SVG NPDP Prelim Method Framework Report - housing.gov.vchousing.gov.vc/housing/images/stories/PDF/svg_npdp_prelim_method_framework _report.pdfSVG National Physical Development Plan:

SVG National Physical Development Plan: Preliminary Methodological Framework Report Stephen Kemp BA, DipTP, MRTPI, FRSA 16th October 2013 1

St Vincent and the Grenadines National Physical Development Plan:

Preliminary Methodological Framework Report

Regional Disaster Vulnerability Reduction Program (RDVRP).

Report by Stephen Kemp BA, DipTP, MRTPI

October 2013


1. INTRODUCTION ........................................................................................................................ 1

2. REVIEW OF LEGAL AND POLICY FRAMEWORK .................................................................. 1 LEGAL FRAMEWORK ................................................................................................................................................... 1

Town and Country Planning Act ................................................................................................................................. 1 Purpose .................................................................................................................................................................. 2 Physical Planning and Development Board ........................................................................................................... 2 Content of Development Plans .............................................................................................................................. 4 Development Plans Hierarchy ............................................................................................................................... 6 Format of Development Plans ............................................................................................................................... 7 Compulsory Acquisition Provisions ........................................................................................................................ 7 Review of Development Plans ............................................................................................................................... 8 Comprehensive Development ................................................................................................................................ 8 Policy Statements .................................................................................................................................................. 8 Approval of Development Plans ............................................................................................................................. 8 Development Control and Enforcement ................................................................................................................. 9 Subdivision ........................................................................................................................................................... 10 Land-Use Allocation ............................................................................................................................................. 10

Secondary Legislation and Guidance ....................................................................................................................... 11 Planning Guidelines ............................................................................................................................................. 12 Urban Design ....................................................................................................................................................... 13

Conclusions and Recommendations relating to the Legal Framework ..................................................................... 14 POLICY FRAMEWORK ................................................................................................................................................ 17

Review of the Draft NPDP 2001-2021 ...................................................................................................................... 17 Executive Summary ............................................................................................................................................. 18 Presentation and Format of Policies and Proposals ............................................................................................ 18 Scope of the Draft NPDP (2001-2021) ................................................................................................................ 19 Implementation, Monitoring and Review Measures ............................................................................................. 20 Methodology ........................................................................................................................................................ 20 Time Frame .......................................................................................................................................................... 21 Conclusions and Recommendations relating to the Draft NPDP (2001 – 2021) ................................................. 21

Other Relevant Policies and Guidance ..................................................................................................................... 22 National Economic and Social Development Plan ............................................................................................... 22 Budget Speech 2013 ........................................................................................................................................... 22 Strategic Plan for Rural Development .................................................................................................................. 23 Conclusions and Recommendations relating to Other Relevant Policies and Guidance ..................................... 24

3. METHODOLOGICAL FRAMEWORK ......................................................................................... 25 A plan with a purpose ............................................................................................................................................... 25 The plan-making process ......................................................................................................................................... 25 The plan-making cycle .............................................................................................................................................. 26 Stakeholder engagement and consultation .............................................................................................................. 27 A four-stage methodology for preparing the national plan ........................................................................................ 30

Stage 1: Key Issues ............................................................................................................................................. 31 Stage 2: Spatial Development Strategy Options .................................................................................................. 33 Stage 3: Consultation Draft ................................................................................................................................. 36 Stage 4: Formal Consultation and Approval ........................................................................................................ 37

Post-Approval Stages ............................................................................................................................................... 38


4. NATIONAL PLAN OBJECTIVES AND SCOPE ...................................................................... 40 What the Terms of Reference say ............................................................................................................................ 40

Developing a Vision ..................................................................................................................................................... 44 Key words ................................................................................................................................................................. 44

Back-cast from 2035 ............................................................................................................................................ 45 National Plan Objectives ............................................................................................................................................. 46

Core Challenges .................................................................................................................................................. 46 Objectives ............................................................................................................................................................ 46

Scope of the National Plan ......................................................................................................................................... 47

5. BUILDING THE EVIDENCE (INFORMATION) BASE ............................................................. 51 Available information .................................................................................................................................................. 51 Identification of significant gaps ................................................................................................................................ 55 Timeframe required to complete the relevant information base ............................................................................. 58

6. RESOURCES AND TIMEFRAME FOR PREPARING THE NATIONAL PLAN ...................... 60

APPENDIX 1: Sustainable Development ........................................................................................ 1 A BRIEF OVERVIEW OF THE CONCEPT OF SUSTAINABLE DEVELOPMENT ........................................................ 1 SUSTAINABILITY APPRAISAL ..................................................................................................................................... 2

APPENDIX 2: Core Challenges ....................................................................................................... 4 Reluctance ................................................................................................................................................................ 11


1. INTRODUCTION

1.1 Although the country’s planning laws have always envisaged that St Vincent and the Grenadines should have “a national plan, and regional and local plans”1, that intended suite of plans does not yet exist. Although a draft National Physical Development Plan was prepared for the period 2001-‐2021, it was not formally approved. This situation is no longer considered satisfactory and a decision has been made to commission initial advice on defining the appropriate scope of a “National Physical Development Plan” (NPDP) and developing a work plan for its preparation.

1.2 This preliminary consultancy work is funded through the World Bank as part of St Vincent and the

Grenadines’ engagement in a Regional Disaster Vulnerability Reduction Program (RDVRP). That program aims at reducing vulnerability to natural hazards and climate change impacts in the Eastern Caribbean, specifically in Grenada and Saint Vincent and the Grenadines. This consultancy project is funded under Component 2 of the RDVRP, which is entitled Regional Platforms for Hazard and Risk Evaluation, and Applications for Improved Decision Making, and is intended to “support building the regional capacity for assessment of natural risks and integration of such assessment into policy and decision-‐making process for the development of investments, disaster risk mitigation, and disaster response across sectors…”2. In that context, the Government of St Vincent and the Grenadines has identified a number of priority investments with the goal of reducing the country’s physical and economic vulnerability to adverse events. Preparation and implementation of a national physical development plan has been identified as a priority investment.

1.3 The NPDP must deal with many other issues as well, but its importance in the context of reducing the

country’s vulnerability to hazards and disasters adds urgency to the process of preparing and approving the plan and points towards particular priorities.

1.4 The objective of this preliminary consultancy work is specified in the Terms of Reference (ToR)3 as being

“to provide technical guidance in the process of formulating the scope of a National Physical Development Plan for St. Vincent and the Grenadines, and determine required steps and analyses as well as the range of inputs/investments that may be relevant to the process including the development of a work plan for its completion”. So, in simple terms, the requirements are to advise on:

o issues and topics the NPDP should address (its scope); o the information required in order to prepare the NPDP, identifying any further studies that may

be necessary; o the way in which the NPDP should be prepared; and, o the resources and time that will need to be made available.

1.5 The ToR stipulates that this Preliminary Methodological Framework Report should include:

a) a review and overview of policies and the existing legal framework that are related to physical development planning;

1 This phrase is used identically in Sections 7(1)(c) of the Town and Country Planning Acts of both 1976 and 1992. 2 The World Bank website http://web.worldbank.org/WBSITE/EXTERNAL/COUNTRIES/LACEXT/EXTLACREGTOPURBDEV/0,,contentMDK:23068615~pagePK:34004173~piPK:34003707~theSitePK:841043,00.html 3 Terms of Reference SVGRDVRP-‐C-‐IC-‐20


b) recommendations regarding the objective, appropriate scope and structure of a National Physical Development Plan for St. Vincent and the Grenadines, informed by discussions with the Physical Planning Unit and relevant line ministries;

c) a methodological framework for the elaboration of the NPDP including:

o comparison of required with available information;

o identification of the status of existing and available information;

o identification of significant gaps; and,

o a timeframe and other recommendations relating to resources required to complete the relevant information base, including required studies and analyses needing to be carried out;

d) ToRs for required studies, analyses and consultancies, and recommendations regarding the role of each ministry in the process.

1.6 This report’s recommendations regarding the scope of the NPDP and a methodological framework for its preparation are to be considered and discussed at a “reporting and facilitation meeting” at which the opinions of representatives of relevant government ministries and agencies will be sought. That meeting, scheduled for mid-‐November 2013, will build on a workshop held on 14th August 2013 and a series of interviews with representatives of government ministries and agencies, conducted by the consultant and colleagues in the Physical Planning Unit (PPU) between August and October 2013.

1.7 Following the reporting and facilitation meeting, the consultant will prepare and submit a draft final

report that will take account of outcomes from the meeting and will set out fully detailed recommendations regarding:

o the process and methodology for preparing the NPDP;

o any additional studies that may be required to fill identified gaps in the relevant information

base (including draft ToRs for these);

o a time table for completion of the studies and the NPDP;

o estimates of resource requirements; and,

o procedures for keeping the NPDP under review once approved.

Each of those matters is addressed in this Preliminary Methodological Framework Report but will be reviewed, refined and expanded on in the full report.

1.8 It is intended that the final report will be submitted by 30th November 2013.


2. REVIEW OF LEGAL AND POLICY FRAMEWORK

LEGAL FRAMEWORK 2.1 The primary legislation relevant to planning is The Town and Country Planning Act, 1992 as

subsequently amended in 2002 and 2005. The principal act and amending acts will be referred to collectively as “the Act” in this report.

2.2 The Act has been reviewed for two purposes:

I. to ensure that legal requirements relevant to the preparation and subsequent approval, implementation and review of the national plan are understood and taken properly in to account; and,

II. to enable advice to be offered regarding any amendments that may be considered necessary in

order to enhance the effectiveness of the national plan and related plans, policies interventions and actions.

Those matters are explored in the paragraphs that follow.

Town and Country Planning Act 2.3 The 1992 Act replaced a similarly titled act from 1976. The 1976 and 1992 acts have similarities, and

both are clearly rooted in British planning legislation, but the more recent act introduced some significant additions and refinements to the planning process. Those considered to be of particular relevance when considering the scope and form of the NPDP are outlined below:

a) the addition of Coastal Zone Management planning to the list of items to be considered when

preparing a national plan [Section 8(2)(f)];

b) inclusion of provisions relating to compulsory acquisition of land [Sections 9(2) and 9(3)];

c) inclusion of a requirement for approved development plans to be reviewed at least every five years [Section 9(4)];

d) inclusion of provisions relating to comprehensive development [Section 10];

e) requirement to maintain a public register of all planning applications, appeals and related

decisions [Section 11];

f) provision for issuing Policy Statements on issues relevant to planning and for these to be material considerations when dealing with planning applications [Section 12];

g) detailed procedures for the approval of national, regional and local plans, including requirements

relating to publicity and the consideration of representations [Section 13];


h) provision for declaring “Zoned Areas” within which particular activities and uses may be prohibited [Section 14];

i) specification of matters to be considered when dealing with planning applications [Section 17(1),

(2) and (3)];

j) identification of approved national, regional and local plans, and “approved environmental impact statements” as “primary considerations” when dealing with planning applications [Section 17(1)];

k) detailed provisions relating to the submission and consideration of planning applications [Sections

17(4) to 17(11);

l) enhancement of enforcement powers and provisions [Sections 18 and 19];

m) introduction of powers to require discontinuance of existing uses in certain circumstances [Section 21];

n) redefinition of purposes of Tree Preservation Orders to include soil conservation and water

conservation as specified purposes [Section 22];

o) introduction of powers and procedures for identifying (listing) and protecting buildings of special architectural or historic interest [Sections 23, 24 and 25;

p) introduction of requirements and provisions relating to Environmental Impact Assessment [Section

29];

q) introduction of additional powers to protect the environment [Section 30].

Purpose 2.4 The preamble to the 1992 Act states that its purpose is: “…to enable the orderly and progressive

development of land and the proper planning of town and country areas, to make provision for the control of development and for matters incidental to the foregoing and connected therewith”. That description of the intended purposes of the Act, and the interventions it provides for, is important in considering the scope and objectives of the proposed NPDP.

Physical Planning and Development Board 2.5 Section 3(1) of the Act established the Physical Planning and Development Board (The Board) and

specified its composition. It is noted that members of the Board are mostly government officers, representing a range of ministries and agencies4, so it is a technical / administrative, rather than an elected, body. As the body responsible for preparation (but not approval) of a national plan, which ideally should take a highly integrative, cross-‐sectoral approach to spatial planning, the wide, cross-‐

4 The following government officers (or their nominees) are officio members of the Board: Director of Planning; Head of National Properties Ltd; Chief Engineer; Chief Agricultural Officer; Chief Surveyor; Chief Environmental Health Officer; General Manager of Housing and Land Development Corporation; Manager of Central Water and Sewerage; General Manager of St Vincent Electricity Services Ltd; Commissioner of Police; Warden of Kingstown Town Board. The Act provides for three additional members to be appointed by Cabinet.


ministry representation of the Board’s ex officio membership appears appropriate – and potentially advantageous.

2.6 The functions of the Board are stated, at Section 7(1), as being: a) to institute and maintain a study of town and country development;

b) to prepare in accordance with sections 8 and 9, a national plan, and regional and local plans for

submission to the Minister for approval by Cabinet and to keep the plans under review;

c) to prepare, in accordance with section 12, for submission to the Minister for transmission to Cabinet, such reports as the Board or the Minister may from time to time consider necessary or desirable to assist the proper planning of the use or development of land;

d) to ensure the orderly and progressive development of land and proper planning of town and country

areas;

e) to control development by such means as are provided by this Act;

f) to do all other things necessary for carrying out the purposes and provisions of this Act as may be authorized.

2.7 The relative responsibilities of the Board, the Minister (responsible for town and country planning) and

the Cabinet will need to be understood and allowed for in the preparation and eventual approval of the national plan. In broad terms, the Board’s responsibility is to prepare the plan, but responsibility for approving it (or declining approval) rests with the Minister, in consultation with the Cabinet. This must be reflected in the methodology and procedures to be followed in preparing, consulting upon and gaining approval of the proposed NPDP.

2.8 Although the Board remains responsible at all times for the “due and proper performance of its

functions”, Section 7(2), allows it to “(a) consult with or obtain advice from other persons”, and “(b) engage the assistance of other persons for any general or particular purpose” in relation to any of its functions listed in Section 7(1). Under Section 7(2)(c), the Board may “delegate any of its functions under Section 8 to any of the persons referred to at paragraph (a) or (b)”. The functions under Section 8 referred to are: (1) gathering relevant information and keeping it under review; (2) preparing a national plan; (3) preparing regional plans; (4) preparing local plans.

2.9 The provisions of Section 7(2) allow for considerable creativity and flexibility in appointing sub-‐

committees, consultative bodies, joint-‐working groups, consultants, and making other arrangements that may be helpful for specific tasks – such as preparing the proposed NPDP.

2.10 Additionally, Section 7(3) allows for delegation of any of the Board’s functions to the Physical

Planner / Town Planner. 2.11 Section 8(1) of the Act elaborates on the requirement to “institute and maintain a study of town

and country development” (Section 7(1) (a)), requiring the Board, to “examine and keep under review:

a) the numerical size, the composition and the distribution of the population;


b) the principal physical, environmental and economic characteristics;

c) the availability of public utilities, social services, traffic and communications;

d) such other matters as the Board considers it desirable to be, or as the Minister may direct should be

examined and reviewed, and shall have regard to current trends and policies relating to the matters referred to in this subsection which are or may be relevant to development”.

That list provides the basis for a rolling survey programme. Further development of the GIS (Geographic

Information System) should help to make this type of information both more readily accessible and easier to review and update on a regular basis. One of the tasks for this preliminary consultancy is to ascertain the extent and relevance of survey information currently available as the potential evidence base for preparing the proposed NPDP and to make recommendations as to how any significant gaps should best be filled.

Content of Development Plans 2.12 Turning specifically to the subject of development plans, Section 8(2) lists matters that the Board is

to consider when preparing “the national plan”5, as follows:

a) the distribution and foreseeable variation of the distribution of the population;

b) the progress of, and current trends and policies relating to economic and social development;

c) prevailing physical and environmental conditions;

d) current trends and policies relating to the systems of communication within, and connecting with, Saint Vincent and the Grenadines;

e) the foreseeable need and availability of land for natural, agricultural and forestry reserves, national

parks, public open spaces, and other areas which appear to the Board to be in the national interest to retain or provide;

f) the provisions of any coastal zone management plan.

2.13 Sections 8(3) and 8(4) go on to list the considerations relevant to the preparation of regional plans

and local plans. These considerations are generally more detailed and region / local-‐area-‐specific. 2.14 Section 8(5) adds a further four matters to which the Board is to have regard when preparing plans

at all three levels (national, regional and local). Those matters are:

a) the allocation of lands for forest reserves, national parks, agricultural, residential, industrial, commercial or other purposes as may be indicated in the plan;

5 It should be noted that the term “National Physical Development Plan” is not used in the Act, which refers instead to a “national plan” together with “regional” and “local” plans. Whilst the term National Physical Development Plan or NPDP is used in this report, there would appear to be some latitude in deciding on the working title to be used for the national plan.


b) the designation and demarcation of any land that may be allocated for any public purpose;

c) the designation and demarcation of any land required for comprehensive development of an area including areas adjacent to the area required for the purposes of paragraph (a);

d) the designation and demarcation of any other land that, in the opinion of the Board, should be

reserved for compulsory acquisition for any public purpose. 2.15 Together, then, Sections 8(2) and 8(5) define the scope of a national plan. Translating those

requirements into the contemporary context, the scope of the proposed NPDP must include:

i. demographics and population distribution and forecasts [8(2)(a)]; ii. economic and social policy [8(2)(b)];

iii. physical and environmental conditions [8(2)(c)];

iv. communications systems (both physical transport and telecommunications / ICT) [8(2)(d)];

v. reservation and protection of land for maintenance of the natural environment and ecology,

national parks, public open space, agriculture and forestry [8(2)(e)]; vi. planned management of the coastal zones [8(2)(f)];

vii. allocation of land for residential, industrial, commercial and other purposes [8(5)(a)];

viii. allocation of land for public services and other public purposes [8(5)(b)];

ix. identification of any areas proposed for comprehensive development [8(5)(c)];

x. identification of any land proposed for compulsory acquisition [8(5)(d)].


Development Plans Hierarchy 2.16 It is important to note that the Act clearly envisages that the NPDP will be a strategic plan, setting

out spatial planning policy at a national level, identifying key areas to be either developed or not developed / “reserved”, and setting a strategic framework for more detailed and site-‐specific plans to be prepared at the regional and local levels. This would create a hierarchy of development plans and policies as illustrated in Diagram 1, below.

2.17 The hierarchy of plans envisaged by the Act is logical, and has much to commend it as a mechanism

for coordinating “top down” strategic planning with a more “bottom up” approach to local planning. However, distinguishing between national, regional and local levels may be challenging in a country the relatively small size of St Vincent and the Grenadines. Achieving logical distinction between national and a more local level is, in itself, unlikely to be too problematic as there are clearly strategic matters that are important in planning the country as a whole and more detailed matters that are important in planning particular areas of the country. The more challenging task may be to distinguish between regional and local levels.

NATIONAL PHYSICAL

DEVELOPMENT PLAN

REGIONAL PLANS

LOCAL PLANS

Strategic national plan setting out: • overall spatial development vision and objectives • strategic policies applicable across SVG • strategic proposals of national significance • strategically important land-‐use allocations

(including protected areas) • strategic framework for regional and local plans

Regional plans setting out objectives, policies and proposals for each region of SVG:

• consistent with NSDS • providing further regionally strategic

context for Local Plans

Detailed plans for particular localities, setting out objectives, policies, proposals and site-‐specific land-‐use allocations:

• consistent with NPDP and Regional Plans

Diagram1: The Development Plans Hierarchy


2.18 Simply to stimulate consideration of this issue, some possible definitions of regions are outlined as examples in Table 1 but, no doubt, other permutations could also be considered.

2.19 Key considerations should include:

- Would defining regions for planning purposes serve a useful purpose? - Would it be practical to do so? - Would the introduction of a regional planning level serve to empower or might it divide? - Is it necessary? An alternative -‐ and probably more appropriate -‐ approach might be to include regionally-‐specific policies within the proposed NPDP with more detailed, site-‐specific policies and allocations being dealt with in local plans. In effect, this would combine the national and regional plans. This all requires careful consideration at this stage as the approach decided upon will have a significant influence on the scope and approach of the national plan.

Format of Development Plans 2.20 The basic format (“composition”) stipulated for the national, regional and local plans is outlined at

Section 9(1). In essence, they must all include:

a) a written statement containing policies and proposals; and, b) appropriate maps, diagrams and other illustrative or descriptive matter, necessary to explain

the policies and proposals.

Compulsory Acquisition Provisions 2.21 Sections 9(2) and 9(3) deal with compulsory acquisition matters, stipulating procedures to be

followed if a national, regional or local plan designates any land for compulsory acquisition.

Example 4: • St Vincent Coastal Zone Region • St Vincent Interior Region • Greater Kingstown Region • North Grenadines Region • South Grenadines Region

Example 1: • St Vincent Rural Region • St Vincent Urban Region • The Grenadines Region

- North Grenadines Sub-‐region

- South Grenadines Sub-‐region

Example 2: • St Vincent Windward Region • St Vincent Leeward Region • Greater Kingstown Region • The Grenadines Region

Example 3: • St Vincent Region • The Grenadines Region

Example 5: • Saint David • Saint Patrick • Saint Andrew • Charlotte • Saint George • The Grenadines

Table 1: Regions


Review of Development Plans 2.22 Section 9(4) sets a maximum interval of 5 years for the review of approved plans. This, again,

applies to national, regional and local plans alike. Establishing a framework for monitoring and review of the NPDP will be an important part of the implementation process and the 5-‐year review period set by the Act must influence the approach that should be taken. The implications of this need to be taken into account when deciding how the proposed NPDP is to be produced and by whom. It is considered that the closer the government’s own officers are involved in the preparation of the plan the better-‐equipped they will be to monitor its effects and keep it under review.

Comprehensive Development 2.23 Section 10 enables the Board to designate areas for comprehensive development (and associated

compulsory acquisition) within a national, regional or local plan. Purposes for which comprehensive development designation may be used are listed as:

a) dealing with conditions of bad layout or obsolete development; b) providing for the relocation of population or industry or the replacement of open space of any

other area; c) for any other purpose which may be specified.

This may be a useful mechanism for achieving some of the interventions that the national plan may

propose.

Policy Statements 2.24 Section 12, together with Section 7(1)(c), enables the Board to prepare written statements of its

policies and proposals relating to matters considered to be “necessary or desirable to assist the proper planning of the use or development of land”. Such statements must be submitted to the Minister for submission to Cabinet. This wide-‐ranging policy-‐making power is given strength by Section 17(2)(a) where such statements are specifically identified as material considerations when dealing with planning applications.

2.25 The relationship between policy statements of this type and the proposed NDPD (and regional and

local plans) should be considered carefully so that the most appropriate and effective means of dealing with particular aspects of policy may be decided upon. This may, for example, enable the NPDP to be kept more succinct in its handling of certain topics for which more detailed policy and guidance might be provided in supplementary Policy Statements. An example of such an approach being useful would be a topic or issue about which policy principles are clear, but further information may be needed in order to provide more detailed guidance and direction.

Approval of Development Plans 2.26 Procedures that must be followed when seeking approval of a national, regional or local plan are

set out in Section 13. The essential steps are:

• the plan must be submitted to the Cabinet via the Minister;


• subject to Cabinet approval and prior to approval by the Minister, a notice must be published “in two issues of the Gazette”: stating that the plan has been prepared;

• explaining where copies may be inspected; and, • allowing a period of at least 28 days for objections or representations to be made in writing to the

Minister;

• if objections or representations are received an inquiry must be held;

• the Minister must then consider the objections / representations in the light of the report submitted by the person who conducted the inquiry before finally deciding whether to approve the plan, with or without modifications;

• if the Minister approves the plan a further notice must be published stating the place where all

relevant documents will be available for public inspection.

Those statutory requirements must be allowed for in the work plan and timetable for preparation and approval of the proposed NPDP. Consideration should also be given to earlier consultation – throughout the plan-‐making period – to enable matters of concern to be identified and addressed as early in the process as possible.

Development Control and Enforcement 2.27 From Section 16 onwards the focus of the Act turns mostly to Development Control and

Enforcement matters. Of particular relevance to the national plan process are:

• Section 17(1), which identifies approved national, regional and local plans as the first “primary consideration” when dealing with a planning application;

• Section 21, which identifies national, regional and local plans as being relevant considerations in

the Board deciding whether to require discontinuance of any problematic use or building;

• Section 22, which establishes procedures for Tree Preservation Orders and states that these can be used both to protect amenity and to conserve soil or water (and for other purposes);

• Sections 24 and 25, which deal with powers and procedures for preserving and “listing” buildings of

special architectural or historic interest;

• Section 29, which enables the Environmental Impact Assessments to be submitted in specified circumstances; and,

• Section 30, which enables orders to protect the environment to be made in what appear to be

wide-‐ranging circumstances.

The proposed NPDP needs to be prepared with an awareness of those powers, measures and procedures.

2.28 It is considered that there are two further legislative matters relating to the principal Act that need

to be given particular thought when moving towards preparation of the proposed NPDP: the issue of subdivision; and the concept of “land use zoning”.


Subdivision 2.29 From discussions that have been held in the course of this consultancy, it appears that a degree of

confusion regarding the need for planning permission to be obtained when land is subdivided is prevalent. It is considered important to establish the legal position as far as the Town and Country Planning Act is concerned at this point.

2.30 In Section 2 of the Act:

o “development” is defined as “the carrying out of building, demolition, rebuilding, engineering, mining or other operations in, on, over or under land, the making of any material change in the use of any building or other land, the subdivision of land and the display of any advertisement…”; and,

o “subdivision” is defined as “the division of any building or piece of land into two or more parts

for the purpose of sale, transfer, gift, lease, the creation of a trust, or any other transaction whether or not similar to the foregoing”.

Section 16(1) states that “no person shall carry out, or cause to be carried out, any development except under and in accordance with the conditions of a grant of permission for development given in writing by the Board”.

2.31 Clearly, planning permission is required for development, and the subdivision of land constitutes development. Subdivision therefore requires planning permission and there appear to be no legal exemptions to this. It seems, however, that in some instances subdivisions are being approved through applications to the Land and Survey Department and this is then regarded as giving a right to build on the subdivided land, with planning permission still being required for the particular building but not the principle of building on that land. From the review that has been undertaken for the purposes of this consultancy, it appears that this practice is not consistent with the actual legal position.

2.32 If any development plan – national, regional or local – is to be effective, it will be important that

control can be exercised effectively over both the location of development and the form of development. Resolving the apparent contradiction between the legal position and some aspects of current practice regarding subdivision of land appears, therefore, to be an urgent requirement.

Land-‐Use Allocation 2.33 The ToR for this consultancy states that an objective of the proposed NPDP will be to establish

“land use zoning Policies”. 2.34 The phrase “land use zoning” does not appear in the Act. The word “zone” appears only in the

phrase “Coastal Management Zone” and Section 14(1) makes provision for declaration of “Zoned Areas”, within which specified uses and activities may be prohibited, but these are quite different from “land use zones”. The word “zoning” does not appear at all. Instead, the term that is used is “allocation”: so, Section 8 (5)(a) requires the Board to “have regard to… the allocation of lands” for various purposes when preparing national, regional and local plans.


2.35 This is not just a matter of semantics: the concepts of “zoning” and “allocation” are significantly different and originate from different approaches to planning. This needs to be taken into account when considering the purpose, scope and form of the proposed NPDP.

2.36 St Vincent and the Grenadines’ planning legislation derives from the British planning system, which,

similarly, is plan-‐led and involves a development control system in which planning applications are considered against the provisions of the development plan and other material considerations. Under this system, development plans contain policies, proposals and allocations but they do not establish land use zones. Decisions are arrived at on the basis of judgements that take account of – and often seek to balance – various considerations.

2.37 Zoning as used, for example, in North America, tends to be a prescriptive approach within which

particular uses and forms of development are legally prescribed for particular zones and certain development rights go with the zoning. Although with this approach there is, perhaps, greater clarity regarding the use(s) to which any particular property may be put, there is also less flexibility to accommodate changing circumstances and requirements and to consider alternative uses that may be equally acceptable.

2.38 If, as seems likely, an approach that is consistent with the current Town and Country Planning Act is

preferred it would seem advisable generally to avoid references to “zones” and “zoning” (except in the particular contexts of Section 14(1) of the Act and such phrases as “The Coastal Zone”) and use instead the terms policies, proposals and allocations.

Secondary Legislation and Guidance 2.39 Three secondary documents have also been reviewed:

1. Planning Guidelines published by the Physical Planning and Development Board, originally in connection with the Town and Country Planning Act 1976 and subsequently updated;

2. The Building Guidelines published by the Physical Planning and Development Board, originally in

connection with the Town and Country Planning Act (date not specified);

3. The Building Regulations 2008 made in accordance with Section 36a of the Town and Country Planning Act 1992.

The Building Regulations (item 3 in the list above) are secondary legislation made in accordance with a specific provision of the Act. The legal status of the Planning Guidelines and Building Guidelines is less clear but is assumed that they have the status of Policy Statements issued in accordance with Sections 7(1)(c) and 10 of the 1976 Act (equating to Sections 7(1)(c) and 12 of the 1992 Act).

2.40 The Building Guidelines and Building Regulations provide clear, detailed guidance and statutory

regulation regarding the construction of structures to which they apply. These vitally important controls will continue to sit alongside the provisions of national, regional and local plans when approved and there should be no need for duplication within the proposed NPDP (although some cross-‐referencing might be appropriate).


Planning Guidelines 2.41 The Planning Guidelines set out guidance on a range of planning matters, including:

1. The required contents of planning applications; 2. Decisions on planning applications; 3. Appeals; 4. a range of detailed matters including:

a. land use allocation; b. required conformity with adopted national, regional and local plans; c. considerations relating to residential sub-‐division applications; d. “correlation of design with future development of adjacent property”; e. “orderly and progressive expansion of urbanization…”; f. “landscaping and preservation of natural or other features”; g. “parks, playgrounds and public uses” (specifying public open space requirements as a

percentage of site area); h. “provision of access roads prior to sale etc of lots”; i. “provision of Utility Service Systems prior to sale etc of lots” j. dimensional and other standards relating to lot sizes and layouts, roads, buildings and “building

lines (set backs)”, and density standards; 5. Coastal development; 6. Tourism development; 7. Sensitive and potentially un-‐neighbourly or intrusive uses; 8. Public health; 9. Planning and Design Criteria (presented in a series of tables).

2.42 Preparation of the NPDP provides an opportunity to review and update the approach to items 4 to

9 of that list, either by establishing NPDP policies for relevant matters (supported by associated technical appendices where appropriate) or by preparing new policy statements to sit alongside the national plan and any regional or local plans that may be produced.

2.43 Subject to further detailed consideration, it is recommended that the following matters should be

the subject of policies in the NPDP:

• land use allocation (strategic);

• considerations relating to residential sub-‐division applications (principles);

• relationship with future development of adjacent property (principles);

• orderly and progressive development / expansion of urban areas (principles);

• landscaping (principles);

• preservation of natural or other features (principles);

• public recreational and civic open space (principles);

• provision of access roads (principles);

• provision of Utility Service Systems (principles)”


• Coastal development;

• Tourism development;

• Sensitive and potentially un-‐neighbourly or intrusive uses;

• Public health;

• Urban Design principles.

Urban Design 2.44 It is also recommended that consideration should be given to preparing supplementary Urban

Design Guidance and publishing this as a formal policy statement. Urban Design Guidance could include (but not be restricted to) detailed guidance relating to:

• relationships between buildings and neighbouring buildings;

• relationships between buildings and the public realm (roads, public spaces etc);

• townscape and streetscape considerations;

• “Green Design” and energy efficiency considerations;

• disaster vulnerability reduction considerations;

• dimensional and other standards or criteria relating to lot sizes and layouts, roads, siting of

buildings and building density;

• considerations relating to residential sub-‐division applications (principles);

• relationship with future development of adjacent property (principles);

• orderly and progressive development / expansion of urban areas (principles);

• landscaping (principles);

• preservation of natural or other features;

• public recreational and civic open space;

• provision of access roads;

• provision of Utility Service Systems .


Conclusions and Recommendations relating to the Legal Framework 2.45 The following paragraphs (2.46 to 2.60) provide a summary of conclusions and recommendations

arising for the review of the legal framework for preparing the proposed NPDP. Numbers in square brackets at the end of paragraphs, eg, [2.7], refer to the relevant paragraphs where particular matters have been dealt with in detail.

2.46 There appears to be no need for any legislative changes at this time in order for a contemporary,

forward-‐looking and effective national plan to be prepared and adopted. The Town and Country Planning Act 1992, as amended, provides a strong legislative basis for both development planning and development control. Although a thread running through many of the discussions that have been held in the course of this consultancy has been concern that planning (and other) requirements are not always enforced, that is a separate – though highly relevant and significant – matter. The legal framework itself appears to be sound and provides strong and potentially effective planning powers.

2.47 The methodology and procedures for preparing the proposed NPDP must take account of the

relative responsibilities of the Board (preparation), and the Minister and the Cabinet (approval). [2.7] 2.48 Careful consideration should be given to ways of using to best effect the creative flexibility that

Section 7(2) allows in appointing sub-‐committees, consultative bodies, joint-‐working groups, consultants, and making other arrangements to assist preparation of the proposed NPDP. [2.8, 2.9]

2.49 In ensuring that the requirement to “institute and maintain a study of town and country

development” can be fulfilled efficiently and effectively, full use should be made of the GIS unit’s potential. [2.11]

2.50 To meet the requirements of the Act [Sections 8(2) and 8(5)] the scope of the NPDP should include:

• demographics and population distribution and forecasts; • economic and social policy; • physical and environmental conditions; • communications systems (physical transport and telecommunications / ICT); • reservation and protection of land for maintenance of the natural environment and ecology,

national parks, public open space, agriculture and forestry; • planned management of the coastal zones; • allocation of land for residential, industrial, commercial and other purposes; • allocation of land for public services and other public purposes; • identification of any areas proposed for comprehensive development; • identification of any land proposed for compulsory acquisition.

It will be important, however, to specify the relative levels of detail and site-‐specificity considered appropriate for the NPDP and any subsequent regional and/or local plans. [2.12 to 2.15] 2.51 It will be necessary to decide at this stage on the general approach to be taken to the preparation

of regional and local plans, as this will have a significant influence on the scope and approach of the NPDP. [2.16 to 2.19]

2.52 The ToR for preparing the proposed NPDP should specify a format consistent with the

requirements of Section 9(1), that is: c) a written statement containing policies and proposals; and,


d) appropriate maps, diagrams and other illustrative or descriptive matter, necessary to explain the policies and proposals. [2.20]

2.53 The requirement in Section 9(4) that approved development plans should be reviewed at no

greater than 5-‐year intervals should be reflected in the framework for monitoring and review of the proposed NPDP. The plan can have a longer timeframe but regular reviews and adjustments should be built in to the on-‐going process. The implications of this need to be taken into account when deciding how the proposed NPDP is to be produced and by whom. [2.22]

2.54 The ToR for the proposes NPDP should specify that consideration should be given to the potential

designation of areas for comprehensive development the power (Section 10 of the Act) as a useful mechanism for achieving some of the interventions that may be considered necessary for inclusion in the NPDP. For example, areas where existing buildings or settlements may be at significant risk from impacts of climate change such as rising seal levels and increased risk of storm surges may warrant this treatment in exceptional cases. [2.23]

2.55 In determining the scope of the proposed NPDP, and particularly the level of detail appropriate to

its treatment of some topics, consideration should be given to the ways in which policy statements allowed for by Section 7(1)(c) might be used in conjunction with the proposed NPDP. This may, for example, enable the proposed NPDP to be kept more succinct in its handling of certain topics for which more detailed policy and guidance might be provided in supplementary Policy Statements. [2.24, 2.25]

2.56 The methodology, procedures, work plan and timetable for preparing the proposed NPDP must

allow for the statutory requirements relating to the approval of national, regional and local plans, as set out in Section 13 of the Act. Consideration should also be given to earlier consultation – throughout the plan-‐making period – to enable matters of concern to be identified and addressed as early in the process as possible. [2.26]

2.57 Procedures relating to the approval of subdivision of land parcels should be clarified and if

necessary reconsidered in tandem with the preparation of the proposed NPDP to ensure that there are no conflicts between intention and practice. [2.29 to 2.32]

2.58 Due consideration should be given to the difference between “allocation” and “zoning” of land for

specified uses and the ToR for the proposed NPDP should be consistent with the terminology used in the Act unless a deliberate variation from this is considered desirable. [2.33 to 2.38]

2.59 The Planning Guidelines should be reviewed and updated, with nationally applicable principles

being developed and taken forward as policies in the national plan and more detailed guidance and requirements relating to those strategic policies being developed and published as formal Policy Statements (carrying the weight afforded by Section 17(2)(a) of the Act), including detailed Urban Design Guidance. [2.41 to 2.44]

2.60 In addition to the matters listed in Paragraph 2.50, above, it is recommended that the following

matters currently covered in varying degrees of detail in the Planning Guidelines, should be included within the scope of the proposed NPDP’s policies: • land use allocation (strategic); • considerations relating to residential sub-‐division (principles); • relationship with future development of adjacent property (principles); • orderly and progressive development / expansion of urban areas (principles);


• landscaping (principles); • preservation of natural or other features (principles); • public recreational and civic open space (principles); • provision of access roads and other infrastructure to serve developments (principles); • Coastal development; • Tourism development; • Sensitive and potentially un-‐neighbourly or intrusive uses; • Public health;

• Urban Design principles. [2.43 to 2.44].


POLICY FRAMEWORK 2.61 The proposed NPDP can only be effective if it is drawn up with awareness and understanding of:

o current land-‐use / spatial planning policies; and, o the spatial implications and requirements of other government policies and commitments.

Although, that policy background should be taken into account, this does not meant that the national plan should simply be a compendium of pre-‐existing policies. Each should be considered and interpreted in the context of the vision and objectives established for the NPDP itself (which should be agreed through stakeholder engagement and consultation). Once produced and approved, the NPDP should then, in turn, influence on-‐going evolution of policy, and public investment decisions and interventions.

2.62 Current Planning Guidelines have already been considered as part of the review of the Legal Framework (Paragraphs 2.36 to 2.41) and it has been recommended that the topics they address should be included either as policy topics within the proposed NPDP or as supplementary policy statements, (Paragraphs 2.55 and 2.56).

2.63 The other main body of planning policy thinking at present is the unapproved Draft National

Physical Development Plan (2001 -‐2021). The draft NPDP has been reviewed primarily to assess its continuing relevance (if any) as a statement of national physical planning policy, to identify any significant gaps in its scope, and to advise as to whether it should be amended and taken forward for approval.

2.64 Other government policy statements and documents have been identified in the course of

discussions held with the various ministries and agencies, those with particular relevance to the scope and approach of the proposed NPDP have been listed and commented upon as appropriate.

Review of the Draft NPDP 2001-‐2021 2.65 The draft NPDP contains a large amount of relevant information, set out clearly and in a structured

way. However, much of the information is now significantly out-‐of-‐date, as is to be expected given the date of production (2000 – 2002), and from a current-‐day perspective, there are now some significant gaps in the scope of issues and topics addressed and the format of the draft document.

2.66 The draft plan is structured as follows:

• Volume 1: o Executive Summary and Introduction o Background and descriptive information o Policies and Proposals

• Volume 2: o Implementation Strategies

2.67 Whilst this arrangement may seem to be orderly and logical, detaching the policies and proposals

from the information (”evidence”) base by which they are underpinned sometimes makes it awkward for the reader to understand the context. This could be addressed either by bringing evidence and policy together, topic-‐by-‐topic, or by using more explicit and frequent cross-‐referencing. In an era when many people gain much of the information they require from websites, using clearly labeled links


to move between interrelated sources, readers’ expectations and their approaches to informative reading have changed. It would be advisable, therefore, to consider formulating the NPDP so that it may readily be published in web format from the outset, rather than having to restructure at a later stage a document designed only for printing. The current draft NPDP does not lend itself readily to this approach.

Executive Summary 2.68 The Executive Summary could play a more helpful role than it does. Instead of providing a concise

summary of key information and policies to give a clear understanding of the overall purpose and direction of the plan, this section is actually just an introduction to the Introduction. Both in printed form and in web format, the executive summary (or equivalent) of the proposed NPDP should provide a concise outline of the plan’s vision, objectives, policies and proposals, cross-‐referenced to the full document but capable of providing the reader with a clear overview. This part of the draft NPDP would require substantially re-‐writing.

Presentation and Format of Policies and Proposals 2.69 From the point of view of either a decision maker seeking to put the plan into effect or a

prospective developer trying to understand what is allowable and what is required, the most significant weakness of the draft NPDP may be the way that policies and proposals are expressed in Part Two: they are generally difficult to discern and not clearly expressed. There are, essentially, two types of policy that a physical or spatial development plan should contain: • policies that set out in clear terms the overall intentions, aims and objectives of the plan-‐making

authority with regard to specific topics, activities and interventions; and,

• policies that set out in clear terms the parameters / criteria against which development proposals will be judged when decisions are being made on planning applications and related matters.

In both cases, the policies may be either more strategic or more tactical, depending on the purpose, level and scope of the particular plan.

2.70 The terms “policy” and “proposal” are often used interchangeably, but this is rarely helpful. It may be better for the term “policy” to be used for the type of statement described in Paragraph 2.69, above, and for the term “proposal” to be reserved for specific developments, investments and actions that are proposed and programmed for delivery by the plan-‐making authority (in this case the Government of St Vincent and The Grenadines), or that are proposed by others and have the support of the plan-‐making authority. It is best for both policies and proposals to be presented in the document in ways that enable the reader to identify them as such and to distinguish them clearly, both from each other and from the explanatory and supporting text.

2.71 It is important that readers are able to understand these matters throughout the plan-‐making

stages: when the plan is being prepared and consulted upon prior to approval, so that people affected by the plan can decide if there are any representations they wish to be considered; and once it has been approved and is being implemented, so that people can understand what is likely to be allowed and what is not.

2.72 Returning to the draft NPDP, there appear to be few, if any, statements in the Polices and Proposals

part that meet those requirements. This makes it difficult for the reader to gain a clear understanding


of how the plan will be put in to effect, how it will affect their interests, or whether any development proposals they may have in mind are likely to be acceptable. It is also likely to make it difficult to implement the plan in a consistent and transparent way.

2.73 Overall then, whilst the draft NPDP is a competent piece of work of its time, it now seems outdated

in its information base, its scope, its format and its expression of policies. Nevertheless, there is much in the draft that could provide a very helpful starting point of reference for the work that will next be required in order to produce an up-‐to-‐date, relevant and forward-‐looking national plan.

Scope of the Draft NPDP (2001-‐2021) 2.74 There are several obviously significant issues and topics that were not addressed at the time of the

draft NPDP’s production, or where addressed in adequately in the context of current requirements and concerns. The most obviously significant are listed below (in no particular order of importance or relevance).

a. Hazard and Disaster Risk Management – restricting development in areas of particularly high risk;

design and construction to reduce vulnerability; emergency strategies and shelters;

b. Climate Change – mitigation strategy and measures; restricting development in areas likely to be impacted by sea level rise; responding to increased volatility;

c. Economic Development in the context of the changing world economic situation – strategies for

coping with change and uncertainty (“future proofing”); playing to SVG’s strengths;

d. Tourism Development Strategy – planning to attract visitors; planning for improved tourism infrastructure; eco tourism; agro-‐tourism;

e. Agriculture and Food Security – planning to support agricultural revival and diversification;

restricting non-‐agricultural development of productive land; planning for the infrastructure agriculture needs;

f. Energy Security – planning for increased energy efficiency in the use of buildings and transport;

planning to support Renewable Energy Technologies;

g. Sustainability as a core theme;

h. Ecosystem Services -‐ maintaining the ecosystem for the life-‐supporting, economic and socio-‐cultural services it provides;

i. Coastal Zone Management – planning for integrated management of the Coastal Zone;

j. Urban Revival and Regeneration – planning for economic, social, cultural and environmental

revival of Kingstown and other main settlements; planning to improve the efficiency and environmental quality of the country’s towns and villages; planning to reduce urban sprawl;

k. Rural Revival and Transformation – planning to reduce rural inequalities and poverty; planning to

transform rural economies; planning to support rural communities;


l. Heritage – planning to maintain and preserve the nation’s built, cultural and natural heritage; planning to maximize the social and economic benefits of the nation’s heritage;

m. Urban Design -‐ Placemaking; Energy Efficiency through Design and Development; Green Design;

Crime Prevention through Environmental Design;

n. Integrated Transport and Communications – planning for improved access; planning for reduced congestion; planning for accessibility for all; planning for better transport choice;

o. Information and Telecommunications Technology (ICT) – planning to support ICT application; planning to facilitate ICT accessibility; planning to reduce remoteness from services; planning to maximize economic and social benefits of ICT;

p. The new International Airport – planning to maximize its economic and social benefits; planning

for accessibility; planning the surrounding area;

q. Sea Port Rationalisation – planning to support and facilitate rationalization and improvement of the seaports and ferry services; planning to maximize opportunities arising from changes

2.75 Although that list may not be exhaustive and may be added to as stakeholder consultation

proceeds, its extent suggests strongly that the most appropriate and effective way of proceeding is now to prepare a new NPDP rather than to attempt to amend the existing draft. An integrated approach is essential and this is very unlikely to be achievable if the existing draft document is used.

Implementation, Monitoring and Review Measures 2.76 Volume 2 outlines actions proposed for implementing the draft NPDP’s policies. It uses a tabulated

format in identifying measurable indicators; means by which those indicators may be verified; assumptions made; and “actors / agencies” whose actions will be important, in achieving the plan’s objectives. Although there are some significant gaps in the information presented, the approach used is helpful and provides a good base from which an effective implementation strategy could be constructed.

2.77 It is recommended that the approach used in Volume 2 of the existing draft NPDP could be refined

and developed further to take full account of the outcomes of sustainability appraisal. If this is all carried out as an integral part of the processes of preparing, consulting on and appraising the emerging NPDP a very effective implementation and monitoring tool may be developed.

Methodology 2.78 The methodology outlined on page 8 of the draft NPDP is typical of methodologies applied to plan-‐

making both at the time of its preparation and, in general terms, now. It is recommended that two elements that should be given greater emphasis in the next stage are:

• Stakeholder Engagement, including participative consultation with as wide a cross section of the

community as possible;

• Sustainability Appraisal, as an integral and iterative part of the plan-‐making and validation process.


2.79 A methodology recommended for preparing the proposed NPDP is described Chapter 3 of this report.

Time Frame 2.80 Produced in 2001/2, the draft NPDP covers the period up to 2021. In theory, therefore, the plan

period still has 8 years to run. It is clear, however, that many of the spatial planning issues and challenges that need to be addressed have changed significantly since the draft NPDP was produced – and some significant “new” issues have emerged. Preparation of a new NPDP should, therefore, be regarded as a priority for immediate action, and it is recommended that this should be based on a 20 year vision (2014 to 2024?), with short, medium and long term goals and actions identified, and a rolling review at 5 year intervals, consistent with legislative requirements.

Conclusions and Recommendations relating to the Draft NPDP (2001 – 2021) 2.81 It is recommended that:

a. a new national plan should now be prepared for the period 2014 to 2024;

b. the existing Draft NPDP should be retained for reference and as a source of background information in the meantime, but should not be amended or progressed towards approval;

c. the national plan should be prepared in a format adaptable to both print and internet;

r. the scope of the new national plan should include, together with the items listed in Paragraphs

2.50 and 2.60, all items listed in Paragraphs in Paragraph 2.74, ie:

i. Hazard and Disaster Risk Management; ii. Climate Change; iii. Economic Development; iv. Tourism Development Strategy; v. Agriculture and Food Security; vi. Energy Security; vii. Sustainability; viii. Ecosystem Services; ix. Coastal Zone Management; x. Urban Revival and Regeneration; xi. Rural Revival and Transformation; xii. Heritage; xiii. Urban Design; xiv. Integrated Transport and Communications; xv. Information and Telecommunications Technology (ICT); xvi. The new International Airport; xvii. Sea Port Rationalisation.

d. in the plan-‐making process, strong emphasis should be placed on stakeholder consultation and

sustainability appraisal, as integral parts of the whole process;

e. an implementation strategy should be prepared, also as an integral part of the plan-‐making process, with short, medium and long term goals and actions identified;

f. a “rolling review” mechanism should be established, based on 5 year intervals.


Other Relevant Policies and Guidance 2.82 Many other policy and guidance documents have been referred to during discussions with officers

in the government’s ministries and agencies. These are the subject of on-‐going consideration and several will be explored in further detail during the stakeholder workshop to discuss this report.

2.83 One of the purposes of this preliminary consultancy is to identify policy documents and reports that

are of particular relevance to the purpose and scope of the NPDP and should be taken properly into account in its preparation. From the investigations and discussions that have been carried out, the most relevant are listed in Chapter 5. Most contain relevant factual information and analysis. Few set out specific policy.

2.84 The most significant statements of broad policy from the national plan preparation point of view

are the national Social and Economic Plan, the most recent Budget Statements and, because it has such a strong spatial component and direction, the Strategic Plan for Rural Development.

National Economic and Social Development Plan 2.85 Publication of the latest National Economic and Social Development Plan was imminent at the time

of preparing this report. Rather than come to any conclusions on the basis of a plan that is so soon to be superseded, it is considered better to wait until the new plan is available and then to comment accordingly in the next iteration of this preliminary report.

Budget Speech 2013 2.86 In the meantime, it has been informative to note and consider issues and challenges highlighted by

the Prime Minister in the 2013 Budget Speech, and to consider policy priorities for the national plan in that context. The following extracts are considered to be of particular relevance and it is important that the national plan responds appropriately to the spatial implications of each.

i. “Since it is not possible, realistically, to increase the physical size of St. Vincent and the Grenadines, it is necessary and desirable that both the landscape and seascape be put to optimal use.”

ii. “[St Vincent and the Grenadines] is a small, resource-‐challenged, structurally-‐dependant, open economy, which is prone to natural disasters and ranks very high in the league tables of disaster-‐prone countries internationally. Each of those adjectival designations reflect profound economic constraints or limitations.”

iii. “St. Vincent and the Grenadines has available agricultural land for cultivation of about 20,000 acres

out of a total land acreage of over 100,000 acres.” iv. “The diminution or virtual cessation of market preferences internationally for St. Vincent and the

Grenadines‘ agricultural commodities, including bananas, has shackled the agricultural sector because of its lack of international competitiveness.”

v. “[St Vincent and the Grenadines] has an economically-‐active population of 50,000. The rest of the

population are too old to work, too ill to work, too young to work, or are at school. At the same


time, St. Vincent and the Grenadines‘ labour productivity is comparatively low by international standards.”

vi. ”St. Vincent and the Grenadines is hugely dependent on capital flows from overseas whether by way

of foreign direct investment, grants or loans, and remittances.” vii. “St. Vincent and the Grenadines‘ domestic market or internal demand is quite limited and is thus

dependent upon external source markets for trade in goods, tourism, and services generally. The internal demand, by itself, is unable to produce a sufficiency of surplus resources to drive economic, infrastructural or social development.”

viii. “The absence of a well-‐developed tourism infrastructure, including the absence of an international

airport thus far, restricts the full flowering of tourism.” ix. ”The limitations of the private sector especially regarding its size, the unavailability of a sufficiency

of competitively-‐priced credit facilities, the comparatively high cost of electricity, its lack of sufficient creativity and risk-‐taking, and public sector inefficiencies, contain optimal economic development.”

x. “Continuing inefficiencies in the public sector, despite much progress, limit both public and private

sector economic activity.” xi. “St. Vincent and the Grenadines is a middle-‐income country, with a per capita GDP of EC $19,323,

geographically close to the USA, with highly-‐sophisticated and expensive consumer tastes, generally-‐speaking. This fact fuels a very high level of expenditure on imported goods and services and provides challenges to the sustainability of the country‘s external account, especially since there is not a corresponding level of the export of goods and services from St. Vincent and the Grenadines.”

xii. “Our flawed diet contributes significantly to chronic Non Communicable Diseases (NCDs), ill-‐health,

and an unnecessarily large food import bill.” xiii. “The historic, colonial economic structure of dependency, mono-‐cropism, uncompetitiveness, and an

absence of a sufficiency of economic resilience is yet to be adequately reformed or altered, despite tremendous efforts since independence in 1979.”

2.87 Whilst the political aspect of some of those statements must be acknowledged, it is nonetheless

considered that, taken as a whole, they provide a very useful insight in to Government’s perception of issues that need to be addressed.

Strategic Plan for Rural Development 2.88 This document is considered to have particularly strong spatial policy aspects and implications.

Although it dates from 2008, it still appears to be highly relevant. The Strategic Plan really needs to be read and understood as a whole when considering its relationship to the upcoming national plan, so individual policies are not quoted here. However, it is helpful to note the Strategic Goals and Objectives, which are: 1) Promote economic growth in rural areas while protecting the physical environment.


2) Support the development of human and social capital.

3) assist in the creation of an environment that will facilitate investment in service and infrastructure in rural areas.

4) assist in the promotion of good governance.

5) reduce poverty and unemployment markedly.

Conclusions and Recommendations relating to Other Relevant Policies and Guidance 2.89 Strategic spatial planning response to the issues identified in the 2013 Budget Speech should be

given careful consideration. 2.90 The Strategic Plan for Rural Development should be given careful consideration and reviewed with

the Ministry of Agriculture, Industry, Forestry, Fisheries and Rural Transformation, to develop complementary spatial development strategy and policy for rural areas in the national plan.

2.91 The spatial planning implications of the new National Economic and Social Development Plan

should be considered in the next iteration of this preliminary report.


3. METHODOLOGICAL FRAMEWORK

3.1 This chapter describes and recommends a methodology for preparing the national plan. The methodology has been informed by established, international good practice in plan making, but is tailored to the specific circumstances obtaining in St Vincent and the Grenadines.

A plan with a purpose 3.2 It is assumed that the driving objective is not just to produce or procure a plan, but rather to

achieve the improved social, economic and environmental well-‐being that a relevant, well-‐focused and forward-‐looking plan can help to bring about. It may seem that this goes without saying – but it is important that it is said and that it is this underlying objective and purpose that motivates each stage of the plan-‐making process.

3.3 At a time, when climate change and other environmental changes and impacts are becoming so

significant; when the balance of global economic and political power and influence is changing so dramatically and rapidly; and when small nations – and especially Small Island Developing States (SIDS), like St Vincent and the Grenadines -‐ must find new ways of competing in global markets, the NPDP must be relevant, realistic, effective and implementable, and the processes necessary to produce such a plan must be very carefully considered.

The plan-‐making process 3.4 Whilst the methodology used to prepare a development plan may -‐ and should -‐ differ in detail

from place-‐to-‐place, time-‐to-‐time and culture-‐to-‐culture, there are certain methodological principles and elements that are common to most plan-‐making processes as far as the main stages of development plan preparation, implementation and review are concerned. The basic steps represented in the typical illustrative diagrams that follow are common to most methodologies although, as can be seen, terminologies may differ.

These three diagrams are just a selection of “planning process” diagrams that can be found though a simple web search. Terminologies vary but the steps are usually very similar, as is the use of a circle, with arrows indicating step-‐by-‐step progression through a repeating, cyclical process of plan-‐making, implementation, monitoring, and review. Left is a diagram used by the United Nations Global Compact, Cities programme: http://citiesprogramme.com/aboutus/our-approach/circles-of-sustainability Centre is a diagram used for teaching urban planning at Purdue University’s School of Civil Engineering: https://engineering.purdue.edu/~ce512/LECTURE/Lcompreh.html Right is a diagram used by an American financial planning company, Staib Financial Planning, LLC: http://www.staibfinancialplanning.com/ourapproach.html

Diagram 2: Planning Methodology examples


The plan-‐making cycle 3.5 The recommended methodology for preparing, implementing, monitoring and reviewing the

national plan for St Vincent and the Grenadines is based on an understanding of the planning process as being both iterative and cyclical, with the social, economic and environmental well-‐being of the country’s people at its core. This is illustrated in the diagram below, which identifies four key questions to be addressed, and places stakeholder participation at the heart of the planning process. There are nine key stages within the process, as listed, and these would also be applicable to regional and local plans.

3.6 In the context of that guiding methodology, there are also nine principles that need to be followed whilst preparing the national plan if it is to be effective in promoting and facilitating real change. It needs to be: a. Vision-‐based;

b. Integrative in its approach;

c. Objective-‐led -‐ clear in its objectives, whilst allowing flexibility in how they may be achieved;

d. Evidence-‐based – derived from soundly researched information;

e. Internally consistent;

f. Clearly expressed – and as free of jargon as possible, so that it can be widely understood;

g. Implementation-‐focused -‐ coupled to a soundly-‐based implementation strategy;

h. Supported as widely as possible by the communities that it is intended to support (particularly challenging for a national plan because this means the aim must be to gain support across the whole community).

i. Vincentian – a plan specifically for St Vincent and the Grenadines, preferably prepared as much as possible by St Vincent and the Grenadines’ own professional and technical staff, with outside consultants supporting and facilitating as necessary.

WHAT IS HAPPENING?

WHAT CAN BE DONE ABOUT IT?

IS IT

WO

RKIN

G?

WHAT M

ATTERS MO

ST?

StakeholderParticipation

1 2

3

46

75

9

8

1

3

2

7

6

5

4

8

9

Getting Started

Baseline Information Analysis

Set Objectives

Identify Options

Evaluate Options

Plan

Implementation

Monitoring & Evaluation

Adjust & Modify

Diagram 3: Recommended approach for the NPDP


3.7 That final point in the list above raises important considerations about the balance to be struck between:

a. bringing in wider international expertise -‐ and making use of deeper local knowledge and

understanding;

b. procuring the plan -‐ and owning the plan;

c. getting a national plan prepared now -‐ and building capacity to implement, monitor, evaluate and review that plan and prepare other plans that will also be necessary.

The recommendation is not that no outside expertise should be used, but that the primary purpose of bringing in such expertise should be to support local expertise and help to develop it further. If consultants are to be engaged, their job should not be to produce the plan but, rather, to facilitate the production of the plan and to underpin its objectivity. To quote Benjamin Franklin: “Tell me and I forget, teach me and I may remember, involve me and I learn”. The plan-‐making process, as much as the plan it produces, should be an investment in the nation’s on-‐going development.

Stakeholder engagement and consultation 3.8 Stakeholder consultation is at the hub of the “Plan-‐making cycle” in the diagram, because

consultation is an essential part of the plan-‐making process: it needs to start at an early stage and continue throughout. Careful consideration should, therefore, be given at a very early stage to the use of the term “stakeholder”-‐ who are the “stakeholders” in the national plan? and why, when and how are they to be consulted?.

3.9 To answer those questions, it must be understood that the fundamental purpose of a development

plan (national, regional or local) is to manage change. Some changes will be actively promoted through the plan; others will come about in different ways but should still be managed by applying the plan’s principles and policies. Understanding the processes that lead to change is essential to good planning.

3.10 Apart from changes resulting from natural events, the changes and developments that a

national, regional or local plan seeks to guide are brought about largely by the decisions and actions of various stakeholders. To understand the actions and reactions of those stakeholders, it may be helpful to group them into two broad categories -‐ Active and Passive. In simple terms:

o Active Stakeholders are the individuals and organisations who make changes happen; and,

o Passive Stakeholders are those who experience changes brought about by others.

At any given time, any individual may be an Active Stakeholder in relation to some changes and a Passive Stakeholder in relation to others.

3.11 When changes are proposed – and this could, for example, be in a development plan or by development for which planning permission is required -‐ Passive Stakeholders may seek to prevent changes they do not want, sometimes acting alone, sometimes acting together as a pressure group. In these circumstances, a third category of Stakeholder can emerge – Reactive Stakeholders.


3.12 Awareness of the requirements, expectations, objectives and aspirations of all stakeholder

groups is crucial when preparing a plan: it can make the difference between a plan that is accepted and a plan that is rejected; a plan that works and a plan that fails; a plan that achieves real and beneficial change on the ground and a plan that simply gathers dust on a shelf.

3.13 Effective engagement and consultation with all relevant stakeholders will be crucial to the

ultimate quality and strength of the national plan for St Vincent and the Grenadines and its ability to be successfully implemented, bearing in mind that:

• this will be the first time that many people will have been involved in a national planning

process, so it is a valuable opportunity to foster greater understanding of planning and its benefits;

• if the plan is to be effective it needs to be understood and supported as widely as possible; and, • engaging people in the plan-‐making process from the outset should promote understanding of

the issues, options and decisions that have to be made. Again, Benjamin Franklin’s observation is relevant: “Tell me and I forget, teach me and I may remember, involve me and I learn”.

3.14 Although, ultimately every citizen must be regarded as a stakeholder, practicalities are such that it will be necessary to focus on representative groups, including:

• government ministries and public agencies;

• the private sector business community;

• NGOs and the community and voluntary sectors (eg, voluntary organisations, community

groups, churches etc.);

• community representatives;

• prospective investors and developers.

3.15 Benefits of thorough and appropriately timed engagement and consultation with stakeholders can be expected to include:

• a more complete information base (including valuable local knowledge and experience that

might otherwise be missed);

• fuller understanding of stakeholders’ expectations, objectives and aspirations;

• opportunities for stakeholders with differing expectations, objectives and aspirations to gain an awareness – and, ideally, an understanding -‐ of each other’s views (important in understanding a plan that has to mediate between competing demands and expectations);


• testing of reactions to proposals as they evolve;

• a high level of “buy-‐in” to the final national plan and its implementation;

• potentially, fewer formal objections at the more time-‐restricted statutory consultation stage prior to approval.

3.16 To achieve those benefits, engagement must start at an early stage − as soon as a clear

account of the planning process and the ways in which individuals and organisations can engage with it can be given. As plan-‐making progresses, emphasis will shift from engagement aimed mainly at gathering information and general opinions, to more specific consultation (seeking views on emerging options and proposals). It will be important to provide accurate and up-‐to-‐date information at every stage of the plan-‐making process and to provide a user-‐friendly medium for exchanging and sharing further information and responses.

3.17 Precise details of the form that consultation should take will require careful consideration,

with the desired outcomes being clearly identified as a starting point for development of potential events/ forums / workshops etc. Ways in which the Internet and social media may be used to maximise involvement should also be considered.


A four-‐stage methodology for preparing the national plan

3.18 A recommended methodological framework for preparing the NPDP is illustrated in the diagrams below. Please note that the “mind map” diagrams on this page should be read clockwise, starting top-‐right.

3.19 There are four main stages in the process, as illustrated here:

3.20 Each main stage involves a number of tasks. These are illustrated graphically in the diagram below and then expanded upon stage-‐by-‐stage in the diagrams and explanatory text that follows.

Diagram 4: Methodology Stages

Diagram 5: Methodology Overview


Stage 1: Key Issues 3.21 It is crucial that key issues that need to be addressed in planning ahead for the next twenty

years are identified and agreed at the start of the plan-‐making process. The necessary steps are listed below.

1. Identify main issues and challenges.

a. Review current and proposed strategies, plans, programmes etc. b. Carry out Initial Stakeholder Consultations. c. Consider regional and global factors and influences.

2. Identify relevant topics for NPDP to cover.

a. Identify matters to be addressed fully in NPDP. b. Identify matters to be addressed strategically in NPDP and then, subsequently, in

further detail in Regional and Local Plans.

3. Review relevant available information / data: a. Demographic; b. Physical / Environmental; c. Socio-‐economic; d. Infrastructure.

4. Identify and seek to fill any significant knowledge gaps.

Diagram 6: Stage 1


5. Prepare draft Key Issues Report.

6. Seek Board approval of: a. Scope of NPDP; b. Issues to be addressed by NPDP; c. Matters to be addressed in further detail in subsequent Regional and Local Plans; d. Commissioning (internally or externally) of any additional studies; e. Key Issues Report for Stakeholder Consultation.

7. Report to Cabinet via Minister.

8. Produce (finalised) Key Issues Report.

9. Consult Stakeholders on Key Issues Report.

10. Produce Report of Consultation Responses.

3.22 Regarding points 6 to 10, it will be important for the Board to approve outputs from the professional / technical work undertaken at each stage, because legal responsibility for the preparation of the national plan rests with the Board, as does the requirement to report to cabinet via the Minister. The Board, Cabinet and Minister will need to be comfortable with the documents on which stakeholders are to be consulted. Consultee’s responses must be recorded in a thorough report so that they can be given full consideration at each stage.


Stage 2: Spatial Development Strategy Options 3.23 Having identified and agreed key issues to be addressed by the plan, the next stage is to

consider alternative strategies for tackling those issues; evaluating those alternatives; and identifying a preferred strategy to underpin the national plan. The steps are listed below.

1. Consider Consultation Responses from Stage 1.

2. Undertake / Commission additional studies, as necessary.

3. Sustainability Appraisal Panel (this could be the whole Board or nominated members of the Board plus some other members with relevant experience / qualifications) to: a. Establish Sustainability Objectives and Criteria; b. Review spatial development aspects and implications of current commitments

(strategies, plans, programmes etc.) against Sustainability Objectives and Criteria; c. where consistent, carry forward for consideration when developing Spatial

Development Strategy Options; d. where inconsistent:

• explain why and recommend ways in which consistency may be achieved and then carry forward for consideration when developing Spatial Development Strategy Options;

• subject to Board approval, refer back to originating Ministry / organisation for consideration.

4. Produce broad Spatial Development Strategy Options.

5. Carry out Sustainability Appraisal of Spatial Development Strategy Options.

Diagram 7: Stage 2 Diagram 7: Stage 2


6. Produce Strategy Options Report, setting out: a. Sustainability Objectives; b. Options considered; c. Outcomes of Sustainability Appraisal; d. Recommendation of Preferred Option.

7. Seek Board approval of:

a. Strategy Options; b. Recommended Preferred Option; c. Strategy Options Report as basis for Stakeholder Consultation.


9. Consult Stakeholders on Spatial Development Strategy Options.


3.24 Sustainability Appraisal is an important component in this and subsequent stages, and should be regarded as an integral part of the overall plan-‐making process. An explanation of Sustainability Appraisal is given below and in Appendix 1.

Sustainability Appraisal 3.25 Because the national plan needs to be, fundamentally, a plan for sustainable development,

it is recommended that Sustainability Appraisal (SA) should be undertaken as an integral part of the plan-‐making process.

3.26 The plan must address the interrelated social, economic and environmental challenges that are likely to be faced over the next few decades. It is, however, widely recognised that it is often difficult to balance the tensions that can exist in meeting social, economic and environmental objectives of a plan, or a strategy. SA is a means for ensuring that a good balance is achieved between them. It enables an objective assessment of each objective and / or strategy and the contributions it makes towards sustainable development. It also enables weaknesses in a strategy to be identified and appropriate mitigation measures introduced to make them as sustainable as they can be. Furthermore, it enables these considerations to be taken into account at the early stages and as an integral part of the preparation of the plan.

3.27 The purpose of the SA process is to promote sustainable development through better

integration of sustainability considerations into the preparation of spatial plans and strategies. The methodology has evolved from the framework established by the European Commission’s Strategic Environmental Directive (SEA Directive), which requires an “assessment of the effects of certain plans and programmes on the environment”. SA develops this methodology further and incorporates the two remaining “pillars” of sustainable development – economic development and social equity.

3.28 Detailed guidance on the background, purpose and use of Sustainability Appraisal can be

obtained from several sources, including this website which is widely used by local government in the UK: http://www.pas.gov.uk/pas/core/page.do?pageId=152450


3.29 SA is an iterative process that identifies and reports on the likely significant effects of a plan and the extent to which implementation will achieve the social, environmental and economic objectives by which sustainable development can be defined. It provides a means of translating sustainability objectives for the particular place with which a plan is concerned into sustainable planning policies, and should reflect global, national, regional and local sustainability problems and issues. The process involves a sequence of stages through which the content of the emerging plan is appraised against a series of sustainability objectives.

3.30 SA is underpinned by an acknowledgment that the environment and services it provides –

also referred to as Ecosystems Services – produce both economic and societal benefits. Some of these ecosystem services are well known, including food and fuel provision and the cultural services that provide benefit to people through recreation and appreciation of nature. Other services provided by ecosystems are not so well known and have, generally, rarely been incorporated into policy appraisal. These include the regulation of the climate, purification of air and water, flood protection (including the protection afforded to coastal areas by such features as reefs and mangroves), soil formation and nutrient cycling. The SA methodology provides a broader framework, which allows a shift of focus from simply evaluating environmental damage caused by spatial strategies, to highlighting potential changes in the value of services that the natural environment can provide.

3.31 The main functions of SA can be summarised as follows:

• plays an integral part of the spatial strategy preparation process;

• performs a key role in providing a sound evidence base for the spatial strategy;

• provides a framework to assess the objectives of the strategy and plan against overarching

Sustainability Objectives derived from the three pillars of sustainability;

• informs the decision-‐making process and facilitates the evaluation of alternatives;

• provides a monitoring framework for the implementation and significant effects of the plan.

3.32 It is recommended that Sustainability Appraisal should be undertaken by a dedicated panel, with the processes being led by an experienced Sustainability Appraiser. The panel should be responsible to the Board and should work with key stakeholders invited to participate in a series of Sustainability Appraisal Workshops. The first should be conducted at an early stage, focusing on development of objectives and criteria for the Sustainability Framework. In due course, these will form the basis of the Sustainability Matrix that should then be used during (and beyond) a second Workshop, to appraise and evaluate emerging strategies, policies, concepts and options and, ultimately, the draft national plan itself.

3.33 The vision and objectives for national plan should be consistent with a series of

sustainability objectives and criteria, the ‘Sustainability Framework’. These will be derived from analysis of the social, economic and environmental issues and problems facing St Vincent and the Grenadines, taking into account national and international policy objectives relating to sustainable development.

3.34 The Sustainability Framework will provide a systematic way of appraising the options,

proposals and programmes emerging through the national plan process. It will enable emerging


proposals and projects to be examined for internal compatibility, as well as compatibility with broader sustainable development objectives.

3.35 It is recommended that Integrated Sustainability Appraisal should start at the beginning of

the project and should then run in tandem with the plan-‐making process. The two should feed into each other at several stages. By contrast, Strategic Environmental Assessment is often applied as just one of the final steps – when there is a significant risk that it may actually be too late to embed sustainability in policies and proposals that, by that stage, are already quite firmly developed.

Stage 3: Consultation Draft 3.36 Having considered and consulted upon strategy at Stage 2, the preferred option, selected

and, if appropriate, modified in the light of SA and stakeholder responses, can then be used as the basis for developing detailed policies, proposals and allocations.

3.37 All the draft policies proposals and allocations should be subjected to the next stage of

Sustainability Appraisal before being brought together in a draft version of the consultation draft of the full plan. Subject to Board, Ministerial and Cabinet approval, the Consultation Draft Plan should then be finalised and stakeholders’ views should be sought.


2. Develop Preferred Spatial Development Strategy.

3. Formulate draft Land-‐Use Allocations and Spatial Development Policies consistent with Sustainability Objectives and Preferred Spatial Development Strategy.

4. Formulate draft Implementation and Monitoring Plan.

Diagram 8: Stage 3


5. Carry out Sustainability Appraisal of draft Land-‐Use Allocations and Spatial Development Policies.

6. Prepare draft Consultation Draft of NPDP.

7. Seek Board approval of draft Consultation Draft of NPDP.


9. Produce finalised Consultation Draft of NPDP.

10. Consult Stakeholders on Draft NPDP.


Stage 4: Formal Consultation and Approval 3.38 The final stage is governed largely by the requirements of the Act.

3.39 Once the results of the previous stage of stakeholder consultation have been considered

and any amendments considered appropriate have been made, the Board’s approval of a finalised plan should be sought, with the Board, in turn, seeking approval of the Cabinet, via the Minister. Subject to the outcome of that process, the plan should then be published for the purposes of the formal, statutory consultation period of not less than 28 days, with notice being published in The Gazette in accordance with legislative requirements.


2. Prepare Report of Responses to Comments Received During Consultation of the Draft

NPDP.

3. Produce finalised NPDP for Board approval.

4. Seek Board approval (under 1992 Act, Section 7 (1) (b)) of:

Diagram 9: Stage 4 Diagram 9: Stage 4


a. Responses to Comments Received During Consultation of the Draft NPDP; b. Finalised NPDP.

5. Report to Cabinet via Minister (1992 Act, Section 7 (1) (b)).

6. Publish National Physical Development Plan (1992 Act, Section 13 (3)).

7. Statutory national consultation: Publish and Publicise National Physical Development Plan for Statutory Consultation Period (minimum 28 days) (1992 Act, Section 13 (3)).

8. Inquiry to consider and report on objections / representations (1992 Act, Section 13 (4)).

9. Consideration of Inquiry Report by Minister (1992 Act, Section 13 (5)).

10. Approval of NPDP by Minister, with or without Modifications (1992 Act, Section 13 (6)).

11. Publication of Notice of Approval.

3.40 The Minister is required to consider any representations received at this stage and the Act

stipulates that a suitably experienced person should be appointed to report on those representations. It is presumed that this will take the form of an inquiry.

3.41 Once the representations have been considered and any modifications deemed to be

appropriate have been made, the Minister may then proceed to approve the plan. A further notice must be published at this final stage, informing people that the plan has now been approved. It is assumed that further representations could be made at this stage, but only on a point of law, as distinct from policy.

Post-‐Approval Stages 3.42 The development planning process does not stop at the point of approval, in fact, that is

when the main purpose of the plan – shaping the spatial development of the country – really starts. It is important, therefore, to ensure that an effective implementation plan is in place and that the effects of the plan are then monitored continuously so that it can be reviewed and, if necessary, modified on a 5-‐year cycle.

Diagram 10: Post-Approval Stages


3.43 This will also be the period when regional and/or local plans should be being prepared, adding detailed, place-‐specific support to the principles embodied in the national plan.


4. NATIONAL PLAN OBJECTIVES AND SCOPE

What the Terms of Reference say 4.1 The ToR for this consultancy project states that:

“The overall objective of this plan is to prepare land use zoning policies to ensure the orderly and progressive development of land whilst ensuring that land is use in a sustainable manner”.

4.2 That objective derives, in part, from the introduction to the Town and Country Planning Act 1992 and is adequate as a description of the main function of the intended plan at this preliminary stage. However, it is recommended that a clearly expressed vision, and then a vision-‐based series of objectives, should be developed early in the plan preparation process.

4.3 In determining the NPDP’s vision, objectives and scope, consideration should be given not only to

the issues and topics it needs to address, but also to the role this particular plan will be expected to play in the on-‐going spatial / land-‐use planning process. The ToR identifies several specific requirements that are considered in the paragraphs that now follow, starting with the phrase quoted above.

“The overall objective of this plan is to prepare land use zoning policies…”

4.4 It is assumed that the phrase “land use zoning policies” has been used deliberately – rather than “land use zoning”. Although clearly related, those two concepts have significant differences. Whilst “land use zoning” would entail detailed, site-‐specific and prescriptive allocation of land for different uses, across the country; preparation of “land use zoning policies” could take a rather more “broad brush” approach, for example, identifying areas requiring protection and areas for development; establishing principles for preparing more detailed development plans; and setting criteria against which development proposals may be prepared and assessed. It is considered that the latter approach is more appropriate for the NPDP. As already noted in Paragraphs 2.33 to 2.38, however, the use of the term “land use zoning” needs to be questioned, and it is recommended that it should generally be avoided. Perhaps the following phrase would clarify this: “The overall purpose of this plan is to set out policies, proposals and allocations for the sustainable use and development of the national space of St Vincent and the Grenadines”.

“…to ensure the orderly and progressive development of land whilst ensuring that land is used in a sustainable manner”

4.5 As that same phrase, “orderly and progressive development”, are used in the introduction to the Act to describe the type of development the legislation was intended to enable, it is useful to explore the words used, when considering what type of plan is envisaged. Relevant dictionary definitions6 include:

Orderly (adjective):

§ neatly and methodically arranged (eg, an orderly arrangement of objects); § (of a person or group) well behaved (eg, the crowd was quiet and orderly).

6 Definitions quoted have been selected from the Oxford British and World English Dictionary (http://www.oxforddictionaries.com) and the American Heritage Dictionary of the English Language (http://ahdictionary.com).


Antonyms of “orderly” include disorderly, untidy, chaotic, disorganized. Progressive (adjective):

§ proceeding in steps; continuing steadily by increments; § favouring change or innovation; § moving forward; advancing; § promoting or favoring progress toward better conditions or new policies,

ideas, or methods.

Antonyms of “progressive” include regressive, backward, retrograde, unmodernised.

4.6 In very broad terms, development plans can be based on either of two approaches to planning – or, in most cases, a mixture of the two. The alternative approaches may be characterized as:

o “predict and provide” – ie, predict or forecast what is expected to happen if recent and current

trends continue, and provide (land for development, infrastructure etc.) accordingly; or,

o “intervene and change” – ie, make interventions to bring about change from recent and current trends if they are not considered to be producing desirable outcomes.

4.7 It should be noted that there are actually three interrelated requirements in the phrase “to ensure the orderly and progressive development of land whilst ensuring that land is used in a sustainable manner”: the NPDP needs to provide a framework for order, progress and sustainability. Unless a) an unusually strong degree of state control and intervention is proposed, and b) an unusually high level of accuracy in forecasting future circumstances can be achieved, those three interrelated requirements can only realistically be met through a plan that establishes clear and durable principles for development, whilst allowing for variation, adaptation and innovation in the ways in which they are achieved.

4.8 It is recommended that in preparing and implementing the NPDP the emphasis should generally be

towards “intervene and change”. This does not meant that there should be no attempt to “predict and provide”, where appropriate, but the processes of prediction and provision should be based on achieving desired objectives rather than simply assuming perpetuation of the status quo. An intelligent balance must be achieved. This recommendation is developed a little further in some of the following paragraphs.

“This plan will…point to local planning as the vehicle that will ensure that local plans will be prepared and implemented…”

4.9 Taken together with the phrases that precede it, this statement seems to confirm an intention for the NPDP to set policy at a strategic, national level, to then be reflected and applied regionally / locally through a series of more detailed and place-‐specific regional / local plans covering particular parts of the country. If such a tiered approach, which is clearly envisaged in the current legislation, is now to be pursued in practice, it will require the overall emphasis of the NPDP to be strategic rather than prescriptively site-‐specific.

4.10 This has been explored in some detail in Paragraphs 2.16 to 2.19.The implications of the

approach that is chosen require careful consideration at two levels: national planning and local planning.


4.11 At the national planning level, it should be possible to produce a strategically-‐orientated NPDP more quickly than would be the case if the NPDP were required to set out detailed “land-‐use zoning” across the country. The corollary of this is that time and expertise will still need to be invested, subsequently, in the more detailed planning that will be necessary at the regional / local level. It may well be, however, that such investment could then be prioritized more effectively and delivered more efficiently than would be the case if that more detailed approach were to be applied to the production of the NPDP itself from the outset.

“…and [local plans will] therefore be policy perceptions (sic) to restrict development in marginal areas through a more scientific approach”

4.12 This is where the ToR starts to outline key issues and topics for the NPDP to address. Identifying “marginal” areas within which development should be restricted is consistent with both the intended emphasis on sustainable development and one of the fundamental roles of the NPDP envisaged through the Disaster Vulnerability Reduction Programme.

“The plan will also allow for environmental protection and the conservation of our watersheds and other sensitive habitats and coastal zone management”

4.13 This starts to define the level at which the NPDP’s policies and interventions should be set. Identifying environmentally sensitive areas, warranting protection from inappropriate development, should clearly be a task for the NPDP, whereas it may be feasible and desirable to “delegate” detailed allocation of land for development outside such areas to a regional / local level of development planning, depending on circumstances.

“The plan must pay attention to all government policies…” 4.14 This statement relates to both the role of the NPDP and its subject matter. In paying

attention to all government policies, it must both allow for commitments and set a spatial / land use planning policy context for on going decision-‐making. If, as appears to be the case, the intention is that the NPDP is to be a key “corporate” policy document it is essential that this intention is reflected in the approach taken to preparing it. This points strongly towards an inter-‐ministry team approach, if this can be achieved.

“…and take into account the system of transportation network and population centers, including numerical size the composition and the distribution of the population”

4.15 This helps to define further a threshold level between matters that are appropriate for the NPDP and matters that may reasonably be “delegated” to a regional / local plan level. The NPDP is clearly expected to establish an integrated strategy for settlement and transport, coordinating the disposition and connection of homes, workplaces and services to achieve a sustainable pattern of development across the country. However, such a strategic approach would not necessarily extend to the detailed planning of particular settlements or roads, for example.

“It must also take into consideration the existing economic and environment prevailing in the various regions of the country as a whole

4.16 The NPDP must be informed by these prevailing conditions and, equally, it must be informed by aspirations to bring about change where existing conditions are unsatisfactory. Again, the challenges are; a) to strike the right balance between “intervene and change” and “predict and


provide”; and b), to make rational decisions regarding the definition of “regions” and the most appropriate ways of planning for them.

“This plan must project into the future the variations possible in population trends whilst coming up with proposals for the future”.

4.17 This phrase appears to recognise the need to achieve the optimal balance between “predict and provide” and “intervene and change”. Demographic studies and projections are extremely useful tools for planners. However, care must always be taken to recognise limitations. Projections based on past trends only show what can be expected if current patterns continue forwards. In some cases that may be desirable, but in others it may be desirable to intervene to change the pattern. Urban sprawl may be a good example of this: providing for future development land on the basis of a forward projection of recent trends would simply lead to more sprawl; whereas using the same projection to understand what would happen if recent trends were allowed to continue, and then intervening with policies that promote a different pattern and making different provision accordingly, would bring about change.

4.18 To establish a context for the national plan’s vision, objectives and overall approach, it may

also be useful to consider, briefly, some of the terminology used in the Town and Country Planning Act 1992 itself.

4.19 In Chapter 2 of this report it was noted that one of the functions given to the Physical

Planning and Development Board in Section 7(1) of the Act is the preparation of “a national plan”. Although that plan has commonly been referred to as “National Physical Development Plan”, that specific title is not used in the Act. Taking account of contemporary concepts and terminology in what is now frequently called Spatial Planning rather than Town and Country Planning, the Act’s reference to a national plan could reasonably be interpreted as “a plan for the sustainable use and development of the national space of St Vincent and the Grenadines”. Clearly, it is more important that the terminology actually used is readily understandable locally, than that it should conform to any international, professional vocabulary (or jargon), but considering the plan in those terms might help in formulating the vision and core objectives. There are three particularly important elements.

o First, it should be a plan for sustainability. This necessitates considering future needs

alongside present needs, and ensuring that satisfying the latter does not preclude the former. The Act uses the word “progressive” – forward-‐looking.

o Second, it should be a plan to guide the ways in which all the nation’s land and other space

is used as well as the ways in which parts of it are to be developed. Although the concepts of “use “ and “development” are interlinked in the Act’s definitions, simply continuing with an existing use does not normally require planning permission (unless that use is itself unauthorized). However, in some cases maintaining the ways in which some areas of land (and sea) are used – or perhaps seemingly not used – may be more sustainable than allowing that land to be developed. This could apply, for example, to land of particular landscape, ecological or biodiversity value; coastal land that by remaining untouched is protecting land further in; land that is or could be productively farmed; or, land that provides amenity open space in an otherwise developed area.

o Third, the plan should consider all elements of the national space -‐ land-‐space, water-‐

space and air-‐space – the interrelationships between them and the ways in which development may affect all of them.


Developing a Vision 4.20 Turning now to the matter of formulating the vision on which the plan and its objectives

should be based, this process should, ideally, involve a wide range of “stakeholders”, as the NPDP needs to reflect national aspirations and concerns and its ultimate effectiveness will depend on it being widely understood and supported. It is recommended that efforts should be made to engage stakeholders actively and meaningfully in this process, so that they share understanding and ownership of the principles on which the plan is based.

Key words 4.21 Taking account of the policy documents and reports that have been reviewed and the many

conversations that have been held with officers in many government ministries and agencies, and without wishing to pre-‐empt the consultative process that will be essential, it is suggested that the following key words may help to provide foundations upon which a vision for the national plan – a statement of the future it is intended to help St Vincent and the Grenadines attain -‐ may be based:

What? How? Why? What qualities is the NPDP aiming to build?

How will those qualities be built? Why is it important to build those qualities?

o Resilience

o Resourcefulness

o Prosperity

o Sustainability

o Security

o Equity

o Revival -‐ of urban and rural places,

communities and economies

o Participation – in making plans and putting them into effect

o Public-‐Private Partnership – in

sustainable development

o Investment – in the economic, social and physical well-‐being of the community

o Innovation – to find creative

solutions and put SVG at the forefront of sustainable development

o Mitigation – of environmental

impacts and the effects of climate change

o Information and Education – to

enable people to understand and participate

o Climate change

o Economic changes

o Poverty

o Hazard vulnerability

o Resource constraints

Table 2: Vision – Key Words


4.22 Vision statements may take various forms. It is generally considered desirable that they

should be concisely worded. On its own, though, a concise vision can sometimes be a little vague: an (extreme) example might be, “to make St Vincent and the Grenadines more prosperous, secure and resilient”. A phrase like that probably needs to be developed and expanded, but the danger then is that becomes too detailed and wordy to be memorable and effective. A possible way of overcoming this problem is to combine a succinct vision statement with a description of the intended effects of the changes and improvements the plan will be aiming to bring about. This could take the form of a “backcast”, which defines a desirable future from which plan-‐makers can then work backwards to identify policies and programs that will connect the future to the present. The example that follows is based on the key words in the table on Page 44.

Back-‐cast from 2035 4.23 St Vincent and the Grenadines has become prosperous and its citizens enjoy a high level of

social and physical well-‐being. Effective planning, use and management of the national space has enabled the potential of this country’s core resources – the people and the place – to be fully realised.

Through consistency in planning, investment and intervention, the benefits of an enhanced quality of life, based on sustainable development, are now being shared equitably across the nation, so that disadvantage, deprivation and poverty are close to being eradicated in urban and rural areas alike. People benefit from a safer, cleaner and healthier environment. Vulnerability to physical hazards has been reduced through integrated actions to avoid development in high-‐risk locations, and increase the resilience of buildings and settlements. This has been achieved by implementing risk-‐reducing planning, design and construction standards. The continuing impacts of climate change are being mitigated by planned adaptation and sensible precautions. Investments in education, innovation and technology have supported economic prosperity focused on sustainable development, particularly within the agriculture and fisheries, agri-‐processing, tourism and services sectors. The nation’s economic security – including food security -‐ has been enhanced substantially since 2014. Energy security has also been increased through concerted action to improve the energy-‐efficiency of buildings and places and to increase the proportion of energy generated from renewable sources. The prosperity, well-‐being and physical environments of rural and urban areas throughout the country have improved through the coordination of planning and other measures and interventions to encourage and support investment by all sectors. The nation’s capital and regional centres have experienced substantial physical, social, cultural and economic revival, facilitated by integrated urban planning and management. Towns now cater equitably for the needs of the communities they serve through the provision of shopping, commercial, recreational and cultural facilities, and education and health services, in peaceful, secure, accessible and healthy environments. Through a more integrated and sustainable approach to transport, telecommunications and internet access, and land-‐use planning, linkages have been improved between and within the islands; between homes, jobs and key services; in and between rural and urban areas; and, between St Vincent and the Grenadines and the rest of the world. People can choose travel modes best suited


to their journeys by land, sea and air. Accessibility has improved whilst the environmental impacts of travel have reduced. Benefits of reduced congestion and pollution are being felt in improved productivity, better health and reduced stress, all supporting a stronger economy and a higher quality of life across the islands. People are actively involved in the planning of their national and local environments and management of change is based on transparent and consultative decision-‐making processes. In this way, the unique character, identity and culture of each part of the country is being safeguarded and enhanced and each community is able to play to its particular strengths.

4.24 As already stated, it is highly recommended that as wide a range of stakeholders as possible (and manageable) should be involved in developing the vision – in whatever form may be chosen – and then considering objectives for the plan.

National Plan Objectives

4.25 If the vision provides the plan’s foundation, the objectives are the first layer of building blocks. Together they support the whole structure, so getting these right is crucial to the integrity of everything that will rest upon them.

Core Challenges 4.26 Formulating the objectives of the national plan and identifying and prioritising key issues

and topics that it should address can be aided by considering Core Challenges: the big challenges that a plan for sustainable development of these islands must tackle. From the interviews, discussions and research that have been undertaken, it is recommended that the national plan should focus on enabling three core challenges to be achieved:

• Resourcefulness -‐ enabling SVG's key resources to be used effectively and sustainably;

• Resilience -‐ enabling the people of SVG to prosper by withstanding and adapting to

economic and environmental forces to which the country is particularly vulnerable; and,

• Revival -‐ enabling reversal of decline that has been affecting some key components of the nation's economic and social life and environmental quality.

Objectives 4.27 It is recommended that the national plan’s objectives should focus on the Core Challenges,

which are outlined above and discussed in more detail in Appendix 2. Again, they should be ratified or modified and refined though the process of stakeholder consultation, but the following are suggested as a preliminary set of objectives to be used as the basis for further discussion.

1. Resourcefulness -‐ to conserve the country’s finite spatial resources (land, sea and air) and

optimize their use, by managing development so as to enable social and economic progress and security to be achieved without harming the quality of the national environment or the capacity of its ecosystems to deliver the life-‐supporting services on which current and future generations depend.


2. Resilience -‐ to reduce vulnerability to natural hazards by ensuring that risks (including those associated with climate change) are taken full into account when deciding on the location and form of physical developments – avoiding development in areas of highest risk and ensuring that appropriate vulnerability reduction measures are incorporated in the location, design, construction and use of all developments.

3. Revival -‐ to promote revival of those urban and rural areas of the country that have

experienced adverse changes, by providing for their communities’ physical, social and economic needs and potential in ways that will enhance both the quality of citizen’s lives and the quality of the environments within which they live.

Scope of the National Plan 4.28 As explained above, the scope of the plan must be set partly by legal requirements and

policy considerations which have been identified and commented upon in Section 2. Gaps in the coverage of the Draft NPDP (2001-‐2021) have also been identified in that section. Bringing all those forward, and combining them with information gained through the interviews and discussions held with other ministries and agencies and within the PPU, the matters identified so far have been set out below as an outline of the recommended scope of the national plan.

4.29 The synopses are not yet complete, but have been included as “work in progress” to

provide an indication of the approach that is being suggested. The table will be completed for the final report, taking account of feedback and further discussions.

TOPIC SYNOPSIS Sustainability See Appendix 1 Hazard and Disaster Risk Management Reducing vulnerability by managing /controlling the

location, form, design and use of developments: • restricting or prohibiting development in highest

risk areas; • directing development to lower risk areas where

feasible; • ensuring adequate mitigation and protection

measures elsewhere; • preventing or mitigating development that would

increase hazard risk and/or vulnerability; • requiring hazard risk assessment when

development is proposed.

Climate Change Mitigation a. Ensuring that potential effects and impacts of climate change are taken in to account when assessing hazard risk and vulnerability, and acting accordingly.

b. Planning for expected impacts on coastal areas, in particular,

through (for example): i. Integrated Coastal Zone Management; ii. Protection of vulnerable assets where feasible and

practicable. iii. Phased relocation of vulnerable developments, uses and

activities where necessary;

Table 3: NPDP Scope Outline


TOPIC SYNOPSIS c. Providing for adaptation of agricultural and aquacultural

practices to suit a changing climate.

Housing and Settlement a. Providing for housing development to meet known and anticipated needs, having regard to: i. demographic projections; ii. the need to conserve productive land and protect

sensitive environments and ecosystems; iii. the desirability of restricting inefficient and land-‐

consuming urban sprawl; iv. potential efficiencies in locating new housing in areas

with close access to employment, services and social infrastructure.

b. Planning for improvements in the environmental quality and

functional efficiency of existing settlements.

Informal Settlement a. Planning for the attainment of acceptable environmental and social conditions in existing informal settlements.

b. Curtailing further informal settlement. c. Considering relocation and comprehensive development

options where either hazard vulnerability or public health deficiencies cannot be adequately ameliorated in situ.

Economic Development a. Providing for the spatial requirements (land and infrastructure) of the National Economic and Social Development Plan in ways that are consistent with environmental objectives.

b. Providing environmental conditions that support business

development and activity without impinging on the amenities expected by other uses.

c. Planning for location of businesses in places where there is

convenient access from housing areas (potentially reducing travel times / distances and congestion).

d. Synergy and clusters

Tourism Development a. Safeguarding the country’s attractive environment, culture and heritage.

b. Providing for the spatial requirements of the tourism / hospitality industry.

c. Ensuring adequate infrastructure to meet the needs of tourism and visitors.

d. Ensuring that tourism development sits comfortably with the country’s ecology and landscape.

e. Providing for the on-‐shore and off-‐shore requirements of


TOPIC SYNOPSIS marine tourism, whilst ensuring that environmental and ecological assets are protected.

Agriculture, Forestry and Fisheries -‐ and Food Security

a. Reservation and protection of land for food production and other agricultural activities.

b. Reservation and protection of forests for their productive and ecological value.

c. Management of coastal zones to protect water quality and aquatic habitats, including fish stocks.

d. Providing for the spatial and infrastructure needs of agriculture and food processing and agro-‐industry.

e. Promoting agricultural diversity rather than monoculture. f. Protecting sensitive environments from adverse impacts of

agriculture.

Service Sector a. Making provision for the development of land, buildings and infrastructure required supporting service sector businesses in appropriate locations.

b. Enabling service sector businesses to locate close to centres of population wherever possible so as to provide convenient and efficient access.

c. Providing safe, convenient and attractive urban environments that support retail, leisure and business activity alongside other uses.

Manufacturing Sector Appropriate locations, Avoidance of harmful impacts Mineral extraction and processing Mitigation of environmental impacts, Reduction of demand

through recycling and alternative materials Energy Security Energy efficiency through design and construction, Renewable

energy sources, Reduced congestion, Halt to Urban Sprawl Social Development Service Provision, Healthcare, Education, Emergencies,

Commercial Services, Retail Services, Security… Environmental Protection Environmentally Sensitive Areas, Ecosystem Services and Bio-‐

diversity, Coastal Zone Management, Forest Reserves, Marine Reserves…

Coastal Zone Management Planned management of the coastal zones…

Integrated Transport and Communications

Roads and Traffic Management, Information and Telecommunications Technology (ICT), Public Transport, Inter-‐island Ferry Services, Inter-‐island Air Services, Pedestrians and Cyclists, Alternatives, International Connections…

Urban Revival and Regeneration Improvement of urban environments, Economic and residential development opportunities, infrastructure improvements, “greening”…

Rural Revival and Transformation Policies from Strategic Plan for Rural Development… Culture and Heritage Buildings of historic and architectural interest, Cultural

expression and facilities, Character appraisal… Urban Design Building to building relationships, building to space and public

realm relationship, energy efficiency and “green design”… (see Paragraph 2.44 of this report)

Recreation and Open Space Provision with development, Protection, Maintenance…

The new International Airport What activities / enterprises will benefit from proximity and co-‐


TOPIC SYNOPSIS The new International Airport (continued)

location? Agro-‐processing export opportunities? Operational and security issues? Transport / communication links and integration? Airport as a "destination" / "attraction"?

Sea Port Rationalisation

Economic development opportunities , transport opportunities, access issues, redevelopment opportunities, regeneration opportunities…

Arnos Vale Development opportunities Mixture of uses? Commercial? Leisure / Tourism? Residential? Mixed and integrated? Balanced with revival / redevelopment in Kingstown? "New Town" exemplar? Urban Design led? Green design and green technologies? Hazard Risk-‐Responsive? Strategic transport opportunities? New route in and out of Kingstown? Road? Light Rail? Tunnel? Delivery mechanisms? Integration with communities? Risks? Storm-‐surge flooding Flash flooding Climate change impacts?

Kingstown Renaissance

Drivers and Opportunities Seaport / Ferry Port relocation? Land consolidation? Hospital relocation? Government buildings (rationalise and consolidate)? Hotel demand (stimulated by airport)? Arnos Vale opportunities? Re-‐balancing of uses? New access? Re-‐orientation (new approach to City Centre)? Education campus? Heritage City? Cultural Capital? Urban Greening?

Urban Renaissance (other centres)

Grenadines opportunities

Unique character of each island Inter-‐island links (including "island hopping"?) Special tourism offer Balance Local / Visitor needs Island Development Plans?


5. BUILDING THE EVIDENCE (INFORMATION) BASE

Available information 5.1. The national plan needs to be evidence-‐based, ie, its objectives, policies and proposals need to be

underpinned by relevant and sound information and data, rather than mere opinion. It is important that the plan is based on objective assessments of relevant circumstances, requirements and impacts.

5.2. The first step in building the “evidence base” necessary for preparing the national plan is to look

at the information already available so as to identify the elements that are of relevance to spatial planning and assess whether updated or additional information is required.

5.3. As a general observation, there is a huge amount of information already available on most of the

topics and issues the national plan needs to address. In many cases the challenge will be to filter the “essential and relevant” from the “interesting but peripheral”.

5.4. Meetings and interviews have been held with senior staff in a wide range of ministries and

organizations, as listed in the table below. Summaries of relevant points arising in the discussions will be included in the final report.

MINISTRY/AGENCY /DESIGNATION MINISTRY/AGENCY /DESIGNATION

PS/Ministry of Transport and Works PS/National Security

Public Health Educator -‐ Environmental Services Unit

COP Ag.

Public Health Officer -‐ESU Deputy COP Ag.

Manager Ag. -‐ HLDC CEO – Port Authority

Land Management Officer -‐ HLDC Structural Engineer – Port Authority

Research & Information Manager -‐ Invest SVG Director -‐NEMO

Business Facilitation Manager -‐ Invest SVG Project Manager – Basic Needs Trust Fund (BNTF)

Executive Director – Invest SVG PS/Education

Solid Waste manager -‐ CWSA Director -‐EQD

Land Management Officer Senior Project Officer -‐ERICTD

SEO -‐ TVET Agriculture Planning Officer

Head-‐NTRC Agriculture Diversification Officer

CEO – BRAGSA Chairperson – National Trust

Infrastructure Manager -‐ BRAGSA 5 Trustees – National Trust

Table 4: Interviews schedule


MINISTRY/AGENCY /DESIGNATION MINISTRY/AGENCY /DESIGNATION

Senior Technical Officer –Rural Transformation Manager -‐ National Trust

PS/Agriculture etc Ministry of Education

CAO – Min. of Agriculture etc BRAGSA

Senior Forestry Supervisor Ag. NTRC

Chief Fisheries Officer Ag. National Qualifications

Demographic Information and the Census 5.5. Demographic information will, of course, be crucial (although, as cautioned above, it is important

to treat projections as just what they are – extensions of current trends, rather than inevitable outcomes regardless of interventions and changes of circumstance). It is appreciated that there have been unfortunate problems with the most recent Census and that this has delayed the updating of the demographic statistics. However, it is understood that this should be rectified before too long and it is expected, therefore, that 2012 data will be available by the time that work commences on the main stage of plan preparation.

5.6. Other sources of relevant information that have been identified so far are listed below. Please

note, however, that the list is still being compiled and a completed version will be included at the next stage. It is anticipated that further sources of relevant information may well be identified when ministries provide feedback on this preliminary report.

TOPIC DOCUMENTS

Agriculture, Fisheries and Forestry

Country Programme Framework (CPF) For St. Vincent and the Grenadines Agricultural Sector 2012 – 2015: Prepared in Cooperation and Partnership between The Government of St. Vincent and the Grenadines and the Food and Agricultural Organisation (FAO) Of the United Nations. September 2011. St Vincent & the Grenadines Agricultural Diversification Programme Final Report April 2008 – Landell Mills Development Consultants, Final Report 3, Provision of Technical Assistance to the Government of St. Vincent and the Grenadines for the Agricultural Diversification Programme. Inter-‐American Institute for Cooperation on Agriculture (IICA) Country Cooperation Strategy for St Vincent and the Grenadines, 2011-‐2014. Corporate Plan and Advance Proposal for Fiscal Year 2013 – 2015, September 2012, Ministry of Agriculture, Rural Transformation, Forestry and Fisheries.

Climate Change The Caribsave Climate Change Risk Atlas (CCCRA) Climate Change Risk Profile for Saint Vincent and the Grenadines -‐ Prepared by The CARIBSAVE Partnership with funding from UKaid from the Department for International Development (DFID)

Table 5: Relevant Reports and Documents


TOPIC DOCUMENTS and the Australian Agency for International Development (AusAID) March 2012 Initial National Communications on Climate Change -‐ Prepared by National Environmental Advisory Board and Ministry of Health and the Environment November 2000.

Disaster Risk Vulnerability Reduction

Community-‐Based Landslide Risk Reduction: Managing Disasters in Small Steps -‐ Malcolm G. Anderson Elizabeth Holcombe -‐ 2013 International Bank for Reconstruction and Development / The World Bank Disaster Vulnerability Reduction Project (DVRP) Environmental Assessment Report December 2010, Central Planning Division, Ministry of Finance and Economic Planning

Disaster Vulnerability Reduction Project (DVRP) Social Assessment Report -‐ Phase 1, Central Planning Division, Ministry of Finance and Economic Planning

National Action Programme: A Framework for Combating Land Degradation and Drought in St. Vincent and the Grenadines, Ministry of Health and the Environment, 2009.

Economic and Social Development

St Vincent and the Grenadines’ National Social and Economic Development Plan, 2010 – 2025, Ministry of Finance and Economic Planning. Recent Budget Speeches

Environment, Ecology and Biodiversity

The Fourth National Report of St. Vincent and the Grenadines to the UNCBD, Ministry of Health and the Environment, March 2010. National Environmental Summary Saint Vincent and the Grenadines, 2010, United Nations Environment Programme. National Action Programme: A Framework for Combating Land Degradation and Drought in St. Vincent and the Grenadines, Ministry of Health and the Environment, 2009. Review of the Policy, Legal and Institutional Frameworks for Protected Areas Management in St. Vincent and the Grenadines: Prepared by: Lloyd Gardner Environmental Support Services Ltd, Commissioned by Environment and Sustainable Development Unit Secretariat of the Organisation of Eastern Caribbean States, January 2007. SVG National Parks and Protected Areas System Plan 2010 – 2014, National Parks, Rivers and Beaches Authority. National-‐level Economic Valuation Study of the Environmental Services provided by Marine Habitats in St Vincent and the Grenadines: Prof Mike Christie (Aberystwyth University) and Dr Sonja Teelucksingh (University of the West Indies), July 2012.


TOPIC DOCUMENTS

Housing

Housing And Land Development Corporation Business Pla

Land Management

SVG Sustainable Land Management: Land Policy Issues Paper -‐ Philmore Isaacs July, 2013.

Poverty Reduction

St. Vincent and the Grenadines Interim Poverty Reduction Strategy Paper -‐ Prepared by The Poverty Reduction Task Force (PRTF) Of The National Economic and Social Development Council (NESDC) Final Revision, 2003.

Rural Transformation

Strategic Plan for Rural Development, Ministry Of Agriculture, Industry, Forestry, Fisheries And Rural Transformation. 2008.

Water Resource Management

Road Map toward Integrated Water Resources Management Planning for Union Island, St. Vincent and the Grenadines -‐ Prepared by the Caribbean Environmental Health Institute, St. Lucia, in partnership with the United Nations Environment Programme Collaborating Centre for Water and Environment and the GEF-‐funded Integrating Watershed and Coastal Areas Management Project, May 2007.


Identification of significant gaps 5.7. As said, there is a large amount of information already available. Nevertheless, some gaps are

being identified and further information can be gathered if necessary. It is important, however, to guard against any temptation to gather information simply for the sake of gathering information. Resources for preparing the plan are unlikely to be plentiful, and time will (and should) be limited, so only information that is genuinely relevant should be gathered. An information overload is not going to facilitate the efficient preparation of an effective plan. In that context, it is recommended that consideration should be given, primarily, to addressing the gaps in information and analysis identified in the table that follows as priorities.

5.8.

Required studies and analyses Ref. Study Topic Terms of Reference Synopsis Timeframe *

B D A 1 Hazard Risk Mapping It will be essential to have mapped

information about areas of known or anticipated hazard risk, so that risk and vulnerability assessment can be built in to the process of identifying land that is and is not suitable for development, and specifying vulnerability reduction measures. Climate Change Impacts must be taken in to account. The information needs to be GIS mapped.

✓è è è

2 Housing Needs Assessment Assessment of the overall and region-by-region need and demand for new / additional housing to accommodate new households, people living in unfit housing, people expected to move in to the region etc. The assessment should also look at household size and composition and affordability issues to provide an understanding of the types and tenures of housing required.

✓è è

3 Strategic Integrated Transport Study

The study needs to look at all modes of transport – land, sea and air. Suitability of existing roads and needs for improvements, replacements or additions should be identified. Potential for using alternative modes should be examined. Congestion and road safety issues should be considered, with potential alternatives identified where significant problems are identified. That list is illustrative, not exhaustive. The study needs to be undertaken alongside the assessment and consideration of development demands and opportunities.

✓

4 Agricultural Opportunities Study

Agriculture is expected to play such a major role in the country’s economy and sustainability that the national plan needs

✓è è

Table 6: Required Studies



B D A Agricultural Opportunities Study (continued)

to be informed by a clear understanding of agricultural and agro-industry requirements in relation to matters including: safeguarding from development of land for agricultural production; mitigating against adverse impacts of neighbouring development on agricultural land; providing access from production areas, markets, processing / storage and export facilities; safeguarding the quality and stocks of fishing grounds; providing for fish marketing, processing and export facilities; providing for productive forestry requirements, That list is illustrative, not exhaustive.

5 Agricultural Land Classification Review

It is known that the current agricultural land classifications are based on what is considered to be an out-dated approach to capability assessment. This needs to be reviewed so that appropriate safeguarding policies and allocations can be included in the national and regional/local plans.

✓

6 Urban Capacity Study In a country where land physically and environmentally suitable for development is seriously limited; there is significant competition between potential land uses; and there is a need to achieve maximum efficiency in the use of energy (including vehicle fuel), continuous expansion of urban areas and urbanisation of rural areas (“urban sprawl”) imposes substantial strains and costs – economic, environmental and social. The national plan, and subsequent regional and local plans need to be informed by assessment of the capacity for further development within existing urban areas. The study will need to consider and quantify: vacant, derelict and under-used land and buildings; potential for denser development where appropriate; potential for conversions and relocations etc. That list is illustrative, not exhaustive. The objective will be to enable the plans to make the most efficient use of the urban land resource and restrict further urbanisation and sporadic development where such development is not appropriate.

✓è è

7 Tourism Development Strategy Although tourism makes a substantial contribution to the country’s economy – and is expected to continue doing so – there appears to be an unmet need for a coherent and comprehensive tourism

✓è



B D A development strategy sufficient to inform the spatial planning process. The strategy will need to look at market opportunities; environmental protection considerations; quantified accommodation demand forecasts; capacity issues; economic development impacts; synergy opportunities (eg, tourism and agriculture, fisheries and forestry); culture and heritage opportunities, quality and service issues; the impact of the new international airport etc. That list is illustrative, not exhaustive.

8 Urban Design Guidelines (detailed)

It is recommended that the national plan should included Urban Design policy at the “key principles” level and that this should be supplemented by more detailed Urban Design guidance outside the national plan (in a policy statement and in regional / local plans). Preparation of the guidance should, therefore, commence as part of the preparation of the national plan and extend beyond that period, providing guidance on issues such as: place-making; culture and heritage; character appraisal; energy efficiency in urban development; building/building and building/space relationships; “greening” urban environments; ‘Crime Prevention Through Environmental Design’; creating safe, walkable, pleasant streets, design criteria and coding etc. That list is illustrative, not exhaustive.

✓è è

9 Kingstown Renaissance

Because Kingstown is such a strong urban centre the quality of its environment, its functional efficiency; its ability to provide services and employments and many other aspects of its role and life as the country’s capital, all impact on the lives of large numbers of citizens and visitors. It is recognised that the central area (Kingstown proper) has significant attractions but also experiences significant problems, such as congestion, pollution, dereliction, social and economic deprivation, and environmental degradation. It is considered that renaissance of Kingstown could bring substantial economic, social and environmental benefits to the country as a whole. Proposals such as port rationalisation, possible road access improvements, and the relocation of the international airport, may offer opportunities for substantial

✓è è



B D A change and improvement. The national plan needs to be informed by an understanding of the potential for renaissance and the implications this would have locally and nationally.

10 Arnos Vale: Opportunities, Constraints and Risks Assessment Arnos Vale: Opportunities, Constraints and Risks Assessment (continued)

Development of the international airport at Argyle is expected to release a substantial area of land at Arnos Vale for redevelopment. The extent and location of this land is such that it’s strategic value should be considered in the national plan so that informed decisions may be made regarding location of new development, potential for relocation of existing uses and facilities, potential strategic transport infrastructure opportunities etc. That list is illustrative, not exhaustive. At the same time, it is known that parts of the area are currently vulnerable to hazard risks and that this needs to be factored in to the consideration of development potential and options. It is, therefore, recommended that a study of opportunities, constraints and risks should be undertaken as soon as possible, so that the strategic potential of the area can be taken fully in to account in the national plan.

✓è è

*Timeframe columns are: ‘B’ - before the national plan is prepared; ‘D’ - during national plan preparation, either concurrently or as part of the project itself; ‘A’ - after the national plan has been prepared (although basic, guiding principles may need to feature in the national plan). Symbols indicate: ✓ Start and complete in this period; ✓è Start in this period and continue into next; è Continue from previous period.

Timeframe required to complete the relevant information base 5.8 Initial estimates of the time likely to be required (“duration”) for each identified study are given in

the table below. These initial estimates assume that, with the exception of Hazard Risk Mapping, all or most of the work required for each study will be undertaken by suitably qualified and experienced consultants. It may be that significant elements could be undertaken “in house” and if that is the case the estimated durations may need to be adjusted. The estimates will be reviewed at the next stage, when feedback from the relevant ministries has been considered. Cost estimates can also be provided at that time.


Required studies and analyses: timeframe estimates

Ref. Study Topic Timeframe * B D A Estimated

duration Links with:

Estimated cost

1 Hazard Risk Mapping

✓è è è Not known at this stage

3, 5, 6, 7, 9, 10

to be calculated

(tbc) 2 Housing Needs Assessment

✓è è 6 months 9, 10 tbc

3 Strategic Integrated Transport Study

✓ 6 months 1, 4, 7, 9,10

tbc

4 Agricultural Opportunities Study


5 Agricultural Land Classification Review

✓ 18 months 4 tbc

6 Urban Capacity Study


7 Tourism Development Strategy

✓è 6 months 1, 3, 9, 10 tbc

8 Urban Design Guidelines (detailed)

✓è è 4 months 6, 9, 10 tbc

9 Kingstown Renaissance

✓è è 9 months 1, 2, 3, 6, 7, 8,10

tbc

10 Arnos Vale: Opportunities, Constraints and Risks Assessment

✓è è 3 months 1, 2, 3, 7, 8, 9

tbc

*Timeframe columns are: ‘B’ - before the national plan is prepared; ‘D’ - during national plan preparation, either concurrently or as part of the project itself; ‘A’ - after the national plan has been prepared (although basic, guiding principles may need to feature in the national plan). Symbols indicate: ✓ Start and complete in this period; ✓è Start in this period and continue into next; è Continue from previous period.

Table 7: Timeframe Estimates


6. RESOURCES AND TIMEFRAME FOR PREPARING THE NATIONAL PLAN

6.1. The main resources required to prepare the NPDP are staff, time, and finance. Each of those resources is described briefly in the paragraphs that follow.

Staff 6.2. A number of important issues should be considered before deciding on how preparation of the

national plan should be staffed. The first question to answer is “Whose plan is it?”. Legal responsibility for preparing the plan rests with the Board. In accordance with normal practice, however, it will be prepared on behalf of the Board and for its approval. So, should it be led by the Physical Planning Unit or by consultants?

6.3. The national plan must be Vincentian – a plan specifically for St Vincent and the Grenadines. To

achieve that aim it would seem preferable for it to be prepared as much as possible by St Vincent and the Grenadines’ own professional and technical staff, with outside consultants supporting and facilitating as necessary. The issue of achieving the best balance has already been considered as Paragraph 3.6.

6.4. The recommendation is not that no outside expertise should be used, but that the primary

purpose of bringing in such expertise should be to support local expertise and help to develop it further. If consultants are to be engaged, their job should not be to produce the plan but, rather, to facilitate the production of the plan and to underpin its objectivity.

6.5. Ultimately, of course, the owners of the plan should be the people of St Vincent and the

Grenadines, so the importance of stakeholder engagement and consultation cannot be overstated.

6.6. Officer who have participated in the interviews held with ministries across government have, without exception been helpful and courteous. During the course of those interviews, several officers, from a range of ministries, have shown a particularly strong understanding of the planning process and the synergy and interactions between their own particular field of specialism and other aspects of government and non-‐government activity and intervention. These appear to be officers with the aptitude and understanding necessary to contribute very constructively in the overall plan-‐making process, whilst also bringing specialist expertise in their own fields.

6.7. It is recommended that the national plan should be prepared by a core team of planners from the

Physical Planning Unit, working with officers from other ministries, selected primarily for their aptitude for integrated thinking and their ability to understand the synergy between spatial planning and other government activities and responsibilities. Together, those officers should form a dedicated project team to prepare the national plan. It is not anticipated that any officer from outside the PPU would need to be seconded on a full time basis, but they would probably need to commit two days a week to the project.

6.8. The role of consultants in the main plan-‐preparation work should primarily be to facilitate, advise

and contribute “outside” experience and expertise. They should support the production of the national plan by the project team, but not produce the plan. They should also be responsible for ensuring that the plan is objective and workable and they will probably have a role in project management.

6.9. A recommended structure for the national plan project team is illustrated below. The number of

“posts” identified is indicative but is subject to further discussion if the principle is agreed.


6.10. In the structure shown in the diagram, it is envisaged that:

• the Project Director & Lead Planner and Planner would be suitably experienced

members of the PPU; • the Project Facilitator, Project Manager and Sustainability Appraiser would be

consultants; • the GIS Specialist would be from the PPU; • the other Specialists would be officers from other ministries, selected for their aptitude

and relevant experience; • the Sustainability Appraisal Panel would be made up of suitably experienced

individuals, mostly government officers but, ideally, with some non-‐government panellists too.

Time 6.11. From experience, it is estimated that a team of the type outlined above should be able to

complete the preparation of a national plan – up to Approval Draft Stage – within 12 to 15 months from start date. This assumes 2 PPU planners working full time; a GIS specialist working 2 or 3 days a week on average; 3 or 4 “non-‐planner” project team members working 2 days a week on average; and 1 consultant (Project Facilitator) working 120 days, 1 consultant (Project Manager) working 60 days, and I consultant (Sustainability Appraiser) working 40 days.


6.12. Those estimates will be reviewed and refined for the final stage of this consultancy if the recommended approach is agreed.

Finance 6.13. Again, this will be reviewed and refined for the final report, but it is estimated that a

budget of around 900,000 EC Dollars should be allowed for consultants’ inputs (fees and government expenses). Other costs will include staff costs; venues and materials for stakeholder consultation events and activities; printing and internet publication costs. The costs consultants commissioned to undertake of specialist studies have not been included here.


APPENDIX 1: Sustainable Development A BRIEF OVERVIEW OF THE CONCEPT OF SUSTAINABLE DEVELOPMENT

1. Sustainable development has been defined in many ways, but the most frequently quoted

definition is from Our Common Future, also known as the Brundtland Report, published by the World Commission on Environment and Development in 1987. The Brundtland Report included the “classic” definition of sustainable development: “Development which meets the needs of the present without compromising the ability of future generations to meet their own needs”.

2. From this definition the concept of the three pillars of

sustainable development emerged: • economic development; • social equity, and • environmental protection

3. There are also alternative approaches to the definition and consideration of sustainable development. One that may be helpful in the context of a national plan for St Vincent and the Grenadines is the United Nations Global Compact, Cities Programme’s concept of “Circles of Sustainability”. This confronts a problem that often becomes apparent when applying the now-‐conventional "3 Pillars of Sustainability" approach. The problem is that, although theoretically the three pillars carry equal weight, 'social' is very often, treated as little more than a "catch-‐all" for anything that does not fit comfortably within 'economic' or 'environmental'.

4. Circles of Sustainability tackles that problem by considering sustainability as, primarily, a social

objective: put simply, the planet can be expected to survive regardless of whatever harm humanity may cause, so the real concern should be the threats mankind's activities may pose to its own survival as a species -‐ hence sustainability is a social objective that seeks to prevent human activity from damaging the environment on which humanity depends for its continuing existence.

5. From that starting point, four social "domains" of sustainability are used: politics, culture,

economics, ecology. Using this methodology, examples of key issues and topics for SVG's National Physical Development Plan to address are outlined below.

ECOLOGY

• Ecosystem Services; • Coastal Zone Management; • Marine Park Management • Integrated Water (Watershed) Management

Diagrammatic representation of the three pillars of sustainable development


ECONOMICS

• Agriculture, Forestry and Fisheries • Tourism • Construction • Retailing • Services • Manufacturing • Extraction • Communication • Ports

CULTURE

• Education • Expression

POLITICS

• Institutional Capacity • Consistency • Vision • Participation

SUSTAINABILITY APPRAISAL

6. The stages of the Sustainability Appraisal (SA) process are summarised in the table that follows:

Stage A 1. Setting the context 2. Collecting and reviewing baseline information 3. Identifying sustainability issues through stakeholder involvement 4. Developing Sustainability Objectives and indicators 5. Testing emerging Sustainability Objectives against each other to identify any

conflicts Stage B 6. Testing the objectives of the national plan against the Sustainability Objectives

7. Developing and refining the objectives of the national plan where conflicts are identified with the Sustainability Objectives

Stage C 8. Predicting and appraising the significant effects of the national plan 9. Considering ways to mitigate identified adverse effects and maximise beneficial

impacts 10. Propose measures to monitor the significant effects of implementing the

national plan 11. Consult on the national plan and appraise any significant changes against

Sustainability Objectives Stage D 12. Monitor the significant effects of the national plan and respond to adverse

effects


7. Sustainability issues can be any problems or uncertainties, which need to be understood and addressed before the plan can be confidently considered sustainable. These are commonly set out in a series of objectives – the Sustainability Objectives – that are used as a test of sustainability or prompts for questions about sustainability. Sustainability Objectives are a series of high-‐level objectives, which are measurable and linked to a number of indicators. They vary from the objectives of a plan or strategy, which typically are more specific and / or have a spatial element.

8. Sustainability issues can be any problems or uncertainties, which need to be understood and

addressed before the plan can be confidently considered sustainable. These are commonly set out in a series of objectives – the Sustainability Objectives – that are used as a test of sustainability or prompts for questions about sustainability. Sustainability Objectives are a series of high-‐level objectives, which are measurable and linked to a number of indicators. They vary from the objectives of a plan or strategy, which typically are more specific and / or have a spatial element.

9. Sustainability Objectives should ensure that each aspect of sustainability is reflected within the

group of objectives and are derived from a number of key sources as shown in the diagram below.


APPENDIX 2: Core Challenges

1.1. Formulating the objectives of the national plan and identifying and prioritising key issues and topics that it should address can be aided by considering Core Challenges: the big challenges that a plan for sustainable development of these islands must tackle. From the interviews, discussions and research that have been undertaken, it is recommended that the national plan should focus on enabling three core challenges to be achieved:

• Resourcefulness -‐ enabling SVG's key resources to be used effectively and sustainably;

• Resilience -‐ enabling the people of SVG to prosper by withstanding and adapting to

economic and environmental forces to which the country is particularly vulnerable; and,

• Revival -‐ enabling reversal of decline that has been affecting some key components of the nation's economic and social life and environmental quality.

RESOURCEFULNESS 1.2. The term “resourcefulness” is used here to mean making optimal and sustainable use of all the

resources available to the people of St Vincent and the Grenadines.

SVG's Two Key Resources 1.3. The country’s two most significant resources – and its most valuable assets – are the people and

the place (St Vincent and the Grenadines’ land, sea and air, and everything they contain and support). The primary purpose of the national plan must, therefore, be to guide and direct interactions between these two key resources, intervening as necessary to achieve sustainable development.

The People 1.4. Planning is fundamentally about people:

o the ways people use the space they inhabit; o ways in which that space is used to provide for people’s needs and expectations; o people’s impacts on the environment and ecosystems; o the ways in which physical development and infrastructure are arranged so as to

facilitate people’s social and economic transactions and support the well-‐being of both individuals and communities.

1.5. A core aim of the national plan should be to enable sustainable development that supports and

enhances the resourcefulness of the people of St Vincent and the Grenadines. To achieve this, spatial development planning, as an activity of government, needs to be considered in a number of contexts, as outlined below.

Planning in the Public Interest 1.6. The fundamental purpose of Planning is to regulate or manage development in the public interest.

This sometimes means that private interests have to be moderated for the wider good. The interventions and restrictions proposed in a plan can only be justified if they demonstrably serve


the public interest. If people do not see the wider benefits that can be gained through restrictions that planning sometimes imposes, they are unlikely to support the process.

Planning to support Socio-Economic Well-being 1.7. This is closely allied to the concept of the public interest. Although a plan like the national plan

regulates the use and development of land / space, it does not do so just for the sake of restricting uses and development. The aim of any interventions must always be to enhance the well-‐being of the people the plan serves. Again, if people do not see the wider benefits they are unlikely to support the process.

Planning to maximise the benefits of Education 1.8. It is very clear that education is absolutely central to the country’s on-‐going development. A

central aim of the plan must, therefore, be to support educational development and to help create the physical context in which people can use their knowledge and intellect to most beneficial effect.

1.9. Preparation of a national plan can also present educational opportunities. Engaging and consulting

with “stakeholders” during the plan-‐making process presents opportunities to educate people about the purposes and potential benefits of spatial planning, and it will be necessary to do so to enable them to participate effectively. It is recommended that careful consideration should be given to ways in which this can most effectively be built in to the consultation process.

1.10. One specific strand to which thought should be given at an early stage is interaction with

young citizens, for whom a plan based on a 20-‐year vision should have particular relevance and interest. It is recommended that the educational potential of the plan-‐making process itself should be explored and opportunities to engage constructively with schools and their curricula should be sought. Preparation of the national plan could present opportunities for young people to both learn about spatial planning issues and processes, and engage actively in the consultative discussion.

Planning to support Efficiency and Enterprise 1.11. Planning can improve the efficiency of places. For example it can reduce time-‐and-‐

resource-‐wasting congestion; it can lead to greater energy-‐efficiency; it can help different uses and activities to co-‐exist rather than conflict; it can create conditions that promote and support synergy between different businesses. Enterprise can flourish in such conditions.

Planning to reduce Vulnerability 1.12. By identifying natural and economic risks and hazards and then planning to minimise

harmful impacts as far as possible, planning can make a significant contribution towards reducing national and individual vulnerability. This is of fundamental importance to a country that is estimated to be amongst the most disaster-‐prone in the world7.

Planning and Land Tenure 1.13. Inevitably – and deliberately – planning places restrictions on what people can do with and

on land that they own and / or occupy. The reasons for this need to be clearly understood and widely supported and problems arising from uncertain land tenure need to be addressed. Again, understanding – and support – of the concept of the public interest is crucial. The mixture of formal and informal land tenure arrangements complicates the situation.

7 Disaster Vulnerability Reduction Project (DVRP) Environmental Assessment Report, December 2010, Government of St Vincent and the Grenadines.


The Place 1.14. Physically, SVG comprises the land space occupied by these islands (including the geological

space beneath the surface), and the water and air space that surrounds them. The national plan must seek to safeguard critical elements of that total national space and provide a framework through which competing demands upon its resources may be mediated.

Planning to optimise the use of the national space 1.15. Limitations on available space are particularly apparent in a small-‐island(s) state, where

space itself is an obviously finite resource. This amplifies the need to make rational land-‐use and spatial development decisions so that optimal use may be made of all the space that is available. Limited space does not necessarily equate to a lack of resources: it is the way in which available space is used that determines its resource value. Making optimal use of the space available is, therefore, essential.

Planning to sustain national spatial resources 1.16. The national space contains resources that are crucial to the physical, social and economic

well-‐being of the people of St Vincent and the Grenadines – both current and future generations. In that context, the value of essential services provided by St Vincent and the Grenadines’ ecosystems must be recognised and the NPDP must incorporate appropriate measures to safeguard the health and diversity of the national ecosystems. At the same time, the NPDP must allow rationally for spatial requirements generated by on-‐going social and economic activity and development.

Planning to mediate between competing and conflicting demands on national spatial resources 1.17. Inevitably, there are – and will continue to be – competing, and sometimes conflicting,

demands on the national space. Whenever a decision is made to use a piece of land for one particular purpose it is likely to mean that it cannot be used for other purposes for which there may also be demand or need: building on a plot of farm land means it is no longer available for growing crops; clearing mangroves to develop a marina means that the ecosystem services the mangrove provided are no longer available. Without a rational plan it is difficult to make rational decisions that mediate between competing demands and ensure that effective mitigation measures are taken where necessary. To provide a sound and equitable basis for such decisions, the national plan must approach the task of furthering the social, economic and environmental well-‐being of the nation in a fully integrated way.

RESILIENCE

1.18. The second of the Core Challenges the national plan must address is that of achieving greater resilience. As a small country situated in a climatically and geologically volatile region and participating in a global economy on which it is able to exert little direct influence, St Vincent and the Grenadines needs to be able to withstand all the natural and man-‐made challenges that it repeatedly finds thrown at it. The country needs to be able to minimise the harm that such events can inflict and to be able to recover quickly so that its progress is not constantly knocked off course.


Disaster Resilience 1.19. Reasons for building resilience to natural disasters are spelled out eloquently in the

Disaster Vulnerability Reduction Project’s Environmental Assessment report8:

“St. Vincent and the Grenadines (SVG) is among the most disaster-‐prone countries in the world, regularly suffering disasters related to natural events. These hazards have caused significant and recurrent damages to national infrastructure including housing, road networks, schools, hospitals and other facilities such as phone lines, water and electricity. The resulting impacts significantly affect human welfare, national economic activities, property, and natural resources. In addition, while local and sub-‐regional data are presently not available to evaluate the specific effects of climate change for SVG, global and regional data indicate that rising sea levels and changes in storm patterns are changing the country’s risk profile. Indeed, effects of climate change are already evident in many parts of the country with storm activity continuing to impact on exposed coastlines and development. The situation is only expected to worsen as SVG is highly vulnerable to the impacts of global warming and climate associated impacts”.

Hazard and Disaster Risk Management strategies and policies 1.20. Natural hazards and potential sources of disasters include: tropical storms, hurricanes,

earthquakes, sea surges, high winds, droughts, wild fires, landsides, soil erosion, agricultural pests and diseases, and volcanic eruptions. The national plan, together with the regional and/or local plans that should follow from it, has a significant role to play in strengthening resilience and reducing vulnerability to such risks and potential disasters. According to the Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change (IPCC), “Countries more effectively manage disaster risk if they include considerations of disaster risk in national development and sector plans and if they adopt climate change adaptation strategies, translating these plans and strategies into actions targeting vulnerable areas and groups”9.

1.21. It is vitally important that this is fully embraced in the preparation of the national plan for

St Vincent and the Grenadines. The plan should restrict development in areas of higher risk and vulnerability and direct development towards areas where risks are lower and capacity to cope is higher. It should also seek to prevent developments that would significantly increase hazard risk and ensure that strategies and infrastructure for coping with emergencies are taken fully into account.

1.22. Vulnerability reduction considerations should influence the national plan’s polices relating

to both the location of development and the design and construction of settlements, subdivisions, and other built developments. It is recommended that urban design policies and guidance should be prepared and that vulnerability reduction should be a major consideration in these.

1.23. Provision of accessible and secure emergency shelters is a vital precautionary measure and

the national plan should make appropriate reference to this matter, setting out locational and access criteria, together with policies to safeguard the accessibility of shelters.

8 Disaster Vulnerability Reduction Project (DVRP) Environmental Assessment Report, December 2010, Government of St Vincent and the Grenadines 9 IPCC, 2012: Summary for Policymakers. In: Managing the Risks of Extreme Events and Disasters to Advance Climate Change Adaptation (page 8)


1.24. Predicted impacts of climate change should be taken fully in to account, taking due note of the IPCC’s advice that “extreme events will have greater impacts on sectors with closer links to climate, such as water, agriculture and food security, forestry, health, and tourism”10.

1.25. According to the IPPC, even if substantial cuts in carbon global carbon emissions are

achieved, some degree of climate change is already inevitable, although scientific opinions on the severity of this vary. The impacts of climate change need to be considered with great care. For the Caribbean region as a whole, changes predicted by the IPPC are expected to result in: • more intense and frequent disaster events; • increased coastal flooding and salt water intrusion into fresh water aquifers; • sea level rise; • more frequent heat waves and drought, with accompanying hazards such as wild fires; • higher rainfall in the wet season and more regular, powerful storms exacerbating flood risks; • altered hurricane tracks.

1.26. Adaptation to climate change and its expected impacts needs to be embedded in spatial planning policies and decisions across St Vincent and the Grenadines, including those relating to: • the location and design of development; • management of urban and rural environments; • management of water resources; and, • resilience to hazard risks and potential disasters.

1.27. As a general response to the combined impacts of sea level rise and greater climate

volatility, small island nations are being advised by the IPPC to:

• limit the extent of coastal development where possible; • construct / improve coastal defence systems to protect communities in vulnerable areas.

Those and other climate change responsive measures need to be built in to an integrated spatial planning approach to hazard risk management and vulnerability reduction, in order to increase the country’s resilience.

Economic Resilience 1.28. The national plan must also take St Vincent and the Grenadines’ economic vulnerability

fully into account and must provide the spatial planning and development framework that is necessary to support strategies to strengthen the country’s economic health and resilience. The following quotations from the Budget Speech of 201311 neatly summarise the situation:

• “…St. Vincent and the Grenadines is a small, resource-‐challenged, structurally dependent open

economy, which is prone to natural disasters. Each of these factors constitutes profound economic constraints…”

• “St. Vincent and the Grenadines is quite dependent on external source markets for trade in

goods, tourism, and services generally. The internal demand, by itself, is unable as yet to 10 ibid (Page 14) 11 Building A Sustainable, Resilient Economy In Challenging Times: 2013 Budget Speech by Dr. The Hon. Ralph E. Gonsalves, Prime Minister of St. Vincent and the Grenadines.


produce a sufficiency of surplus resources to drive economic, infrastructural or social development”.

1.29. The national plan must support economic development measures and policies which aim to

create:

• high and sustained levels of economic growth; • reduced unemployment and poverty levels; • improved physical infrastructure and environmental sustainability; • high levels of human and social development; and, • a peaceful, safe and secure nation.

Key sectors targeted for delivery of economic development include agriculture, food processing and agro-‐industry, tourism and the service sector

1.30. Energy and food security are important to the achievement of economic development and increased economic resilience. St Vincent and the Grenadines is particularly exposed to the consequence of global economic instability —particularly concerning fluctuations in oil price, and the country’s dependence on imported food.

1.31. The national plan must provide a robust spatial strategy for sustainable development and

in that context issues relating to agricultural capacities and capabilities, energy efficiency and the development of renewable energy sources; sustainable tourism and environmental protection will all need to be considered in a fully integrative way.

Social Resilience

1.32. Social resilience is a complex, multi-‐faceted subject on which many academic papers can be found. For the purposes of this report, however, the term “social resilience” refers, simply, to people’s ability to support each other as a community or society and recover from adverse events. For many people this is a fundamental component of humanity, and it can be crucially important at times of stress or disaster.

Security 1.33. For people to feel able to act communally – in the public interest – they need to feel secure

with other people, rather than threatened by them. The ways in which criminal and anti-‐social behaviour are dealt with are therefore important in any society. Spatial planning has a part to play in this. At the national plan level, relevant topics include: • Crime Prevention Through Environmental Design (CPTED) – which uses the design of places

to reduce opportunities for criminal and anti-‐social behaviour to be carried out or to go unseen. CPTED can be applied both in the design of new developments and in the adaptation and improvement of existing places. In the context of the national plan, the most appropriate approach would be to include the principles of CPTED within a development control policy and then to supplement this with more detailed guidance, either as an individual topic or as part of wider design guidance. Procedures for consultation with the Police when considering development proposals could also be referred to.


• Planning for the spatial needs of security and emergency agencies – which will include spatial

requirements for fixed facilities, such as police stations, and an appreciation of requirements for dealing with incidents and emergencies, such as access and shelter. At the national plan level, policies should focus on locational criteria for fixed facilities, and general principles to be taken into account when considering development proposals. As with CPTED, reference could also be made to procedures for consultation with the Police.

Community identity, support and inclusion 1.34. The distinctive character and identity of each community is important to the way many

people lead their lives, and communities can provide vital support to individuals and families at time of stress and emergency and this can be recognised in the national plan in several ways, such as: • policies that require local character and identity to be taken in to account in the planning and

design of new development;

• policies that seek to support the economic and social well-‐being of communities;

• procedures that include communities in the planning of their own localities.

Political Resilience

1.35. The fourth aspect of resilience that needs to be considered when preparing the national plan is political resilience. A plan that looks ahead over twenty years and seeks to bring about positive change by influencing the pattern and form of development, will need to have a broad base of support. Planning decisions need to be made with consistency and transparency if they are to be respected and effective.

1.36. There is, potentially, a mismatch between commitment to a plan based on a twenty-‐year

vision, and a five-‐year election cycle. Over the course of the period the plan will cover, there will be several general elections and there may be changes of political power in government. The ideal situation as far as the national plan is concerned is for it to have cross-‐party support. That may, of course, be more easily said than done, but it is a matter that needs to be addressed. Here are just a couple of questions that may help:

• can a long-‐term spatial development vision for St Vincent and the Grenadines – how the

country should look, and function in twenty years’ time – be agreed, cross-‐party, whilst recognising that different parties will have differing views about the ways in which that vision should be achieved?

• Is it feasible – or desirable – to de-‐politicise the national plan, perhaps by having the process

headed by an apolitical “champion” – someone who would command widespread respect regardless of people’s political allegiances?

REVIVAL


1.37. The third Core Challenge that the national plan should address is that of reviving some key components of the nation's economic and social life and environmental quality that have been in decline. Issues relating to revival are explored here briefly under two headings: rural revival and urban revival.

Rural Revival 1.38. This focuses, although not exclusively, on agricultural revival and addressing the social and

economic needs of rural and remote communities The current Strategic Plan for Rural Development (2008-‐2020) provides a sound basis on which the national plan should build.

1.39. The Grenadines warrant consideration that takes full account of the challenges they face as

insular and largely rural communities, heavily dependent on tourism, but with significant social and economic issues to be tackled.

Urban Revival

1.40. Kingstown Proper, Georgetown and other towns on St Vincent show signs of urban decline and are in need of concerted regeneration efforts to tackle social, economic and environmental problems in integrated ways.

1.41. The national plan should address this from a strategic point of view, as these are key

national assets that are currently under-‐performing in a number of ways.

Reluctance

1.42. The fourth 'R' in the list of core challenges, 'Reluctance', is something that needs to be overcome -‐ or at least managed -‐ rather than attained.

1.43. From discussions held with many citizens of SVG -‐ inside and outside government service -‐

it is clear that it may be a challenge to produce and implement an interventionary plan in a cultural context that places so high a value on individual freedoms and, perhaps rather less on the public interest.

1.44. Comments received in discussions suggest that Vincentian’s may be at heart, reluctant to

be planned. Perhaps it may be more precise to say that people may be reluctant to be planned for -‐ and it could be that a solution may be found, at least in part, in that distinction: the ways in which people are encouraged and enabled to participate in the plan-‐making process, rather than simply having a plan imposed on them, may make a big difference to the acceptability, implementability and, therefore, effectiveness of the national plan. It is suggested that this requires very careful consideration when deciding on how the plan should be prepared; who should prepare it; and how community / stakeholder engagement and consultation is approached.

1.45. Consideration needs to be given to the ways in which the national plan can be

implemented effectively and this will require an examination of issues of political and cultural will to intervene and enforce.