THE HAGUE - At the invitation of the Ministry of the Interior and Kingdom Relations (BZK) and the Ministry of Justice and Security (JenV) of the Netherlands, representatives from Curaçao attended the conference "Week of Crisis Management" in The Hague.
The conference took place from May 22nd to May 25th. Members of Curaçao's crisis and disaster organization, the Crisis and Disaster Management Organization (CRBo), including the national crisis coordinator, Mr. Lesley Fer, and the CRBo secretary, Ms. Graciëla Waandels, attended the "Week of Crisis Management" conference. The CRBo crisis staff consists of the fire commander, police chief, national crisis coordinator, medical crisis coordinator, and the secretary of the Crisis and Disaster Management Organization (CRBo). The crisis staff are the first responders activated in the event of a major incident to advise the Minister of General Affairs, who becomes the "commander-in-chief" during a crisis or disaster, on how to mitigate the effects of the crisis or disaster.
The conference was opened by the State Secretary, Mrs. Alexandra van Huffelen, who emphasized the importance of working together within the Kingdom in crisis and disaster situations. Present during the "Week of Crisis Management" were the national crisis coordinators, secretaries of the crisis and disaster organizations, crisis and disaster officials responsible for Aruba, Bonaire, St. Maarten, Saba, Statia, the Netherlands, the Representation of the Netherlands in Curaçao, the Representation of the Netherlands in St. Maarten, and officials from the Ministry of BZK and JenV of the Netherlands.
The goal of the week was to discuss how countries in the Kingdom can provide assistance and strengthen each other before, during, or after a crisis or disaster situation within the Kingdom. The conference also focused on the importance of working together within the Kingdom. For example, the excellent work that Curaçao provided and offered assistance to St. Maarten after the passage of Hurricane Irma in September 2017 was highlighted. Curaçao served as a hub for logistical support and evacuations in St. Maarten.
During the conference, representatives from Curaçao gave a presentation highlighting the developments in the field of crisis and disaster management in Curaçao and the potential of the Curaçao Crisis and Disaster Management Organization (CRBo). The developments that were highlighted include: the management of the COVID-19 crisis; our risk profile for 2023-2028; our updated crisis plan; the "Prepare Now Expo Week" organized in April; crisis and disaster courses, training, and exercises; security for large-scale events; multidisciplinary exercises that were conducted; the oil spill contingency plan; and the professionalization trajectory of the CRBo organization.
One of the tangible achievements of the conference is the platform it provided for countries to discuss how they can intensify collaboration in the areas of training, exchanging information/expertise plans, improving communication effectiveness and efficiency during crises and disasters, exchanging experiences, and expanding knowledge in crisis and disaster management.
The mentioned points will form the basis of a proposal to the governments of the countries within the Kingdom to formalize an agreement to provide assistance to each other before, during, and after a crisis or disaster situation.
The idea behind such an agreement is that in the case of a major incident where rapid assistance is needed, countries within the Kingdom in the Caribbean region can help each other much faster - especially in the first few days - than, for example, the Netherlands due to the distance between the European part of the Kingdom and the Caribbean part.