3 C ARICAD’s most northerly member state is The Bahamas, the most southerly is Suriname, the most easterly is Barbados and the most westerly is Belize. That geographical reality means that the threat of tropical storms and hurricanes anywhere in the Caribbean is a matter of concern not only for the states and territories themselves but also for CARICAD as an institution of CARICOM. When member states are affected, CARICAD is affected. It means that those member states have to direct resources (including human) to urgent survival and recovery needs. CARICAD’s work is therefore disrupted and delayed. The disruption can extend beyond the borders of the affected state and include neighbouring member states. Whenever there is loss of life or great suffering in our member states, we suffer too. These are our people. Almost all of CARICAD’s member states are potentially vulnerable to the threat of storms and hurricanes. Vulnerability to natural hazards of all kinds is one of the greatest threats to Sustainable Development among Caribbean states. In fact, in some circles the Caribbean is considered the second most vulnerable region in the world to natural hazards. Remember that storms and hurricanes are not the only natural hazards. There are also volcanic eruptions, earthquakes, tsunamis, droughts and wildfires. rainstorms, floods, The suite of human-activity-related hazards is even more numerous. This means that helping member states to become resilient to such threats is not only part of CARICAD’s mandate but a moral obligation. We define Resilience as ....the ability to resist, absorb, accommodate to and recover from the effects of hazards, emergencies and crises in a timely, effective, efficient and sustainable manner with the preservation and restoration of essential structures, systems, functions and services, to create capacity for transformation and future adaptation to new realities. CARICAD sees our strategic partnership with CDEMA as a vital capacity building mechanism for member states on our road to Resilience. Our commitment to working with CDEMA and other strategic partners to build Resilience among our Devon Rowe, Executive Director CARICAD member states is unwavering, especially in this the era of accelerated global Climate Change. This 2024 hurricane season edition of our Horizon newsletter is evidence not only of our commitment but our level of effort and our innovative mindset. Throughout this edition, CARICAD is pleased to provide you with some photographs from the Grenada Experience of 2004, all captured by Frankie Michael. I commend the 2024 edition to you and invite you to share it among your contacts. In that way you will be helping us to achieve the vision of a more resilient Caribbean.
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