A pioneering agreement to bolster cooperation on integrated disaster risk management was formalized on Wednesday, bringing together the European Union and key regional actors from Latin America and the Caribbean.
The historic Memorandum of Understanding (MOU) was signed at a ceremony in Barbados where it was hailed by a local minister as a vital step toward mounting unified responses to crises.
Citing devastating events like Hurricane Maria in 2017 and the COVID-19 pandemic, the Minister underscored the indispensable role of coordinated international action in addressing large-scale disasters.
Spearheaded by the European Commission’s Civil Protection and Humanitarian Aid Operations, with backing from the UN Office for Disaster Risk Reduction, the MOU negotiations began in 2023 and engaged an array of governmental and non-governmental stakeholders.
Representing Latin American and Caribbean interests were four preeminent intergovernmental bodies: the Coordination Center for Disaster Prevention in Central America and the Dominican Republic, the Caribbean Disaster Emergency Management Agency (CDEMA), the Andean Community’s General Secretariat, and the South American Common Market’s disaster risk management ministerial council. Chile, Cuba, and Mexico also participated as national signatories.
The agreement is poised to facilitate knowledge exchange, capacity building, and closely coordinated disaster preparedness and response strategies between the European Union and its Latin American and Caribbean partners.