Bahamas' National Development Plan: Vision2040
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Formulating Institution
Vision2040 is an initiative of the Government of The Bahamas, developed in partnership with the Inter-American Development Bank and in close cooperation with the College of The Bahamas and The Bahamas Chamber of Commerce and Employers Confederation.
Elaboration process
To ensure the Plan has a national voice and is national in scope, two areas were critical to the effectiveness of Vision2040:
Broad consultative engagement: This included public awareness; public access to information, public engagement and national surveys. Vision2040 ensured there were means for all residents of The Bahamas as well as Bahamians living abroad to contribute to the Plan, including sharing their views and concerns on any aspect of the project.
Ongoing monitoring, evaluation and learning: Essential for the assessment of the plan, this component examines the progress and allows for changes when necessary. It ensures continued relevance and effectiveness to national priorities over the life of the plan.
[What is the National Development Plan?, pg. 3]
Executive Body
After the adoption of the National Development Plan, the Economic Development and Planning Unit (EDPU) within the Office of the Prime Minister together with the University of The Bahamas’ Government and Public Policy Institute (GPPI) will provide: (a) technical assistance to the implementing agencies to assist them with the development of the appropriate projects and programmes as well as the relevant project tactical plans, (b) capacity building within the implementing agencies and (c) monitoring the performance of each agency to ensure implementation of the National Development Plan.
[What is the National Development Plan?, pg. 5]
Main challenge
- Community decay and ghettoisation
- High levels of “unwellness”
- Immigration challenges leading to social exclusion
- Poor or absent strategic planning and coordination within government
- Inadequate levels of accountability, monitoring and evaluation which affect service delivery
- Lack of inclusive engagement at the local level
- Uneven performance of public service agencies
- Inadequate protections around certain human rights, including rights of migrants and gender equality
- Communities with inadequate housing, sanitation and community infrastructure
- Lack of value placed on the natural environment combined with poor solid waste management
- Public infrastructure that does not support a modern economy or inclusive national development (energy, transportation, access for persons with disabilities)
- Lack of long-term infrastructure planning
- Complicated land tenure and registration processes
- Lack of integration of modern technology, GIS, ecosystem valuation, hazard planning, adaptation and mitigation services
- Lack of preparedness for inevitable climate change
[Summary of the Challenges Identified in the State of the Nation Report, pg.12]
Urban instrument
Sustainable Nassau: Empowered People, Revitalized City
These six priority areas allude to some of the key challenges facing Nassauvians today: traffic congestion and GHG emissions from high car ownership and inadequate public transit; lack of renewable energy solutions; health and economic impacts from natural disasters and extreme weather events (exacerbated by climate change); crime and perceptions of safety impacting quality of life; solid waste management that is incomplete and unreliable; and poor drainage as exacerbated by unchecked development.
Urban dimension of policy
This Action Plan represents the culmination of an intense research and assessment process carried out in collaboration between the Government of The Bahamas and the Inter-American Development Bank (IDB), and in parallel with the development of Vision 2040: National Development Plan of The Bahamas. Through the IDB’s application of the Emerging and Sustainable Cities (ESC) methodology, these efforts are consolidated in this Action Plan for achieving a more sustainable urban life in Nassau and New Providence Island.
[About the Plan, pg. 7]
Main objective of the urban dimension
The purpose of disseminating this Action Plan is twofold: (i) to serve as a guide and roadmap for decision-makers to take future actions for urban revitalization which will lead to a clean, green, equitable, and smart city; and (ii) to promote full transparency along the path towards improved urban sustainability and management while fostering greater public support and participation in the process.
[About the Plan, pg. 7]
Urban strategic objectives
Taken as a whole, the NPI urban analysis rendered 4 strategic areas for urban sustainability:
- Resilient, sustainable Nassau
- Revitalized, inclusive, and competitive Nassau
- Smart and transparent urban governance
- People at the center
[Action Plan, Introduction, pg. 117]
37 critical actions were identified, prioritized and grouped into 10 significan investment project of programs:
- Greening New Providence
- Renew, Conserve Your Energy Nassau
- Green, Zero Waste Nassau
- Healthy City Nassau
- Mobile and Connected Nassau
- Nassau Urban Regeneration Project
- Smart City Monitoring
- Urban Planning for Sustainability
- Responsive, Transparent, and Efficient Local Government
- Empowered People, Empowered City
Mitigation and Adaptation
11.1. Position The Bahamas as a leader in researching and implementing climate change adaptation and mitigation measures and as an incubator of green technologies (SDG 11 Target 11.b)
Resilience
11.2. Integrate disaster risk reduction into sustainable development policies and planning and build resilience to hazards (No Poverty SDG 1 Target 1.5, Gender Equality SDG 5 Target 5.c, Climate Action SDG 13 Target 13.1, 13.2, and 13.3 and Sustainable Cities and Communities SDG 11 Target 11.5 and 11.b)
Main goal
Governance focuses on how people and the country are managed. It looks at the performance and types of institutions within the country and the level of engagement between the institutions (governmental and non-governmental) and the government and the citizenry. Issues such as freedom of information, political stability and the rule of law are addressed under this pillar;
Human Capital analyses the issues affecting people. It looks at the population, education and health outcomes, poverty and social safety nets and the impacts of discrimination;
The Environment includes the built environment such as roads, ports, utilities, and services, etc. and the natural environment such as the water, air, soil, flora, fauna, land and minerals; and.
The Economy which looks at the output generated from the use of resources such as human capital, infrastructure, land and the structure of government. It is a measure of the performance of a country relative to others and reflects the country’s ability to constructively utilise its endowments, create an effective macro and microeconomic space for wealth creation, ownership, jobs and overall productivity and allow its people to create prosperous, sustainable and interesting lives.
[The National Development Plan and the State of the Nation Report, pg.9]
Cross-cutting principles
Priority 1: Transparency, Accountability and Effectiveness in Government
Priority 2: A Healthy, Productive Workforce for a Modern World
Priority 3: Enduring Citizen Security
Priority 4: Community Revitalisation
Priority 5: Inclusive Economic Growth through Empowerment, Business Climate Improvements and Diversification
Priority 6: A Sustainable and Resilient Environment
[The National Priorities, pg. 24]
Strategic objectives
- The Bahamas will have a Modern, Open and Accountable Service Oriented Government that is well trusted by citizens, residents and the business community
- The Bahamas will have Well Governed Public institutions and Engaged Citizens to Strengthen Our Democracy
- The Bahamas will have a law abiding society in which rules are respected and communities can thrive
- The administration of justice will be made more efficient, methodical, fair and effective through coordinated action by the police, defence force, courts and corrections services
- The Bahamas will have a modern, sustainable & universally accessible health care system that is wellness focused and delivers continuously improving outcomes6. The Bahamas will have a best in class, comprehensive and effective education system
- The Bahamas will be a nation free of poverty and discrimination (including gender, nationality and disabilities)
- The Bahamas will have a land tenure and administration system which is efficient and fair
- Modern infrastructure in New Providence and the family Islands built to grow the economy to withstand the effects of climate change and rising sea levels
- The Bahamas will have an effective interconnected transportation system that enables the free flow of people and goods and a modern and efficient postal system
- The Bahamas will have a natural environment that supports the long-term sustainable development of the Bahamian economy and way of life for generations
- The Bahamas will have a healthy macro- economic environment that supports growth and stability
- The Bahamas will have a competitive business environment for economic success that supports business development, innovation, wealth creation, entrepreneurship and job growth
- The Bahamas will have a diversified and resilient economy that provides opportunities for the expansion of both existing and new industries
- The Bahamas will have a fair, flexible and effective labour regime
- Culture shall be recognised as a driver and enabler for the sustainable development of The Bahamas
[The Plan at a Glance - Table 2: Summary of the Plan, pg. 26]
Action Strategies
2.4. Strengthen the effectiveness of local government
2.6. The Bahamas will promote greater civic engagement and education at all levels of society to strengthen democracy
3.2. Implement programmes that detect at-risk youth at an early stage and employ innovative techniques to deter criminal activity
3.3. Strengthen the capacity of communities to participate in creating safe neighbourhoods
4.2. Establish a national “zero-tolerance’’ strategy for violent crimes – specifically murder, sex- related violence, crimes against children and the elderly and home invasions
4.6. Build greater capacity within the prison system to reduce recidivism while creating more humane conditions for prisoners
7.4. Promote policies which encourage participatory governance and community engagement in policy development and service delivery
7. 6. Develop and revitalise neglected and marginalised communities across the country to ensure that these communities have access to improved housing, water and sanitation
7.7. Eliminate inequality by removing discriminatory laws, policies and practices to ensure social, economic and political inclusion of all, irrespective of age, sex, disability, race, ethnicity, origin, religion, economic and/ or other status
8.1. Create an efficient land information system and efficient land agencies
8.4. Create a land use plan that guides The Bahamas’s physical development over the next 25 years
9.1. Implement a strategic framework that guides infrastructure decisions
9.4. Create a robust ICT infrastructure (networks, systems, etc.) that would facilitate the ubiquitous use of ICTs that would result in improvements to the quality of life of citizens, more efficient and competitive enterprises and the effective delivery of services in a sustainable manner
10.2. Create and implement a Public Transit Strategy on New Providence
11.1. Position The Bahamas as a leader in researching and implementing climate change adaptation and mitigation measures and as an incubator of green technologies
11.2. Integrate disaster risk reduction into sustainable development policies and planning and build resilience to hazards
11.4. Successfully implement a modern waste management strategy that includes public education and new services to sustainably manage waste
16.1. Build and develop the cultural infrastructure and opportunities of The Bahamas to encourage strong, inclusive and cohesive communities, the preservation of Bahamian heritage and the growth and evolution of Bahamian cultural expression
Gender
Goal 7 of the Bahamas' Plan states that "The Bahamas will be a nation free of poverty and discrimination (including discrimination based on gender, nationality and disabilities)", including several actions towards gender equality such as: Implement policies that address gendered poverty to ensure that single mothers and fathers can access the labour market; Investigate the nature of gendered poverty in the country; or Introduce a national response to gender based violence. Among others, Goal 2 on "Well Governed Public institutions and Engaged Citizens" includes a goal on promoting gender equality and equity in board appointments, and Goal 6 on E ducation includes actions to close learning gaps between Boys and Girls. Eacho action proposed specifies the outputs and outcomes expected, as well as time frames and the responsible agents.