Prime Minister the Most Hon. Dr. Hubert Minnis told Bahamians living in New York that The Bahamas will need long-term help to recover from Hurricane Dorian, especially during the reconstruction of the devastated areas of Abaco and Grand Bahama.
While the Government will lead the reconstruction, this is a task bigger than The Bahamas Government, said Prime Minister Minnis.
“It is a task bigger than The Bahamas,” said the Prime Minister. “We are going to need the private sector, at home and abroad, and all of the assistance we can get from international partners.”
The Prime Minister was speaking on Thursday 26 September during a meeting with the Bahamian Diaspora in New York on ongoing recovery efforts on Abaco and Grand Bahama following Hurricane Dorian.
Prime Minister Minnis reported that the Government’s priority is to set up temporary housing for those who have lost their homes. He also provided an update on the establishment of the new Ministry of Disaster Preparedness, Management and Reconstruction to help coordinate recovery and reconstruction, and designated economic recovery zones in East Grand Bahama, Abaco and the Abaco Cays for an initial period of three years.
The Prime Minister told Bahamians that recovery efforts are continuing. Coordinators and teams are on the ground to oversee recovery efforts, and officials are working to continue to get assistance and aid to those who have lost their home, their possessions, their clothes and everything they owned.
Along with many international partners, the Government is also working to continue to provide food and water as well as health care.
“We must, and we will rebuild, and restore Grand Bahama and Abaco,” said the Prime Minister. “We must make them stronger and more resilient.”
Prime Minister Minnis said The Bahamas will also have to begin to fortify its other islands in the face of rising sea levels and future hurricane seasons.
“Tomorrow morning I will address the General Assembly of the United Nations to add the voice of The Bahamas, and especially the voices of the residents of Abaco and Grand Bahama, on the need for urgent action to respond to climate change, which is the greatest threat facing humanity,” said Prime Minister Minnis.
He urged Bahamians in New York to donate to NEMA and NGOs and to reach out to The Bahamas’ United Nations Mission or other relevant ministries and agencies back home if they have concrete ideas or suggestions.
