UNITED NATIONS, Oct. 28 — UN agencies are assisting Caribbean nations in strengthening coordination and preparedness efforts as Hurricane Melissa, now a Category 5 storm, heads toward the region, said Stephane Dujarric, spokesman for the UN secretary-general, on Monday.
The regional office for the Office for the Coordination of Humanitarian Affairs (OCHA) is coordinating closely with resident coordinators and UN country teams, as well as with the Caribbean disaster emergency management agency and emergency authorities, on readiness and response, Dujarric told a daily briefing.
OCHA is deploying staff to Cuba and Jamaica this week, as conditions allow, to reinforce coordination and preparation efforts across the region, said Dujarric, adding that in Jamaica, the UN team is supporting national preparedness and response efforts in close coordination with the Jamaican government.
The World Food Programme is providing logistics support, while the UN Children’s Fund has pre-positioned water and sanitation supplies, as well as materials for child protection, he said.
The Pan-American Health Organization is reinforcing health emergency operations, the International Organization for Migration is preparing shelter support, while the UN Development Programme, the Food and Agriculture Organization and the UN Population Fund are mobilizing for early recovery and protection, said Dujarric.
In Haiti, OCHA and its partners are supporting authorities to prepare for further impact, including pre-positioning relief supplies, as well as supporting with cash assistance, early-warning messaging and community outreach, said the spokesman.
In Cuba, where the hurricane is anticipated to hit Tuesday night, the Anticipatory Action Framework was fully activated on Sunday, with a 4 million U.S. dollar allocation released from the UN Central Emergency Response Fund ahead of the storm, allowing UN partners to pre-position food and essential supplies in the eastern provinces, he added. (Xinhua)
