM partners and sector leaders spoke to a harmonized programming approach for the advancement of CDM.
The Conference focused on sharing of experiences and good practice in the areas of ICT applications, mitigation and risk transfer applications and disaster recover planning. An exhibition was opened to members of the public and showcased a range of products and information materials for mitigation and preparedness as well as emergency situations.
Delegates came from across the region and globally and included disaster management and associated professionals, development partners, government and private sector officials, civil society, researchers and other stakeholders.
The Conference received financial support from the Caribbean Development Bank, European Commission, International Recovery Platform, Canadian International Development Agency (CIDA) and the United States Agency for International Development/ Office of Foreign Disaster Assistance.
