About CARPHA

About CARPHA

The Caribbean Public Health Agency (CARPHA) is the public health agency for the Caribbean. Legally established in July 2011 by an Inter-Governmental Agreement (IGA) signed by the Caribbean Community (CARICOM) Heads of Government. CARPHA began operations in January 2013 with its formal launch on July 2, of the same year.

The establishment of CARPHA is grounded in the philosophy and principles of regional cooperation. Since 1973, with the signing of the Treaty of Chaguaramas, cooperation in health was identified as an important strategy to bolster health sector development. The Caribbean Cooperation in Health Initiative (CCH) was therefore established as the strategic framework to promote collaborative action in addressing the critical public health problems facing the region and CARPHA is the implementation mechanism.

An amalgamation of five key public health organization in the Caribbean, CARPHA is dedicated to advancing the public health priorities of the Region. Given the disparity in size and resources across the region the principles of solidarity in health have been practiced for several decades, and within this collective system CARPHA has several comparative advantages. This includes:

• mechanisms to work with states and territories in the Caribbean;
• convening role;
• development and implementation of health policies, strategies, standards and guidelines;
• promotion of evidence-based decision making to CMS;
• the ability to connect the Region to global experts and technical resources through its various networks and partners.

CARPHA's headquarters is in Port-of-Spain, Trinidad with offices in St. Lucai and Jamaica.