The interdepartmental delegate for the reconstruction of Saint-Barthélemy and Saint-Martin, Philippe Gustin, received Monday at the Ministry of Overseas his Dutch counterpart, Hans Leijtens to develop common infrastructure projects.
"The idea of this meeting in Paris was to formalize our long-term cooperation and see how we can contribute together to set up a sustainable model for the island," said Phillipe Gustin.
During this meeting, they drew up an inventory of the situation on the spot, exchanged their views on the future reconstruction of the island and discussed ways to relaunch Franco-Dutch cooperation. The objective for Hans Leitjens is "to contribute to a better future for all Saint-Martinois".
The two representatives stressed the importance of thinking about launching joint infrastructure projects, in close collaboration with local authorities, for example concerning the airport or a single waste reprocessing center.
The two countries would also aim to support each other in their dealings with the European Commission in order to facilitate the obtaining of European funding for reconstruction. The two delegates agreed on the need to give new impetus to the "quadripartite" dialogue forum in Saint-Martin, which brings together representatives of the French and Dutch governments, the community of Saint-Martin and the government of Sint-Maarten, by organizing regular summits.
"Irma can be an opportunity to relaunch cooperation between the two parts of the island," concluded Philippe Gustin._AF
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