BSE president wants building codes revised every four years

Bahamas Society of Engineers (BSE) President Dr. Stephen Curran said the building codes need to be revised every three or four years. Curran told Guardian Business that the BSE supports the recent update of the building codes, coming into effect in the third quarter of 2025.

“The code will be sent out for comments, and then the various industry stakeholders will come back and say what we think about this and what we think about that, and we’ll give our feedback, and then maybe they’ll revise the code based on the feedback. Obviously, we can’t wait another 20 years for the next version..



. Every three or four years, typically these types of codes, they get revised without having to start again from scratch,” said Curran. He added: “My understanding is that the previous code was developed in 2003/2004, so it’s long overdue for renewal.

I’m happy to see that the codes are being looked at, and they’re going to renew it. Because of course, things change an awful lot in 20 years.” The Bahamas Building Code was previously revised in 2003 under the then Perry Christie-led Progressive Liberal Party (PLP).

Then-Minister of Works Bradley Roberts noted at that time that the codes had not been revised since 1971. Clay Sweeting, minister of works and family island affairs, said at the Office of the Prime Minister’s press briefing last week that the draft of the proposed new building codes is expected by the end of December, with internal review and public stakeholder consultations scheduled for the first quarter of 2025. Sweeting added: “Full implementation, including legislative adjustments and institutional strengthening, is anticipated by the end of the third quarter, 2025.

” The revision of the building codes comes five years after Category 5 Hurricane Dorian destroyed much of the infrastructure of Abaco and Grand Bahama. It was found then that many of the homes in Abaco and Grand Bahama were not built according to the existing buildings codes, but even if they were, there was a likelihood that they still would not have been able to withstand a storm with the strength of Dorian. A lack of building inspectors, and the Ministry of Works’s (MOW) inability to manage all the building inspections, were cited as the main reasons many of the homes on Abaco and Grand Bahama were not built to the existing code.

Sweeting said a plan to have members of the construction industry – inclusive of representatives from the BSE, Bahamian Contractors Association, and the Institute of Bahamian Architects – assist building control inspectors at the MOW, will be a part of a new program to supervise building inspections, and ensuring that new structures will adhere to the building codes moving forward..