‘Voices to be heard’ in Dominica infrastructure feasibility study

Residents of Loubiere and Bagatelle, and those living in between, will be able to raise any concerns ahead of the road project between the two villages.

Formal dialogue, as part of a wider feasibility study, is high on the agenda, according to government sources.

The link between the two areas willis expected to see a restoration of broken bridges, placement of guard rails and proper drainage installed.

This project is being funded with a grant of over £25 million ($87 million) from the UK government, part of a £300 million ($105 million) grant to the Caribbean.

The aim of the funding is to assist Caribbean islands with the construction of roads, bridges and ports to help drive economic growth and development.

Last week, Miriam Blanchard, minister for public works, accompanied by the MP for Petite Savanne, Kenneth Darroux, and staff of the Ministry of Public Works, toured the route with consultants from the Caribbean Development Bank.

Added resilience

The CDB is is the executing agency for the fund. Representatives of the UK’s Department For International Development of the UK also came along for the visit.

The purpose of the drive along the route was to bring to alert the consultants to the areas thought to be the most vulnerable, especially following Tropical Storm Erika.

“The consultants here are going to do the feasibility study that will include the identification of interventions along the entire length of road, [and] what needs to be done to make us more resilient to events like Tropical Storm Erika,” Blanchard said.

Three months ago, while addressing residents of the area at a town hall meeting in Pichelin, Blanchard declared the Government’s intention to make the road safer.

She asserted that although consultants have been contracted to do a feasibility study and design the new route, the input of those who will actually use the road is necessary.

“We think it’s important to meet with you the residents very soon. We will publicly announce the dates of those town hall meetings, so we can hear from you and hear what your experiences are, so that those can be included in the feasibility study so that we can ensure at the end of this project we would have catered to your needs.”