KINGSTON, Jamaica  — Support from the United Nations Office for the Coordination of Humanitarian Affairs (OCHA) has significantly strengthened Jamaica’s response and recovery efforts, following the devastation caused by Hurricane Melissa on October 28.

Regional Deputy Director of OCHA, Rogerio Mobilia, said that a team was deployed to Jamaica after the storm to support coordination, data collection and alignment among humanitarian partners.

He was speaking to JIS News after Thursday’s briefing at the National Emergency Operations Centre (NEOC), located at the Office of Disaster Preparedness and Emergency Management (ODPEM).

Mobilia indicated that the team worked with both international agencies and Jamaica’s national authorities, particularly ODPEM, to strengthen clarity around needs, sector roles and operational priorities.

“We tried first to bring the international community to a common ground and to capture their data to understand where they are working, where they have intentions to work and what they are going to do here in terms of sector approach,” said Mobilia.

He further informed that OCHA’s support was focused on two main pillars, coordination and information management, which include civil-military coordination and assessment coordination.

Mobilia noted, also, that the intention is to, over time, refine information products, so they evolve from broad, general data to more detailed and sector-specific insights.

“In the beginning, all our information was overall numbers, generic numbers and areas. Now, five weeks since we are here working, you can see that even the meetings are more structured. We have the sectorial national authorities plus the international community working together, reporting together, addressing the main needs of the population now,” he explained.

Mobilia, who, along with other members of his team departed the island on December 5, said he is pleased with what they were able to accomplish during their time on the island.

—   JIS