See: St. Vincent and the Grenadines 38th anniversary of Independence – 2017
Representative of SVG to the OAS presents credentials
New Permanent Representative of St Vincent and the Grenadines to the OAS Presents Credentials.
Ambassador Lou-Ann Gilchrist today presented to the Secretary General of the Organization of American States (OAS), Luis Almagro, the credentials that accredit her as the Permanent Representative of St. Vincent and the Grenadines to the hemispheric institution.
During the ceremony at OAS headquarters in Washington DC, Ambassador Gilchrist highlighted her country´s continued commitment to the OAS and its guiding principles. ”Since St Vincent and the Grenadines became a member of this organization in 1981, only two years after our independence, we have been committed to promoting and strengthening the four main pillars and principles enshrined in the OAS Charter. Accordingly, I must reassure you of my country’s unwavering commitment to integral and sustainable development, democracy and governance, multidimensional security and the protection of human rights,” she said.
In welcoming the new ambassador Secretary General Almagro recognized her broad experience as an educator and leader. “You have a strong background in the field of education and in other areas of the work of the OAS, particularly the Inter-American Council of Integral Development. Having led your country’s education process as Chief Education Officer over the last several years, I am confident that your expertise will be beneficial to some of the innovative programs in this area in which CIDI is working,” affirmed Almagro.
Parliament Channel wins at CBU Caribbean Broadcasting Awards
Parliament Channel wins in two categories at CBU Caribbean Broadcasting Awards. The Parliament Channel has copped two awards in the 2015 CBU Caribbean Broadcasting Awards.
The awards were broadcast live at the Teatro Lazaro Pena in Havana, Cuba during the 47th Annual General Assembly of the Caribbean Broadcasting Union on Tuesday, October 25, 2016.
“The West Indies at War (Part I): Emperors, Kings and Power” took the winning spot in the Best Documentary Programme (Television) category. The production team included Mariel Brown, Colleen Holder and Candice Dubarry.
“I Count” won in the Responsible Coverage of Children’s Issues – Sponsored by UNICEF – (Television) category. The production team included Candice Dubarry and Stephen Doobal.
Below are the links for The West Indies at War Series and I Count respectively:
West Indies at War: https://goo.gl/TTU3RH
I Count: https://youtu.be/38-zlbbH0_I
The Parliament of Trinidad and Tobago became a full member of the Caribbean Broadcasting Union in January 2015 and is currently the only Parliament to be a part of the CBU, with a 24-hour broadcasting unit, The Parliament Channel.
Eleven (11) CBU members from nine (9) countries submitted a total of one hundred and forty four (144) entries that were vying for the top spots in twenty (20) categories. The countries that submitted entries were the Bahamas, Barbados, Belize, Cayman Islands, Cuba, Grenada, Jamaica, Saint Vincent and the Grenadines, and Trinidad and Tobago. This year’s entries were assessed by a three-person judging panel drawn from Barbados and Grenada.
Mexico gives assistance to SVG
Minister of Transport and Works, Hon. Julian Francis, apologised to the people of Spring Village and surrounding areas for the length of time it took to get the Cumberland Bridge reconstruction project started.
Minister of Transport and Works, Hon. Julian Francis, apologised to the people of Spring Village and surrounding areas for the length of time it took to get the Cumberland Bridge reconstruction project started.
In his address at the ground breaking ceremony to officially launch the project, the Minister said that considerable river defense work was done to the river to lessen the fears of the residents after their experience on Christmas Eve 2013.
He said that the work that was done the first four months after Christmas 2013 saved many lives during the passage of Tropical Storm Matthew this year.
“We had 17 to 18 hours of rain in Tropical Storm Matthew and not one single river which overflowed its banks in 2013 flooded again in 2016, because of the considerable work that was done on the river defense,” he said.
He thanked the Mexican Government for the 5 million United States (US) dollars, (13.5 million Eastern Caribbean (EC) dollars), it has pledged towards the project.
He said that the projects that Government implemented over the period 2010 – 2013 were significant and substantial, adding that, although Prime Minister Gonsalves had constantly reminded the public that he had the money to do the repairs to damaged infrastructure, such works could not happen overnight.
Minister Francis also disclosed that he proposes to have the crusher plant located at the Argyle International Airport project site be eventually relocated to the Richmond Area.
“I think you have the best available granite rock on Richmond Beach, it is ideally located and I believe that I will win in my proposal to the Hon. Prime Minster and Cabinet that I put the crusher in North Leeward,” he said.
Mexican Ambassador to the Organisation of Eastern Caribbean States (OECS), His Excellency Luis Manuel Lopez Moreno, said that he was happy to be at the launch of the project. He told those in attendance at the launch that the project formed part of his Government’s plan to assist with development in the Eastern Caribbean, especially building infrastructure in the resident states. Mexico, he said, was pleased to make this contribution and was committed to fostering closer relations with Caribbean partners through co-operation efforts.
Mexico is the largest economy in the greater Caribbean and the 11th largest in the World.
Delivering the feature address, Prime Minister, Dr. Ralph Gonsalves said that he had a history of good relations with Mexico and mentioned the special friendship he shared with Former President Vincente Fox.
Dr. Gonsalves said that St. Vincent and the Grenadines was the first country in the Eastern Caribbean which obtained undergraduate scholarships to pursue studies in Mexico.
Looking back at 2013, he said 12 bridges were either severely damaged or destroyed, and several road networks were disrupted. He also said that when he campaigned during the last elections, (2015); he told the people of Spring Village and Charles Village that in 2016, the bridge and river defenses would be started.
“We are keeping our promise to the people, I told you that I had 5 million US dollars,” he charged.
Soon after 2013, by January 2014, he contacted the Mexican Government and got a quick response of a pledge of 5 million US dollars to reconstruct one of the damaged bridges. He referred to the Leeward side of the country as Latin American side as most of the bridges reconstructed in areas on that side were through funds from Latin American Governments.
Ecuador has built three in North Leeward and one in South Leeward and Mexico, one, also in North Leeward. “Latin America is taking care of five of the 12 bridges,” he said.
The launch was also addressed by Mr. Geoff Wilson of UNOPS and Mr. Rameshwar Mahabir, Managing Director of Trinidad Contractors, Project Contractor.
Fifth construction conference to be held in Saint Lucia
The Ministry of Agriculture, Fisheries, Physical Planning, Natural Resources and Co-operatives and the Institute of Surveyors (St. Lucia) Inc., in collaboration with the Royal Institution of Chartered Surveyors (RICS) and the International Property Tax Institute (IPTI), will host the 5th annual Caribbean Valuation and Construction Conference in Saint Lucia, in November.
This is the first time the conference will be held within the OECS.
The conference will address construction and valuation-related issues including, but not limited to new accounting standards; international property measurement standards ; appraisal and management companies; valuing leisure and special properties; financing the construction and operation of buildings; and current issues and recent trends in construction.
The conference will be held from Nov. 9 – 10 at the Bay Gardens Hotel, Saint Lucia. For program and ticket information, download the attached PDF.
St Lucia Brochure and Registration FINAL
St. Kitts and Nevis Tsunami Ready Recognition
Over the last year, St. Kitts-Nevis has been participating in a Tsunami Ready Recognition Pilot Project, under the auspices of the UNESCO Intergovernmental Oceanographic Commission (IOC) for Tsunamis and other Coastal Hazards.
In undertaking the project, and in keeping with criteria for recognition, the National Emergency Management Agency (NEMA) and the Nevis Disaster Management Department (NDMD) coordinated various activities including the development of Tsunami Protocols and Standard Operating Procedures, the establishment of a 24 hours Tsunami Warning Center at Police Headquarters, St. Kitts and Charlestown Police Station, Nevis, development of a Tsunami Evacuation Map for both St. Kitts and Nevis, the placement of signs on both islands and having an Emergency Operations Center on both islands.
Monday 17th October, 2016, the Tsunami Ready Recognition Board conducted a verification exercise on St. Kitts-Nevis following which the Federation was duly certified. During a special ceremony Thursday 20th October, 2016 in Trinidad and Tobago to commemorate the first ever World Tsunami Awareness Day, 5th November, 2016, Mrs. Claricia Langley-Stevens, Deputy National Disaster Coordinator at NEMA, was presented with the Tsunami Ready Recognition Certificate. The certificate which was issued in the name of Dr. Hon. Timothy Harris, Prime Minister, was presented to Mr. Osmond Petty, Permanent Secretary, Ministry of National Security, by the Deputy National Disaster Coordinator, during a brief ceremony Tuesday 25th October, 2016. Two (2) of the tsunami signs that will shortly be erected throughout St. Kitts and Nevis, and the evacuation maps were also presented during the ceremony.
Upon accepting the certificate, Mr. Petty thanked management of the National Emergency Management Agency (NEMA), the Nevis Disaster Management Department (NDMD), members of the tsunami working group including the Police, the Department of Physical Planning and local consultants. He also acknowledge with gratitude, several key donors and stakeholders including the USAID Office Of Foreign Disaster Assistance (OFDA), UNDP, UNESCO, the Caribbean Tsunami Warning Programme at the University of Puerto Rico and the Caribbean Tsunami Information Center on Barbados, for their contributions towards the Federation receiving such recognition. Mr. Petty appealed to the public for ongoing support to the disaster management departments in the Federation and joined in their call for the public not to panic, as a tsunami is not expected, but that the activities such as the signs and maps are components of ongoing tsunami preparedness activities. The handing over ceremony, was the first event to launch a series of tsunami evacuation public education and awareness activities, which will also include the distribution of maps, erecting of signs and a live radio and television discussion to address the tsunami hazard.
TEPA and OECS launch specialty Caribbean Expo 2017
The St. Lucia Trade Export Promotion Agency (TEPA) and the OECS Commission, along with strategic partners, launched “Specialty Caribbean Expo 2017”at the home venue for the event, the Daren Sammy Cricket Ground, under the auspices of The Minister for Commerce, International Trade, Investment, Enterprise Development and Consumer Affairs.
The event marks the start of activities leading up to four days next year, March 9-12, 2017, when Saint Lucia will host business contingents from the OECS Member States for the Specialty Caribbean Expo 2017 at the Daren Sammy Cricket Ground in Gros Islet, Saint Lucia. The Specialty Carribean Expo 2017 will feature over 100 OECS Exhibitors showcasing international standard, export-ready goods and services. This high profile exposition will be held under the theme “A Unique Buying Experience” as it targets International Buyers from United States, Canada, United Kingdom and Cuba. Buyers from the CARICOM and OECS are also expected to participate.
Exporters from the OECS and Martinique will present and promote their products and services at this buyer-focused exhibition, facilitated by TEPA and the OECS Commission. Specialty Caribbean Expo 2017 will be the ultimate one-stop-shop, directly linking international buyers from worldwide corporations with Caribbean suppliers from a multitude of sectors. Exhibitor sectors will include agribusiness; apparel & footwear; chemicals & plastics; construction, architecture & engineering; cultural industries; educational services; fashion; music; financial services; food & beverage; furniture; handicraft, health & wellness; tourism; printing and packaging, and ICT & related services.
TEPA and the OECS Commission are honoured to announce, Amerijet International Inc as the official Title Sponsor of Speciality Caribbean Expo 2017; and gratefully recognize sponsors Digicel, Saint Lucia Electricity Services Ltd (LUCELEC), Piton Beer and Virgin Atlantic.
Exporters from the OECS and Martinique will present and promote their products and services at this buyer-focused exhibition, facilitated by TEPA and the OECS Commission. Specialty Caribbean Expo 2017 will be the ultimate one-stop-shop, directly linking international buyers from worldwide corporations with Caribbean suppliers from a multitude of sectors. Exhibitor sectors will include agribusiness; apparel & footwear; chemicals & plastics; construction, architecture & engineering; cultural industries; educational services; fashion; music; financial services; food & beverage; furniture; handicraft, health & wellness; tourism; printing and packaging, and ICT & related services.
TEPA and the OECS Commission are honoured to announce, Amerijet International Inc as the official Title Sponsor of Speciality Caribbean Expo 2017; and gratefully recognize sponsors Digicel, Saint Lucia Electricity Services Ltd (LUCELEC), Piton Beer and Virgin Atlantic.
People empowerment – focus of attention for regional statisticians
Regional statisticians will today wrap up a three-day meeting which focused on “Improving the Lives of People – Advancing the Action Plan for Statistics in CARICOM.”
This forty-first meeting of the Standing Committee of Caribbean Statisticians (SCCS) is part of a week-long series of engagements for the Statisticians, gathered in Willemstad, Curacao. On Thursday they hold the twenty-sixth meeting of the Regional Census Coordinating Committee, and on Friday the ninth Regional Statistical Research Seminar.
The Standing Committee meeting hopes to advance a number of key issues in an Action Plan for Statistics which was endorsed by CARICOM Heads of Government at their recent 37th Meeting in Guyana. That Action Plan addressed the need to strengthen statistical capacity to make statistics available to help achieve sustainable development and improve the lives and empower the people of CARICOM.
The meeting is looking at operational actions required by Governments to strengthen National Statistical Systems and specifically the National Statistical Offices. It is also examining ways to promote statistics as a data science in the curriculum of primary and secondary schools and promote the professionalization of statistics through the Caribbean Association of Professional Statisticians (CAPS). The statisticians are also seeking to advance the regional approach to the development of statistics through a common Regional Statistical Work Programme.
Thursday’s census meeting will focus on country-readiness for the conduct of the Population and Housing Census in the 2020 round and the Regional Strategy of Support aimed at enabling harmonized census data across all CARICOM countries.
Friday’s research seminar will seek to develop key recommendations on the way forward for matters related to statistics.
25th St. Lucia Bill Fish Tournament Celebrates Silver Anniversary
On Tuesday, October 25th, the highly anticipated International St. Lucia Bill fish Tournament 2016 will be hosted out of the IGY Rodney Bay Marina by the St. Lucia Game Fishing Association, and with more than EC$100,000 in prizes to be won, including a car, excitement among the organisers and participants is building apace.
The five-day event brings the most competitive sport fishing teams from around the region to the island, with many loyal participants returning yearly to ply the waters off Saint Lucia’s coast and further afield for the largest bill fish they can hook, including the elusive blue marlin. The catch and release tournament is a favourite of seasoned sport-fishers because of the quality of the competition and the challenges provided by Saint Lucia’s teeming waters. The event is also a qualifier for the Offshore World Championships.
Owner of three-time winner, Vesper, who pulled off the hat trick in the 2015 tournament, Jerome McQuilkin says, “Saint Lucia is a challenging fishing venue because there are so many productive areas of bill fish, so it’s important to find a hot spot.” McQuilken has fished SLGFA-run tournament four times on his boat and many more times on other boats.
More than twenty Caribbean and international boats participated in the 2015 tournament, crewed by one hundred anglers who took to the waters for four fishing days, with a welcome rest on lay day to take advantage of everything else the island has to offer. During the tournament, forty-nine (49) blue marlin and seven sailfish were released within three days, with Vesper winning for the third time in a row and also qualifying for the 2016 Offshore World Championships in Costa Rica.
The Southern Caribbean Billfish Circuit Trophy went to Blue Fever, who also caught the Biggest Dolphin at 33.5lbs. The Biggest Tuna winner at 27lbs was caught by A Salt Weapon, while the prize-winning junior angler was Nathan Jean-Joseph who hooked an impressive four (4) blue marlin and one (1) sailfish.
The International St. Lucia Bill Fish Tournament is held based in the 5-Anchor IGY Marina, Rodney Marina, which devotes an entire dock to the event, ensuring that local and visiting boats get a chance to connect, socialise and indulge in a bit of feisty fighting talk, as is the tradition in any competitive sport. Add the prospect of wrangling a fish bigger than the captain himself, and the result is a high energy, relaxed vibe and a pretty cool spectacle after dark, as a couple of dozen powerful fishing boats form a floating village, bathed in the blue lights of the docks.
The tournament is planned by a local committee, spearheaded by President of the Saint Lucia Game Fishing Association (SLGFA), Sean Devaux, who is also the Operations Manager at IGY Rodney Bay Marina, and Maritime Director on the SLHTA Board. This year the SLGFA organising team are very excited about the 25th anniversary edition of the event, with over 100k in prizes to be won, plus a vehicle for the heaviest fish to scale. With an increased number of registrations expected and interest in the tournament at an all time high, the team are expecting the International St. Lucia Bill Fish Tournament to attract the sort of positive attention the island’s marine tourism industry needs, taking the first quarter of a century’s successes as a basis for developing the sector for the next several decades.
Says Devaux, ‘Sport- fishing in Saint Lucian waters has been very active and rewarding over the years, with marlin and sailfish being regularly released by some of the charter companies and avid sport fishers here in on the island. Fortunately, for us, the tournament this year is under similar conditions as 2015, so we do anticipate similar competitive results, cameraderie and most importantly, sportsmanship and friendships. As stakeholder in the maritime industry, I hope we can continue to develop Saint Lucia into a significant fishing destination in the coming years.’
The 25th International St. Lucia Billfish Tournament runs from Tuesday, October 25th to Saturday October 29th, with the lay day scheduled for Thursday.
For more information please visit: www.facebook.com/events/1544660509176398/ or call Sean Devaux on +1 758-724- 8557.
