Government Remains Focused On Coastal Resilience

Government must continue to make substantial public investment in our coastal resilience that combines science, engineering, policy reform and community engagement.

At the launch of Coastal Hazards and Earthquake Smart Month, at the Hastings Esplanade yesterday, Minister of Home Affairs and Information, Gregory Nicholls, shared the view that “our coastlines are not simply scenic landscapes, they are central to who we are”.

“[Our coastlines] are major economic drivers, supporting our tourism industry, sustaining our fisheries and agriculture sectors, facilitating trade, acting as a key source of employment generation, real estate investment and revenue generation…. They host many of our homes, critical infrastructure and act as a natural protection against storms and the like. Simply put, our coast is our lifeline,” he stressed.

Mr. Nicholls said shoreline stabilisation and beach nourishment projects were being implemented in vulnerable areas through the Coastal Zone Management Unit. “We are strengthening our coastal infrastructure, improving drainage and incorporating climate risk into the development planning,” he stated.

According to him, resilience must be evidence-based and, as such, the country’s investments are guided by data evidenced in areas like wave monitoring, beach profiling and hazard mapping.

“We are also invested in marine spatial planning to ensure that our ocean resources are managed sustainably, balancing conservation with economic opportunity. Protecting our reefs and natural buffers is not only an environmental priority, it is a frontline defence against coastal hazards,” he said.

The Home Affairs Minister also revealed that through the Barbados Meteorological Services, Government has invested in policy reform initiatives aimed at ensuring that the coastal risk is incorporated in the national disaster risk resilience policy and programming.

“Our island may be small, but our capacity for resilience is great. We have demonstrated time and time again that we can confront challenges with unity, innovation and determination. Let us continue, therefore, to work together – Government, private sector, civil society and the communities at large – to ensure that our coasts remain not only beautiful, but secure and sustainable for generations to come.”

Director of the Department of Emergency Management, Kerry Hinds, stated that shared value and responsibility for disaster reduction and resilience must be recognised by all stakeholders – national agencies, the business community, first responders, schools, civic and community groups, the public, and households.

“I celebrate the fact that our Coastal Risk Resilience Programme and Seismic Resilience Programme have expanded to include new communities, new partners, new and improved activities, all in advancing our state of resilience to the hazards that pose threats to us now,” she shared.

Ms. Hinds pointed out that partnership and collaboration are key to the Disaster Resilience Programme and expressed gratitude to the political directorate, the agencies and entities that form part of the Technical Standing Committee on Coastal Hazards, the District Emergency Organisations, community stakeholders, and regional and international partners. 

“It is critical to the initiative…. The efforts that we are undertaking to make Barbados a resilient space, a tapestry of informed communities, should not be transactional, but it should be transformational, and we all have a responsibility by actively participating in this quest towards a resilient state…,” she said. (PR/GIS)