The Department of Environment (DOE), in collaboration with the National Office of Disaster Services (NODS), recently completed the hosting of a five-day Shelter Management Workshop.

Over twenty participants from faith-based organizations who have received grant funding from the Department of Environment under the Green Climate Fund (GCF) Enhanced Direct Access (EDA) Project, along with other interested community members within the Cashew Hill area, participated in the training.

The main objectives of the workshop were; to provide disaster response and shelter management training for climate adaptation, provide stakeholders with an overview of the shelter registration process; and train and certify 15-20 persons in shelter management, specifically the members of the grant awardees’ voluntary shelter management teams.

The 5-day workshop, which was held at the Cashew Hill Moravian Church, featured presentations from DOE staff, officers from the NODS and the Directorate of Gender Affairs, and representatives from the Red Cross.

Additional presentations were on Environmental Social Safeguards, Gender, and Complaints Mechanisms.

The workshop is one of the output goals of the Enhanced Direct Access (EDA) project titled: ‘Integrated physical adaptation and community resilience through an enhanced direct access pilot in the public, private, and civil society sectors of three Eastern Caribbean small island developing states.”

The objective of this project is to strengthen institutional capacities and increase the resilience of at least 5% of the population in the Eastern Caribbean pilot countries to climate variability and change, of which 50% are women, through adaptation in infrastructure, strengthened buildings and enhanced ecosystem services.