Prime Minister Gaston Browne has reaffirmed his commitment to tackling Antigua and Barbuda’s long-standing water shortage, a crisis that has impacted the nation for decades.
Antigua and Barbuda’s water scarcity issues, deeply rooted in the nation’s history, are now meeting a structured and determined response according to Prime Minister Browne. Addressing the start of the Chinese Funded Booby Alley Housing Project, PM Browne outlined the administration’s ongoing investments to alleviate the island’s long-standing water crisis, underscoring the challenging journey towards sufficient and reliable water access.
Acknowledging that water shortages have impacted citizens for decades, Browne emphasized that the issue predates his administration.
However, he pointed to significant progress, with over five million gallons of water added to the island’s daily supply through reverse osmosis plants.
“We have systematically worked to address a crisis that has persisted through all administrations, dating back to pre-Independence,” Browne noted, underscoring that his government has expanded the water supply more than any previous administration. By next year, the administration aims to increase capacity to nearly eight million gallons daily, with plans for further expansion in the years ahead.
Browne said the unique geographical challenges Antigua and Barbuda faces as one of the world’s most water-scarce nations, requiring 100% reliance on desalinated water.
This reality demands substantial investment and time to implement solutions. “These improvements require hundreds of millions of dollars,” he remarked, stressing that the gradual, methodical approach is essential to achieving long-term sustainability.
Amid these advancements, Browne urged citizens to recognize and appreciate the steps taken to address these issues, especially given the high costs and extensive infrastructure required.
He also addressed calls for further progress, stating that while public pressure is welcome, it should be balanced with an acknowledgment of the tangible improvements already made.
The country’s leader said, the government’s efforts extend beyond simply enhancing the water supply, with a focus on creating a robust, climate-resilient infrastructure that can withstand the unique environmental pressures facing small island states.
PM Browne expressed a commitment to seeing the nation’s water crisis resolved within a framework that provides consistent access to clean water for all citizens.
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Any political party having trouble solving water problems in the year 2024, on an island surrounded by water, to a country with a relatively small population, I really in goldfaith must question competence. Again, this is in goodfaith.
This reminds me of politicians promising to clean gutters in 2024. This should be normal and not something to run on. It is 2024 in a country whose yearly budget is in the billions. Gutter cleaning and water accessibility? Really?
Yes. Significant progress has been made on water and I hope you can keep up the pace. While it’s a fact that there are less water issues in the most affected areas than a year or two ago the government needs to maintain the momentum.
Hopefully the Chinese assistance fixing the leaking pipes can come as quickly as possible.
If the second part of the Seven Seas new water production capacity and the replacement of leaking pipes can be delivered in good time none of us should be experiencing water shortages within the next 18 to 24 months.
“Solving the water shortage” shouldn’t even be the end goal. Building the infrastructure to support future growth should be the priority. With new hotels, the UWI expansion and so on production, storage and distribution needs to be permanently ahead of the demand.
Keep it up.
We as a population must understand that some challenges are more intractable than others and requires several attempts at a permanent solution. Each of our islands while similar are unique and different. So yes it is critical that we offer solutions along with our criticisms.
Gaston has a forked-tongue. We’ve been hearing about ruptured mains and service pipes, then he we heard that we had enough water but distribution was the issue. Let’s believe him for once that we had a problem with distributing the water; why not repair or replace the broken pipes? You might say that is what’s happening so the question is, why constructing and installing more plants if we have what we need and more? Per capita, we have more RO Plants than anywhere else on the planet, with more on the way. So my short answer is, CONSTRUCTION CONSTRUCTION CONSTRUCTION.
Don’t forget the gutters, if they’re planning to use them as drainage they should be covered,with ways to flush them out.
Looks like election is around the corner again. I guess it’s now 14 more days of talking. I won’t be holding my breath this time around though.
Seeing is believing!
They have been removing pipes and replacing with new pipes . Alot of the pipes are old and their leaking . The workers are trying but this water problem is from since papa bird time into upp time then back into Gaston time . Materials have been ordered to help the water situation. Pray for our country .
No thank you is going to EVER be there until water runs DAILY and CONSISTENTLY. This bs that Gaston is trying falls on mostly dear ears because 90% of his retoric is crap!
Antigua had an opportunity to rid the country of this retard. The man is totally useless. His only accomplishment is flooding the country with more foreign criminals. The ALP has been in office for 12 years and “we the whites” Browne crying for more time? Retard, if you haven’t fixed the water crisis in 12 years, you’ll never fix it! …“Water water everywhere and not a drop to drink.”
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