PHILIPSBURG:--- K1 Britannia Foundation’s Disaster Relief and Crisis Team – K1 DIRECT – in collaboration with the Government of Sint Maarten is currently hosting a four-day End-2-End Supply Management Training facilitated by World Food Programme (WFP) and the Caribbean Disaster Emergency Management Agency (CDEMA) at the University of St. Martin.
The supply management training, a first of its kind on St. Maarten, is a close look into the logistics involved in the preparation & emergency phases, as well as securing, monitoring and delivering relief supplies during a disaster. Attending the training are key partners in the disaster preparedness domain including local Emergency Support Functions, Non-profit organizations, international and local private sector organizations, representatives of other islands and law enforcement. Approximately 40 persons will come together for the next few days to discuss processes, procedures and long-term solutions for the distribution process.
The need for a streamlined distribution process and for collaboration in preparation and proper procedure is something that became clear after the 2017 hurricane season. The training will touch on CDEMA’s comprehensive disaster management strategy, WFP’s global mandate, introduction to end-to-end supply chain, emergency preparedness phase, innovation in supply management, emergency response phase and others. Each day will include multiple group activities that will be prearranged to apply participants’ knowledge gained through disaster and hurricane scenarios.
Additionally, with presentations from WFP, CDEMA, K1, and other international private sector partners, all participants will receive an understanding of the support/relief services each entity can offer, the appropriate way to request assistance, and the importance of their role during a disaster.
Priya Thirumur, Co-founder of K1 Britannia Foundation expressed, “I am excited for all organizations involved in the end-to-end supply chain management to be able to come together to brainstorm, share capacities, and bridge gaps. We are also very grateful to the World Food Programme and Government of Sint Maarten for recognizing the importance of a training and workshop of this kind to create a wholesome disaster preparedness strategy within this field.”
Some organizations that will be attending are Ministry of Public Health, Social Development & Labor, Red Cross, GEBE, Tropical Shipping, DHL, Maersk, Port Sint Maarten, Princess Juliana International Airport and Government Affairs.
K1 DIRECT along with its founding sponsors, Carnival Cruise Line and the Dutch Disaster Fund, would like to thank World Food Programme and Government of Sint Maarten who helped to make this training course possible.
