$260 Million to Rehabilitate and Repair Parochial Roads

The Ministry of Local Government and Community Development invested $260 million in the 2018/19 fiscal year to rehabilitate and repair flood-damaged and other parochial roads right across the island.

Portfolio Minister, Hon. Desmond McKenzie, made the announcement during his address in the 2019/20 Sectoral Debate in the House of Representatives on Tuesday (May 28).

“One of the projects that we are most proud of is the transformation of Douglas Castle in St. Ann, a small agricultural district. The community was not only inundated on almost every occasion of sustained rain, but was marooned, as the main road connecting the community to the rest of the country was under water,” he noted.

“Today, the residents are far more at ease, as engineering works valued at over $40 million resulted in the main access road being elevated by approximately four feet, and major culverts and related drainage infrastructure being constructed,” Mr. McKenzie added.

This year, some $270 million has been allocated to rehabilitate parochial roads.

Meanwhile, the Minister said the Ministry has seen significant improvement in the collection of fees from trade licences.

Mr. McKenzie informed that in the last financial year, the Municipal Corporations collected $274.2 million from the 11,300 entities on register, a compliance rate of 93 per cent.

“I urge the local authorities to continue to ensure that all eligible businesses are registered, as these revenues are important to the continued improvement of their operations,” he said.