The Government of Jamaica, in collaboration with the United Nations Office for the Coordination of Humanitarian Affairs (OCHA), will host the Sixth Regional Meeting on International Mechanisms for Humanitarian Assistance (MIAH) for Latin American and Caribbean States under the theme “Strengthening Public and Private Partnerships, towards a common Regional Platform for Humanitarian Action”. The meeting is scheduled to take place at the Jamaica Conference Centre in Kingston from October 16 to 18, 2013.

This meeting aims to bring together representatives of Ministries of Foreign Affairs, civil protection and civil defence agencies with, sub-regional, regional and global humanitarian actors. Together participants will establish and strengthen coordination and response mechanisms to address humanitarian needs in responding to disasters in the region.

MIAH meetings have become an important initiative in the Latin America and the Caribbean region for dialogue among the humanitarian community and an opportunity to share experiences and good practices, as well as, strengthen alliances that are crucial during emergency response.Meetings have been held in Mexico (2008), Brazil (2009), Argentina (2010), Ecuador (2011) and Panama (2012). The Sixth Meeting of the MIAH will be of special significance as this is the first time that the meeting will be held in a Caribbean country.

The Minister of Local Government and Community Development, the Honourable Noel Arscott affirmed that the MIAH meeting provides  an excellent platform for dialogue and exchange of information new tools and initiatives towards strengthening relationships between states, regional organizations and humanitarian partners. “The Ministry of Local Government & Community Development is very pleased to be hosting the meeting and we expect Jamaica to benefit from the collective knowledge and expertise of our Latin American and Caribbean counterparts”, he added.

The Regional Meeting on International Mechanisms for Humanitarian Assistance is an initiative promoted by Latin America and Caribbean countries with the support of OCHA’s regional office, which aims to strengthen partnership and the collaborative efforts in the Regions  to promote a more integrated approach to humanitarian assistance.

International Mechanisms for Humanitarian Assistance  is the English translation of the Spanish  Mecanismos Internacionales de Assistencia Humanitaria – MIAH.