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Last Updated: Aug 13th, 2008 - 11:56:26 |
Source: http://www.barbadosadvocate.com/NewViewNewsleft.cfm?Record=36402
As of December 2008, a further five Caribbean countries will move a step closer towards more robust mechanisms to bolster their resilience to flood hazards.
Documents signed yesterday at the Ministry of Foreign Affairs, Foreign Trade and International Business will start the second phase of a project initiated back in August 2002 which aims to do such and is relying on a partnership between several Caribbean countries and the Government of Japan.
Upon signing the agreement, Permanent Secretary in the Ministry of Foreign Affairs, Foreign Trade and International Business, Mr. Samuel Chandler said, "We wish to acknowledge the role which the Japanese International Co-operation Agency has played in promoting increased co-operation between Japan and the Caribbean and in providing practical development assistance to our countries."
The signing ceremony was defined as a continuation of a "broad-based programme of technical co-operation between Japan and CARICOM" involving training and projects in areas such as disaster management and also sustainable tourism management, fisheries management and construction management.
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| Japanese Implementation Study Team Leader, Japan International Cooperation Agency, Mr Hidetomi OI; Permanent Secretary in the Ministry of Foreign Affairs, Foreign Trade and International Business, Mr Samuel Chandler and Coordinator, Caribbean Disaster Emergency Response Agency (CDERA), Mr Jeremy Collymore, sign the agreement to start the second phase of the Caribbean Disaster Management Project. In the background are (from left) CARICOM's Project Identification Expert and members of the Ministry and CDERA respectively. |
Emphatic in expressing gratitude towards the Japanese government, both Mr. Chandler and Caribbean Disaster Emergency Response Agency (CDERA) Co-ordinator, Mr. Jeremy Collymore, stressed how important the partnership arrangement between CARICOM and the Japanese government is to strengthening ties with Barbados and its neighbouring states.
Indeed, though phase two of the project, in seeking to capitalise on outputs of the first project in flood hazard mapping and community disaster planning, will not include Barbados, support should still be extended to the island through an extension of the input into five targeted countries: Belize, Dominica, Grenada, Guyana and St. Lucia.
Mr. Collymore clarified the selection of such mainland, low-lying Caribbean states vis-à-vis the anticipated development in climate change and how the issue of flood management would "create significantly different challenges in those bigger states than in the smaller Eastern Caribbean states."
He also outlined some of the intricacies of the project's expansion, including the continued involvement of regional organisations, which he noted would strengthen community co-operation in terms of technical assistance and implementation.
Much improvement in Barbados was highlighted since the end, in March 2006, of the first phase of the project including better early warning signals in Speightstown specifically and the ability to map evacuation routes to shelters in the community. Greater community engagement was also said to have been achieved as well as increased funding from Government. All parties present at yesterday's signing also mentioned how lessons had been learnt from the previous phase.
US$3 million was cited as the value of the inputs including equipment, staffing and expertise from the Government of Japan into the upcoming phase of the project.
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