MSUT Minister and NODS Director Attend CDEMA Meeting in T&T

Minister of Social and Urban Transformation (MSUT), Rawdon Turner and Director of the National Office of Disaster Services (NODS), Sherrod James, will be representing the country at the Council of Ministers Meeting of the Caribbean Disaster Emergency Management Agency (CDEMA).

The meeting is being held in Trinidad and Tobago.

The meeting brings together ministers responsible for disaster risk management from across the Caribbean to review regional priorities and make key policy decisions to strengthen disaster preparedness and resilience throughout the region.

The Council of Ministers serves as the policy-making body of CDEMA. It considers recommendations emerging from the Technical Advisory Committee (TAC), which comprises the directors and heads of national disaster management offices from participating member states.

Earlier this year, the Technical Advisory Committee met in the British Virgin Islands to examine challenges facing the region’s disaster management systems and to develop recommendations on the way forward. Those recommendations will now be considered by ministers during the council meeting in Trinidad and Tobago.

The discussions are expected to focus on enhancing regional cooperation, strengthening disaster response mechanisms, and advancing policies that improve the Caribbean’s capacity to prepare for and respond to natural hazards and other emergencies.

Antigua and Barbuda’s participation underscores the country’s continued commitment to regional collaboration and the development of effective strategies to safeguard lives, livelihoods, and critical infrastructure from the impacts of disasters.