Countries in the Latin America and the Caribbean (LAC) region are vulnerable to a range of natural hazards, including droughts, earthquakes, forest fires, floods, hurricanes, and volcanic eruptions, as well as political and economic crises. Between FY 2009 and FY 2018, USAID’s Office of U.S. Foreign Disaster Assistance (USAID/ OFDA) and USAID’s Office of Food for Peace (USAID/ FFP) provided humanitarian assistance in response to a diverse range of emergencies in the region. Recent examples include hurricanes in the Caribbean, a tropical storm in Costa Rica, an earthquake in Ecuador, volcanic activity in Guatemala, drought in Central America, and the Venezuela regional crisis.
USAID provided nearly $1.1 billion to assist disaster-affected populations in the LAC region in the last decade. USAID/OFDA contributed nearly $569.4 million to support the provision of emergency relief items, logistical activities, and humanitarian coordination, as well as agriculture and food security, health, livelihoods, nutrition, protection, shelter, and water, sanitation, and hygiene interventions. With additional funding, USAID supports disaster risk reduction programming across the region. USAID/FFP provided nearly $502.6 million in emergency food and nutrition assistance—including U.S. in-kind food aid, local and regional food procurement, cash transfers for food, food vouchers, and specialized nutrition products—to support disaster-affected and food-insecure populations, including internally displaced persons and refugees.
Between FY 2009 and FY 2018, USAID responded to approximately 80 disasters in LAC and deployed humanitarian teams to the region as needed, including eight Disaster Assistance Response Teams (DARTs). USAID deployed two DARTs to the Caribbean following hurricanes in FY 2017. USAID also deployed DARTs in response to three major earthquakes, a choelra outbreak, and a building collapse during the last decade. Finally, USAID activated a DART in FY 2018 to respond to the Venezuela regional crisis. USAID activated multiple Washington, D.C.-based Response Management Teams to support coordination and response efforts throughout the LAC region.
