The Bahamas Agricultural Marine and Science Research Institute (BAMSI) is being hailed as one of the Christie Administration’s most groundbreaking achievements and with the new school expected to open in September, government officials said they are happy with the progress being made so far.
During a tour of the still growing facility earlier this week Deputy Prime Minister Philip Davis and other government officials took some members of the media on a tour of the site in North Andros and noted that he is satisfied with what he has seen.
“We are working,” he said. “The chatter over the past several weeks about what we are or aren’t doing and if we aren’t fulfilling our promises or not, we want The Bahamas to see what we are doing.
“This project in North Andros is designed to be the catalyst for the future of The Bahamas period. This is laying the foundation for diversifying our economy and ensuring that there will be other means of revenue for our Bahamian people.”
Ground was broken on the site last year and since then, officials say the work has not stopped.
However, Mr. Davis admitted that the project has encountered challenges like finding out that the ground on which the school sits is not as solid as they thought and hiccups in meeting certain deadlines, but he assured Bahamians that challenges have all been worked out.
Chief Architect and Project Director at the Bahamas Agricultural and Industrial Corporation (BAIC) Livingston Forbes said while the government has already shelled out nearly $25 million in contracts for construction, they will soon have to shell out nearly $10 million more to put the finishing touches on the school.
“We have 22 contractors, so that’s 22 separate contracts totalling more than $2 million in construction costs,” he said. “We anticipate that there will be another $7 million or $8 million needed in the coming weeks because we’ve got to do the packing house and the processing plan along with a number of residences for the farmers, as well as security buildings and tuck shops for the students, along with civil and site lighting, which we have not commenced but it is a major part of the project.
“There’s quite a few more million dollars the government will need to spend in order to get this up to the standard we require so that the students can work in a comfortable environment.”
Deputy Prime Minister Davis added that the final costs of BAMSI will be outlined in the upcoming budget debate.
