Above: Minister of National Security Tommy Turnquest addressing the conference (BIS Photo/Patrick Hanna)

The Bahamian government is implementing a series of new programmes aimed at addressing crime and criminality, according to Minister of National Security Tommy Turnquest.

Yesterday, in similar news, the government announced it was expanding the number of reservists in the Royal Bahamas Police Force.

“The government of the Bahamas recognizes that there must be several complementary approaches and multiple interventions with which to address crime and criminality,” he said at the first Regional Community-Based Policing Conference in Nassau. “We recognize that the government is mandated to take the lead in the fight against crime and violence and that is something we have done and will continue to do, but we also recognize that all of our partners have an integral role to play in stemming the tide.”

The Bahamas has already put in place several anti-crime measures, including the use of electronic monitoring, CCTV and the establishment of a “Remand Court.”

The court, which is set for completion in September, will be built close to Her Majesty’s Prison in order to more usefully and effectively assign police and prison officials, Turnquest said.

The conference, which wraps up Thursday, is hosting officials from 19 regional countries. It is sponsored by USAID and is aimed at achieving the objectives of the Caribbean Basin Security Initiative.

Earlier this year in Jamaica, US Secretary of State Hillary Clinton announced that the US would be funding the CBSI with $77 million, an increase of 70 percent over the previous year.