The Tribune

The Water and Sewerage Corporation recently staged its second Integrated Water Resources Management (IWRM) workshop in a bid to co-ordinate the development and management of water and land resources.

The workshop brought together key private and public sector agencies involved in water resource management, including the Department of Forestry, the Department of Environmental Planning and Protection (DEPP), the Department of Environmental Health Service (DEHS), the Ministry of Works and Family Island Affairs, Ministry of Tourism, Consolidated Water, WSCDesalCo, New Providence Development Company and Paradise Island Utilities.

Jobeth Coleby-Davis, minister of energy, utilities and aviation, in opening the workshop, said: “The Government of The Bahamas is grateful for the continued support of the Green Climate Fund, the Caribbean Development Bank, and the Inter- American Development Bank, who work along with our highly-talented and committed team of water professionals.

“Through these partnerships, we will continue to strengthen institutional capacity, improve water planning, enhance resilience planning and mobilise critical financing for infrastructure and technical assistance. These partnerships demonstrate what can be achieved when national commitment is matched by international co-operation.”

Mrs Coleby-Davis said reliable water systems depend on affordable and resilient energy. “This calls for the most optimum blend of high energy reverse osmosis and sustainable wellfield production,” she said.

“We are already seeing the benefits of this balanced approach. Strategic investments in the Windsor wellfield have nearly doubled groundwater production - from 215 million gallons in 2023 to a projected 435 million gallons this year - reducing our dependence on more expensive desalinated water, and delivering significant savings while strengthening water security for New Providence.”

Robert Deal, the Water & Sewerage Corporation’s general manager, added: “It really is about how best we can protect our groundwater and coastal resources to improve the quality of life for Bahamians.

“I think we take water for granted. We think that water will always be here. But it is finite, and it is a resource that must be managed. Particularly here in New Providence, where there is a lot of development, we have to be sure that our groundwater resources are not polluted from garages, septic tanks and manyother activities. It’s very important that we protect these resources for future generations.”

Dr Tara Mackey, head of the water resources management unit, said the workshop was critical because it helped Water & Sewerage Corporation to receive data for the Green Climate Fund proposal.

“Many of the stakeholders were not informed that, through their works and efforts, the proposal that we were developing was approved in 2026. So, we wanted them to know that their hard work indeed paid off,” she said.

Cyprian Gibson, the Corporation’s deputy general manager, said the next step is to ensure that action is taken. “We want all the stakeholders to know their roles so that we co-ordinate those roles for the benefit of our citizens,” he said.

The workshop was held after the Green Climate Fund Board, in March 2026, approved a funding proposal for a $65.197mM project in The Bahamas, which includes a $25.091m loan component, a $37.505m grant and $2.601m in counterpart financing.

The Corporation, in a statement, said this is the first time The Bahamas has secured national project funding from the Green Climate Fund. The project is structured around three goals that, together, strengthen The Bahamas’ water sector.

It added that the project establishes a strong policy and institutional framework by developing a national water policy, reforming legislation, creating co-ordination bodies and implementing integrated water resources management, thereby ensuring clear governance and long-term strategic direction.

It will also build a technical and data-driven foundation through national monitoring systems, a dedicated water resources unit and a decision support platform, enabling real-time data, climate risk analysis and informed decision-making across sectors.

The third goal is climate-resilient infrastructure upgrades, including improvements to wellfields, strengthened distribution systems, increased storage and reduced water losses, resulting in a more reliable, efficient and sustainable water supply system.

The project, titled ‘Climate resilience of the water sector of The Bahamas’, aims to protect the country’s vulnerable freshwater resources and strengthen groundwater monitoring and water resource management.