KINGSTON, Jamaica — As Jamaica marks Earthquake Month in January, the Ministry of Labour and Social Security is assuring citizens that it is prepared to provide relief, welfare and recovery assistance in the event of a disaster.

As chair of the Humanitarian Assistance Committee, the ministry fulfils its social protection mandate through shelter management, the provision of relief supplies, and the disbursement of recovery grants.

Speaking at a recent JIS Think Tank, Director for Disaster Rehabilitation and Welfare Management, Jacqueline Shepherd, said that the ministry maintains a warehouse stocked with relief supplies, a fleet of 32 vehicles to mobilise response teams, and Closed User Group (CUG) phones for communication and coordination during emergencies.

“The ministry’s motto is ‘leave no one behind’. When it comes to a disaster, you can never be totally prepared. It’s an act of God, but we prepare for it as much as we can, and as always, we try to be ready,” she said.

Shepherd told JIS News that disaster response strategies are tailored to the nature and scale of each event.

“In the case of an earthquake, persons will be in shelters, [requiring] mass registration. It would also require that we are continually providing support,” she pointed out.

“We provide relief supplies to all persons in shelters. This includes food, toiletries and bedding; as long as persons are there, the ministry will provide that support. …” she said.

The ministry works closely with the Office of Disaster Preparedness and Emergency Management (ODPEM) to coordinate all welfare-related activities associated with humanitarian assistance following a disaster.

Shepherd, who is also a trained social worker, explained that the initial response typically involves in-kind assistance before transitioning to damage assessments.

“We proceed into the communities house by house. Sometimes it necessitates that we have mass distribution,” she pointed out.

A key tool used during this process is the Jamaica Household Disaster Impact Needs Assessment (JHDINA) Form, which Shepherd said, is a standardised instrument used across agencies.

“The form is designed in such a way that when you name the different disasters it takes you to specific questions related to each disaster. It is used during the assessment phase following a disaster. Our form is so designed that it has the coordinates and you can go back and take pictures,” she told JIS News.

As it relates to the grant assistance, she said that the support is for restoration. “It’s not a grant that will necessarily rebuild your house but it’s towards restoration and recovery,” she noted.

Shepherd said that when the ministry’s existing budget is insufficient to meet recovery needs, additional resources are sought through Cabinet.

“We pay on three levels. Whether you sustain minor damage, major damage or if you are totally destroyed. It’s not a set figure. The magnitude, scope and nature of the disaster impacts the modality of payment and how much money is paid to each category,” she explained.

Shepherd noted that when an event escalates into a national disaster, typically defined as one affecting more than 20 families, the response becomes the responsibility of the Humanitarian and Assistance Committee, which is chaired by the ministry and involves the humanitarian partners.

“These include Food For the Poor, Red Cross, Adventist Development and Relief Agency (ADRA), Salvation Army, and a lot more,” she said.

“A lot of times persons are saying, ‘oh, I see Red Cross and I don’t see the ministry’, but persons have to understand, if you see the Red Cross, you’re seeing the Ministry of Labour and Social Security; it’s the Humanitarian and Assistance Committee. We lead the coordination and the relief distribution, but it’s a combined effort of all humanitarian stakeholders,” she noted.

In preparation for disaster response, social workers have been trained and continue to be equipped with essential field skills, including psychosocial support, cardiopulmonary resuscitation (CPR), and first aid.

Outside of major national disasters, the ministry continues to respond to household-level emergencies throughout the year, including fires, flooding and freak storms.

For more information on the ministry’s work or to access assistance, individuals may call 876-922-9500-8 or visit mlss.gov.jm.

— JIS