Personnel from post offices across the Caribbean were recently trained in disaster risk management skills, at a recent workshop held at the General Post Office, Cheapside, Bridgetown, in an effort to heighten preparedness and response strategies in the region.
The 30 participants and facilitators from the region and Switzerland were addressed by Deputy Chief of Mission, Counselor Kenji Tenaka, from the Embassy of Japan, in Barbados, who delivered remarks during the opening ceremony on the importance of international cooperation in disaster management efforts.
The importance of having a “Build Back Better” mindset was stressed by Mr. Tenaka in his address, at the three-day workshop.
He expressed the hope that participants would gain the skills required to foster a “disaster resilient postal service”, thus contributing to the “sustainable development efforts” of Barbados and the rest of the region.
Mr. Tenaka said that over the last six years, Japan’s ‘Future Together Fund’ allocated US$6.7 million to support 64 projects, of which 42 were completed. He told participants that six per cent of the allocated funds had been “earmarked for the Caribbean”.
According to Senior Expert, Emergencies and Postal Resilience with the Universal Postal Union (UPU), in Switzerland, Fumiko Nohara, the workshop was “taking place against the backdrop of many natural disasters, such as hurricanes, floods and earthquakes”, as well as the COVID-19 pandemic, which ushered in this decade.
She continued: “We need to reflect and take stock of the economic damage caused by natural disasters…. It is of the utmost importance to focus on preparedness, so as to pre-empt and mitigate the effect of natural disasters when they occur.”
Ms. Nohara noted that the “UPU has been focusing on disaster risk management activities recently, with support from Japan since 2010”. She said the UPU’s assistance is centred on technical cooperation and raising awareness, while capacity building has been a priority since its 2021 Abidjan cycle.
Secretary General of the Caribbean Postal Union (CPU) and Dominica’s Postmaster General, Clare Seraphin-Wallace, also outlined the vital role of the postal sector in disaster preparedness, response, and recovery.
She pointed out that the workshop was designed to “equip our esteemed postal leaders, with the knowledge, tools and strategies necessary to ensure postal services remain operational and support communities in the aftermath of disasters”.
Postmaster General of the Barbados Postal Service, Joann Busby, reminded the participants of several major disasters which affected both the Caribbean and Asia in recent years and encouraged postal leaders to actively participate in the training, as such workshops were “critical to capacity-building within the region”.
The training topics covered included ‘Understanding Risks’, ‘Business Continuity Planning’, ‘Pandemic Recovery’, and the ‘Action Plan for the Caribbean’.
Presentations were also made by Deputy Executive Director of the Caribbean Disaster Emergency Management Agency (CDEMA), Kester Craig, and Programme Management Officer, United Nations Office for Disaster Risk Reduction (UNDRR), Jair Torres.
Workshop participants were drawn from Aruba, Antigua and Barbuda, Barbados, Belize, Bahamas, Bermuda, Cayman Islands, Curacao, Dominica, Grenada, Guyana, Jamaica, Montserrat, St. Kitts and Nevis, Saint Lucia, St. Vincent and the Grenadines, Trinidad and Tobago, and Turks and Caicos.
The disaster risk management workshop was hosted by the Barbados Postal Service and sponsored by the Universal Postal Union.