NASSAU, The Bahamas – Officials of the Economic Development and Planning Unit of the Office of the Prime Minister have teamed up with officials from the Department of Environmental Health Services (DEHS) and the Bahamas Public Parks and Public Beaches Authority to launch the Over-the-Hill Clean-Up Initiative and Bulk Waste Removal Campaign.
Details of the launch were released Wednesday, January 17 (2018) during a press conference held in the Board Room of the Office of the Prime Minister, Cecil V. Wallace Whitfield Centre, West Bay Street.
The Clean-Up Initiative and Bulk Waste Removal Campaign will serve as Phase One of the Over-the-Hill Community Development Partnership Initiative launched in December, 2017, by Prime Minister, Dr. the Hon. Hubert A. Minnis, and will get underway January 19-21 (2018) for those persons residing in the Bain and Grants Town and Centreville Communities.
Phase One will impact residents north of Meadow Street, in addition to those residing through Gibbs and Ross Corners and the areas between Nassau Street and Collins Avenue. Residents in the designated areas are directed to place bulk items for removal at the front of their properties and away from power lines beginning Friday, January 19. There is no cost for the removal of bulk waste items. These include old/broken refrigerators, old/broken furniture, old/broken A/C Units etcetera.
The second phase of the Clean-Up Initiative and Bulk Waste Removal Campaign will take place the following weekend (January 26-28) in the Bain and Grants Town and Centreville Communities for residents south of Meadow Street, those residing through Gibbs and Ross Corners and those living in the areas between Nassau Street and Collins Avenue.
The Clean-up Initiative and Bulk Waste Removal Campaign is free to residents who place their bulk waste in front of their properties during the designated dates. Any bulk waste placed after the designated dates will be the responsibility of house holders/homeowners.
The Over-the-Hill Community Development Partnership Initiative is expected to transform Over-the-Hill Communities through six essential initiatives. These include Social Empowerment, thereby improving the lives of Over-the-Hill residents through the introduction of pro-poor policy and practices and Economic Empowerment – creating incentives (tax and otherwise) to operate and expand businesses in the Over-the-Hill area to boost the local economy and create jobs and ownership.
Rejuvenation is another key component of the strategy. It calls for improving the physical surroundings, solid waste management strategies and infrastructure of Over-the-Hill Communities through significant and targeted investment.
The Project will also focus on the use of Smart Technology within community schools, homes and public spaces; Green Technology, to promote the use of green technologies throughout the community, and the Youth, by heavily investing in social interventions to improve the lives, productivity and safety of youth within the community.
The Minnis Administration has made an annual commitment of $5Million to facilitate the programme.
