Dr. Davies to Table PIOJ Hurricane Damage Assessement in Parliament

A macro socio economic assessment of the damage done by Hurricane Ivan, which was produced by the Planning Institute of Jamaica (PIOJ), is to be tabled in Parliament today (November 2) by Finance and Planning Minister, Dr. Omar Davies.
Speaking at the weekly post Cabinet press briefing at Jamaica House yesterday (November 1), Minister of Information, Senator Burchell Whiteman told journalists that the assessment “was undertaken by the PIOJ, incorporating data provided by the Statistical Institute of Jamaica (STATIN), and was validated and analysed by the Economic Commission of Latin America and the Caribbean (ECLAC)”.
He explained that the presence of ECLAC was “the normal procedure for dealing with matters of this kind because the feeling is there needs to be an international standard for the assessment of damage, so that was done”.
However, the Information Minister stressed that inasmuch as the assessment was “in a sense, a final document”, it should by no means be construed as “absolutely the last word”, as the study had been completed at the end of October for Cabinet to consider, and other mitigating factors might not have been included.
On Wednesday, November 3, Minister Whiteman told the media, a press conference would be convened by Director General of the PIOJ, Dr. Wesley Hughes at the Institute’s New Kingston offices.
The conference will begin at 10:00 a.m., and Chief Executive Officer of the Office of National Reconstruction (ONR), Danville Walker is scheduled to speak on matters pertaining to the country’s rebuilding efforts. Estimated cost for the total damage caused by the Hurricane, stood at $35 billion, Senator Whiteman noted.