The Department of Emergency Management is the government department responsible for the development and implementation of the Emergency Management Programme in Barbados. It has the responsibility for coordinating emergency management activities in Barbados.

The District Emergency Organisation operates as the volunteer arm of the Department of Emergency Management, the agency responsible for the National Emergency Management System. The role of the DEO's is to organize and coordinate the resources of the community so as to allow for an effective response in time of crisis. The DEO works with the community to develop and operationalize disaster prevention and disaster preparedness programmes to lessen the impact of identified hazards such as hurricane, flood and earthquake, fire, aircraft and vehicular accidents and is also becoming more and more involved in the fight against environmental hazards such as love vine and the Giant African Snail.