Fishermen still struggling to get their boats back on the water after the destruction caused by Hurricane Beryl in 2024 are closer to accessing the financial support they need.
This is according to Minister of the Environment, National Beautification and Fisheries Santia Bradshaw, who revealed recently that
17 applications under Government’s Vessel Replacement Programme were at various stages of finalisation, while ten had been approved with $2.8 million committed.
The programme is part of the wider US$54 million Beryl Emergency Response And Recovery Project funded by the World Bank.
Giving an update on the initiative at the Fisheries Division on the Princess Alice Highway, The City, Bradshaw, who is also Deputy Prime Minister, told the media: “We are trying to bring back a working fleet and the way to do that responsibly is through financing that owners can manage, which is why 75 per cent comes as a loan and 25 per cent as a grant facility.”
To qualify for the grant, the amount requested must be enough to complete the construction process and represent no more than 25 per cent of the value of the finished vessel.
Deputy Chief Fisheries Officer Christopher Parker said at least 87 vessels that were damaged had returned to the waters, and about $18 million had been allocated for boat replacement loans and conditional grants, with a target to replace 70 to 75 affected fishing vessels.
“This represents a minimum commitment, but not the final word. The goal is not merely to replace what was lost, but to build back better and ensure that when the next storm comes, our fleet and our fisherfolk are more resilient than before,” he noted.
“We recognise that there has been frustration among our fisherfolk and boat owners regarding some of the delays in funding and assistance, and it would be disingenuous not to acknowledge this. We heard you and we have been working to put things in place in joint efforts to be able to provide some of what you’ve been expecting.”
Parker added: “The reality of the situation is that 90 per cent of the affected fleet was uninsured, and in this we saw that when there is no coverage, the private sector cannot alone bear the risk. It then places the responsibility for recovery with the Government of Barbados, working alongside international partners to ensure our fisherfolk are not left to face devastation alone.”
Bradshaw also defended the time it took for the funds to be accessible.
“I am aware that getting from that point back in 2024 to where we are this morning has taken a long time. We’re just over two years in being able to stand here this morning in relation to this particular launch and it has taken longer than I believe any of us could have wanted.
“I was not minister then, but I certainly heard much of the speculation that the Government had the money and we didn’t give it, or that the funds were being redirected to other areas. The reality is that in order for us to be able to access financing globally, it is important that we make sure that we get things right . . . .
“We had to obviously make sure that we follow the application process of the World Bank and meet the condition of loaning us the money. We have to do procurement in order to make sure that the project runs to the satisfaction of the people from whom we are borrowing the funds, and that we’re able to make sure that we take into account the very peculiar nature of our fisheries sector,” she said. (JRN)
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