CARPHA Pandemic Fund Advances Regional Collaboration And Pandemic Preparedness At CARPHA’s Annual Health Research Conference, Barbados

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Port of Spain, Trinidad and Tobago – The Caribbean Public Health Agency (CARPHA), through its CARPHA Pandemic Fund (PF) Project, played a central role in supporting a week of impactful regional health activities in Barbados from May 5–9, 2025, including the CARICOM Chief Medical Officers (CMO) Meeting, the Pandemic Fund Stakeholders’ Meeting, and a PF plenary session on Day 1 of the 69th Annual Health Research Conference (AHRC). This suite of engagements was designed to foster deeper regional coordination, stakeholder networking and collaboration, and increased visibility of CARPHA’s Pandemic Fund Project, that advanced pandemic preparedness and response (PPR) capacity in the Caribbean.

CARICOM Chief Medical Officers (CMO) Meeting (May 5–6):

The PF supported the participation of Chief Medical Officers from 15 Member States, CARICOM representatives, and technical personnel. Chaired by the CMO, Grenada, this meeting was convened as per CARICOM statute and addressed issues in the areas of regional pandemic preparedness, health security, public health indicator data sets, and included an update on the Port-of-Spain declaration on non-communicable diseases. CARPHA was commended on its rapid execution and outputs for improving regional coordination and capacity for PPR outlined in its PF presentation.

Special Plenary Session at the 69th Annual Health Research Conference (AHRC) (May 7):

Recognising the importance of highlighting pandemic-related research and systems strengthening for improving PPR in the region, the AHRC’s Research Advisory Committee allocated a plenary session specifically for the CARPHA’s Pandemic Fund. The session was grounded in evidence-informed lessons from CARPHA’s leadership during the COVID-19 response, outlining CARPHA’s foundational efforts to secure funding through the Global Pandemic Fund, the rapid scaling up of project outputs, and coordinated support from Member States and CARPHA’s development of a novel, event-based mass gathering surveillance system, now internationally published. Together, the presentations demonstrated the strategic vision and technical innovation driving the Pandemic Fund’s contribution to regional pandemic preparedness and response.

Pandemic Fund Stakeholder Meeting (May 6):

Held at the Hilton Barbados Resort, the event provided opportunities for further networking and deeper collaboration among key stakeholders in attendance, including Chief Medical Officers from CARPHA Member States, members of the Pandemic Fund Project Execution Unit, representatives from the Inter-American Development Bank (IDB), UK Health Security Agency (UKHSA) and the Barbados Ministry of Health and Wellness — among them, CARPHA’s Executive Director, Dr. Lisa Indar; Mr. Ian Ho-a-Shu, IDB Team Leader for the PF Project; Dr. Natalie Wright, Head of the UK Overseas Territories Programme, UKHSA; Hon. Davidson I. Ishmael and Mr. Wayne Marshall, Minister of State and Permanent Secretary, Barbados Ministry of Health and Wellness, respectively. The meeting, chaired by the CARPHA PF Technical Adviser, Dr. Brian Armour, focused on fostering stronger regional coordination around pandemic response mechanisms and emergency preparedness.

Dr. Lisa Indar, Executive Director of CARPHA and Project Director of the Pandemic Fund, underscored the importance of these collaborative efforts in her remarks at the Stakeholders’ Meeting stating that : “CARPHA’s Pandemic Fund Project is changing the way that the Caribbean responds to pandemics, epidemics and outbreaks. It brings together multiple agencies and sectors, bridging the gap, disintegrating silos and propelling the bigger picture of integration and collaboration. Collectively, these efforts will enable the Caribbean region and countries to be better equipped to prevent and respond to future disease threats, outbreaks and possible pandemics.”

Echoing Dr. Indar’s sentiments, Mr. Ian Ho-a-Shu, IDB Team Leader for PF Project, affirmed that “The Inter-American Development Bank (IDB) is pleased to partner with the Caribbean Public Health Agency (CARPHA) on this important pandemic preparedness project. This collaboration reflects our shared commitment to strengthening health systems, enhancing regional resilience, and ensuring the well-being of Caribbean populations through strategic investment, innovation, and coordinated action.”

Highlighting the important synergy of CARPHA’s work and its execution of its Pandemic Fund project, Hon. Davidson I. Ishmael underscored that  “The Project  is being implemented at a remarkable rate and is transforming the Caribbean’ capacity for Pandemic prevention, preparedness and response (PPR)  through Improved real time surveillance systems, laboratory capacity, workforce development and regional coordination mechanisms”.

Dr. Natalie Wright, Head of the UK Overseas Territories Programme at the UK Health Security Agency also  noted the impact of the Pandemic Fund in bolstering CARPHA’s ability to execute its regional mandate of improving public health security for its Member States, indicating that “The regional surveillance and laboratory testing provided by CARPHA have been absolutely vital – especially for countries with limited in-country capacity. The Pandemic Fund strengthens this critical regional function, and through our ongoing partnership – particularly through the Fleming-funded Caribbean Antimicrobial Resistance Alliance (CARA) project – UKHSA is proud to support CARPHA in strengthening health security across the Caribbean”

Pandemic Fund Booth at AHRC (May 7–9):

Throughout the three-day conference, CARPHA’s Project Execution Unit hosted an engaging exhibition booth that showcased the Agency’s work under the Pandemic Fund in strengthening preparedness, planning, and response to pandemic threats. The booth attracted scores of visitors each day, offering a looping video that highlighted the Fund’s pillars of work aligned with global public health benchmarks and tailored to the needs of Member States. Attendees received informational brochures, engaged directly with on-site technical staff, and received branded tokens that reinforced the collaborative effort among CARPHA, the Pandemic Fund, and the Inter-American Development Bank.

CARPHA’s PF Project Team in attendance included Dr. Brian Armour, Technical Advisor, Dr. Sastee Kissoondan, Technical Officer, Mr. Keston Daniel, Coordinator, Visitor-Based Surveillance, Mr. David Riley, Communications Specialist and Mr. Jamal Clinton, IT Assistant. The participation of these key personnel ensured robust engagement across the various sessions and supported seamless event execution, communications, and stakeholder interactions.

CARPHA remains committed to advancing pandemic preparedness across the region through the strengthening of surveillance, laboratory systems, workforce development, and regional coordination.

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