The crime problem in The Bahamas is centered in New Providence. It has been an issue for nearly a decade. It has gotten no better.

A man was shot dead on Hay Street on Monday night following a card game. The 19 year old was the 83rd person murdered in The Bahamas this year.

Chief Superintendent Paul Rolle said officers responding to reports of gunshots found him in the street shot in the face. He said based on preliminary reports the man was gambling with six other people in the hallway of an apartment complex around 10 p.m.

“We are not certain whether the gambling game is [related] to his death or something else, but we appeal to those people who were a part of the game to reach out to us and help us to advance this investigation,” Rolle said.

This time last year there were 65 murders. Murders are up 27.69 percent this year. We are on pace to exceed the record murder count of 2011 when 127 were killed.

Earlier this month, Minister of National Security Dr. Bernard Nottage announced that the Inter-American Development Bank (IDB) approved a $20 million loan to the government to help fund the fight against crime. He said access to the funds is the “most important event” in the crime fight in recent times. Nottage added that together with the IDB the government came up with several crime-fighting strategies that include targeting at-risk youth, strengthening the justice system and improving reintegration programs.

The government is also doubling down on the police presence in our inner-city communities – the places where the majority of these crimes occur. The officers of the Mobile Division can be seen in large numbers in areas such as Bain Town. These efforts have not led to a reduction in murders this year, but more police presence is a step in the right direction.

While police resources are increasingly directed toward fighting violent crime in the inner city, the Royal Bahamas Police Force should not forget the residents in the suburbs and more upwardly mobile communities. Those areas do not have the same number of shootings and killings. They are, however, vulnerable to property crimes and robberies. The residents in the suburbs are taxpayers too. A large number of police cars are not needed for the suburbs. A consistent visible presence should be there too, however.

The solutions to the crime problem on this island are not all law enforcement based, of course. We must invest in our young people; reform our schools; discourage young unmarried women from having children too young; we must find jobs for our young people to deter them from considering the life of crime.

The governing Progressive Liberal Party (PLP) has not found the right mix of measures yet to lead to a significant reduction in the rate of violence and killings on the streets of New Providence. The PLP must keep at it, though. While many Bahamians have problems with the party and its leader, we all hope they will be successful in the crime fight.