Melissa relief audit shows $26m spent of $1.44bn; ODPEM accepts findings and tightens controls

The Office of Disaster Preparedness and Emergency Management (ODPEM) has gone on record about the Auditor General’s Hurricane Melissa review, after the document showed only $26 million of the $1.44 billion donated for that relief round has been spent up to now.

The audit narrative recorded a joint push to gather cash for people piecing lives back together after the hurricane, but flagged that ODPEM had no clear expenditure plans.

In a press release issued on Wednesday, ODPEM said it takes on board the findings and recommendations set out in the report, and underlined that “all relief resources placed under its stewardship are managed transparently and responsibly”.

The communication repeated that the donations were always meant to finance national relief interventions alongside the shelter recovery programme.

It assured the public that every batch of goods bought to support the government-directed roof repair programme is tracked and has been entered into ODPEM’s inventory management system.

ODPEM further reported that additional measures now in place are meant to firm up how records are kept, how warehouses are run, how distributions are proved at the doorstep, and how ledgers are squared once supplies move out.