The Tribune

THE nations of the world must intensify global efforts to eliminate poverty and structural imbalances that impede economic growth in certain sections of the Caribbean, Prime Minister Perry Christie said in his address to the UN General Assembly over the weekend.

Mr Christie said that such efforts would go a long way in stemming the tide of illegal immigration to the Bahamas.

He described illegal immigration as a matter of the “highest national priority” for the country.

Mr Christie said that while the Bahamas places a great deal of emphasis on the human rights of migrants, there must be similar concerns for the ill-effects on migrant-receiving states such as the Bahamas.

In particular, he said, the country is concerned about the increasingly unsustainable costs that are being incurred and the resulting erosion in the quality of life for the citizenry of the Bahamas.

“At a time when it is imperative that we invest in the education and health and future of my people, we are forced instead to devote an ever-growing share of our resources to the problems associated with illegal migration.

“Our country simply does not have the financial resources and infrastructural capacity, much less the psychological stamina, to endure this dilemma indefinitely,” the prime minister said.

This situation, he said, should also remind everyone of the economic disparities within the region, and of the need to intensify global efforts to eliminate poverty and structural imbalances that impede economic growth within certain sections of the Caribbean.

“As long as these disparities persist, illegal immigration to the shores of countries that are comparatively more prosperous will continue to grow,” Mr Christie said.