A press conference was held at the Utilities Regulation and Competition Authority (URCA) on Friday, March 12, 2021 to inform the public of the combined donation of $60,000 to provide complimentary mobile telecommunication services to residents impacted by the deadly Hurricane Dorian in Abaco and Grand Bahama. Pictured from left: Director, Electronic Communications (Acting), URCA; Chief Information Officer, ALIV Bahamas, Dwayne Davis; Minister of State in the Ministry of Disaster Preparedness, Management and Reconstruction, the Hon. Pakesia Parker Edgecombe; Chief Executive Officer, URCA, Carlton Smith; CEO, BTC, André Foster; Corporate and Consumer Relations Manager, URCA, Mavis Johnson-Collie and Director, Shevonn Cambridge. (BIS Photo/Kemuel Stubbs)
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Nassau The Bahamas - Chief Executive Officer of the Utilities Regulation and Competition Authority (URCA), Carlton Smith said URCA and the International Telecommunications Union (ITU) each donated $30,000 for a combined total of $60,000 to provide complimentary mobile telecommunication services to residents impacted by the deadly Hurricane Dorian in Abaco and Grand Bahama.
During a press conference at URCA on Friday, March 12, 2021, Mr. Smith explained that in the immediate aftermath of Hurricane Dorian in 2019, Director, ITU, Doreen Bogdan-Martin along with URCA executives toured the hurricane ravaged communities of Abaco and Grand Bahama.
“That visit resulted in the donation of telecommunications equipment to be used in the search and rescue, recovery and repair efforts on the two islands. Director Bodgan-Martin left promising to do more.”
Mr. Smith stated that the decimation left as a result of Hurricane Dorian meant that residents who were able to remain on the islands had no fixed telephone services and in some cases even today, only have access to mobile services.
He explained that it was after seeing the devastation, URCA and ITU partnered to donate $30,000 each.
In addition, the CEO noted that the partnership between URCA and ITU has resulted in the distribution of almost 2,500 telecommunication vouchers to residents, non-governmental organisations and government workers.
He stated that in the midst of the reconstruction efforts, the COVID-19 Pandemic struck, impeding the efforts by all to return life on those two islands to some semblance of normalcy.
“Around the world and throughout The Bahamas, there was a massive shift to
‘living online’. For some families and students, this was a huge challenge due to their inability to access the Internet. This inaccessibility prevented many students from receiving online instruction even with donated devices, because they could not connect to the Internet.
“Through the ITU/URCA project, 139 Mobile WiFi devices with a two-month data package plan, were donated to the Ministry of Education for distribution to vulnerable students on Grand Bahama.”
Mr. Smith added that ALIV Bahamas and BTC worked with URCA to maximise the purchasing power of the funds available, thereby enabling the Authority to purchase the additional mobile WiFi devices.
Minister of State in the Ministry of Disaster Preparedness, Management and Reconstruction the Hon. Pakesia Parker Edgecombe thanked URCA along with its utility partners ALIV Bahamas and BTC for releasing 2,211 phone cards in the increments of $15 and $20 to the Disaster Reconstruction Authority (DRA).
She explained that the DRA partnered with NGO teams on Abaco and Grand Bahama and three NGO groups: SBP, Mercy Corps and Rotary received 28 phone cards. Also, the DRA partnered with the National Emergency Management Agency which offered to Bahamas Defence Force Officers, a total of 70 phone cards.
“To date, DRA has distributed 920 phone cards to Abaconians and 320 phone cards to Grand Bahamians who are in the categories of Major and Destroyed in the DRA’s Small Home Repair Program.
“Now that the Small Home Program has been resumed, the balance of the cards will all be given to home owners.”
Also in attendance at the press conference were CEO, BTC André Foster and Chief Information Officer, ALIV Bahamas, Dwayne Davis.
