Four weeks after Hurricane Melissa decimated several communities in western Jamaica, the United Nations has confirmed additional funding of US$4 million from the UN Central Emergency Response Fund (CERF) to enable four UN agencies to scale up relief efforts on the ground.This was announced by UN Resident Coordinator, Dennis Zulu, during a Special Press Briefing on Hurricane Melissa Recovery, held at Jamaica House on Wednesday, 26 November.Mr Zulu told his audience that, in the wake of Hurricane Melissa’s unprecedented impact, the UN has stood firmly with the Government and people of Jamaica.  “Today, we mark another important milestone in our collective response and I am, therefore, pleased to confirm approval of an extra US$4 million from the United Nations Central Emergency Response Fund (CERF) to accelerate life-saving humanitarian activities across the hardest-hit parishes,” he added.The CERF allocation will be implemented through the United Nations Children’s Fund (UNICEF), the International Organization for Migration (IOM), the Pan American Health Organization / World Health Organization (PAHO/WHO), and the World Food Programme (WFP) – in close collaboration with the Office of Disaster Preparedness and Emergency Management (ODPEM) and relevant government ministries and agencies.Describing the US$4 million allocation as a “clear demonstration of global solidarity with Jamaica at a time when needs are immense”, Mr Zulu said that, from the onset of the emergency, the UN has been working closely with national authorities to support immediate needs and had deployed a coordinated package of assistance across the hardest-hit parishes. He also acknowledged the leadership of the Jamaican Government, as well as ongoing partnerships with national authorities, global partners and first responders, whose work he described as “nothing less than extraordinary”.“More than 145,000 Jamaicans have received assistance across multiple sectors. Over 145,000 Jamaicans have benefited from emergency food support. Thirty-four thousand residents in the parishes of Westmoreland, St Elizabeth and Trelawny received food assistance through collaboration between the Ministry of Labour and Social Security and the WFP,” the UN Head said, adding that IOM, together with the Government, NGOs and community partners, had distributed over 14,000 tarpaulins to families in need, including those in marooned communities.He further noted that the UN, led by UNICEF and in collaboration with other partners including Water Mission International and Global Support Development, had distributed over 740,000 litres of safe drinking water to families. UN support to the health sector included the deployment of emergency medical teams, establishment of urgent health-care facilities, and mental health and psychosocial services, alongside protection efforts across affected communities. “Across all these efforts, the UN coordination system has worked hand-in-hand with ODPEM and relevant ministries, ensuring that assistance is data-driven, needs-based and nationally led. This partnership remains central to our collective recovery,” Mr Zulu maintained.He emphasised that the CERF allocation builds on ongoing work by the UN Development System and would allow four key UN agencies to scale up and sustain targeted humanitarian interventions. He explained that these include providing critical relief supplies, supporting emergency shelter needs, and restoring access to basic services and the most critical needs in the hardest-hit communities.IOM, he said, will provide emergency shelter and non-food items for 8,800 of the most vulnerable people in Westmoreland, Hanover, Saint James and Trelawny, prioritising last-mile delivery to families whose homes and possessions have been destroyed. “WFP will provide cash-based food assistance to 10,756 beneficiaries, supporting hurricane-affected households in priority parishes to meet their food and essential needs. UNICEF will lead the water, sanitation and hygiene response, reaching over 220,000 people with emergency safe water, restoration of water-supply systems, and hygiene and sanitation support,” he added.Mr Zulu further indicated that, through this mechanism, PAHO/WHO will support the continuity of essential health care for 600,000 people, including the provision of medical supplies, urgent repairs to health facilities, deployment of emergency medical teams, and provision of mental health and psychosocial services.While reaffirming the UN’s solidarity, the UN Head stressed that support would continue beyond immediate relief, with a focus on recovery through the collective efforts of 22 UN agencies. “As Jamaica transitions from immediate relief to early recovery, we will continue to work hand-in-hand with government authorities, development partners, the private sector, civil society and, indeed, affected communities,” he assured, noting that the challenges ahead are immense and that rebuilding will require sustained effort over years.The UN’s global emergency fund was designed to enable rapid, impartial and targeted assistance when crisis strikes. It pools contributions from Member States, the private sector and individuals, allowing the UN to deploy resources immediately to save lives in the critical first days.

When Hurricane Melissa tore through the Caribbean in late October, it left Jamaica’s south-west coast shattered, claiming 45 lives and affecting almost 1.6 million people. From Savanna-la-Mar to Black River, the devastating storm splintered trees, ripped off roofs and brought down walls as winds surged past 250 km per hour.“Even large structures couldn’t stand up to it,” said Rogerio Mobilia, who led the OCHA team that quickly deployed to Jamaica. “Communities look like a war zone – people walking through the rubble trying to find where their homes once were.” In Watercress, Westmoreland Parish, the winds flattened nearly every home and stripped the hillsides bare. Kemeisha, 45, stood beside what used to be her home.“I remember Gilbert,” she said, recalling the legendary 1988 hurricane that struck when she was a child. “But this? Nothing like it. Everything’s gone. Now eight of us staying at my sister’s place, a little one-room that was also damaged.”At Savanna-la-Mar’s Sir Clifford Campbell Primary School, groundskeeper Trevolyn, 57, walked through the yard where pieces of roofing lay scattered. “Devastating, man. Real hard,” he said, shaking his head."People still in shelter, they don’t go home as yet because the whole construction of them building blow right down. We haven’t seen any of the students since.” The hurricane destroyed more than 450 schools across Jamaica. Many are still without power or safe classrooms to return to.“Infrastructure, homes, livelihoods – everything has been affected,” said Dennis Zulu, the UN Resident Coordinator in Jamaica. “We’re working with the Government and partners to respond and help Jamaica recover from this unprecedented devastation.”The west bore the brunt of Melissa’s category 5 winds, but the hurricane’s reach was national. In Hellshire and Greenwich Town, near the capital, Kingston, years of erosion from past hurricanes left fishing families exposed as Melissa battered seafood stalls and wrecked docks.“My roof is gone,” said Junior, 67, speaking with regional assessment teams from the Caribbean Disaster Emergency Management Agency (CDEMA). “I have to either fix that or my fishing gear to keep providing.”The massive response from the Government of Jamaica, the Office of Disaster Preparedness and Emergency Management, CDEMA, the Jamaica Defence Force, the Jamaica Red Cross, UN agencies, international non-governmental organizations and faith-based groups reflects the solidarity and scale of effort, and the coordination required to work together. “There’s an influx of partners supporting the response,” said Brenda Eriksen, OCHA Information Management Officer. “There’s a lot of information, so we’re working to understand where they are, what they’re doing and what they’re observing, to see where there may be gaps in response.”Working with the United Nations Disaster Assessment and Coordination (UNDAC) team and standby partners MapAction and Atlas Logistique, OCHA first set up a Kingston-based coordination hub. It then lay the groundwork for a field coordination hub in western Jamaica, mapped access constraints and cut-off communities, and convened sector working groups.Scientists say climate change is fuelling the devastation that communities now face. Research from World Weather Attribution and Imperial College London found that storms as intense as Hurricane Melissa are now several times more likely in the Caribbean’s warmer climate. Melissa’s timing is striking – the UN Climate Change Conference, COP30, is taking place in Brazil as the world inches closer to breaching the 1.5°C warming limit, and as the need for adaptation and climate finance for countries on the front lines grows more urgent.Some of the more fortunate communities are beginning to piece back their lives.Charmaine, 56, works at a small Savanna-la-Mar hotel. She lost her home and now shares a room with eight coworkers. “We are grateful because we still have something,” she said. “But everybody got hit, some worse than others. Some people are just recovering from [Hurricane] Beryl, so there’s no easy fix.”The OCHA-managed UN Global Emergency Fund (CERF) allocated US$4 million to scale up life-saving assistance in coordination with the Government and partners. In Watercress, Loi stood beside the wreckage of her small roadside bar, now picked over for anything salvageable. She spoke of the desperation driving people to search the debris for supplies, but she was focused on rebuilding.“I don’t know what comes next, but I have to recover to keep taking care of my family."You can help people affected by Hurricane Melissa in Cuba, Jamaica and Haiti receive urgently needed food, water, healthcare and more. Donate ........................................................................................................This story was first published by UN OCHA.

Five years after pledging to stem the illegal flow of firearms within and throughout the region, Caribbean States and regional and international partners met in Trinidad and Tobago to assess progress achieved and agree on priorities for the next five years.High-level representatives from the 15 CARICOM States and the Dominican Republic convened in Trinidad and Tobago from 11 to 12 November 2025 for the Fifth Annual Meeting of States of the Caribbean Firearms Roadmap, a decade-long strategy to curb the illicit proliferation of firearms and ammunition by 2030. The meeting was attended by the United Nations Resident Coordinator, Ms. Joanna Kazana; Lieutenant Colonel Michael Jones, Executive
Director of the CARICOM Implementation Agency for Crime & Security (IMPACS); The Honourable Roger Alexander, Minister of Homeland Security and high-level government representatives of Trinidad and Tobago, as well as members of the international community and the diplomatic corps accredited to Trinidad and Tobago. The 2025 Annual Meeting of States, organized by Roadmap co-custodians, CARICOM IMPACS, and the United Nations Regional Centre for Peace, Disarmament and Development in Latin America and the Caribbean (UNLIREC), in collaboration with the Government of Trinidad and Tobago and with funding from Canada, marked a significant milestone: the midpoint of the Roadmap’s implementation period. The meeting thus served as an inflection point for assessing progress, discussing persistent challenges, and reviewing recommendations emerging from the Mid-Term Review, which were presented at the meeting.On 11 November, national focal points and monitoring and evaluation experts met to review technical progress and share experiences in implementing and reporting on the Roadmap. On 12 November, a high-level ministerial segment took place, dedicated to reviewing the findings and recommendations of the Mid- Term Review of the Roadmap, reaffirming political commitment, and underscoring the urgency of accelerating implementation efforts. Mid-Term Review: A Region at a CrossroadsIllicit firearms and ammunition continue to drive high levels of homicides and crime across many Caribbean countries, posing significant threats to public safety and human security. The resulting violence also hinders wider socioeconomic development, negatively affects public health systems, discourages investment, and weakens business growth. Midway through the Roadmap’s implementation, a Mid-Term Review highlighted the significant progress. Thirteen States have developed National Action Plans (NAPs) to combat illicit firearms trafficking, aligning the Roadmap’s strategic priorities with their national contexts, reflecting strong national-level commitment.  The Mid-Term Review, which was presented at the Meeting of States, highlighted improvements in firearm legislation, enhanced law enforcement capacity, and stronger regional intelligence coordination. However, the Review also pointed to persistent and uneven challenges. While some countries have made notable strides, others continue to experience rising levels of armed violence. Limited funding, political transitions, and inconsistent data reporting have hindered implementation efforts. Moreover, the Roadmap must strengthen its integration with broader national and regional security and violence prevention strategies. It should also promote more inclusive participation, particularly of women, youth and community leaders, with a view to addressing armed violence in a holistic and sustainable manner, beyond the narrow lens of security. In an effort to consolidate and widely showcase the progress of the Caribbean Firearms Roadmap, UNLIREC has developed a virtual gallery featuring interactive rooms that highlight the joint work undertaken by States and implementing partners, visualizing five years of progress and implementation.Across the Caribbean, gun violence remains one of the region’s most persistent public-safety challenges. Yet, despite these disparities, the overall trajectory is encouraging. Most countries are moving in the right direction, having demonstrated commitment and progress in implementing the Roadmap over the past five years. However, levels of gun violence remain unacceptably high, underscoring the urgency of sustained and coordinated action. The Roadmap continues to be a relevant strategy to guide national and regional efforts, but its implementation must be accelerated to realize the shared visions of a safer Caribbean by 2030. BackgroundThe Caribbean Firearms Roadmap is a regional umbrella framework adopted by CARICOM States and the Dominican Republic in 2020, in which States committed themselves to implement concrete actions to combat illicit firearms trafficking and make the Caribbean a safer region. Sixteen countries in the region have formally adopted the Roadmap, with thirteen having developed National Action Plans, which tailor the Roadmap’s framework to their unique national contexts.
The Roadmap signifies a commitment by Caribbean States to implement sustainable solutions to prevent and combat armed violence and crimes that are aligned with international norms and the broader goal of promoting sustainable peace, security, and development across the Caribbean. About UNLIREC
The United Nations Regional Centre for Peace, Disarmament and Development in Latin America and the Caribbean (UNLIREC) is one of three regional centres under the United Nations Office for Disarmament Affairs. Since its establishment in 1986, UNLIREC has worked to promote peace, security and disarmament throughout the region. 
For more information, please visit www.unlirec.org or contact:  melissa.yi@unlirec.org.

More than 130 roads were blocked, power and communication networks disrupted, while health services remain under heavy strain, according to the UN aid coordination office (OCHA).“Up to 360,000 people may require food assistance”, underscored the World Food Programme (WFP). Access to some western parishes continue to be difficult due to debris and fuel shortages, OCHA said.WFP has been “working around the clock”, developing joint plans and strategies with the Government, said Brian Bogart, Country Director for WFP Multi-Country Caribbean Office, briefing journalists in New York via video link.Jamaican resilience“The Jamaican people are resilient”, he said, “but they need urgent support to maintain that resilience.Mr. Bogart reiterated that urgent needs remain food, water, shelter, and medicine for communities which have been hardest hit.In the past two days, both a French and a Dutch navy vessel loaded with relief items have made landfall in Kingston’s harbour.In the days ahead, WFP is planning to assist up to 200,000 people across the country with food assistance and cash transfers, which is critical as the country moves from an immediate humanitarian response to a longer-term recovery strategy.Cuba and HaitiFood distribution in Cuba has already reached 180,000 in protection centres across the provinces of Granma, Santiago de Cuba, and Guantanamo, reported WFP Country Director there, Etienne Labande.Highlighting the UN food agencies’ deep understanding of the local context and their ability to coordinate with authorities and communities, M. Labande emphasised that having WFP on the ground was “critical” for ensuring a fast and effective response.Meanwhile, in Haiti, at least 30 people died during the extreme weather generated by Melissa, according to the authorities.  “An estimated 1.25 million people have been affected by the hurricane”, said the Cuba country director.To make matters worse, relief efforts and the delivery of ongoing aid are further complicated by the continuing humanitarian crisis and security vacuum created by armed groups who control the vast majority of the capital, Port au Prince.“Recovery is a marathon, not a sprint”, underscored M Labande.Despite severe funding shortages, access challenges and logistical constraints, the UN and partners are continuing to assess damage and ramping up efforts to reach people in need.$74 million is urgently needed to deliver life-saving assistance to up to 1.1 million people across the Caribbean in the wake of Melissa, and coordinate emergency logistics and telecommunications....................................................................This story was first published by UN News.