THE HAGUE--Dutch Minister of Home Affairs and Kingdom Relations Kajsa Ollongren does not expect that the repairs to all seventeen damaged schools in St. Maarten will be completed this year.
The minister stated this in response to questions of the Permanent Committee for Kingdom Relations of the Dutch Parliament’s Second Chamber in relation to the 2019 Annual Report on Kingdom Relations. The answers to the list of questions were sent to the second chamber on Wednesday.
The Netherlands General Audit Chamber was critical in its recent annual account report about the speed, or lack thereof, in the execution of reconstruction projects under the St. Maarten Trust Fund, which is financed by the Netherlands and managed by the World Bank.
The audit chamber pointed out that there were still many roofs and schools in need of repairs upon entering the hurricane season. The audit chamber recommended asking the St. Maarten government and the World Bank to make the repairs to houses and schools a priority. Minister Ollongren agreed that this was a fair conclusion.
Several parties in the second chamber sought clarity from Ollongren on St. Maarten’s reconstruction process after the 2017 Hurricanes Irma and Maria wreaked havoc on the island in relation to the annual report and the audit chamber report.
The minister confirmed that indeed much work remained to be done to repair houses and schools and to make them hurricane-proof. The Netherlands mentioned the urgency of these repairs in the Steering Group in March 2020 and the subject is continuously discussed.
The preparation and tendering of the project to repair the schools, 17 in total, has taken more time than expected. The tendering is currently being prepared and will be published in the near future. “However, I do not expect that the repairs to the schools can be completed this year,” the minister stated.
The delay in preparing the school repairs had several causes, Ollongren explained. “A number of schools were partly insured and the wrapping up of the insurance claims took time. Repairs were also carried out with insurance payments which initially would be executed under this project. Arriving at an agreement with all parties of 17 schools regarding the repairs, was a complex and time-consuming process which can now be concluded shortly.”
The minister expressed appreciation for the work that the Netherlands Red Cross has carried out, fixing 669 houses under the Roof Repair Programme financed from its own collection drive in the Netherlands. “That is essential for especially people with low income.” She added that the system of the World Bank did not apply to the Red Cross work.
According to the minister, the Red Cross had to consider choosing between repairs that were completely hurricane-proof and providing assistance to people in dire need. Roofs were also repaired on houses of which the remaining structural quality was insufficient to become completely hurricane-proof.
In some cases, the issuing of construction permits or the lack of clarity regarding ownership was experienced as a hindrance, but it was no reason for delays, Ollongren stated in response to a specific question by the second chamber.
About the reconstruction in general, Ollongren emphasised that it was up to St. Maarten to accomplish things. “The progress in a number of dossiers with priority (also for the Netherlands), including houses, schools, shelters, rebuilding of the airport and waste management is of great importance for St. Maarten.”
The minister noted that the progress of the reconstruction projects contributed to St. Maarten’s economic recovery in the short term, while for the longer term it was of crucial importance to sustainable recovery and (financial) independence.
As to the suggestion by some members of the second chamber to designate some of the deposited money in the Trust Fund for further liquidity support to St. Maarten during the coronavirus pandemic, Ollongren stated that the reconstruction task continued unabated, also after the corona crisis. “The designated means will remain available within the set framework.”
