Parliamentary Representative for Gros Islet Emma Hippolyte has announced that millions of dollars will be spent in the coming weeks to enhance road and drainage infrastructure in the northern town.
The Gros Islet District Enhancement Projects will be financed through the Constituency Development Programme (CDP) and will generate employment for many residents.
The Member of Parliament said the aim is to improve the livelihoods of Gros Islet residents.
“With the constituency Development funds we have constructed roads at Bonaire, Beverly Hills in Riviere Mittan and Faustin Hill at Cas En Bas, among others. For this quarter, we have an allocation of just about $2 million to be spent on drainage and road works and am happy to report that the communities of Monchy, Cletus City, Monier, Corinth, Bonne Terre and La Feuille, among others, will have comfort in seeing some of their roads receiving attention. In the area of urban renewal you can see the improvements in the Gros Islet side walks which was funded under the NICE programme and we intend to continue this pavement improvement programme through the town of Gros Islet using a phased approach,” Hippolyte said.
Gros Islet is known as the largest electoral district and the infrastructural needs far exceeds the budgetary allocations for this financial year. The parliamentary representative said the allocated funds will be prudently managed and prioritised to bring relief to residents. However she notes the current fiscal constraints requires some patience and understanding as all domestic needs cannot be addressed immediately.
“We are aware that your roads need attention and some residents experience flooding and have water problems that necessitate the construction of drains, while others need street lamps in the vicinity of their homes. We have residents in La Borne, Monchy, Vieux Sucire and Upper Massade who up to today still do not have access potable water from WASCO. I take this opportunity to thank those residents for their patience throughout the years and to remind them that their better days are coming; sometimes we have to look at the national picture,” she said.
The Gros Islet District Enhancement Projects to be funded by the Constituency Development Programme will be further supplemented by additional projects financed by the Ministry of Infrastructure and Central Government.