US$5.8m for Barbados

BARBADOS received a payout of US$5.8 million from the Caribbean Catastrophe Risk Insurance Facility (CCRIF). The payment was for damage on the island after the passage of Tropical Storm Kirk earlier this month.

Barbados Prime Minister Mia Mottley received the payout at a ceremony in Barbados last Friday.

A statement issued by the CCRIF said the payout was made under Barbados’ excess rainfall policy, two weeks after the event.

Mottley said, “Every dollar in damage for a country that is in a tight fiscal situation is a dollar that we really would have preferred not to lose, and therefore (we are pleased) to have this sum coming back to us to help us offset some of the damage as a result of Tropical Storm Kirk.”

She added, “We are trying to take a proactive approach and this money will help us to continue in that manner.”

CCRIF CEO Isaac Anthony said natural hazards continue to have an inordinate impact on the economies of the small island states of the Caribbean.

He underscored that the importance of risk financing and the parametric products that CCRIF provides has become even more evident especially after the past two years, in which Hurricanes Matthew, Irma and Maria affected so many countries in the region. Anthony said CCRIF insurance or risk transfer in general is not a panacea.

“In the Caribbean, we know all too well that we must have allocations in our budget for disaster management and recovery supported by comprehensive disaster management policies and plans. We must – and can – reduce our vulnerabilities to natural hazards,” he said.