Sandals Foundation and CDEMA celebrate success of 3-Year Leadership Programme

Forty-five senior officers from three cohorts at the National Disaster Organisations (NDOs) and National Emergency Sectors in 17 Caribbean Disaster Emergency Management Agency (CDEMA) Participating States have benefited from a Strategic Leadership Development training programme which is building their capacity and advancing disaster preparedness and response across the Caribbean. This year, 2025, is the programme’s third year.

As we enter the Atlantic Hurricane Season (June 1 – November 30), senior officers from Anguilla, The Bahamas, Barbados, Belize, Dominica, Grenada, Guyana, Montserrat, St Kitts and Nevis, Saint Lucia , Trinidad and Tobago, Turks and Caicos Islands and British Virgin Islands have been equipped with strategic leadership skills to enhance their ability to develop and implement disaster preparedness plans, coordinate and manage emergency responses, and support recovery efforts to strengthen their coordination, communication, and leadership in times of emergency, states a release from Sandals.

Taking a holistic approach to Disaster Risk Management, the intensive programme enhances leadership skills through six courses over a six-month period with modules in Leadership, Strategic Management, Project Management, Financial Management, Proposal Writing, and Crisis Communication and Incident Management.

In partnership with Sandals Foundation and the Arthur Lok Jack Global School of Business (ALJGSB) at the St Augustine Campus of The University of the West Indies (UWI), the carefully curated curriculum successfully used interactive lectures, one-on-one coaching, and psychometric assessment to enhance officers’ approach to community wellbeing before, during and after a natural hazard.

Education and Training Specialist at CDEMA, Gayle Drakes, said, “The preventative approach to Disaster Risk Management at CDEMA is risk-reduction centred, emphasising an understanding of hazard exposure, vulnerabilities and capacities, and styling appropriate interventions for building more resilient communities”.

“By completing this three year programme with the Sandals Foundation, our region’s senior officers now have enhanced knowledge in advanced level competencies, all aimed at promoting our Comprehensive Disaster Management agenda [an integrated approach to risk management],” Drakes added.

“CDEMA is proud to have collaborated with the Sandals Foundation and the Arthur Lok Jack Global School of Business on this initiative to strengthen the foundation of national and regional resilience.

Executive Director of CDEMA, Elizabeth Riley , said “As we enter the 2025 Atlantic Hurricane Season, we are confident that this cadre of professionals is better equipped to lead preparedness, response, and recovery efforts that result in safeguarding lives and livelihoods throughout the Caribbean”.

Sandals Foundation, for its part, provided necessary funding to implement the programme for its three-year duration, valued at some US $150,000.

Executive Director at Sandals

Foundation, Heide Clarke said she is optimistic about the future for both NDO Officers and the citizens of the Caribbean.

“Improved Disaster Risk Management starts with our leaders. A holistic approach starts with education and training. When we equip our leaders with the resources they need, we feel confident in their ability to guide us toward a culture of preparedness and awareness, especially in the face of natural hazards.”

The Sandals release said its Foundation has routinely partnered with organisations that promote disaster preparedness and building resilience across the Caribbean – training NDO Officers and small business operators, and educating youth and community members in safety protocols and disaster mitigation and prevention.