UN General Assembly
2017

In addition to providing shelter, accommodation and basic necessities to the evacuated residents of Barbuda, the social services on Antigua are now under great strain. They struggle to provide school places for an additional 600 students, medical services for the elderly and a means of earning an income for the able-bodied. Naturally, the residents of Barbuda are anxious to return to their homeland. But, as I speak to the Assembly, the island remains unfit for human habitation. There is no electricity or potable water, and 95 per cent of the buildings have been destroyed or severely damaged. Preliminary estimates have placed the cost of rebuilding Barbuda at about $250 million. That figure represents 15 per cent or more of my country’s gross domestic product of approximately $1.5 billion. It is simply a stretch beyond our reach. The President took the Chair.