Caribbean resilience initiatives focus on housing and pandemic preparedness

The CAF – Development Bank of Latin America and the Caribbean has approved US$ 200,000 in grant funding for the Caribbean Disaster Emergency Management Agency (CDEMA). This funding will support the Regional Resilient Residential Construction and Reconstruction Project over the next 18 months. The initiative aims to strengthen residential construction in the Caribbean by training builders, artisans, and contractors in resilient techniques and helping technical institutions integrate regional codes of practice into their programs.

Separately, CARICOM has called for increased pandemic preparedness across the Caribbean. During a United Nations meeting, representatives emphasized that the region's reliance on tourism and porous borders increases vulnerability to health emergencies. The call for improved prevention and early detection capacity comes amid warnings from global health leaders that the world lacks the necessary annual financing to bridge the pandemic preparedness gap.