MARSH HARBOUR, ABACO — A posting exercise was carried out by the Ministry of Works and Family Island Affairs in an Abaco shanty town known as " The Gully" by the Ministry, the Royal Bahamas Defence Force,5 and the Unregulated Community Action Task Force.

"We made a promise to the Bahamian people and we want to ensure that we follow through with that. So we are here assessing these communities," said Clay Sweeting, Minister of Works and Family Island Affairs.

He acknowledged that the people of Abaco have frequently pointed to the growth of unregulated communities since Hurricane Dorian as a vexing issue, and pledged that more assessments will be carried out in other islands.

South Abaco Member of Parliament John Pinder said he was "very happy" to see government stakeholders take action on the island to tackle the "exponential" growth.

"The Bahamas is for Bahamians, and we need to make sure that everybody who comes into our country is abiding by our laws and our rules," Pinder stated.

"It's also an environmental issue. The freshwater table in Abaco spreads across Abaco... and if there isn't any cesspits or sanitary infrastructure put here, they're training our water tables, then we won't have no water to drink."

When asked how many shanty town communities he thought are on the island, Pinder indicated that there are "many".

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