The Food and Agriculture Organisation (FAO) in collaboration with the Ministry of Agriculture, Forestry, Fisheries, Rural Transformation, Industry and Labour commenced a two-day training-workshop on Thursday, 24th August, 2023, on Disaster Risk Management (DRM) Systems and community-based DRM under the theme: “Building resilience to multiple shocks and stresses in the response and recovery from COVID-19 impacts in the Caribbean (St. Vincent and the Grenadines). The sessions convene at the Methodist Church Hall, Kingstown.
The overall goals of the workshop are: to develop a comprehensive understanding of Disaster Risk Management (DRM) Systems for Agriculture (Crops, Livestock, Fisheries/Aquaculture and Forestry), to provide an introduction to the community-based DRM Planning and Implementation Process, identify specific capacity building themes/training topics related to the 14 globally accepted DRM components and to understand the linkages and applications of community-based DRM to Drone Mapping and participatory GIS.
Facilitators of the Training-workshops are: Food and Agriculture Organisation (FAO), Disaster Risk Management Specialist and Emergency Focal Point Sub-Regional Office for the Caribbean, Dr. Roberto Sandoval, FAO, Disaster Risk Management Consultant (DRM) in St. Vincent, Aria Laidlow-Ferdinand and FAO Disaster Risk Management (DRM) Consultant in St. Vincent, Conroy Huggins.
Food and Agriculture Organisation (FAO), Disaster Risk Management Specialist and Emergency Focal Point Sub-Regional Office for the Caribbean, Dr. Roberto Sandoval stressed that the initiative is vital since the DRM systems analysis gives participants a better understanding of disaster risk management and how to mitigate complex risks factors.
FAO In-country representative, Dr. Coleen Phillips, said the goal of the workshop is to strengthen disaster risk management systems locally and utilise tools that would aid in this endeavour; to assist in community assessment and improve data base management with greater accessibility. Dr. Phillips added that addressing the economic, social and administrative facets regarding pre and post disaster risk management is a critical part of the initiative. The FAO In-country representative revealed that participants range from the Ministry of Agriculture, Forestry, Fisheries, Rural Transformation, Industry and Labour, Ministry of Health, Wellness and the Environment, Ministry of Transport and Works, Ministry of Education and the SVG Meteorological Office among other technical staff. Dr. Phillips noted that the project was designed to aid vulnerable areas such as the Caribbean and other Small Island Developing States (SIDS), in response to the covid-19 pandemic.