KINGSTON, Jamaica (JIS) — The Caribbean School of Media and Communication (CARIMAC) has been contracted to develop a new online course aimed at training people in the Caribbean region on how to prepare for natural disasters and to manage communication in the aftermath.

 Offered by the Disaster Risk Reduction Centre of the Institute for Sustainable Development at the University of the West Indies (UWI), Mona, the contract calls for the development of a course named, ‘Communication Planning and Media Relations for Disaster Risk Reduction’.

The announcement was made in CARIMAC’s Lecture Room today during the opening session of the Communication Planning and Media Relations to Support Disaster Risk Reduction two-day training workshop for disaster risk-reduction practitioners. 

Director, Institute for Sustainable Development, UWI, Dr David Smith, said CARIMAC was chosen to develop the course because the institution has the expertise for new course development, which includes Disaster Risk Management.

He added that other new courses are also being looked at for CARIMAC to develop in the future.

“The obvious choice was CARIMAC [as] it works throughout the Caribbean and does excellent work in training people how to work in communications and how to work in media,” Dr Smith said.

He said CARIMAC was also contracted because the institution is the premier media training facility in the Caribbean, and the disaster risk-reduction practitioners pursuing the course need training on how to communicate through the various media outlets about disasters and their country’s action plans.  

“Communication and Disaster Risk Management is an absolute necessity. Effective communication can save lives and reduce loss from disasters. It can make sure that people are able to get back to their jobs as quickly as possible with minimal disruptions,” Dr Smith said.