New Providence’s participation in the Inter-American Development Bank’s (IDB) Emerging and Sustainable Cities Programme, will help government planners and decision-makers to plan for a more sustainable future not only for Nassau, but the entire Bahamas.
The resulting plan is the first of many such island master plans within The Bahamas.
A Smart City is one that places people at the centre of development, incorporates Information and Communication Technologies into urban management, and uses these elements as tools to stimulate the design of an effective government that includes collaborative planning and citizen participation. By promoting integrated and sustainable development, Smart Cities become more innovative, competitive, attractive and resilient, thus improving lives.
The Emerging and Sustainable Cities Programme employs a multidisciplinary approach to identify, organize and prioritize urban interventions to tackle the main roadblocks that prevent the sustainable growth of emerging cities in Latin America and the Caribbean. The approach is based on three pillars: environmental and climate change sustainability, urban sustainability, and (iii) fiscal sustainability and governance.
Addressing an IDB Caribbean Coastal Resilience Forum held in New Providence at the Island House, September 26, 2017 Prime Minister, Dr. the Hon. Hubert A. Minnis said an early deliverable of the project has been a study on natural hazards and risks to the island, specifically inland flooding, coastal flooding and salt water intrusion into the freshwater lens.
The Prime Minister said Hurricane Matthew, which caused damage in The Bahamas – including New Providence -- in 2016, confirmed the accuracy of coastal flooding models as communities along New Providence’s southern shore found themselves inundated by storm surge.
“The impact of the last three hurricanes on our islands (Joaquin, Matthew and Irma in 2015, 2016 and 2017) demonstrates this need for coastal planning,” Prime Minister Minnis said.
“We have learnt the hard way that we cannot continue to build our communities and infrastructure in the same manner. These are the first of many such master plans within The Bahamas,” Prime Minister Minnis added.
Prime Minister Minnis said government planners and decision-makers may have to strengthen the country’s town planning and zoning regulations as part of his Administration’s overarching plan to build more sustainable, resilient communities throughout the Commonwealth.
“This may include identifying and enforcing no-build zones within the islands of The Bahamas. We are going to have to deal with the issues around land tenure and land administration as we think better zoning and the provision of new housing projects built for disaster resilience.”
Prime Minister Minnis said “significant work” has already been completed on this particular issue through the IDB’s Land Use Planning and Administration Project (LUPAP).
“We must now revive that work for implementation. Further, we must encourage and foster innovation in our architecture and engineering so that we can design and build infrastructure that is more resilient and sustainable,” Prime Minister Minnis added.
By Matt Maura
Bahamas Information Services
