USAID/OFDA announces new projects for disaster risk reduction

As part of the new regional strategy focusing on disaster risk reduction (DRR) in Latin America and the Caribbean (LAC), USAID/OFDA recently awarded funding to support DRR projects in the Dominican Republic, Guatemala, Haiti, Jamaica, and Peru, as well as a series of workshops on DRR and protection and gender issues.

Through the Regional Disaster Assistance Program (RDAP), which includes 21 disaster risk management specialists located throughout Latin America and the Caribbean, USAID/OFDA focuses on promoting DRR in two main areas, according to Eduardo Gutiérrez, the DRR specialist for the RDAP.

The first objective is to promote and orient the development of projects, programs, and actions to reduce known disaster risks. Actions generally fall into one of five categories: physical, socio-economic, environmental, institutional, and post-disaster rehabilitation and recovery (i.e. inserted into early recovery projects). The RDAP specialists help coordinate these efforts, funded through the RDAP or other USAID/OFDA sources.

The second objective is to increase the resilience of vulnerable communities by strengthening capacities and building on lessons learned in order to increase the ability of families to recover more quickly from disasters.