WASHINGTON, CMC – The World Bank says that the Steering Committee for the Sint Maarten Trust Fund (SXM TF) has expressed satisfaction with the progress and efficiency of the ten ongoing projects and reiterated its support for three new projects under development.
The Washington-based financial institution said the Committee met for three days at the World Bank Headquarters in Washington.
Representatives of the Government of Sint Maarten – led by Prime Minister Silveria Jacobs, including the Minister of Finance, Ardwell M. R. Irion, and the Minister of Public Housing, Spatial Planning, Environment and Infrastructure (VROMI), Egbert Doran – met with representatives of the Government of the Netherlands and the World Bank to advance the Trust Fund’s mandate, the World Bank said.
It said an evaluation of the Trust Fund’s ongoing projects was high on the agenda, with “many yielding positive and tangible results.”
The World Bank said the Committee learned, for example, that through the Emergency Recovery Project (ERP-1), the Trust Fund provided disaster-resilient infrastructure, repairing over 500 homes and upgrading 11 shelters and six schools.
Along with internal improvements, the Trust Fund has also transformed the façade of the iconic Princess Juliana International Airport, which Hurricane Irma severely damaged.
The airport is now set to install recently received jet bridges and reopen the departure hall later this year as part of its reconstruction plans.
Further, the World Bank said the Enterprise Support Project (ESP) has empowered women-owned businesses above the regional average and enabled access to finance and economic recovery for 176 micro-, small- and medium-sized companies.
“The work being undertaken under the Trust Fund is crucial for building Sint Maarten’s resilience,” said Lilia Burunciuc, World Bank’s Director for Caribbean Countries and Steering Committee Chair. “Over the past three days, the Bank met with the Governments of Sint Maarten and the Netherlands to agree on how we can best support these goals, and I’m pleased that good progress is being made in this direction.”
The World Bank said the Housing Project, currently under development, the Wastewater Management Project, and the Mental Health Project would advance to the next phase following the Steering Committee’s consideration.
The international financial institution says it will “work closely” with the National Recovery Program Bureau (NRPB) and key stakeholders – the Sint Maarten Housing Development Foundation and the Ministry of VROMI – to finalize the project’s design and activities to create a blueprint for sustainable and affordable housing.
“The Mental Health Project – the first of its kind for the World Bank – seeks to improve the quality of mental health service delivery in Sint Maarten for all psychological disorders, including substance abuse,” the bank said.
“The Wastewater Management project will enhance the sustainability and resilience of wastewater services in Sint Maarten, focusing on the densely populated areas around the capital, Philipsburg,” it added.
The World Bank said the Committee agreed that all three projects would support fundamental needs within Sint Maarten and contribute to the country’s sustainable economic and social development.
The World Bank said the projects would mobilize substantial private financing with demonstrable effects beyond the Trust Fund period.
“Access to additional funding for projects has been a high priority for the Government of Sint Maarten. Finally, being approved is a tremendous relief and a crucial step toward achieving our goals. With this support, we can now focus on finalizing projects that have proven to enhance our infrastructure and way of life. We are grateful for the positive outcome of these proceedings,” said Silveria Jacobs.
During the meeting, the World Bank said the Government of the Netherlands delegation presented recommendations and conclusions from their Policy Review, which was recently submitted to the Dutch Parliament.
The review, led by independent evaluators, concluded that establishing the World Bank-led Trust Fund was “a good solution, and its implementation has led to good results.”
“Important progress is made on the Trust Fund’s projects, including the Netherlands priority projects of the airport, the wastewater, and the landfill projects. In addition, institutional reforms are being implemented, and by leveraging the Trust Fund’s money with external financiers, the impact of the reconstruction projects is expected to become even bigger for the people of Sint Maarten,” said Frans Weekers, Representative of the Netherlands to the Steering Committee.
Another high point of the meeting was the signing ceremony of the Emergency Debris Management Project (EDMP) grant agreement, the World Bank said.
It said EDMP received US $60 million in additional funding from the SXM TF to cover a financing gap under the parent project for improving debris management in communities and at the landfill and strengthening the institutional capacity of the Government to execute technical activities.
“Overall, the Steering Committee agreed that the Trust Fund’s projects all serve critical recovery and development needs within Sint Maarten,” the World Bank said, adding that the Committee will reconvene in late October 2023.
The SXM TF was launched in April 2018 as a tripartite partnership between the Government of the Netherlands, the Government of Sint Maarten, and the World Bank “to help the country rebuild stronger and more sustainably, in a way that would support longer-term development priorities.”
The SXM TF is financed by the Government of the Netherlands, administered by the World Bank, and implemented by the Government and people of Sint Maarten. Initially envisioned to run through 2019-2025, the Fund has been extended to the end of 2028.
The World Bank said the current SXM TF portfolio amounts to US $519.42 million, with recipient-executed projects focusing on hospital reconstruction and resilience; debris management; airport terminal reconstruction; home, school, and shelter repairs; support to micro-, small-, and medium-sized enterprises; child resilience and protection; digitalizing of government services and processes; and support to community projects led by local civil society organizations.
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