Considering the prevailing economic situation across the region, financing the operations of the CDEMA Coordinating Unit (CU) is among the main items on the Agenda. The Council will review the agency’s financial status and look in particular at options for sustainable financial including the results of a feasibility study on the establishment of an endowment fund and the recommendations from a market research on fee based services that the Coordinating Unit could offer. Also on the table for discussion is the organizational restructuring of the CDEMA CU.
Policies to be presented for endorsement are the regional Comprehensive Disaster Management (CDM) Strategy 2014-2024, Implementation Plan and Performance Management Framework, Regional Response Doctrine Proposal for Strengthening Response Coordination Capacity of CDEMA and the Model Organisation Structure for National Disaster Offices. These policies, developed through a lengthy and rigorous participatory process involving a wide range of stakeholders are critical to furthering national and regional processes for building disaster resilience.
One of the standing agenda items is “Operational Matters and Readiness”. This focuses on the agency’s primary responsibility, which is, coordinating regional response to disasters affecting its Participating States. This meeting will discuss the status of readiness for the 2014 Hurricane Season and the 2013-2014 emergency events including the December 2013 rains which affected St. Vincent and the Grenadines, Dominica and Saint Lucia.
Preceding the Meeting, there will be a symposium on Thursday, June 26 on the Integration of Climate Change Adaptation and Disaster Risk Reduction.
Note
The CDEMA Council: CDEMA is governed through the Council, a Technical Advisory Committee (TAC) and the Coordinating Unit. As a specialized regional Agency of CARICOM, the Heads of Government of the Participating States determine the policies. The Council is the highest level of governance of CDEMA and major decisions on its operations are also made as required by this body. There is a sub-committee, the Management Committee of Council, which makes recommendations to the Council to enhance the management and functioning of the CDEMA policy identification and organization performance review. The Council meets annually during the month of June. The Heads of Government or their designated representatives attend the annual Meetings.