The picture in today’s paper of State Secretary for Kingdom Relation Raymond Knops shaking hands with interim Prime Minister Rafael Boasman is reassuring. It shows the latter, despite what he and the party that nominated him think about how former Prime William Marlin was ousted from office by the Kingdom Government, is being professional in the now-crucial task of obtaining 550 million euros in reconstruction aid made available by the Netherlands.
While short-term projects with an immediate impact on people’s lives are to have the highest priority, the involvement of the World Bank must guarantee accountability and transparency. It is thus of the utmost importance to establish a good working relation with that international body as well as incoming Dutch Civil Mission Head Nico Schoof.
Perhaps it was foresight or just a convenient circumstance, but the current Prime Minister having attended the recent pledging conference of the Caribbean Community Caricom and the United Nations (UN) in New York could bring dividends for the island. The World Bank was prominently present and itself committed US $140 million to the rebuilding effort in hurricane-hit areas of the region.
Quality proposals and funding requests will need to be put forward. Some worthwhile suggestions could include effectively tackling waste management and the landfill, reopening a financially feasible University of St. Martin (USM) possibly in close cooperation with another educational institution in the vicinity, upgrading the new hospital to be built so it can withstand category 5-plus cyclones and – why not? – restructuring and modernising Postal Services St. Maarten (PSS).
There are undoubtedly a lot more ideas within the community, but important is to focus on matters that will truly benefit society in the sense of keeping or creating employment, stimulating business activity, upgrading the destination and attracting investment. Getting the tourism economy back on track remains the main goal in the long run.
