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Bridgetown, Barbados, April 27, 2010 (CDEMA) – The First meeting of the CARIFORUM/OCT/FCOR/EU Disaster Management Task Force was convened recently at the Hyatt Regency in Trinidad and Tobago by CARIFORUM in collaboration with the Caribbean Disaster Emergency Management Agency (CDEMA).

The Task Force discussed a number of priority areas for deepening collaboration on climate change adaptation and disaster risk reduction among the CARIFORUM States, French Caribbean Outermost Regions(FCOR)  and the British and Dutch  Overseas Countries and Territories (OCT).

Jeremy Collymore, Executive Director of CDEMA, in giving his remarks at the Meeting  said, “The Task Force presents a unique opportunity to facilitate discussions among CARIFORUM, FCOR and OCT countries, as well as the European Union (EU), notwithstanding the diverse political arrangements and languages, for the identification of common challenges and to facilitate the development and implementation of shared vision and standards for regional capacity building programmes in Disaster Management.”

He cautioned that, “The Task Force must be careful not to want to limit its engagement to cooperation on projects and programmes. The potency of this mechanism for informing and shaping the global agenda must not be undervalued.”

The meeting was attended by participants from Cuba, the Dominican Republic, Martinique, Saint Lucia, the Caribbean Disaster Emergency Management Agency (CDEMA) Sub-Regional Focal Points (SRFPs) (Antigua and Barbuda, Barbados, Jamaica, and Trinidad & Tobago), the Caribbean Institute of Meteorology and Hydrology (CIMH), and the Seismic Research Centre (SRC) of the University of the West Indies.  Also in attendance were representatives of the Caribbean Community (CARICOM) Secretariat and the EU Delegation for Barbados and the OECS.

The Disaster Management Task Force has its genesis in the CARIFORUM/DOM/OCT/EU Cooperation Seminar, held in Martinique on 17-18 November 2005.

Please click here for the CDEMA Executive Director’s Opening Remarks at the Meeting.

For more information, please contact
Sharon Layne-Augustine,
Senior Programme Officer
Caribbean Disaster Management Agency (CDEMA)
Bldg #1, Manor Lodge Complex
Lodge Hill, St. Michael, Barbados
Tel. No. 246-425-0386; Fax no. 246-425-8854
E-mail: This email address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it.         
Website: www.cdema.org