Caribbean region first to launch UN Early Warnings for All Initiative

Prime Minister of Barbados, the Hon. Mia Mottley and Prime Minister of Saint Lucia, the Hon. Phillip J. Pierre, are leading regional efforts to ensure the success of the Early Warnings for All Initiative (EW4ALL) for the Caribbean.

“Disasters remind us that we are all world citizens whether we like it or not.”

This was Mottley's warning as she addressed the world’s first regional launch of EW4ALL in Barbados where she called for stronger global partnerships and civil society cooperation to ensure the success of the UN-led initiative.

Mottley, a recognised climate change advocate for small island developing States (SIDS), underscored: “Life is not seen from speeches on a platform, but life is experienced on a daily basis…we are global citizens and everything is interconnected. We need to work together at all levels, having more strategic leadership. Disasters speak one language - destruction.”

The event held at UN House, Barbados, brought together regional leaders and key global officials in support of  multi-hazard early warning systems, which encapsulates UN Secretary-General, António Guterres’ vision to see every person on Earth protected by the year 2027.

"The Caribbean region is blessed with immense natural beauty but it is considered to be an active area globally for natural disasters,” said Prime Minister of Saint Lucia, the Hon. Philip Pierre, during a virtual address where he emphasised the fact that the Caribbean region is the second most disaster-prone in the world.

The Prime Minister further noted that early warning systems not only save lives, but also provide vast economic benefits. “They are considered to be low-hanging fruit for climate change adaptation, because they are relatively cheap in comparison to the cost of poor planning,” he observed.

Nevertheless, only 30% of the Caribbean is covered by effective Multi-Hazard Early Warning Systems. UN Deputy Secretary-General, Amina J. Mohammed, via a video address, delivered a clear message that this must change, stating:

“Every person in the Caribbean, in small island developing states and the world must be protected by an effective multi-hazard early warning system. This is not a privilege but a right that every person on Earth should enjoy.” 

The UN leader said the Early Warnings For All Initiative would seek to address gaps across the four key pillars of early warning systems: Understanding disaster risk; Monitoring and forecasting; Communication; and Preparedness and response capacity.

To achieve this, the UN is seeking to raise $3.1 billion. UN Special Representative of the Secretary-General for Disaster Risk Reduction, Mami Mizutori, said, however, that support must extend beyond finances. “It’s also transfer of technology and expertise,” she said, as she highlighted the need for better data to guide implementation.

Ms. Mizutori said the Caribbean was ideal for the first regional launch of EW4ALL because of the strength of its regional organisations  such as the Caribbean Disaster Emergency Management Agency (CDEMA). She said, “the ownership is with the region,” and underscored the need to “build on what is already there and the advances made.”

Dr. Carla Barnett, Secretary-General of the Caribbean Community (CARICOM) delivered a recorded message where she offered the multilateral organisation’s endorsement of EW4ALL calling it “a key adaptive response to the inability so far to limit the global emissions to a level that will keep global temperature rise to within 1.5 degrees of pre-industrial levels.”

The CARICOM Head said that the region has been bearing the brunt of the impact of global warming and hailed the leadership demonstrated by Caribbean leaders for initiating the implementation of this plan in the Caribbean.  

We clearly saw the tremendous benefit of multi-hazard early warning in action in St. Vincent and the Grenadines, in the lead up to the eruption of La Soufrière. Despite massive infrastructure damage, early warning and acting upon it, saved lives.”

Barnett offered this reminder while noting the need to ensure inclusive and streamlined approaches to implementing early warning products to include the contribution of youth and all other vulnerable groups.

The UN Resident Coordinator for Barbados and the Eastern Caribbean, Didier Trebucq, in welcoming the launch of the initiative, reiterated that human-induced climate change was adding to the urgent need for inclusive and accessible multi-hazard early warning systems.

Trebucq said that while multi-hazard early warning systems have progressed in most Caribbean countries that now possess the technical capacities for monitoring and forecasting hydrometeorological hazards, the case was very different when analysing the existing capacities for geological, biological, and technological hazards.

He also drew reference to existing gaps in dissemination of warnings that prevented last mile coverage “so that we leave no one behind” — which is at the core of the EW4ALL initiative, that seeks to ensure universal coverage in five years.

Trebucq hosted a panel discussion during the event that featured Ms. Mizutori alongside QU Dongyu, Director General of the Food and Agriculture Organization (FAO); Petteri Taalas, Secretary-General of World Meteorological Organization (WMO); Inger Andersen, Executive Director of the UN Environment Programme (UNEP); Gerard Howe, Chair of the Climate Risk and Early Warning Systems (CREWS) Initiative, UK Foreign, Commonwealth & Development Office; and Shajunee Gumbs, CDM Youth Ambassador of St. Kitts and Nevis.

Read more about the Regional Launch of the EW4All Initiative here.