The Pandemic Fund

For most of us, the Caribbean Islands conjure up images of stunning sandy beaches, palm trees swaying in the breeze, and warm, welcoming weather that attract millions of tourists each year.  Tourism is the lifeblood of the regional economy. Yet, those very same ships and planes that bring waves of tourists to the islands also pose significant risks of infectious disease outbreaks. The region’s small island nature, limited resources, and exposure to climate change and disasters make it particularly vulnerable. In recent years, the Caribbean region has faced numerous infectious disease outbreaks with significant human, economic, and social impacts. To help tackle these challenges, the Caribbean Public Health Agency (CARPHA) is leading a regional project with the support of a $16 million grant from the Pandemic Fund that mobilized additional $9 million in co-finance and co-investment. 

The goals of this project are clear: to reduce the public health impact of pandemics in the Caribbean by strengthening capacity for early warning, surveillance and detection, building llaboratory systems that can ramp up testing, and developing and nurturing a health workforce that can be rapidly deployed in times of crisis.  Spanning 12 Caribbean countries, the initiative is implemented with the support of the Inter-American Development Bank (IDB).

More effective disease surveillance for safer communities

One of the project’s early achievements is the new innovative electronic Mass Gathering Surveillance System (MGSS) that covers six Caribbean countries. The MGSS platform was created in response to the imminent health risk presented by hosting the International Cricket Council Men’s T20 World Cup from June to July in 2024, which brought nearly a quarter of a million visitors and players from 17 countries to the region. 

Building on CARPHA's existing electronic syndromic Early Warning Systems (EWS), the MGSS is an electronic, visitor-based surveillance system for mass gatherings that features a real-time analytic dashboard. During the cricket World Cup, this innovative system safeguarded over 240,000 visitors in addition to the tournament’s host communities by enabling officials to simultaneously record, map, and share data on emerging symptoms and syndromes (gastroenteritis, fever and respiratory, fever rash, undifferentiated fever, fever and hemorrhagic, fever and neurological symptoms). This allowed countries to analyze live information, trace and contain clusters, and actively manage symptoms at different game sites to protect both the visitors and the populations in the host communities.

The platform proved its effectiveness by detecting thresholds for the respiratory and gastroenteritis syndromes, enabling an effective response within 24 hours to prevent a potential outbreak.  Data generation and sharing were central in this process; daily regional health security and surveillance country reports as well as aggregated reports provided critical insights for timely decision-making by public health officials. 

Countries across the region have embraced the new surveillance platform, which was adopted by the Caribbean Council of Human and Social Development Health in September 2024, and health experts praised the platform for its effectiveness.  

Dr. Anand Persaud, Lead for International Health Regulation at the Guyana Ministry of Health, emphasized that this project “introduced digitalization to the country, something it lacked,” and that it significantly bolstered the Ministry of Health's capacity to implement surveillance programs in other areas.  Dr. Avery Hind, Director of Epidemiology at the Ministry of Health of Trinidad and Tobago, praised the platform’s user-friendly, standardized structure. Mr. Ian Ho-A-Shu, Senior Health Specialist at Inter-American Development Bank, commended CARPHA for its early and significant accomplishments, highlighting both their forward-thinking preparedness efforts and prompt response capacity.

Dr. Lisa Indar, CARPHA’s Executive Director, noted that “this innovation has surpassed its initial function,” and has been expanded to Dominica for their World Creole Music Festival and Bahamas for their Junkanoo Festival in the Caribbean.

Building resilience through a holistic approach

The project demonstrates the Pandemic Fund’s commitment to promote health equity and community engagement. The successful establishment and implementation of the MGSS was underpinned by robust risk assessment and capacity building for the members states, health and tourism sector professionals, communities, and other stakeholders. More than 1,500 stakeholders were trained on the new system to foster a localized and inclusive approach to preparedness and response.  Women made up two-thirds of those trained in the food and environmental safety elements of the system and 60 percent in the prevention and control of infectious diseases in the hospitality sector. 

Beyond surveillance, the Pandemic Fund’s support is enabling CARPHA to mount a more robust and timely response to a surge in cases of Dengue fever, for example, by providing fogging machines and others tools to member states. This effort strengthened the region’s ability to control the spread of Dengue as well as Chikungunya, Zika, and other mosquito-borne diseases that remain persistent threats.  

By strengthening disease surveillance and outbreak response, the Pandemic Fund is not only protecting public health—it is also safeguarding the economic foundation of the Caribbean. With tourism as a lifeline for the region, investments in pandemic preparedness, prevention and response protect people, tourism, and livelihoods across the region and beyond. 

To learn more about the project, go to: https://www.thepandemicfund.org/projects/CARIBBEAN-reducing-public-health-impact-pandemics-through-strengthened-integrated-early-warning

To date, the Pandemic Fund has awarded grants totaling US$885 million, benefiting 75 countries across 6 geographies through investments in surveillance, laboratories, and workforce capacity.