The Office of Disaster Preparedness and Emergency Management (ODPEM) received approximately $J4 million Jamaican dollars worth of emergency shelter supplies from the Jamaica Social Investment Fund (JSIF) at the official handing over ceremony held today at the ODPEM. 

The emergency shelter supplies will assist with the ODPEM’s disaster relief activities in the event of a potential hurricane threat as Jamaica is currently in the 2010 Atlantic Hurricane Season.  Some of these supplies include chain saws, cots, first aid kits, mobile phones, radios, flashlights, and raincoats.   

The donation of supplies is one aspect of Emergency Recovery Project (ERP) which is being executed by the JSIF. In December 2008, the Government of Jamaica successfully negotiated an Emergency Recovery Loan from the International Bank for Reconstruction and Development (IBRD). The proposed project is a US$10 million IBRD Emergency Recovery Loan to support the Government of Jamaica in implementing it’s Sustainable Rehabilitation and Reconstruction Plan (SRRP) for recovery from the Hurricane Dean disaster and to strengthen its ability to respond to future adverse natural events. 

The ERP has two components: 

1. The rehabilitation of infrastructure namely basic and primary schools, health centres and roads. 
2. Capacity building in the area of disaster management and response. 

A significant part of the latter is the Emergency Response Initiative which focuses on strengthening and supporting the ODPEM. 

Activities under the project include the training of young persons in disaster response otherwise called the preparedness and Emergency Response Corps (PERC). In addition, representatives from approximately 170 communities will be trained in a number of areas including infrastructure maintenance, disaster management, and community response. 

Contact: Kimberley Weller, Information Officer kweller@odpem.org.jm