Sustainable Development Master Plan for Andros Island, The Bahamas

The Office of the Prime Minister, with support of the Inter-American Development Bank, initiated a sustainable development process by a transdisciplinary team of local academics, local consultants and the Natural Capital Project (Stanford U., TNC). The multi-year iterative process included an extensive stakeholder engagement process, participatory mapping, scenario development, ecosystem-service modelling and cumulative risk assessment. With broad stakeholder support, one of the scenarios – the Sustainable Prosperity scenario – became the foundation of the Sustainable Development Master Plan for Andros Island

The scenario deemed most relevant option of development for Andros was translated into an actionalble plan- the Andros Master Plan. The plan’s impact extends further than its own coastal waters, as learning from the Andros process, the Office of the Prime Minister has discussed replicating the approach on other family islands, with an emphasis on stakeholder engagement and incorporating natural capital. They also know that, as Androsians call for better jobs, updated hospitals and schools, and food security, the Andros Master Plan is just the beginning of comprehensive national planning and finer-tuned town planning.