Minister of National Emergency Management Hon Edmond Castro delivered the keynote address at Official Opening Ceremonies for the Common Alerting Protocol (CAP) Jump-Start Workshop, which started this morning, August 13, at the Radisson Fort George Hotel in Belize City.
In his address, Hon Castro emphasized the importance of providing timely and accurate information to our people, particularly those who are most vulnerable to the effects of disasters. He thanked everyone attending the workshop, including those from government departments, non-government agencies and the media, saying they all have a key role to play in disaster management and risk reduction.
CAP, designated as International Telecommunication Union (ITU) Recommendation X.1303, is broadly accepted internationally as the key standard for societies to achieve all hazards, all-media public alerting for emergencies. This could include emergencies relating to several different hazards including but not limited to drought, fire, flooding, strong winds, traffic accidents, and outbreaks of diseases just to name a few.
The CAP Jump-Start Workshop serves as an introduction to participants of what exactly CAP entails. It also provides a forum for different stakeholders and organizations in the country to discuss how to best implement the CAP standard in Belize and to discuss in particular what organization, Ministry, Department, etc. is responsible for issuing alerts for different hazards.
