Bridgetown, Barbados,  August 08, 2006 (CDERA) - The Caribbean Disaster Emergency Response Agency (CDERA) in association with its Partners will host the Annual Caribbean Conference on Comprehensive Disaster Management at the Hilton Barbados, Needham’s Point, Barbados, December 11-15, 2006.

Purpose of the Annual Caribbean Conference on Comprehensive Disaster Management

• Assess the progress of implementation of CDM in the region
• Identify priority future interventions
• Determine a plan of action for accelerating actions and monitoring progress

The Caribbean Strategy on Comprehensive Disaster Management (CDM) was launched in 2001 with the primary objective of providing a framework for structuring coordinated action towards disaster loss reduction. This Strategy fully endorsed and adopted at the national, regional sectoral and agency levels all across the Caribbean Region is accepted as the platform to transform the disaster management landscape in the region from being response focused to move to a holistic and integrated risk reduction approach for the sustainable development of the Caribbean.

After five years of operationalising and implementing the CDM Strategy across the Region it is now time to share experiences and to engage in frank assessments of progress on the rolling out of the CDM programmes in support of Disaster Risk Reduction Initiatives, as we seek to curtail the social and economic hardships associated with disaster impact in the Caribbean.

This Annual Conference, in keeping with the CDM concept of engaging all stakeholders will provide a unique forum for the networking of disaster management practitioners, Donors, NGOs, public and private sectors, researchers and civil society. The professional workshops, panel discussions, Knowledge Fair and diversified exhibition, will address a wide array of CDM issues including:

• Showcasing of CDM related tools, model products, information and education materials
• Highlighting best practices in disaster loss reduction and institutionalization of the process through selected sectoral and national case studies
• An assessment of the prioritized programme for disaster reduction in the Region
• CDM and the Caribbean Regional Programming Framework.

This is a must attend conference for all disaster management stakeholders to share information and become actively involved in implementing CDM

Please keep checking our website www.cdera.org for Conference updates