Caribbean: CDEMA hosts fourth annual Exercise SYNERGY as 2022 Hurricane season approachesĀ 

The Caribbean Disaster Emergency Management Agency (CDEMA) and its Coordinating Unit (CU) hosted its fourth annual Exercise SYNERGY virtually across the Caribbean region as the Hurricane Season for 2022 approaches

Caribbean: CDEMA hosts fourth annual Exercise SYNERGY as 2022 Hurricane Season approachesĀ 
Caribbean: CDEMA hosts fourth annual Exercise SYNERGY as 2022 Hurricane Season approachesĀ 

Caribbean: The Caribbean Disaster Emergency Management Agency (CDEMA) and its Coordinating Unit (CU) hosted its fourth annual Exercise SYNERGY virtually across the Caribbean region as the Hurricane Season for 2022 approaches.Ā 

May 22, 2022, the event was held virtually to create preparedness for the potential multi-island, multi-hazard impact threat to the region. Around 50 regional and international stakeholders have joined SYNERGY- it is a flagship regional exercise to test the coordination within the Regional Response Mechanism (RRM).

Andria Grosvenor, who is a Deputy Executive Director of CDEMA, also applauded the initiative and welcomed the partners across the globe. She stated,”An effective response to an impacted Participating State can only be made possible via strengthening, coordination and ensuring the key players come to an agreement on how we work together, before we have a disastrous impact.ā€ The unprecedented events of 2021, amid the COVID-19 pandemic, saw the activation of the RRM to support multi-island impact.”

Grosvenor referred to the timely hosting of last yearā€™s Exercise SYNERGY, which examined a multi-island strike, with the impact of a hurricane and a 7.0 magnitude earthquake. Just weeks later, on August 14, 2021, Haiti was impacted by a 7.2 magnitude earthquake and subsequently, Tropical Storm Grace made landfall. She explained, ā€œDue to the Exercise [SYNERGY], the CDEMA CU was already aware of the pledges, tentative capacity, and capability of regional and international RRM partners which aided in a timely response.ā€

Exercise SYNERGY received financial support from Global Affairs Canada through the Targeted Support to CDEMA Project. Senior International Assistance Officer, Natalie Hutchinson explained the importance of SYNERGY saying, ā€œItā€™s really good to have this opportunity to train together. We heard in the After-Action Review (AAR) that the RRM continues to serve the region well. Certainly, Canada remains a keen supporter of the system and an advocate for the mechanism.ā€Ā 

The CAD $8 Million Project which commenced in 2019 has played a key role in enhancing the RRM, namely the establishment of CDEMAā€™s Integrated Regional Logistics Hub and a donation of $500,000 CAD to St. Vincent and the Grenadines to support recovery efforts.