Guyana ready to assist hurricane hit Caricom countries

As several Caribbean member states begin to count their losses following the passage of Hurricane Matthew through the region, Guyana is prepared to assist in what way possible. This is according to Minister of State, Joseph Harmon.

Noting that Haiti, in particular, has been badly affected by the strong storm, Harmon said Guyana is monitoring the situation closely through the Caribbean Disaster Emergency Management Agency (CDEMA). “Guyana will make its contribution to the efforts to rebuild once the damage is properly assessed,” he said at Thursday’s Post Cabinet media conference.

According to Harmon, Cabinet gave its approval for the Director General of the Civil Defence Commission, Colonel Chabilall Ramsarup to attend the annual “Achievements and Priorities Workshop hosted by CDEMA. This meeting will be held in Barbados from October 11 to 13, 2016.

The CDEMA meeting will seek to harmonise a comprehensive disaster management strategy for disaster risk reduction which was adopted in Japan, during March 2015.

The meeting will see presentations being made on achievements, good practices and tools related to disaster preparedness, programmes and action plans for the Caribbean.

Recommendations for actions will also be made for future disaster risk reduction implementation methods in the Caribbean, Minister Harmon added.

Hurricane Matthew has killed at least 140 people, almost all of them in hard-hit Haiti, where authorities and rescue workers were still struggling to reach remote areas on the southwestern peninsula as the storm powered its way towards Florida.

(GINA)