The Ministry of Works said it had undertaken a review to assess how the building permit process could be speeded up while complying with existing legislation, but warned that its key goal was to ensure that “public safety is not compromised”.
Defending itself in the face of claims from the Institute of Bahamian Architects that “bottlenecks and delays” in approving building construction permits were unnecessary and cost the Bahamian economy “millions of dollars” each year, the Ministry of Works told Tribune Business in a statement that it has “in recent years placed particular emphasis on improving efficiency in meeting the needs of its customers”.
