Rebuild Mayotte in two years. This is the objective of Prime Minister François Bayrou, who detailed this Monday, December 30 around 4:30 p.m. a plan to “restore” the archipelago devastated by Cyclone Chido, which left at least 39 dead and 4,000 injured. . He set foot on the island this Monday, at the head of an imposing ministerial delegation, with the promise of an aid plan called “Mayotte standing”, aimed at “providing rapid responses, developed “after a day of dialogue”, while residents were firmly awaiting concrete responses from the government “The Mahorais often have the feeling that what we are giving them are assurances, beautiful words of solidarity in the declarations. , but what they want, it’s real,” he introduced earlier in the day.
Several main areas were detailed by the Prime Minister from the Departmental Council of Mayotte, accompanied by Ministers Elisabeth Borne (Education) and Manuel Valls (Overseas). The measures will be the subject of an “emergency bill” which will be presented and then debated in Parliament “within fifteen days”. A draft “refoundation program law” for the archipelago will be “prepared and designed with the elected officials of Mayotte, will be finalized within three months,” added François Bayrou.
Restoration of water and electricity production in homes
François Bayrou asked that electricity be “restored to every home at the end of January”. He announced “a reinforcement of 200 agents to achieve this objective”. By then, EDF will see a total of “200 generators, around ten per municipality” to operate the “essential equipment”. In addition, “20 EDF technicians will arrive as reinforcements during the week to organize (technical) commandos” in each municipality and intervene on “low voltage network ruptures”.
To facilitate access to telecommunications, the Prime Minister also announced the deployment of 200 Starlink antennas. 5G will also be deployed in the territory by the end of June, and 50 million euros will be allocated in the Mayotte law to deploy optical fiber in the territory in the longer term.
In terms of access to water, the Prime Minister promised a return to drinking water production levels before the cyclone, that is to say 38,000 m3, “before the end of the week” . The budget of the water plan, which provides 60 million euros for 2025, will be “protected and increased if necessary”. The project for a second desalination plant will also be studied in the spring.
No reconstruction of slums
The State and local public authorities are committed to “preventing the reconstruction of slums” in Mayotte, said the Prime Minister, specifying that these provisions could be “enshrined in law”.
An emergency plan to protect public and residential buildings from water must also be quickly adopted. The head of government promised the delivery of “140 tonnes of tarpaulins within the week”, which will be added “to the 100 tonnes of tarpaulins already delivered”, which will be followed by deliveries of structural materials and sheet metal.
“Loans guaranteed by the State” and “assumed by the Banque des Territoires” will be offered to Mahorese families to finance reconstructions. These loans are “reserved for large-scale natural disasters like Chido”, underlined François Bayrou.
The delayed start of the school year
“As the return to school cannot take place under normal conditions, it will take place according to methods adapted establishment by establishment from January 13,” said the Prime Minister. For certain students, “temporary schooling could be organized in France,” he assured.
A “vigilance plan” initiated
François Bayrou announced this Monday the launch of a “vigilance plan” in Mayotte bringing together the army and the gendarmerie to “monitor” schools in the face of threats of fire and looting.
“We cannot let schools, colleges and high schools be looted every day or worse yet, burned, since that is the case of what we saw today,” declared the head of government. A few minutes earlier, the mayor of Mamoudzou Ambdilwahedou Soumaila had deplored the fact that a Republic school had been “burned”, transformed into an emergency accommodation center two weeks ago.
Humanitarian material transported
The government transported 2.5 tonnes of humanitarian material on its plane for the Mahorais, franceinfo learned from Matignon. This cargo includes water purification tablets, equipment for providing care and equipment for patients on dialysis.
François Bayrou also announced a “suspension of social contributions for all companies until March 31” in Mayotte, and “emergency financial aid for all companies up to 20% of average turnover”, c that is to say up to 20,000 euros.
The airport will reopen on January 1
Mayotte airport will reopen to commercial flights “from January 1,” announced François Bayrou. Repatriations of residents of Mayotte “retained outside France because of the disaster will begin tomorrow,” said the Prime Minister.
Other measures expected in the long term
This plan will precede other long-term measures. “There will be a second phase within a few months. It is a long-term plan. Because it is not only a question of rebuilding Mayotte as it was. It is a question of designing the future of Mayotte , different,” added the Prime Minister.