PIRAC launched...MoU signed between French Red Cross and IFRC

On 27th September, the International Federation and French Red Cross signed a Memorandum of Understanding in Guadeloupe concerning the coordination of disaster preparedness and response in the Caribbean.

The MoU, signed by the French Red Cross President and the Federation's Sub-Regional Office Coordinator, sets out the roles and responsibilities of the two organisations in respect of the provision of support to the Caribbean National Societies and to the French Red Cross overseas branches in the region. This support will strengthen the regional disaster management system, established by the Federation's Pan-American Disaster Response Unit (PADRU).

The MoU compliments the Pointe à Pitre Agreement between the Haiti Red Cross and the French Red Cross department delegations of Guadeloupe, Martinique and French Guyana, which aims to strengthen and develop local and national response capacities. That Agreement outlines the framework under which the Platforme d'Intervention Regionale Amerique-Caraibes (PIRAC) will operate to address the vulnerability of populations prone to disasters in the region.

The signing of the MoU in Guadeloupe coincided with the training of nearly 90 personnel from the Haiti Red Cross and the three French territories in the regional disaster response system, facilitated jointly by the French Red Cross and PADRU."