The Caribbean Disaster Emergency Response Agency (CDERA) and the National Emergency Management Organisation (NEMO), St. Vincent and the Grenadines will co-host the 3rd Regional Seminar on Flood Hazard Mapping and Its Use for Community Disaster Planning in the Caribbean on February 22 – 25, 2005 at the Sunset Shores Hotel, St. Vincent and the Grenadines.

This seminar is made possible through the support of the Japan International Corporation Agency (JICA) sponsored Caribbean Disaster Management Project (CADM).

The main objective of this seminar is to review the products of the CADM project specifically the:

• Flood Hazard Mapping Manual
• Community Disaster Management Planning Manual
• Sustainability Plan

The Caribbean Disaster Management Project (CADM), will end July 31, 2005. The overall goal of this project is to mitigate damages in CDERA member states particularly for the flood hazard. The emphasis on this hazard is in keeping with the findings of the Status of Disaster Preparedness in CDERA Participating States conducted in May 2001 which identified floods as the most common event - occurring in 90 % of CDERA Participating States in the last five years, however in contrast only 25% of these countries have any plans in place to guide disaster management activities for this hazard.

Saint Lucia will be represented by the Director of Saint Lucia’s NEMO.