MIAMI – Several Caribbean Community (CARICOM) countries were represented at a two-day virtual Caribbean Security Conference (CANSEC) that ended here Wednesday, focusing on regional mechanisms to mitigate the impact of disasters in a coronavirus (COVID-19) environment.
The conference, which was hosted by the United States Southern Command (SOUTHCOM) included virtual briefings and moderated discussions on the ongoing response to the novel coronavirus (COVID-19) pandemic and the region’s preparedness for the hurricane season, which began June 1 and continues through November 30.
A statement issued here following the meeting said that the participants also took part in table-top exercises, led by the Barbados-based Caribbean Disaster Emergency Management Agency (CDEMA), with scenarios involving simultaneous regional responses to hurricanes and pandemics.
US Navy Admiral, Craig Faller, the SOUTHCOM Commander addressed the importance of sharing lessons learned during the ongoing pandemic.
“COVID-19 has swept the globe and affected all of us. It’s the norm, and it will be the norm until we can inoculate and immunise the globe.”
He described the COVID-19 assistance SOUTHCOM has provided to its partners in the Caribbean, Central America and South America as “robust,” consisting of “some 200 projects that have been very flexible and rapid” totalling approximately two million US dollars.
“Overall, the US government response into the region for the COVID, principally through USAID [US Agency for International Development], has been close to $100 million,” he said, commending Caribbean countries for developing regional approaches to security challenges.
“We have the right mechanisms,” he told the conference, referring to CARICOM, the Implementation Agency for Crime and Security (IMPACS), the Regional Security System (RSS), CDEMA, the Caribbean Public Health Agency (CARPHA) and the Multinational Caribbean Coordination Cell in Barbados.
“We have all those structures in place. We’ve got to make them work.”
The conference was attended by defence and security officials from Antigua and Barbuda, the Bahamas, Barbados, Belize, Dominica, the Dominican Republic, Grenada, Guyana, Haiti, Jamaica, St Lucia, St Vincent and the Grenadines, as well as Trinidad and Tobago.
Representatives from British Overseas Territories of Bermuda, the Cayman Islands, Montserrat, and the Turks and Caicos also attended the two-day meeting.
Security leaders from the Inter-American Development Board, Canada, France, Mexico, the Royal Netherlands, and the United Kingdom also contributed to this year’s conference that was also attended by officials from the Department of Defense, National Defense University, State Department, US Northern Command, as well as adjutant generals from several US states.
“This year’s historic virtual conference marks the second consecutive year SOUTHCOM hosts CANSEC, which often co-hosts the conference alongside partner nations in the region. The command sponsors the annual forum to facilitate an open and candid dialogue among regional leaders that facilitates the sharing of ideas, perspectives, expertise and experiences, and strengthens collective understanding of threats and security challenges of mutual concern,” the statement added. (CMC)
