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Prime Minister Praises Progress Of Accelerated Mill & Pave Programme

Prime Minister Mia Amor Mottley has announced that an additional five million dollars will be allocated to the Ministry of Transport and Works’ (MTW) $30 million Accelerated Mill and Pave Programme.

To date, 17 roads have been resurfaced under the programme since it started on January 13, this year.

Praising the work, Ms. Mottley said: “I am satisfied that in just over a month we are making progress and I am hoping that we can make more progress…. Given where we are in the financial year, an additional five million dollars can be given to MTW, so they will be working with $35 million.”

The Prime Minister stated this during a media tour and press briefing on Friday, February 23, when she, along with Deputy Prime Minister and Minister of Transport and Works, Santia Bradshaw, visited Salters, St. George, and Oistins to Thornbury Hill, Christ Church, to get a first-hand look at the resurfacing work.

They were accompanied by Parliamentary Secretary in the Ministry, Dr. Romel Springer; Acting Chief Technical Officer, Jason Bowen; MTW’s consultant Abdul Pandor; and other ministry officials.

She told the touring party and the media that persons may be questioning why work was being done at night. She pointed out that the contractors may be required to work 12 to 14-hour days to finish the work.

Ms. Mottley also thanked the Deputy Prime Minister and her team for the attention given to the north of the island, noting previously there was a deficit of work being done in those parishes.

The Prime Minister added: “A similar programme is being planned for bridges, some of which have not been touched in over 30 or 40 years…. The Government has to balance out the mill and pave roads, the reconstructed roads, the ones that need utility mains going in again, and the ones that need bridges reinforced, and we are trying to bridge that gap.”

Ms. Bradshaw reported: “We have completed about 31 per cent of the roads that we have identified. There are about 53 kilometres of roads to be done.”

She said the Ministry’s contractors, C.O. Williams Construction Limited and Infra Construction Inc., were working on several roads. These include Brighton to Constant, St. George; Franklin Douglin Road, St. Andrew; Clarke Road, St. Peter; Kensington New Road, St. Michael; Mount Hillaby, St. Thomas; Highway 2A to Rock Hall, St. Andrew; and Highway 1 from Speightstown, St. Peter, to Holetown, St. James.

Minister Bradshaw said the response to the road works from the public has been positive and the Ministry is pleased to bring a level of relief across communities.

The $30 million Accelerated Mill and Pave initiative, announced earlier this year by Prime Minister Mottley, forms a critical part of MTW’s ongoing maintenance plan to help extend the longevity of roads, while providing a smoother ride for motorists across the island.

The programme focuses on roads with deteriorated surfaces where utility services have already been installed or do not require significant upgrades, and roads that do not require reconstruction and drainage works. (PR/GIS)

CAPTION: Prime Minister Mia Amor Mottley speaking with members of the media during a tour and press briefing for the Ministry of Transport and Works’ $30 million Accelerated Mill and Pave Programme, last Friday

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SPECIAL POLLING DAY NOTICE

Local

FundAccess To Host Legal Clinic Workshop from May 13th

Entrepreneurs will soon get another opportunity to learn about critical legal matters that are key to the operation of their businesses.

FundAccess will be hosting The Legal Clinic Workshop, which will commence on Tuesday, May 13, and continue each Tuesday, until May 27, from 5:00 p.m. to 7:00 p.m.

The workshop will be facilitated by Attorney-at-law Ondene Kirton and participants will discuss Understanding Business Legal Structures; Contracts & Agreements; Employment Law & Compliance; and Examination of the Various Laws Relating to Small Business.

During those sessions, the participants will be exposed to sole proprietorship, partnerships, corporations – pro and cons; how to choose the right legal structure for a business; the importance of contracts in business operations; avoiding common contract pitfalls; and employee rights & employer responsibilities, among others. Some of the pieces of legislation to be examined include the Employment Rights Act and National Insurance and Social Security Act.

Interested persons may attend the workshop in person at FundAccess’ Pinfold Street, Bridgetown location, or online via the Zoom Platform. To register, click on the following link: https://bit.ly/3Fu09Jv.

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Centenarian Built On Firm Foundation Set By Grandmother

“Trust God first” is the mantra of one of Barbados’ newest centenarians, Athelstan Browne, who celebrated his 100th birthday on April 29, 2025, at his home in Montrose, Christ Church, surrounded by family and friends.

One of his specially invited guests was President of Barbados, Her Excellency, The Most Honourable Dame Sandra Mason.

Mr. Browne shared that he grew up “not knowing a mummy” as his mother passed away at age 23, when he was two years old, and his brother was only one year old.

Crediting his grandmother for his upbringing, Mr. Brown remarked: “I had a real good, good grandmother that raised two of us, and everything we learn before we went to school, she taught us.”

Pointing to a humble yet deeply religious upbringing, Mr. Browne said: “I and my brother slept on the floor. Our grandmother spread things down there, and she just put the pillow under our head.”

He recalled that they had to sing the hymn “Under the Blood” before going to bed, and first thing in the morning before they had breakfast, which usually consisted of “a cup of tea and two biscuits”. Adding that the hymn was “our song”, Mr. Browne sang the hymn from memory.

Stressing that his grandmother was a great provider, he noted: “My grandmother had land, and she would work the land…. We would eat raw potato, raw okras, (green) peas, cucumbers…. The only thing we did not eat was raw yams and eddoes.”

Mr. Browne continues to enjoy his ground provisions “with a little rice”, as he likes his rice with green peas, and if available, chicken boiled with the rice. “I am a fish man,” he remarked, eating it either fried or with a “stew sauce”.

Continuing to nurture his Christian beliefs, he joined the Mount Ararat United Holy Church (currently in Dayrell’s Road, Christ Church) in 1967, at age 33, and has continued there ever since.

Once the Superintendent of the Sunday School at the church, Mr. Browne is still instrumental in providing leadership to the youth there. “I have a crowd of young people at church that love me…especially when I have to talk to them…. It is what they should hear and what they should have,” he said.

The centenarian was raised in Montrose, Christ Church, and attended the Christ Church Boys’ School (now Milton Lynch Primary School). After leaving school, Mr. Browne initially took to agriculture but then worked cutting soft stone in two quarries in Christ Church.

In 1947, at the age of 22, he decided to join the US Farm Labour Programme and took the first Pan American Airlines flight out of Barbados. Over 10 years later, Mr. Browne returned to Barbados and married Monica Browne (deceased). Together, they built the house where he currently resides.

Returning to his roots in agriculture, the centenarian worked at the Ridge Plantation, Christ Church, until retirement. He also planted and reaped ground produce at home, as well as planted and cut canes.

Mr. Browne, who is generally in good health and has a sharp memory, still works around the home and enjoys reading, which he does without glasses. He also keeps in touch with his family in New York and North Carolina, and will do some travelling, but he is always ready to return home.

After toasting the centenarian, Her Excellency remarked: “You are in the midst of a lot of love, and I am sure you are going to enjoy the rest of your birthday. I am really happy to have met you. I am grateful for the work that you still continue to do with our young people because a lot of them lack direction, and we, nowadays, don’t take enough time to sit down and speak with them…. We don’t remind them that they are important, that they are somebody.”

Mr. Browne responded: “You got to make them understand what … the Lord expects of them… We have to acknowledge the Lord.”

Mr. Browne has two children, 10 grandchildren, 11 great-grandchildren and two great-great-grandchildren. (PR/GIS)

Caption: President of Barbados, Her Excellency, The Most Honourable Dame Sandra Mason, and Barbados’ newest centenarian Athelstan Browne take a walk outside during his birthday celebrations in Montrose, Christ Church