Roseau, Dominica: The world has been shocked by the various global crisis, such as natural and biological disasters, and the Caribbean region has always remained at the frontline of facing huge devastations. At a time when big and developed countries were only holding discussions on the global issue called climate change, the small island country in the Caribbean- Dominica, emerged with efficient actions and steps.
Located 1,400 miles south of Miami in the eastern Caribbean belt, the Commonwealth of Dominica vowed to become the world’s first climate-resilient nation. The government has made incredible efforts to fulfil its aim and build itself in a better position that can withstand any natural calamity.
Dominica has shown the real story of regeneration and resilience that has also been marked by the different surveys conducted by local agencies of the Caribbean. As per the findings of the surveys and research, Dominica was named as one of those countries that successfully managed to control inflation by injecting reserve funds into the national economy.
In the tough period of the COVID-19 pandemic, Dominica efficiently handled the entire situation. Where the world witnessed a halt in every field, Dominica continued its developmental work and built back better with full strength.
Lockdown created stillness across the globe as the countries faced a downfall in the economy and in various other development sectors. However, this one small island country- Dominica, witnessed a robust recovery in the economy and turned out as one of the fastest-growing economies in the world.
During the COVID-19 pandemic, where other Caribbean countries were unable to fulfil even the basic necessities of their countrymen, Dominica not only turned successful in providing daily needs items such as dairy products, groceries, and gasoline, but people also got these items at very affordable prices.
Moreover, the government also financially assisted the people of the country in the times of Covid-19 when businesses were shut down.
While setting an example for the world, Dominica efficiently paved the path of development by building stronger infrastructure, which includes the construction of roads, bridges, houses, healthcare centres, hospitals, schools and many more.
In the journey of the development of Dominica, the Citizenship by Investment Programme played a keen role. The generated funds had been widely used by the government in the progress and regeneration of the country by providing. It provides sufficient relief and upliftment to the citizens during the crisis.
According to the economic expert of the US, Taylor Ross – “Dominica is wisely using the funds generated through the economic citizenship in order to fulfil the needs of the citizens and to emerge as the world’s first climate-resilient nation. The country endured major natural shocks as it was devastated by Tropical Storm Erika and Hurricane Maria in 2015 and 2017, respectively; the government committed to the construction of climate-resilient infrastructure, including expansion of the health care sector and housing units, as well as the educational sector.”
Not only the COVID-19 pandemic but various natural calamities, including category five Hurricane Maria in 2017, shattered the country. Dominica is the epicentre of the Hurricanes. One of those, Maria, has changed the face of the island entirely. With the reach up to 160 mph, the disasters have destroyed thousands of homes, roads, schools and bridges.
Triggered landslides, the hurricane washed away the crops and vandalized more than 90 percent of the infrastructure of Dominica. In addition to that, around 65 lives were lost to the natural disaster.
Despite all these troubles, the country always remains in high spirits to combat the issues and become adamant about creating sufficient and significant measures to protect itself from the effects of these natural disasters.
After the devastation, the country has decided not to depend upon chance or luck but to do incredible work to build itself in a better position.
A small island nation- Dominica, has not kept its morale down due to the fact that it will be hit by the hurricanes; instead, its efforts were mainly focused on ensuring the safety of its citizens.
Hence, the government used the CBI funds to build back the country and make the people of Dominica back to work.
In order to recover at greather lengths, the government of Dominica has iniatied the “Housing Revolution” in 2018; one year after Hurricane Maria. With an wim of provide shelter to each and every family, the government of Dominica continues to build resilient climate infrastructure and develop strategies to strengthen the systems to boost capacity at the individual and community levels to more effectively respond to disaster impacts.
As per the official data, till September 2020, the government has provided 1000 climate-resilient housing units to the people of Dominica and plans to construct such 5000 units.
In order to realize its ambitions toward constructing climate-resilient infrastructure, Dominica has significantly invested in the development of its healthcare sector. While focusing on the primary care system, the country has been optimizing to construct 12new primary new health centres, which include the state-of-the-art hospital.
Besides this, the government has also made efforts to empower its youth by launching the National Employment Programme (NEP). Under the programme, the young population gets the chance to do an internship which helps in developing vocational skills.
Around 4,500 businesses and 3,896 interns have been assisted by the NEP programme. Dominica is the only country in the Caribbean which focuses on providing jobs to its citizens.
The nation has also invested and begun work on a Geothermal Power Plant in an effort to reduce its dependence on fossil fuels. Moreover, the construction of the international airport also paced up the progressive path of the country.
Further, with an investment of USD100,000 and passing the rigours due-diligence stages, the international applicants become the citizens of the Nature Isle, enabling them to fly to over 75 percent of the world, and the construction of the airport will work as a bridge between Dominica and the business hubs in the countries Asia, Europe and Africa.
Meanwhile, the Commonwealth of Dominica is all set to start the construction of the world’s longest cable car project, with a length of Detachable Monocable Cable Car 6.6 kilometres long. The project will not only attract tourists across the world, but it will also generate extensive employment for locals.
The country is paying keen attention to eco-tourism and becoming the most population destination for its promotion of responsible tourism across the globe.
Various features such as eco-lodges, resorts and villas are fascinating to tourists who are seeking an escape in the “Nature Isle of the Caribbean.”
Besides all these splendid beauties, Dominica consists of various other natural elements, which could be a wonderful and mesmerizing experience for anyone who visited the country. The eco-tourism has become a significant topic for the government that is promoting it through its various luxurious yet sustainable accommodations.
So, with the help of the cable, tourists will be able to witness breathtaking taking views from a significant height.
