Caribbean Annual Appeal No. 05AA041

The International Federation's mission is to improve the lives of vulnerable people by mobilizing the power of humanity. The Federation is the world's largest humanitarian organization, and its millions of volunteers are active in over 180 countries. All international assistance to support vulnerable communities seeks to adhere to the Code of Conduct and the Humanitarian Charter and Minimum Standards in Disaster Response, according to the SPHERE Project.
This document reflects a range of programmes and activities to be implemented in 2005, and the related funding requirements. These are based upon the broader, multi-year framework of the Federation's Project Planning Process (PPP). The PPP products are either available through hyperlinks in the text 1, or can be requested through the respective regional department. For further information concerning programmes or operations in this or other countries or regions, please also access the Federation website at http://www.ifrc.org

The Americas

Latin America and the Caribbean continue to face many challenges, particularly widespread poverty, inequality, migration, urbanization, social unrest and vulnerability to natural disasters. The Federation's Appeal objectives for the Americas for 2005 focus on the core programme areas of health, disaster management, humanitarian principles and values and on organizational development. These objectives are in harmony with the Millennium Development Goals seeking to "eradicate extreme poverty and hunger", to "promote gender equality and empower women" and in the area of health aiming to "reduce child mortality" to "improve maternal health" and to "combat HIV/AIDS, malaria and other diseases".

Over the last decade, the frequency of natural and man-made disasters has increased in the Americas and although the number of victims has decreased significantly, the number of those affected continues to rise steadily. The 2004 hurricane season in the Caribbean has proved to be one of the most deadly. Hurricanes Charley, Frances, Ivan and Jeanne have caused catastrophic levels of damage to infrastructure, resulting in the loss of homes and livelihood for hundreds of thousands of people, posing threats of food insecurity and raising levels of vulnerability. In the Americas an integral disaster management system continues to be developed in order to ensure effective response to disasters through global mechanisms, the Pan American Disaster Response Unit (PADRU) and regional resources. A key element of this system are the Red Cross National Societies which, through their branch network, are striving to reach vulnerable communities to help prepare them in the event of disaster, to avoid loss of life and livelihood, and to mitigate the potential effects of common hazards. A major focus of the Appeals is working together with communities in order to strengthen them in the face of potential disasters.

Socio-economic trends are fuelling the spread of the HIV/AIDS epidemic in the Americas, particularly in the Caribbean where the Red Cross is playing a key role in raising awareness and placing the fight against the disease at the top of humanitarian agendas. Uneven distribution of wealth and marginalization of ethnic minorities increase levels of poverty in certain layers of the population, which has a direct impact on access to health services. In line with the initiative towards "scaling up in health", Red Cross Societies are working to enhance capacities of their health departments in order to reach those in need and increase equity in health. In addition, Red Cross anti-stigma campaigns and advocacy efforts speak out against discrimination and marginalization, particularly associated with HIV/AIDS related stigma. Innovative projects seek to reduce youth violence and gender discrimination as well as to reach ethnic minorities.

The Red Cross in Latin America and the Caribbean is evolving in order to meet the humanitarian challenges and to better target its work. A major focus on networking and peer support aims to promote best practices and to enhance organizational learning. The Communications Forum, promoting capacity in communications, is an example of such a successful initiative together with the regional health networks, the youth network and the organizational development practitioners' networks. The Inter American Regional Conference has developed a Plan of Action in order to reflect the undertakings of the Santiago de Chile Commitment of April 2003. The Plan of Action reiterates the priorities laid down in Strategy 2010. It also stresses the need for achieving strategic alliances with partner organizations and for National Societies to engage in change processes and outlines the significance for the Americas of the concept of integrated community programmes which seek to reach vulnerable communities through strengthened branch networks and enhanced mobilization of volunteers. Implementation of the plan of action will be monitored by the National Societies in the Americas through newly-developed web-based evaluation tools.

The Federation Secretariat's permanent structure in support of the National Societies in the Americas is based on two Regional Delegations: the Panama Regional Delegation, with a Sub Regional Office in Port of Spain, Trinidad, and the Lima Regional Delegation, with a Sub Regional Office in Buenos Aires, Argentina. The Pan American Disaster Response Unit (PADRU) ensures technical support and coordination of disaster management in the entire region. Support to finance and reporting is ensured by the respective regional units based in Panama. There is a fully-fledged Federation Delegation in Haiti and Federation representatives are present in Colombia and Guatemala.

Regional Context

The International Federation of Red Cross and Red Crescent Societies has developed a variety of programmes supporting the Caribbean region with its 16 National Societies and 16 overseas branches of the American, British, French and Netherlands Red Cross Societies. A sub regional office in Port of Spain, Trinidad, supports programmes and networks that cover the entire region. However its focus is on the English and Dutch speaking Caribbean with particular emphasis on 13 National Societies and the 6 Overseas Branches of the British Red Cross. Programmes in the Caribbean are also supported through technical assistance from the regional delegation in Panama, and the service units (PADRU, the Regional Reporting Unit and the Regional Finance Unit). The Federation delegation in Haiti is country focused and its work is profiled in a separate appeal.

As an essentially archipelagic region, the Caribbean faces particular challenges in the fields of transportation, communication and economic integration. Many of the region's nations are small island states, with limited resources and a particular vulnerability to natural disasters and changes in the economic climate. Despite the work of regional entities such as the Caribbean Community (CARICOM) and the Association of Caribbean States (ACS) to promote regional integration, the growth of economic conglomerates such as the North American Free Trade Area has deprived countries in the region of some of their leverage in the marketing of products such as sugar, coffee, and bananas, while leaving them vulnerable to the negative effects of global recession. The region proved particularly vulnerable to the economic downturn and fall in tourism from the United States triggered by the events of 11 September 2001. In addition, the recession in the United States has reduced remittances (an important source of income for some Caribbean states) and both legal and illegal immigration to the US have slowed.

Although the exponential growth in the tourist industry in the years up to 2001 brought in its wake additional income, it also resulted in environmental degradation and the proliferation of disease and social problems. Climate change, and in particular the phenomena associated with global warming and El Niño, has introduced a new severity and unpredictability to the weather in a zone already vulnerable to meteorological extremes. The increasingly deadly impact of the annual hurricane season reflects this with storms such as hurricanes Iris and Michelle (2001), Lili and Isidore (2002), Fabian and Isabel (2003) and Charley, Frances, Ivan - the most powerful hurricane to hit the Caribbean in fifty years - and Jeanne (2004). These hurricanes were capable of taking hundreds of lives and / or causing millions of dollars worth of damage. Apart from the regularly recurring disasters of the hurricane season, the region is also subject to catastrophes such as earthquakes and volcanic eruptions, the case of Montserrat being an ongoing example of the vulnerability of small island populations.

Vulnerability to natural disaster has been accompanied by a rapid growth of negative social phenomena such as drug-use and crime, and an explosive increase in the number of people infected with HIV/AIDS. The HIV/AIDS prevalence rate in the Caribbean is second only to that in sub-Saharan Africa and the disease is the major cause of death among men under the age of 45. Other social problems include a weakening of family ties and traditional ethical values and this is reflected in the rise of delinquency, gang culture and violence within the family.

These combined influences have impacted on a region rendered vulnerable by demographic pressures and, in some instances, entrenched poverty. The largest country in the region, Cuba, remains the subject of a trade embargo imposed by the United States, with serious consequences for its economy. Haiti, with an adult literacy rate of only 50.8% and a life expectancy of just over 49 years¹ is the poorest nation in the Western Hemisphere. Even in the relatively prosperous Dominican Republic the value of the peso has been falling rapidly, unemployment in mid 2002 was running at close to 17% and the illiteracy rate remains high at 16%. Throughout the region, rapid population growth has outpaced economic expansion and often exceeded capacity to match increased need with increased spending on basic public services such as health and education. The challenges ahead for both governments and the humanitarian community are multiple and complex and will require sustained support if they are to be tackled effectively.

Source – UN Stats, Federation 2003 Appeal, UNDP Human Development Report 2004, 2003 & 2002 *** UN Statistics are not available for the other islands that make up the region. These are: Bermuda, Cayman Islands, Turks and Caicos Islands, Puerto Rico, US Virgin Islands, British Virgin Islands, Anguilla, Montserrat, St. Martin, Saba, St Eustatius, St Bartholomew,Guadeloupe, Martinique, Aruba, Curacao, and Bonaire. Taken together the entire Caribbean region has a population of over 40 million people.

Footnote:

¹ UNDP Human Development Report 2003

For further information please contact:

Julian Gore-Booth, sub regional coordinator, sub regional office, Trinidad and Tobago; phone (1 868) 627- 2665; Fax (1 868) 627 9627; e-mail; ifrctt01@ifrc.org

Luis Luna, Regional Officer; phone (41 22) 730 42 74; fax: (41 22) 733 0395; e-mail; luis.luna@ifrc.org

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