About us
The Caribbean Disaster Risk Management Reference Centre (CADRIM) is a tool of the International Federation of the Red Cross and Red Crescent Societies (IFRC) and hosted by the Barbados Red Cross National Society. This Reference Centre was established in 2010 and aims to reduce risk, especially to the most vulnerable in the Caribbean region through innovative and relevant activities and actions at the community and institutional levels. The staff and regular interns, with the technical support of the Red Cross Caribbean Disaster Management Network and other Red Cross networks, IFRC offices and partners produce contextual tools, methodologies and coordinate trainings to promote actions consistent with key global and regional Strategies and Frameworks such as the Hyogo Framework for Action, Strategy 2020, the Comprehensive Disaster Management Strategy for the Caribbean and the IFRC Community Resilience Framework.
CADRIM is one of four Red Cross Reference Centres in the Americas and specialises in research, systematization, validation and analysis of risk management methodologies for the English and Dutch-speaking Caribbean National Societies. A tool of the International Federation of the Red Cross Red Crescent Societies, CADRIM was established upon the behest of the Caribbean Red Cross Disaster Management Network in 2010 and builds on the best practices of the two other Reference Centres established several years prior: the Reference Centre for Community Resilience (CRREC), located in Costa Rica and the Reference Centre for Institutional Disaster Preparedness (CREPD), located in El Salvador. In 2014, a fourth Centre was established - the Reference Centre for Emergencies and pre-hospital service (CREMYAP), hosted by the Ecuadorian Red Cross.
All 4 Centres fall directly under the Learning and Innovation Unit in the Americas Zone Office, located in Panama. This Unit aims to provide services and support to 35 National Societies, and support multilateral and bilateral efforts on Learning and Innovation; all with a goal is to help National Societies to enhance their leadership, organisational systems and capacities, and consider measures to enable transformations that allow them to realise their full potential in serving the communities of which they are a part.