SIMPSON BAY--Red Cross St. Maarten wants to help revive the island’s economy and inform the public about disaster risks and prevention, but needs to ask some questions first. Starting on Saturday, Red Cross teams will be conducting house-to-house surveys to learn from residents what they, their neighbours and their communities need to improve their job opportunities and to better prepare for disasters.
Red Cross wants to know how things have changed, how residents’ jobs have been impacted and how their neighbourhoods have fared after Hurricane Irma in September 2017. Livelihoods Project Manager Fernando Suárez Jiménez said on Thursday that Red Cross hopes to gauge what residents need most to guide the next phase of the Hurricane Irma Recovery Mission.
“The survey has as its objective to know the needs of people in the zones where it is going to be conducted, in order to design better Red Cross projects,” said Suárez Jiménez.
Red Cross teams will be knocking on doors in Philipsburg, Hope Estate, Over the Pond, Pond Island, Belvedere, Saunders, Mary’s Fancy, Betty’s Estate, Ebenezer, South Reward and Cul de Sac for at least two weekends, on Saturday and Sunday from 10:00am.
Red Cross is considering projects to spur entrepreneurship and strengthen community involvement, and hopes that residents will share their thoughts with the organisation.
