EKACDM Initiative

The EKACDM Initiative is a five-year project whose Ultimate Outcome is the implementation of the CARICOM Enhanced Comprehensive Disaster Management (CDM) Framework (2007) to reduce the impacts of natural and technological hazards, and the effect mechanism and programme to manage knowledge in CDM, which is Priority Outcome 2 of the CDM Strategy of the Caribbean Disaster Emergency Management Agency (CDEMA).

There are three key outcomes of the Initiative:

  • An enhanced regional network that generates, manages and shares knowledge on CDM and that includes gender issues.

  • Increased use of standardised gender-sensitive educational and training materials for CDM by professionals and students in the Caribbean.

  • An enhanced mainstreaming of gender-sensitive decision-making for CDM in the public and private sectors, in particular SMEs.

Implementing Agency

The Initiative is being implemented by the Disaster Risk Reduction Centre (DRRC) of the Institute for Sustainable Development (ISD) at the University of the West Indies (UWI).

The goal of the DRRC is to be a "multidisciplinary Centre of Excellence in the field of Disaster Risk Reduction and Disaster Management in the Caribbean and globally, especially in Small Island States".

The specific objectives of the DRRC are to:

  • Provide the leadership that drives that rationalization, integration, and development of all initiatives in disaster risk reduction and disaster management within the University of the West Indies;
  • Mobilize resources, to supplement those provided by the University of the West Indies, to advance the University's disaster management programme; and
  • Develop partnerships that allow the University, its students, and staff to maximize the effectiveness of their interventions in disaster management to advance sustainable development in the Caribbean region.

Project Beneficiaries

The ultimate beneficiaries of this initiative are the men, women, and children of the Caribbean who live in an environment vulnerable to various natural and anthropogenic risks.

  • National Disaster Management Organizations within the region
  • CARICOM Member States
  • Non-state actors, including NGOs, civil society, and the private sector
  • Regional Tertiary Organisations
  • The University of the West Indies
  • Regional Partner Institutions, such as the Organization of Eastern Caribbean States (OECS) and other technical regional institutions interacting with the Project
  • Regional public sector
  • Private sector Operators and employees of SMEs

Donors

Funding for the Initiative is provided by the Government of Canada through Global Affairs Canada. (GAC)

Gendered Information