NationWIDE

NationWIDE

THE OFFICIAL NEWS MAGAZINE OF THE GOVERNMENT OF SAINT LUCIA

WEEKLY

SATURDAY FEBRUARY 7, 2015

2015 Independence and

Jazz Festivals launched!

The Prime Minister has much to celebrate today. Following on a similar outlook outlined
in the Prime Ministers 2015 New Year Address and the record 6% growth in tourism
figures in 2014 over 2015, First Citizens Investment Services (a regional private finance
and economic institution also operating here) is predicting lower fuel prices and
increasing visitor numbers will help lead to a turnaround to positive economic growth
before the next General Elections. The fiscal pruning of the past three years is finally
taking the country around the curve and policies continue to be put in place to ensure
proper transition to better for all. With investor confidence back on track, the Prime
Minister (with his Cabinet) continues to seek, attract and invite new investors, as with
the visiting Taiwanese business delegation earlier this week (See Page 12). But while
the PM (with his Government) continues to labour to better fix the economy, he can
still occasionally find time to help his people celebrate the nations good fortunes over
the past three years (above). Following the best Christmas and New Year celebrations
in a long time and a special Nobel Laureates Week that celebrated a centennial and
started a new national monument, the island is now welcoming neighbouring sister-isle
Martinique into the OECS (See Pages 3 and 4) and bracing for Independence and Jazz
2015 (Story on Page 12). Saint Lucia is a nation of people who work hard and play hard.
But increasingly too, we are behaving better with and to each other, evidenced by the
reduction in all major crimes last year -- and last month being the first homicide-free
January in the past 15 years (See Page 4). This edition of Nationwide celebrates the
Excellence in Education of our students with a special supplement (Pages 8-12), as well
as coverage of the two special Climate Change gatherings recently held here (Page 6).
Its also been one full year since Nina Compton put Saint Lucia on the global culinary
map and this issue features one of her many recent exploits as the islands Culinary
Ambassador to the World (Page 7). Sift through the following pages and enjoy this
latest issue of your weekly colourful accounts of what the Government of Saint Lucia
has been saying and doing at home and abroad during the past seven days. Enjoy the
edification. Happy Reading! And catch-up with NationwideTV daily on NTN!

What Caring and Sharing Governments Do! Page 2

WASCO Signs MOU for Better Water Works on
Roads - Page 3
Saint Lucia Attended High Level ICAO Conference Page 4
Consultancy Commences on Financing Universal
Health - Page 5
World Wetlands Day Observed - Page 6

D
SI

RC Boys Honoured for

Academic Excellence Page 8

T
A
H

IN

NationWIDE

Page 2

Where, oh where, did

all that money go?
Those who cannot remember the past
are condemned to repeat it!

By Yolanda OBrien

olitics remains essentially

about people and the ability of politicians and their
politics to influence individuals
or groups. I assess people who
offer themselves to the electorate
by their past record -- whether
privately, nationally or internationally -- and in my humblest
estimation, Allen Chastanet, a hotelier, continues to represent only
one small group of people here:
the propertied elite who want
to maintain the historic class
boundaries.
His catapult to the UWP leadership has not so far enabled him
to increase his influence over the
majority of the ordinary St Lucian populace Yes, his familys
money may be working wonders
for the Party in opposition. But if
its just money that UWP required
now, Richard would still be its
golden goose.
I noted with amusement Mr
Chastanet delivering an address
to nation with our national flag
in the background. Hes not even
a Member of Parliament, not a
national representative of anything in any form, yet he takes
these kinds of privileges, stealing
chances to pose with our national
flag, in full violation of the protocols associated with addresses to
the nation by Heads of State and

Heads of Government. Thats the

arrogance of the man.
But, to his credit, Allen Chastanet is happy that he has acquired
a new submissive Leader of the
Opposition. While constitutionally shes the only one with legal
and parliamentary authority for
UWP, her only interest now is
how high Mr Chastanet wants her
to jump. (Sad for female leadership)
But back to the only memorable
lines from that speech: The UWP
has always been committed to the
success of our country. As a Party
we have embraced the values we
believe all responsible Saint Lucians share: honesty, discipline,
confidentiality, commitment, mutual respect. Really, Mr Chastanet! This same Mr Chastanet
was part of a Government that
destroyed the soul of this country, which started this current
economic avalanche. But today
he wants to come back and try to
convince us that he really cares
about De poor people! Its that
kind of blatant dishonesty that
has caused me to delve into the
past hallmarks of his tenure as
Minister of Tourism.
Lets start with a quote from
court proceedings related to the
Tuxedogate scandal: Mr. Chastanet deposed in his affidavit that
he was not at the meeting because
he was scheduled to travel out of
the state on that date. He said in
cross examination that he was
one thousand percent sure he
was off island. Yet the minutes of
the meeting show on Page 1 that
he was present at the meeting,
and on Page 2 that three ministers are listed as being absent. Mr.
Chastanet is not included in the
list of absent ministers..

From Secrecy and Evasion to Accountability and Transparency:

The change of government in 2011 resulted in the administration
led by a genuinely accountable leader ensuring every cheque
received from Taiwan for public use over the past three years was
received by the Minister of Finance and immediately handed over
to the Accountant General for depositing in the Consolidated
Fund through the Treasury all done in full glare of the press and
the public, as in this case (above) and ensuring that (unlike under
the previous administration) Taiwanese funds are disbursed in all
seventeen constituencies, bar none.

That damning judgment in the

Tuxedo Villas Scandal would
never have been, had Allen Chastanet, as Minister of Tourism, not
convinced Cabinet to extend Tuxedos hotel concessions to fellow
Cabinet Minister Keith Mondesirs private residence in Bonne
Terre.
Allen Chastanet has never
once proven to me, as a fellow St
Lucian, that he cares about the
people of this country. I have long
maintained that his actions and
behaviors over the last few years
have proven to be elitist, antilocal and anti-regional; and there
is an abundance of recorded evidence to substantiate this.
Who can forget that his political and ministerial records are
stained by waste, extravagance
and boastful non-performance?
How can St Lucians forget Allen Chastanet and Air Jamaica,
or Allen Chastanet and Boxing
in Paradise, or Allen Chastanet
and Bachelor, or Allen Chastanet and the $1.2 million James
Hepple fiasco, or Allen Chastanet and the tourism marketing
emblem plagiarized from Latin
America? Where was Chastanets concern for St. Lucians when
he was spending about $500,000
on cell phones and traveling all
over the world, without his Prime
Ministers authority and without
his Ministrys technical support,
at the expense of the St. Lucian
taxpayer?
My assessment on Allen Chastanet was further sealed by his
sustained attacks on LIAT over
the last few years. We all know
the financial challenges of LIAT
that have been reported over the
many years and we all have had
horrible experiences with LIAT,
but like a faithful guide doo,r
LIAT remains one of the strongest
symbols of our integration. Yet,
this man who wants to be Prime
Minister has remained consistent
on his sustained attacks on this
regional airline, while simultaneously cushioning international
airlines during his tenure as Minister.
But lets go to another of Mr
Chastanet legacies, as was reported in the Review of Local Councils under UWP administration:
The review exercise has revealed that during the period under review the Council received
funds from Central Government
and Taiwanese Government for
the execution of various projects. However, it appeared that
payments were made from these
funds for unauthorised purposes. During the reviewed it
was revealed that Bank cheque
dated 24/11/2011 in the amount
of $24,000 was issued to the Soufriere Development Foundation.
The Former Chairman explained
that the payment was made to
the Soufriere Development Foundation as per directive from the
Minister for Tourism and UWP
Candidate for Soufriere Allen
Chastanet. The intention was to
lease the land for the purpose of
building a basketball court for the
community. The Former Chairman did not provide any documentary evidence to substantiate
that claim. Further investigations
revealed that other payments
were made for the benefit and at
the behest of UWP Candidate for
Soufriere/Fond St Jacques Constituency Allen Chastanet during

Saturday February 7, 2015

Editorial
Caring and Sharing!

hile discussing, debating or arguing over

seemingly contentious
issues related to the latest fuel
price adjustments at home, we
should also always keep our
eyes and ears wide open on the
rest of the Caribbean and the
world.
We argue over how much
government should take and
how much consumers should
get, who should give and who
should make from the savings
from low gas prices, as if weve
been assured world market
prices will continue to plummet
eternally.
We also freely make equal references and comparisons with
other countries, as if all prices
and pricing mechanisms are the
same everywhere.
Two sets of developments on
the regional and world scene
need to be considered as we
continue to discuss, debate and
argue over who should benefit
from falling oil prices.
The first is the situation in
Antigua and Barbuda, where
the Labour administration has
rejected the advice of the World
Bank on what to do with the
savings from lower fuel prices.
(See article on Page 3)
Prime
Minister
Gaston
Browne announced last week
that as of this month (February)
the price of gasoline and diesel
at the pumps in his country will
fall by 10% and 13%, respectively.

the 2011 General Elections and

not part of Council operations.
Now from my information, we
talking about $50,000 on that occasion for electioneering and no
one can account for that money.
Where did that money go to?
But there is still more readers.
the report continues, The Soufriere/Fond St Jacques Constituency Council (formerly Soufriere
Town Council) was engaged in a
project by the name, Computerisation of Educational Institutions
in the Soufriere District. According to evidence surfaced during
the exercise a supplier was paid
a total amount of $571,340.40 in
advance for supplying computer
equipment and supplies, electronic items and education supplies and accessories under the
programme. However and according to the Customs & Excise
Department the total (CIF) value
of the items that were consigned
to and cleared (duty-free) by the
Soufriere Constituency Council under the said programme
was $109,827.01, a difference of
$416,513.40. This suggests that
the supplier made a gross profit
of 380% on the transaction. Yes
readers, again we must ask Mr
Chastanet where did that money
go?
Knowing all of these facts about
Mr Chastanet, can we honestly
say that we can trust his leadership, integrity or credibility with
representation at any level?
But its also time for St Lucians
to demand prosecution against
those in the leadership of UWP
who would have been found to
have wrongfully and knowingly
mishandled funds intended for
poor people.
The public needs to make its
voices heard against the Office of
the Director of Public Prosecution
for appearing to sit on its hands
regarding the legal process. All
the criminal matters that were
highlighted in that Review of
Councils must have by now been
sent to that office. So, why does it
appear that this office is sitting on
the matter of pursuing the criminal cases against the UWP politi-

PM Brown said the World Bank

had advised that the savings (or
increase in revenue) should be
kept exclusively by the government. But despite being advised
not to pass-on the savings, he
said, his Labour administration
decided to pass-it-on.
Secondly, while we were still
trying to decide who should get
what and when from the savings,
the price of oil on the world market shot-up this week to US $58
per barrel; and the OPEC Secretary General predicted this week
too that world market prices will
rise again, to as much as US $200
per barrel.
Prime Minister and Finance
Minister Dr Kenny D. Anthony,
the architect of this nations economic and fiscal policies, has
been consistently ringing into
our ears all along that, as sure
as the sun will rise tomorrow, oil
prices will also surely rise again.
The continuing volatility of
the world market price makes
the 90-day review period here a
wiser mechanism -- and a better
option -- than a monthly review,
even though the PM has also indicated that world market if prices continue to fall, local prices
will continue to be lowered.
Whats clear in both the Antigua-Barbuda and Saint Lucia
cases is that the Labour administrations both do care for and
share with their citizens when
possible and necessary.
Thats what caring and sharing
is all about!

cians? When is that office holder

going to start leaving us with no
doubt about the impartiality the
office demands?
Unfortunately, while people
have a natural thirst for justice
after all of the above and more
have been presented to the public,
they tend to direct their demands
for speed in the legal cases to the
wrong persons. They are calling
on the prime Minister and the
government, but they should instead direct their demands to the
judicial and legal services and departments. It is the judges and the
courts who will decide on how
fast those cases move on, but not
until the DPP completes her side
of the preliminary work.
One of the real dangers is that
while the DPPs office may be
seen as taking too long and
while it cannot be rushed, the
real fact is that with two years to
go before elections (at the most),
the longer it takes and the nearer
it gets to elections, the quicker it
will be for those who have to answer their names to accuse the
government of playing politics
before elections.
However, the quest of justice
ought not to be tempered by
fear of what the accused will say
or what others will feel. Those
named in official reports as having played around with and failed
to account for monies entrusted in
their hands for poor people must
be made to face the courts without the accusers facing any fear of
what others will feel or say.
People who dipped their hands
in the peoples money must be at
least made to pay back and those
who behaved like it was their personal funds should be made to
answer in court. They can even be
given a choice to pay back or face
the courts, I dont care once they
are made to pay and the public
gets to know they admitted their
guilt and were ready to pay.
Whether in cash or by doing full
time at Bordelais, its just about
time that Saint Lucian politicians
are made to know if they do that
crime, they will also definitely do
the time!

NationWIDE

Saturday February 7, 2015

Ministry of Infrastructure and WASCO sign

MOU to reduce water works on new roads

he Ministry of Infrastructure, Port Services and

Transport on Tuesday
signed a Memorandum of Understanding with the Water and
Sewerage Company (WASCO).
The purpose of the MOU is
to foster greater collaboration
between the two entities, in the
development of Saint Lucias infrastructure.
Deputy Prime Minister and
Minister for Infrastructure, Port
Services and Transport, Hon.
Philip J. Pierre, emphasized the
importance of the MOU.
WASCOs job is to provide
water at a reasonable rate and
the Ministry of Infrastructures
job is to maintain Saint Lucias
roadways. If we collaborate and
work efficiently, then both the
provision of water and the condition of the roads will be upkept in a satisfactory manner.
So, this MOU is extremely important, Minister Pierre said.
The majority of WASCOs
pipelines run beneath the road
ways. As a result, roads are often compromised to facilitate
repairs to these lines.

The islands busy roads will be spared the setbacks of water

workers digging them up to lay or fix pipes.
WASCOs Managing Director,
Vincent Hippolyte, said collaboration with the Ministry of Infrastructure is necessary, since it is
not always possible for WASCO
to reinstate the roadways when
the road work is completed.
Over the years and up until
now, WASCO finds itself after
having carried out repair work
to its water lines and sewerage lines in a situation where
it is not always able to reinstate

the roadway. It was felt by the

ministry and ourselves that we
needed to collaborate to make
sure that we can provide a better service to the public, hence
the reason for the MOU.
Hippolyte added that WASCO
is also in the process of mapping
out its pipelines, which will enable the company to address the
issue of non-revenue water and
provide a more efficient service
to its consumers.

She also supported calls for

more research into the birth of
Empress Josephine, widely said
to have been born in clandestine conditions at Morne Paix
Bouche in Babonneau.
Dr Soomer said Saint Lucia
and Martinique already have
strong and deep ties, but the entry of Martinique into the OECS
now opens the way for Guadeloupe to also enter the OECS
grouping.
The ambassador said Martinique coming on board now
-- and Guadeloupe later -- will
help forge and deepen closer
unity and integration of the
French and English-speaking
people of the Eastern Caribbean
island chain.
She says the fact that Saint Lucian citizens are also citizens of
all other OECS member-states

opens new horizons and possibilities that even qualified Saint

Lucian citizens resident in Martinique will also be able to make
use of the new economic space
opened-up by the OECS Economic Union.
Meanwhile, Dr Soomer has also
disclosed that French Guiana
(also called Cayenne here) has
indicated to the Georgetownbased CARICOM Secretariat
that it intends to formally apply
for membership of CARICOM.
Based on the north-east shoulder of South America, French
Guiana is home to thousands
of Saint Lucians and their descendants, but observed note
that while Guadeloupe can be
expected to apply for OECS
membership, size and distance
dictate that Cayennes interest is
in CARICOM.

Saint Lucia NY Consulate releases

Independence 36 Program of Activities
The events include an NBC "Today" Show feature, a film
screening, independence gala, arts and crafts exhibition
and annual independence lecture.

n observance of Saint Lucias

36th Anniversary of Independence, the Consulate
General of Saint Lucia in New
York, in collaboration with the
New York-based Saint Lucia
House Foundation and other
community organizations, has
compiled an inspirational program of activities for Saint Lucians in the Diaspora.
This years celebrations will
open with the Independence 36
Gospel Fest on February 7 (today) at the Mount Zion Church
of God 7th Day, 203 E 37th
Street, Brooklyn. The event will
feature a host of Saint Lucian
gospel artistes and other inspirational performers.
There will be additional events
and celebrations throughout the
month of February, including

Stakeholders hosted agriculture

symposium yesterday

he Trade Export Promotion

Agency (TEPA) and the Ministry of Agriculture, Food Production, Fisheries, Co-operatives and
Rural Development hosted an Agricultural Value Chain Symposium yesterday, seeking to establish a shared
vision for sustained growth in agricultural exports by directly addressing the challenges that impede such
exports.
The main objectives were to propose a comprehensive and strategic
vision that will assist the Ministry
of Agriculture and TEPA in promoting, marketing and responding

Ambassador says French membership

can strengthen OECS island chain

ow that Martinique has

fully joined the OECS,
a call is being made for
more research into the shared
history between the two neighbouring islands and people.
The call came from Saint Lucias Ambassador to the OECS
and CARICOM, Dr June Soomer.
Speaking ahead of the formal
entry of the first French territory
into the OECS on Wednesday,
Dr Soomer said the move now
makes it more necessary to conduct the much-needed research
into the shared history between
Saint Lucia and Martinique.
Dr Soomer said shes written
much about slave women from
Martinique who successfully
criss-crossed the small channel
separating the two islands, to
evade both French and British
troops.

Page 3

IMPACS Report: Home Affairs Minister

says Government has delivered!

ome Affairs Minister Senator Victor La Corbiniere says

his government has delivered on its promise to investigate alleged police killings and the report
is now in the hands of the Chairman
of the Cabinet of Ministers.
Senator La Corbiniere, who is also
leader of government business in the
St. Lucia Senate, says the police forces
ability to investigate itself in the matters at hand was always a complicated
matter, which is why government had
to invite a regional agency to undertake the investigations.

crafts exhibition and a "Night of

Saint Lucian Culture."
The Consulate General of
Saint Lucia invites all Saint Lucians and friends to participate.

The minister confirmed that the

IMPACS report is with the government -- specifically with the Prime
Minister, who has promised to address the nation on the issue early
this month.
The contents of the IMPACS report are being looked forward to by
the Police Force, as well as the families of the alleged victims.
No date has yet been set for the
Prime Ministers address to the nation on that report, but its also being looked forward to by Saint Lucians at large, at home and abroad.

Taiwan Medical Scholarship

Briefing on February 12

he Taiwan embassy has announced that a briefing on the

2015 Taiwan Scholarship, ICDF
Scholarship and Medical Scholarship
will be held by the Embassy on Thursday, February 12th at 10:00 am, at the
Orchid Center, Union.
According to the Embassy, Applicants should deliver forms and documents to the Embassy by 15th March,
2015, as any delivery beyond that
date, or delivery without all required
documents, will not be accepted.
Applicants are informed they
should go to the Embassy for interviews on 23rd and 24th March.
The embassy warns, however, that

Only qualified applicants will receive the notice and any change of
the interview date will also be noticed by phone call.
As for the Medical Scholarship applicants, both written exam and interview will be held at the Embassy.
The written exam covers topics
on English, Chemistry and Biology,
the date is tentatively scheduled on
23rd April, 2015.
The interview will be via skype
with the professor of Taiwan and
the date is provisionally scheduled
28th and 29th April, 2015.
The qualified applicant will receive the notice by phone call.

Ban roaming rates, says OECS chief

he head of the St. Lucia-based

OECS Commission is calling
for St. Lucia and other OECS
governments to ban cell phone
roaming payments between OECS
member-states.
The call is coming from Dr Didacus Jules, who says it just isnt right
for OECS nationals to have to pay
additional charges for phone calls
between the member-states of the
regional grouping.
Dr Jules says the governments
would be doing consumers well if
they prevented the service providers from charging more for calls be-

tween citizens of the member-states

of the OECS.
In that sense, Dr Jules is calling for
a complete ban on all roaming rates
between the OECS member-states. He
also called for a system whereby if a
customer switches service providers,
he or she can keep the original number.
The Director General rejected
calls by the service providers for
government to tax the likes of
Skype, Vyber and other externallygenerated internet-based communications services available in the
Caribbean that offer the world free
calls and face-to-face exchanges.

Antigua and Barbuda shares higher

fuel price savings with consumers,
despite World Banks contrary advice!

the Annual Independence Lecture, an Independence Ecumenical Service, an NBC "Today"

Show feature, a film screening,
independence gala, arts and

to export opportunities for the agricultural sector.

The results of this activity will
benefit all priority markets as identified by TEPA.
The event was held under the
theme Developing a shared vision
towards increasing agricultural exports, and began with an opening
ceremony addressed by the Ministers for Agriculture and for Commerce.
The symposium will be held at
the Golden Palm Events Centre
Rodney Bay (A.F. Valmont Building
from 8:30 a.m., to p.m

rime Minister Gaston

Browne earlier this week
announced that as of next
month, the price of gasoline and
diesel at the pump will fall by 10
and 13 per cent respectively.
Browne had pledged in his
Budget Speech last week that the
prices would fall (though he did
not specify by how much) in line
with global oil prices which have
plummeted about 60 per cent
since last July.
Last week Friday, as he wrapped
up the Budget Debate in Parliament he revealed specifics.
From February 2, gas prices will
be reduced from $14.99 to $13.50
per gallon. Diesel will also fall by
$2.00 to $13.20 per gallon.

Browne told the Parliament

that the changes were coming on
February 2, because February 1
is a Sunday.
Now the advice that we have
had from the World Bank is
that these savings, or increase
in revenue from the lowering of
oil prices, should be kept exclusively by the government, the
prime minister said.
I want to make it abundantly
clear that the World Bank has
advised us not to pass on these
savings.
However we are a very caring
government and what we have
decided to do is to share it with
the people of Antigua and Barbuda.

NationWIDE

Page 4

Martinique is first French territory to join OECS

he history of the OECS has

taken a turn with the French
territory of Martinique signing on as an associate member-increasing the nine-member grouping
to 10.
The historic signing of Martinique
as an associate member of the OECS
took place at the Hotel La Bateliere
in Fort-de-France, Martinique, during the opening ceremony of the
60th meeting of the OECS Authority.
The agenda for the meeting included an update on the implementation of the OECS Economic Union,
the Free Circulation of Goods and
issues on sports and healthy lifestyles.
Martiniques membership of the
OECS follows a period of negotiations
after the Regional Council of Martinique submitted a formal application for associate membership in the
OECS with the full support/endorsement of the French Government.
In November of 2013, Dr. Jules addressed the Regional Assembly in
Martinique after which the Assembly unanimously voted in favour
of Martiniques membership of the
OECS.
Since then, the OECS Commission has been treating Martinique
effectively as an associate member

Saturday February 7, 2015

Prime Minister welcomes

Martinique into OECS

and the French Region has already

been attending regional meetings
on matters such as health.
The OECS Director General describes the event as a very historical
moment.
While there are limitations because of its status in relation to
France, the involvement of Martinique in the OECS opens up great
potential and certainly widens the
demographics from an economic
perspective," he said.
"We have seen the relationship
grow between Martinique and Saint
Lucia and between Guadeloupe and
Dominica for example. What this
signing does, is widen [these rela-

tionships] to the whole OECS.

The use of Martinique as a tertiary health facility centre for the OECS
is something under discussion so
there are a lot of opportunities.
"We are very concerned about not
just ensuring growth in the economies of the OECS but growth with
equity," he added.
"Its not enough to just grow the
economy if you are growing it and
only the existing players benefit, it
has to be the type of growth that
leads to a widening of opportunity
for smaller persons, a trickle-down
effect; a spread of the benefits and
community tourism we think will
do particularly well with the en-

rime Minister Hon. Dr.

Kenny D. Anthony has welcomed Martinique to the
OECS and says there are mutual
benefits to be derived from this
momentous endeavor.
He said, I am exceedingly
pleased that Martinique will now
be an associate member of the
OECS
Saint Lucia welcomes Martinique with open arms, as we have
had a history of close relations
with Martinique, the Prime Minister said.
Last year, an agreement was
signed between our two islands
to facilitate the exchange of opportunities in tourism, renewable
energy, trade, health and other areas. Martinique is also viewed as a
gateway to Europe and so presents
opportunities for investment.
He added, Membership in the

OECS will serve to strengthen our

bilateral relationship and provide
an avenue for greater cooperation
on the regional level.

gagement of Martinique and Guadeloupe.

So, we are expecting that this
will yield great benefits in terms of
weekend travel, bed and breakfast

arrangements, community sporting

activities, and so on.
The 60th OECS Authority was also
updated on the Work Program for
the OECS Commission.

Prime Minister
Dr Kenny D. Anthony

Saint Lucia attended ICAO High Level Safety Conference

he International Civil
Aviation
Organization
(ICAO) invited Saint Lucia to participate in the second
High Level Safety Conference
(HLSC2015) held this week at
the ICAO Headquarters in Montral, Canada.
Hon. Alva Romanus Baptiste,
Minister for External Affairs,
International Trade and Civil
Aviation led the Saint Lucia
delegation to the talks, which
started Monday and ended yesterday (February 2-6).

The participation of strategic

decision-makers provided the
international civil aviation community the opportunity to build
consensus, obtain commitments, and formulated recommendations deemed necessary
for the effective and efficient
progress of key aviation safety
activities.
Overall, the conference included various topics covering
three major themes: a review
of the current situation; the
future approach to manage

aviation safety; and facilitating

increased regional cooperation. In particular, participants
will also be invited to discuss
emerging safety issues including the global tracking of aircrafts, and risks to civil aviation
arising from conflict zones.
Given the tragic and unusual
events that occurred on March 8
and July 17, 2014, which resulted
in the loss of the passengers and
crew aboard Malaysia Airlines
MH370 and MH17, the topic
Emerging Safety Issues also

formed part of the program, during which the conference will

be invited to discuss and make
recommendations on means to
address the issues that may arise
related to these events.
Saint Lucias economy is
heavily dependent on tourism
which itself derives value from
civil aviation and air transport.
Therefore, Saint Lucias participation was considered critical at
this time, as the island endeavor
to boost arrival figures and expand the tourism market.

Hon. Alva Baptiste

RSLPF registers zero homicides for January 2015

he Royal Saint Lucia

Police Force, RSLPF,
has declared the first
month of the year January
2015, as having registered
zero homicides. Commissioner of Police Mr. Vernon
Francois describes this feat as
a small victory for the entire
island and credits the victory
to the citizenry.
In contrast, the year 2014

registered six homicides in the

month of January.
Mr. Francois says this achievement proves to all that it is
possible for citizens to rally
together with the police and
other partners in the society,
to achieve a peaceful and law
abiding nation. Obviously we
are very happy to register zero
homicides last month. This is in
keeping with declining trends

Police seize 113,700

Euros from three
foreign nationals at
Rodney Bay

n Friday January 30,

a combined team
of officers from
the Royal St Lucia Police
Force, conducted a search
operation at Admiral Quay,
a villa complex situated at
Rodney Bay, Gros-Islet.
During the search of an
apartment, a small quantity of cannabis and a bag
containing a significant
amount of EUROs in various denominations were
recovered.
At the time of the
search, the apartment was

occupied by three men, a

Venezuelan, a Haitian and
a national of the Dominican Republic. The cash
was subsequently counted
in the presence of the three
men and their attorney, totaling 113, 700 EUROs.
All three men were arrested on suspicion of
possession of controlled
drugs and unlawful possession of cash. The matter has been referred to
the Financial Intelligence
Authority for further investigations.

as we have reported earlier. I

have always emphasized that
losing one life is one too many.
Generally we are about working
to achieve zero violence.
As officers of the law we have
done some work to help push
back against crime and to sensitize the public that killings and
hurting each other to settle conflict is not the way to go.
In this vein, we recognize

other agencies, the Church, the

Social Transformation officers
and other youth and community workers and importantly
the Education system who partner with us, and strengthen this
message. Mr. Franois says
the Police continues to push
back against gang violence and
the scourge of drug trafficking
which are often linked to incidents of homicides.

Police Commissioner resumes

Town Hall Meetings

n Wednesday, February 11, the south

western community
of Choiseul will kick off the
Meet the Commissioner series of Town Hall Meetings
for 2015.
Earlier this year Commissioner of Police Mr. Vernon
Francois, signaled that there
will be a continuation of Community Policing initiatives
and citizens engagement this
year, as the Police continues
to build on the successes already met in various communities around the island.
This initiative he noted
has been very well received,
even to the point of becoming a popular and much anticipated event.
Over the course of last we
held five Town Hall meetings and we registered very
good attendance at these
meetings.

It is an opportunity for
the community members
to meet the Commissioner
and other senior level officers, but most importantly,
it is an open forum for us to
discuss with them whatever
concerns they may have as
regards social issues and any
social controls that the police
may be able to either enforce
or implement, or just to have
their input on policing in
general.
Choisuel is reputed to be
among Saint Lucias most
creative, industrious and law
abiding communities.
The Town Hall Meeting
is slated for 5 p.m at the La
Fargue community Centre.
The Choiseul station is the
main organizer of this event.
The Royal Saint Lucia Police
Band will also join in the visit and grace the community
with a musical treat.

If its for us to continue to

challenge ourselves to cherish
the value of life. I would like
to particularly challenge our
young men to turn away from
acts of violence and to try to
direct their energies positively. The last time that the
records of the RSLPF reflected
nil for January homicides on
an island wide level was in the
year 2000, exactly 15 years ago.

Royal Navy trained

local police in
marine tactics

articipants
from
Barbados,
RSS
countries and independent Commonwealth
Caribbean countries came
together at the Barbados
Coast Guard to attend a
maritime tactical planning course, delivered by
a visiting training team
of experts from the Royal
Navy (RN).

Certificates of completion
were handed out by Commander Aquinas Clarke,
Commanding Officer of the
Barbados Coast Guard, and
Lt Commander Howard
Clark, leader of the visiting RN Maritime Training
Team at a closing ceremony
at HMBS Pelican.

The participants studied a

number of areas, including
the following topics:
National Strategy for
Maritime Security, International Maritime Law, Rules
of Engagement, Command
and Control, Maritime Security Operations and Logistics.
Lt Commander Clark
commended all the students stating, Not only
have you improved your
technical skill sets, but you
have learnt the all important skill of working closely
with your colleagues from
other CARICOM countries.
This will have a highly beneficial effect on future security cooperation throughout the region.

Saturday February 7, 2015

NationWIDE

CUSO sponsored 2015 National

Volunteerism Symposium in Dominica

USO International is an
international development organization that
seeks to reduce poverty and inequality through the efforts of
skilled volunteers.
To this end, this Canadianbased organization hosted a
Volunteerism Symposium in
Dominica from February 4-5,
2015.
Mr. Cyril Saltibus, National
Volunteer Coordinator was one

of the presenters at this forum.

Also in attendance were two
of Saint Lucias youth volunteers, Ms. Anya Edwin, Secretary of the National Volunteer
Coordinating Office and Mr.
Timothy Ferdinand, Chairman of the Caribbean Regional
Youth Council.
The National Volunteer Coordinating Office applauds
CUSO Internationals acknowledgement of the need to re-

spond and support the needs

of their Caribbean partners,
particularly as it relates to fostering positive youth development and for financing this
symposium.
This symposium gave partners an opportunity to learn
best practices from already
established national volunteer
platforms such as Saint Lucias
and to promote national volunteerism across the region.

Consultancy commences
for UHC financing

Xyster Edmund, Chief Health Planner with Ministry of Health,

says a health financing initiative has always been part of the
Ministry's Strategic Plan for Health across the island.

he Ministry of Health,
Wellness, Human Services and Gender Relations
has engaged the services of two
consultants from the European
Union Project to research options for financing of the health
care system into the future, to
build a sustainable health care
system for St. Lucia.
Xyster Edmund, Chief Health
Planner with Ministry of
Health, noted that a health financing initiative has always
been part of the Ministrys
Strategic Plan for Health.
She said Universal Health
Coverage, what we refer to it
as, really means the manner
in which the government of St.
Lucia will protect health risks
for its population to a certain
extent.
The Chief Health Planner noted that more importantly Universal Health Coverage is tied
to the whole issue which the
Ministry believes is necessary
in health care that of fairness,
a coming together to provide
health coverage for all as well
as effective and efficient use of
the investments in health.
Universal Heath Care is and
integrated approach and there
are about seven components to
the establishment of Universal
health care...
It includes the governance
strategies - the actual services the financing, the quality management system, etc and there
will be a monitoring and evaluation framework that monitors how well are the services
being provided.
There is a health information
system that we are also rolling
out that will look at how we collect the data to ensure that we
understand what is happening
and that we can intervene in
areas that need strengthening
and most importantly there is

the infrastructure component

because delivering care in a
suitable environment is also
important. Edmunds stated.
The consultants engaged by
the Ministry of Health include
an Actuarial Scientist and
Health Policy Consultant for
Universal Health coverage.
Edmunds stated that the
Ministry of Health Has already
defined the process, as well as
the essential package of services in draft form including the
costing of that package.
The real work of the Actuarial Scientist is to identify the
capacity of the economy to finance the initiative of Universal Health Care and to determine to the government of St.
Lucia the best strategies moving forward in financing this
care...
Universal
Health
Care
needs clear policy direction
and appropriate legislation so
the second consultant will be
working with us on that second component.
John Armstrong is the Consultant Actuarial Scientist to
the Ministry of Health from
European Union Project.
He pointed to his experience
of working with other countries in the Caribbean area to
look at the actuarial analysis
of health care systems and will
be doing the same for St. Lucia within the next six to nine
months.
Armstrong explained the
processes which will form part
of his analysis. The key aspect
is obviously the demographic
profile of the country.
What is the size of the country, what is the make up in
terms of age profile, male tofemale split and where people
live, the socio-economic wealth
of the country and issues such
as that...

:The second will be what

are the expectations and the
package of benefits which will
be provided in the health care
system and to look at the cost
and provision of that package.
The consultant noted that
on completion of the consultancy he envisages that they
will then be able to present a
number of policy options for
consideration to the Ministry
of Health.
Those policy options will
hopefully look into the next
five to ten years in terms of the
profile of the population and
what the cost of provision will
be within the next five to ten
years.
He said, A key part is obviously to understand what are
the expectations of the population in terms of health care,
what are the plans of government and the plans of the ministry and to really factor them

Page 5

Physical Development Ministry

to boost productivity

he Ministry of Physical
Development, Housing,
and Urban Renewal has
undertaken a review of its operations with the intent to enhance productivity, boost employee morale and improve the
services provided to the public
and the ministrys stakeholders.
Permanent Secretary Joanna
Raynold-Arthurton said the
plan focused on several key outcomes.
We hope that the new approach will result in improvements in our attitudes to our
work, service delivery, and our
approach to our clients, she
said. We hope it instils a greater commitment to excellence,
leaving mediocrity behind; a
greater commitment and effort
to integration of our work programs and our procedures, and

into our analysis.

The Chief Health Planner
noted that in formulating the
Strategic Plan of the Health
Sector meeting were held in every community and the common thread among the communities was that they really
do need a safety net for health
care.
They needed to know that
then their children or family
members are sick that they will
not be out of pocket and unable
to act with respect to a health
issue that they would be experiencing. She said,
The government has listen
to the voice of the people and
the Universal Health Coverage
initiate really represents our
response to what the people
of St. Lucia really said they
needed.

the establishment of a strong,

clear and appropriate legal platform which is the basis of all
our operations.
The plan will also implement
measures that will contribute to
staff morale and mobilisation.
Minister for Physical Development, Housing and Urban
Renewal Stanley Felix said the
strategic framework is only the
first phase of revitalisation.
In this approach towards
change and improvement, we
must individually examine our
attitudes towards our personal
development, our approach to
service, and our regard towards
the institution to which we currently are assigned, he said.
The ministry unveiled its plan
last Thursday, during a ceremony at the Public Service Training Institute in Union

They never said that they

didnt what to pay... they wanted to know what they are paying for, the wanted to know the
quality was improved and they
wanted to ensure that when
they need the care it would be
available to them.
Ms. Edmunds places on record the ministrys appreciation to European Development
(EDF) under the 10th EDF programme.
She says funds have been
made available for strengthening a wide range of activities
in the ministry most notably
primary health care and under this fund the Ministry of
Health has the opportunity to
finance the Universal Health
Care activities which include
the work of the Actuarial Scientist and the Policy Adviser.

Theme:

2015 NATIONAL INDEPENDENCE ACTIVITIES

DATE

EVENT

VENUE

Feb.
Feb.
Feb.
Feb.

Schools Island wide

Island wide
National Tennis Centre

Feb. 13
Feb. 20

School Celebrations
Community Celebrations
Kia Independence Tennis Tournament
Independence Invitational
Athletic Championship
National Sports Awards
Ecumenical Service/Day of Prayer

Feb. 20
Feb. 20
Feb. 21
Feb. 21 23
Feb. 21
Feb. 21
Feb. 21
Feb. 21
Feb. 21
Feb. 22
Feb. 22
Feb. 22
Feb. 22
Feb. 22
Feb. 23
Feb. 24

National Flag Day

Launch of Leaders of Iyanola
Miss Independence 2015
Bike Festival 2015
Independence Challenge
Seafood and Meat Festival
Cocktail Reception
Youth Concert
Best of Saint Lucia Concert
Military Parade
National Celebratory Rally
Independence Food Fair
Dance Festival
SLAM Concert
Independence Classic
Independence Lecture

10-20
10-28
15 23
16 17

Feb 26
Feb. 28
Mar. 1
Mar. 7

Presenter:

Topic:
National Youth Council
Independence Debate
SANKOFA III
Investiture Ceremony
National Business Awards

Sandals Grande
Minor Basilica of the
Immaculate Conception
Constitution Park
National Television Network
Cultural Centre
Around the Island
Around the Island
Vieux-Fort Promenade
Prime Ministers Official Residence
Laborie
TBA
Sab Playing field, Vigie
Phillip Marcellin Grounds, V/Fort
Phillip Marcellin Grounds, V/Fort
Phillip Marcellin Grounds, V/Fort
Phillip Marcellin Grounds, V/Fort
Cycling and Athletics
TBA

TIME

8:00 p.m.
10:00 a.m.
TBA
8:00 p.m.
6:00 p.m.
3:00 p.m.
7:00 p.m.
TBA
9:00 p.m.
9:00 a.m.
3.00 p.m.
11:00 a.m.

TBA

House of Parliament
Government House

Cultural Development Foundation

National Arts Festival

Laborie Community Festival - February 13, 2015
Launch of National Arts Exhibition Festival Week - February 19, 2015

3:00 p.m.
7.00 p.m.

NationWIDE

Page 6

Saturday February 7, 2015

Prime Minister lobbies for Climate

Finance for CARICOM

rime Minister Dr. Kenny

D. Anthony and Energy
Minister Hon. Dr. James
Fletcher recently joined other
Caribbean Heads of Government at the Caribbean Energy
Security Summit, in Washington, D.C.
Speaking at a breakfast meeting on behalf of CARICOM, Dr.
Anthony highlighted the issues
that are most important to Caribbean Small Island Developing States in relation to climate
change adaptation.

He spoke of Saint Lucias experiences, Dr. Fletcher related,

so for example, he explained
that we have been in a constant
cycle of repair and recovery.
He highlighted the fact
that in 2010 we had the worst
drought that weve had in a long
time, followed by hurricane Tomas in that same year; and that
we had not fully recovered from
hurricane Tomas when we had
the Christmas Eve Trough to
deal with in 2013.
He added that Dr. Anthony

lobbied for greater financial

support for Saint Lucia and other CARICOM member states to
deal with climate change.
During the afternoon session,
Dr. Fletcher participated in a
panel discussion on Comprehensive Approaches to Energy
Transformation.
The purpose of the second
phase of the meeting was to
discuss the Caribbean Energy
Security Initiative.
The second part of the meeting
was with Vice President Joe Biden.

Lack of funding a major issue in

Climate Change negotiations

he Government of Saint
Lucia. in collaboration
with the Organization of
Eastern Caribbean States (OECS)
Commission, last week hosted
two meetings in Saint Lucia to
discuss Climate Change.
The discussions will lead to
the signing of a new international climate change agreement at the United Nations
Framework Convention on Climate Change (UNFCCC), to be
held in December.
Minister for Sustainable Development, Energy, Science and
Technology, Senator Dr. James
Fletcher, said funding for climate change adaptation efforts
continues to be a major issue in
climate change negotiations.
For us, the main issue is really the negotiations related to
climate finance and not being
able to get the level of climate
finance that has been pledged,
he explained.
There is a pledge of one hundred billion US dollars worth of
climate finance by the year 2020
and one hundred billion dollars
every year thereafter, and were
very far short of this.
The last pledging meeting for
the Green Climate Fund went
just past ten billion dollars. Now
granted, the Green Climate
Fund is not the only source of fi-

nancing for climate finance, but

were still very far short of one
hundred billion dollars.
So we want to see a pathway
that will get us to that one hundred billion dollar mark, because it is very important to us.
According to Dr. Fletcher,
there is still much to be done
in the area of climate change
adaptation. Investments in key
sectors, he said, are necessary to
build resilience.
We have to make sure that
we make investments in sectors
like tourism, infrastructure,
and health, that would give us
some resilience and the ability

to withstand some of the impacts of climate change; and in

the areas where we cant adapt,
we need to ensure that we are
able to deal with irreversible
loss and damage, like our coral
reefs that are disappearing because of increased sea temperatures and ocean acidification.
Dr. Fletcher said mitigation
is another key component of
climate change adaptation. Scientific data shows that despite
the pledges made by the United
States, China and the European
Union last year, we are still very
far from reducing global temperatures, he said.

The OECS Director General

made several pertinent
points while addressing the
CARICOM Climate Change
negotiators here last week.

Caribbean Ministers with responsibilities for the environment have so readily come
together to prepare for the 2015
round of climate change negotiations. He also noted the presence of the French Ambassador.
We are also very thankful to
our partners and we are happy
that Ambassador de LA MOUSSAYE is here with us today, because the government of France
has extended a special hand of
support to the OECS countries
and CARICOM in helping to prepare for the Paris negotiations.
Climate change negotiations
will take place at the 21st Conference of the Parties of the
United Nations Framework
Convention on Climate Change
later this year, in Paris.
The adverse effects of Climate
Change on Small Island Developing States, Dr. Jules said, is a
unifying force for the region.

The St. Lucia Prime Minister

made the case for CARICOM
in Washington.

Energy Minister urges

Greenhouse Gas reduction

mall Island Developing

States like Saint Lucia
need to move away from
the use of fossil fuels in an
effort to reduce emissions of
greenhouse gases, Saint Lucias Energy Minister, Senator Dr. James Fletcher said
recently.
According to Dr. Fletcher, scientific data has demonstrated
that we are still very far away
from limiting global temperatures to two degrees Celsius or
1.5 degrees Celsius above pre-

OECS Director General lauds

collaboration on Climate Change
irector General of the
OECS, Dr. Didicus Jules,
has praised the participatory approach to environmental issues. He did so at the
Ministerial segment of the climate change negotiation meeting held last week.
According to Dr. Jules, the regions interests can best be protected if a unified position is
presented.
A united front provides us
with an umbrella of common
protection, but we also have to
be pragmatic in shaping this,
he said.
Common and harmonized
positions do not necessarily
mean absolute uniformity. They
require that we also find subtle
ways of accommodating differences and nuancing these
differences to enrich common
posture.
Dr. Jules expressed pride that

We discussed the Caribbean Energy Security Initiative and ways

in which we could get greater energy security for the Caribbean.
We all spoke to the fact that
we are doing a lot of work in the
renewable energytrying to
transition our economies away
from the dependence on fossil
fuels to renewable energy.
In March, Government leaders
will, again, convene at another
Energy and Climate Partnership of the Americas meeting in
Mexico.

industrial levels.
The data [revealed in a
World Bank report last year]
suggests that with the level of
emissions we have right now
and even with the pledges that
have been made, we are probably on track with almost a four
degree Celsius warming.
However, Dr. Fletcher said
levels of four degrees Celsius
will have a devastating effect
on the Caribbean, which can
cause many of our eco systems
to be threatened.

Ministry of Sustainable
Development and
Forestry observed World
Wetlands Day 2015

aint Lucia joined the rest of

the World in commemorating World Wetland day on
February 2nd.
The theme for world wetlands
day 2015 was Wetlands for Our
Future. This theme was designed to emphasize the importance of wetlands for:
Purifying and replenishing
the worlds precious fresh
water resources,
Providing fish nursery sites
Providing protection for our
vulnerable coastlines,
Performing as a natural
sponge against floods and
droughts,
The storage of Carbon,
Sustaining a biodiversity rich
ecosystem
According to the RAMSAR
convention
on wetlands, to
which St. Lucia is signatory, 64%
of the worlds wetlands have
disappeared and the remaining
36% are in jeopardy of succumbing to the same fate.
With the world now focused
on Climate Change, our wetlands should be foremost in our
minds as a means of mitigating
its impact.
Wetlands, especially mangroves, bind the shoreline together, which prevents erosion,
and slows storm surges thereby
increasing our resilience to Climate Change.
In Saint Lucia, our wetlands
and mangroves are also under
threat with inter alia the increase in the demand for coastal
lands for development.

The value of our wetlands as a

natural protector of coastal erosion and a nursery site for fish
which sustains our fishing industry falls a distant second to
the perceived value of allowing
development which decimates
these very fragile ecosystems.
Deforestation and the indiscriminate disposal of garbage
within the wetlands also threaten the health of the wetlands.
Moreover, garbage is a problem in approximately 90% of our
wetlands, this problem is further
compounded because this garbage comprises mainly plastic.
Another worrying issue is the
Increasing deforestation in biodiversity rich wetlands such
as Grand Anse and Mankote
which contain more than 100
species of flora and 30 species of
fauna that are mainly birds.
These ecosystems need our
intervention if they are going
to survive. Small personal decisions would go a long way in
getting our wetlands back to a
condition that would allow all
of us to reap the benefits of its
natural protective functions.
Some of the measures that we
can personally commit to are
educating ourselves and others
on the benefits that wetlands
provide and avoid harmful
practices such as garbage disposal in the wetlands.
Remember: collective action
provides collective rewards.
(For further information contact Mrs. Rebecca Rock at 4685656)

NationWIDE
Touring St. Lucia with its Top Chef

Page 7

Saturday February 7, 2015

By Sylvie Bigar - The Washington Post

Hey, you look like Nina Compton! My traveling companion and
I had just set foot in the flamboyant covered market of Castries, the
capital of St. Lucia, and instantly,
shrieks, followed by winks and
wide smiles erupted around us.
Arent you Nina?
That is not merely because she
is the daughter of the late Sir John
Compton, Father of the Nation
who, in 1979, spearheaded the
independence of the island and
served as its first prime minister.
Its because in 2013, Nina Compton
was invited to compete on Bravos
Top Chef: New Orleans.
It was life-changing, she said.
When the show aired, Nina,
then 35, was chef de cuisine at
Scott Conants lauded Scarpetta in
South Beach. Using the impressive
technique she learned while working in 2000 for iconic French chef
Daniel Boulud in New York to cook
special dishes using the Caribbean
ingredients and flavors of her past,
Nina seemed poised to win the
finale. An upset left her the runner-up, but she was awarded the
shows fan favorite designation
and became an overnight celebrity,
especially on St. Lucia.
The entire island was rooting for
her, said Taribba do Nascimento,
a local handbag designer. It was
all over the news and people went
crazy. Her food was unapologetically St. Lucian.
She may not have won Top
Chef, but that December day at the
market, while Nina, a slender silhouette in denim shorts and prim
white shirt, inspected the produce,
I felt I was walking through town
with Kate Middleton.
Green figs, anyone? she asks
the stand mamas hovering around
her.
Figs? I wondered to myself.
This isnt Tuscany!
But I had a lot to learn about St.
Lucian cuisine. A few months earlier, hearing that Nina and I would
be on the island at the same time
she researching an upcoming
cookbook (after Top Chef, the
government named Nina the islands culinary ambassador),
and I attending a wedding I
asked whether she would take me
on a gastronomic tour. I had eaten
my way through jerk chicken and
stuffed crabs aplenty in the Carib-

bean, but I was intrigued by St.

Lucias turbulent history and eager
to seek its culinary legacy in local
kitchens.
Before the British finally took
possession of the island, in 1814,
the flag went back and forth between England and France 14
times in 150 years. Today, most of
the islands population is of African descent, with a significant
East Indian contingent descending
from workers brought in to save
the sugar industry toward the end
of the 19th century.
Back at the market, Nina explains: We call unripe bananas
green figs. And salt fish and green
figs is our national dish.
Salt and unripe didnt exactly conjure gastronomic pleasure,
but at Sylvias Place, a cluttered
blue-and-yellow kitchen Sylvia
Jn Baptiste has run for the past 16
years in the back alley of the market, delicious cod flakes sprinkled
with garlic and peppers balance
the sweet, smooth banana logs
perfectly.
I was born on Barbados, where
nothing grows, Jn Baptiste says.
Here, everything is local. She
gets to her kitchen at 4 a.m. except
on Fridays and Saturdays, when
she opens at 1 a.m. so revelers can
restore themselves with her bouillon, a pigtail broth rich with lentils,
spinach, green plantain and potatoes or her flying-fish fry, as fresh
as it gets, straight from the fishermens stall around the corner.
A brief nod from Nina to the coconut man a few steps away, one
decisive machete strike, and off
comes the greenish top, revealing
flesh as white as a cotton cloud.
In goes the straw, and I melt in refreshing coconut water paradise.
Soon its lunchtime, and we step
out into the sun. Downtown Castries, cradling its bustling harbor,
teems with local office workers in
shirt and ties and dazzled tourists trickling from colossal cruise
ships. But we leave the town behind and drive a few miles to the
busy intersection where a sheetmetal roof encircles two towering
almond trees that watch over the
eatery known as the Hardest Hard.
Plastic chairs and rickety tables
make up this landmark where Evelyn and Julian Lagon cook up some
of the best food on the island.

People also call us Under the

almond trees, said Evelyn Lagon,
the compact, spirited owner, as she
scurries her smile around. Spiny
lobsters stuffed with dasheen,
a root vegetable similar to taro;
braised conch with onions, peppers and garlic; and my personal
favorite, stuffed trunkfish. The
flesh is meaty and almost candied
with tangy creole sauce redolent of
lime and chives.
Later that night, Nina takes me
to Laurels in Bois dOrange. I
dont like rules, man, said chefowner Laurel Butt, straddling a
chair in her chef whites and yellow pirate head scarf. And she certainly makes her own: The fritters
are made with breadfruit; curry
chicken could have been prepared
in Mumbai; and bread rolls (tt
pain in creole) are baked and sold
throughout the day.
Early the next morning, we drive
to Prudees House of Roti, by the
side of the road in Gros Islet. Do
you believe in God? asks owner
Prudentia Raymond, her eyes sparkling at the sight of Nina wolfing
down a plump chicken roti. I had
a vision for this place.
Nina says that the roti, a stuffed
flatbread with chicken or fish originally from India, has become a
St. Lucian staple. We eat French
boudin, we stuff our local fish with
root vegetables from Africa, and
we jazz up our lives with Indian
spices.
After the roti, I cant resist Raymonds fragrant cocoa tea, the
St. Lucian version of hot chocolate
made with local cocoa, nutmeg,
cinnamon, bay leaf and lime peel.
My recipe was passed down from
Grandma, says Raymond, smiling.
On Friday night, while Nina visits family, I head down to the Jump
Up in Gros Islet, the weekly street
party that draws locals and foreign
beatniks for an all-night dance
marathon under the stars. But first
I eat at nearby Flavours of the Grill,
the pastel restaurant where chefowner ONell Daly cooks dreamy
christophine (chayote squash) gratin and moist banana bread I wash
down with local Piton beer. The
line snakes around the corner. Id
rather only feed 20 people at a time
and make them happy, Daly says.
The next day, Nina and I leave the

Nina Compton in St. Lucia. (Sylvia Bigar)

busy and nicely groomed resorts of
the north and happily head south
for the two-hour drive toward Soufriere, the former French-colonial
capital, and the rain forest. Soon, I
feel weve crossed onto a different
island. The winding road takes us
along dark volcanic beaches where
the clear water reflects the emerald green of the trees, and then,
further up, ripples of hills dotted
with banana plantations. Another
bend and suddenly the two Pitons,
forest-covered lava spires, emerge
more than 2,300 breathtaking feet
high from the sea. When we finally
pull into Fond Doux Plantation, it
seems a magical curtain of foliage
has lifted just enough to allow us
in.
The French estate-turned-resort,
still a working plantation, is the
brainchild of Eroline and Lyton
Lamontagne, who cultivate cinnamon, tamarind, mangoes, dasheen,

grapefruit, guava and most of what

is served at their table.
On St. Lucia, the spices and flavors make me feel Im home, said
Riya Sengupta, a guest who was
born in India.
Frolicking in the kitchen, Nina
shows the staff her own take on
green figs and salt fish. In just a
few minutes, she rolls plantain
dough and presses it into gnocchi
she pairs with stewed cod sprinkled with chives. I watch her mix
local tradition with experience and
a dose of inspiration as she invents
her own delicious dish.
In the evening, as the sun disappears behind the tree canopy, cueing a chorus of birdsong, we dine
with new friends in the cool forest
breeze. On my plate, I taste Africa,
India and traces of French creole
specialties, all with a British accent.
In fact, I taste St. Lucia. Think Ill
have seconds.

Two Saint Lucia properties named among Top 10 Caribbean Hotels for 2015

nce again, U.S. News has

ranked the best hotels in the
Caribbean using a comprehensive methodology that aggregates the opinions of travel experts
and guests. Some 288 hotels in the
region were evaluated to identify
the top hotels and resorts, with
review-based websites, guidebooks
and magazines analysed to compile
a list of properties that consistently
receive approval from critics and
travellers.
Each hotel on the resulting list of
the top 10 properties in the Caribbean for 2015 is said to stand out from
its peers thanks to its memorable
ambiance, upscale amenities and
exemplary service.
Heres what U.S. News had to say
about Saint Lucias two hotels and
the top winner from the Dominican
Republic:
# 10 Jade Mountain, Soufrire,
St Lucia - Jade Mountain may have
slipped from the No. 9 position it
held in 2014 (to No. 9 this year), but
this St Lucia standout remains a
favourite among critics and guests,
winning accolades such as the Cond Nast Readers Choice Award and
coveted AAA Five Diamond Award.
Lauded for their innovative design,
Jade Mountains sanctuaries boast
an open wall (think a patio without
the door), offering an unparalleled
view of the Piton Mountains. The
hotel is not directly located on the
beach (reserve a room at the resorts sister property, Anse Chastanet, if you want to be closer to the

shoreline), but guests dont seem to

mind. Visitors cite Jade Mountains
unbeatable views, attentive service
and ample wellness amenities (like
the Kai en Ciel spa and private yoga
sessions) as reasons for a repeat
visit.
#9 East Winds Inn, Gros Islet, St
Lucia - Giving Jade Mountain a run
for its money, East Winds Inn traded in the silver badge it earned last
year for gold in 2015. Claiming the
title of Best Hotel in St. Lucia, East
Winds Inn appeals to travelers looking for a boutique hotel experience.
Thanks to its limited capacity (just

30 rooms sprawled across 12 acres),

previous guests say the hotel staff
provides personalized service not
often seen at larger resorts. Aside
from the staffs attention to detail,
travelers also praise the resorts
eatery, the Flamboyant Restaurant.
Reviewers compliment the fresh,
local cuisine and variety of dishes
a factor many visitors consider
paramount if staying in St. Lucia for
more than a few days.
#1 Eden Roc at Cap Cana, Punta Cana, Dominican Republic
- Climbing up the ranks from No.
18 in 2014, Eden Roc at Cap Cana

managed to usurp Tortuga Bay (a

two-time winner) to capture this
years No. 1 spot. So what makes
this Relais & Chteaux outpost
so special? To start, every suite
boasts a private pool, gazebo and
personal golf cart, not to mention
an exterior rain shower. But if that
doesnt pique your interest, perhaps Eden Rocs location will: The
resort is situated in Punta Canas
exclusive Cap Cana community on
the eastern edge of the Dominican
Republic. Cap Cana sits on 30,000

acres and is home to beaches,

cliffs and forests, in addition to
three Jack Nicklaus-designed golf
courses and a marina. Plus, Eden
Roc guests are granted access to
the members-only Caletn Beach
Club, which boasts a pool, bar and
restaurant within a palm-fringed
cove. Were not the only ones
whove taken notice of Eden Rocs
ample offerings: The hotel is a hit
with guests who say its AAA Four
Diamond and Travel + Leisure It
List awards are well-deserved.

SLTB met small

properties

he Saint Lucia Tourist

Board (SLTB) teamed up
with the Ministry of Tourism and the SLHTA is hosting a
Presentation to the Small Properties located in the north of the
island, which focused on the rebranding of the sector.
The session was held at the
Bay Gardens Inn on Wednesday, with presentations by the
Ministry of Tourism on the
Standards guiding the industry,

The stunning view from Jade Mountain, Soufriere saint Lucia.

followed by the SLTB team on

Marketing.
The final presentation was
delivered by the Executive Vice
President of the SLHTA on the
benefits of becoming a member
of the Association.
Another session was also held
in the south of the island for
the hoteliers from Soufriere to
Micoud on Thursday at the National Skills Development Centre (NSDC) in Vieux Fort.

NationWIDE

Page 8

Saturday February 7, 2015

National Awards for Excellence in Education

Ignore triviality and focus on excellence!

Following is the full text of an address delivered by the Minister for Education,
Human Resource Development and Labour, Honourable Dr Robert K. Lewis on
the occasion National Awards of Excellence on Tuesday, January 20, 2015

his year we commemorate the achievement

of excellence with the
Theme: Celebrating Excellence: National Initiatives,
Global Perspectives. Our
celebrations are couched in
recognition of the work of
two Saint Lucian intellectual
giants - Sir William Arthur
Lewis and Hon Derek Alton
Walcott both of whom excelled in their chosen fields of
endeavour and were awarded
the Nobel Prize. Moreover,
this years celebration and
commemoration of Nobel
Laureate Week take on additional significance because
it also marks the Centenary
of Sir William Arthur Lewis.
I am pleased and elated to
observe and note the many
international
institutions
which have heralded this special event. The most visible of
these institutions celebrating
the Centenary of Sir William
Arthur Lewis are:
The London School of
Economics (LSE): an institution where William Arthur
Lewis studied. In fact LSE
has immortalised him and
has named him as one of the
institutions most significant
alumni.
UNESCO: This organ of the
United Nations recognises the
measure of the man called
Sir William Arthur Lewis by

Dr. Robert Lewis

including him on its list of international figures remembered during
2015.
The University of Manchester:
This prestigious university has
launched its lecture series on the
work of its former Professor with
the inaugural lecture by the economist Professor Jim Oneill of BRIC/
MINT fame. It was at Manchester
in 1948 that Sir Arthur became Britains first Black Professor;
The University of the West Indies: an institution where he served
as Vice Chancellor.
The Caribbean Development
Bank (CDB): an institution that Sir

Arthur was a founding member and

first president; The current President of the CDB Dr Warren Smith ,
puts the significant and obligating
recognition of Arthur Lewis contribution to humanity in a very succinct yet profound way during the
banks launch of the Sir William Arthur Lewis Centenary Celebrations:
At CDB, we feel compelled to mark Sir
Arthurs 100th birthday in a big way.
Sir Arthur transcends the globe; and his
name is recognised and revered in every
corner of the world. We at the CDB and
the wider Caribbean will forever embrace this great St. Lucian.
I trust you have observed that this
years theme: Celebrating Excellence: National Initiatives, Global
Perspectives captures the fact that
while, locally, we celebrate the excellence of our Nobel Laureates by
the National Initiatives that we
have taken, the international community reminds us that the life and
work of our Nobel Laureates do indeed take on Global Perspectives.
The genius, imagination and
unrelenting spirit of Sir William
Arthur Lewis and Hon Derek Alton Walcott continue to define and
inspire our pursuit for excellence.
They truly represent our twin
peaks of excellence.
Nonetheless, we, as a nation,
recognise the countless Saint Lucians who, on a daily basis, continue to emulate our models of excellence by their scholarship, work
and achievements. Hence, today,
we recognise a few of our citizens
who pursued and excelled in vari-

RC Boys honored for academic excellence

he Saint Aloysius RC Boys

Primary School marked
the noteworthy performances of its students last
Thursday, with an awards ceremony at the Minor Basilica of
the Immaculate Conception.
Principals, teachers, parents,
and past and current students,
gathered at the cathedral to honor
the schools outstanding achievers
with certificates and trophies.
Principal Julian Monrose said
the school will continue to play
its part in the development of
Saint Lucia.

This school has produced

men of great fame and we continue to produce men of great
fame, Mr. Monrose said. This
school continues to pledge that
we will do all in our power as
an institution of learning to ensure that the progress and the
development of this country is
assured well into the future.
Guest speaker and former RC
Boys student, Keith Isaac Jr.,
spoke to the theme of the celebrations: The seeds of academic excellence and success sprout
when watered with hard work

and perseverance.
You may not realize it now,
but each and every day at this
institution shall shape the rest
of your lives. Each and every
one of you here today has the
potential to succeed.
Vice Principal, Paul Desir encouraged parents to give continued support to the staff and
students for the success of the
school.
The students also put on performances in music and drama
in honor of Saint Lucias Nobel
Laureates

ous endeavours. Therefore, it is a

great honour and privilege for me,
as Minister for Education, Human
Resource Development and Labour,
to congratulate all recipients of National Awards of Excellence during
Nobel Laureate Week 2015. Your efforts serve as reminders to us of the
spirit and potential of the people of
this nation.
Additionally, at todays auspicious event, we celebrate with the
recipients of the National Awards
of Excellence believing that they
will continue to make invaluable
contributions towards our development as a nation. Saint Lucias most
abundant and invaluable resource
is its people. Therefore, we must
continue to harness that resource
because our fortunes and future are
tied to the quality of its output.
Ecclesiastes 3:1 says: There is a
time for everything and a season
for every activity under the heavens:
Last week and this week, Saint
Lucia and the rest of the Caribbean
in particular have paid attention
to the work of genius in our midst.
Therefore, I should like to remind
all of us in here, especially the students, those watching and listening
via television and those reading
this script to spend some time this
week and beyond to contemplate
the quest and pursuit of excellence
of our people. Let us remember
that God through our parents and
our nation has invested heavily and
abundantly in us and expects nothing less than the best. Let us ignore

all the trivial talk and distractions around us and focus our
sights on excellence!
In closing, I wish to commend and say thank you to
the Nobel Laureate Week
Committee, under the distinguished leadership of her
Excellency Dame Pearlette
Louisy, for their efforts in
putting together this years
programme of activities for
Nobel Laureate Week. I say
a special thank to the Permanent Secretary, Deputy
Permanent Secretary and
the staff of the Ministry of
Education, Human Resource
Development and Labour for
their continued contributions
to the Nobel Laureate Week
activities. I want to thank
specifically Ms Kentilla Louis
and the other members of
her team for fashioning this
programme for the National
Awards of Excellence 2015. I
express the nations gratitude
to the many institutions that
provided support whether
financial and or otherwise
in making this function the
success it already is. I thank
my colleagues in Cabinet for
being here. Moreover, I wish
all Saint Lucians an imaginative, thought-provoking and
contemplative Nobel Laureate
Week 2015.
We continue Celebrating
Excellence! I thank you.

Nutrition Ad
Competition launched

he Ministry of Health,
Wellness, Human Services and Gender Relations in collaboration with
the Ministry of Education
and the Ministry of Agriculture has launched an Inter
Secondary School Nutrition
Ad Competition.
The theme for the competition
is, Less Sugar for You and Me
Will Make a Healthier Society.
The competition is aimed at
having secondary school students develop ads geared towards young persons in Saint
Lucia with healthy messages
focusing on the negative effects

of excess sugar.
Another aim is to create behavior change among young
people, so that they eat healthier
and reduce their intake of foods
high in sugar which contributes
to obesity and other health conditions.
The ad competition organizers hope to improve nutrition in
schools whilst educating young
people on the harmful effects of
junk food on the body.
The formal press launch was
held on January 30 at the conference room of the Ministry
of Health, Sir Stanislaus James
Building, Castries

Saturday February 7, 2015

NationWIDE

Page 9

National Awards for Excellence in Education

NameofAward

NameofAwardee

1. Top Achiever
Common Entrance
2013/2014

2. Top Performing School
Common Entrance
2013/2014

3. Outstanding Performance
Top Performing School (Private)
Common Entrance
2013/2014

4. In recognition of your Outstanding Contribution
to Special Education
2013/2014
Donated by Digicel

5. In recognition of your Outstanding Contribution
to Special Education
2013/2014
Donated by Digicel

6. In recognition of Outstanding Contribution to
Special Education
2013/2014
Donated by Digicel



7. Best Junior Sports Person
7. Best Junior Sports Person
2013/2014
2013/2014

GabrielleAFlavien

TapionSchool

LanceGeorge
MarieCharles

eatre Arts 2013/2014

3/2014

Mrs.NathalieElliot
DeputyChiefEducation
OfficerPlanning

JeanLukeMonrose

RyiMaryat
RyiMaryat

DionJ.Recai
DionJ.Recai

Mrs.NathalieElliot
Mrs.NathalieElliot
DeputyChiefEducation
DeputyChiefEducation
OfficerPlanning
OfficerPlanning

Mrs.RuffinaCharles
Mrs.RuffinaCharles
DeputyChiefEducation
DeputyChiefEducation
OfficerInstructions
OfficerInstructions

PrincessI.D.Joseph
PrincessI.D.Joseph

RocynJ.Vitalis
RocynJ.Vitalis

18. Outstanding Performance

CSEC/CXC
tstanding Performance
C/CXC Theatre Arts

CarmelitaMatthew
RegistrarofExaminations

ForestiereMethodist
Combined

TjimonM.Louisy
TjimonM.Louisy

12. Outstanding Performance

12. Outstanding Performance
CSEC/CXC
CSEC/CXC
English B
English B
2013/2014
2013/2014

3/2014

ShermalynAlbert
ShermalynAlbert

8. Best Senior Sports Person

8. Best Senior Sports Person
2013/2014
2013/2014


9. Outstanding Performance
9. Outstanding Performance
CSEC/CXC
CSEC/CXC
Additional Mathematics
Additional Mathematics
2013/2014
2013/2014


10. Outstanding Performance
10. Outstanding Performance
Mathematics
Mathematics
CSEC/CXC
CSEC/CXC
2013/2014
2013/2014

11. Outstanding Performance

11. Outstanding Performance
CSEC/CXC
CSEC/CXC
English A
English A
2013/2014
2013/2014

13. Outstanding Performance

CSEC/CXC
standing Performance
Caribbean History
C/CXC
bbean History 2013/2014

3/2014
14. Outstanding Performance
CSEC/CXC
standing Performance
Social Studies
C/CXC
2013/2014
al Studies

3/2014

15. Outstanding Performance
CSEC/CXC
standing Performance
Geography
C/CXC
2013/2014
graphy

3/2014


16. Outstanding Performance
Physical Education &Sports
standing Performance
CSEC/CXC
sical Education &Sports
2013/2014
C/CXC

3/2014
17. Outstanding Performance
CSEC/CXC
standing Performance
Visual Arts
C/CXC
2013/2014
al Arts

Representer

ClaythiaQ.Nicholas

ClaythiaQ.Nicholas

TriciaCheong

Mrs.RuffinaCharles
Mrs.RuffinaCharlesDeputyChiefEducation
DeputyChiefEducationOfficerInstructions
OfficerInstructions

TriciaCheong

BaileySpiegelberg
BaileySpiegelberg

SkyeD.FaucherMondesir
SkyeD.FaucherMondesir

CourtneyGreene

CourtneyGreene

KyvonC.Edwin

KyvonC.Edwin

Mr.MarcusEdward
ChiefEducationOfficer

Mr.MarcusEdward
ChiefEducationOfficer

NationWIDE

Page 10

Saturday February 7, 2015

National Awards for Excellence in Education

NameofAward
19. Outstanding Performance
1. Top Achiever
CSEC/CXC
Common Entrance
Music
2013/2014


2. Top Performing School

20. Common Entrance
Outstanding Performance
2013/2014
CSEC/CXC
French
2013/2014
3. Outstanding Performance
Top Performing School (Private)

Common Entrance
21. Outstanding Performance
2013/2014
CSEC/CXC

Spanish
4. In recognition of your Outstanding Contribution
2013/2014
to Special Education

2013/2014
22. Donated by Digicel
Outstanding Performance
Principles of Accounts
CSEC/CXC
5. In recognition of your Outstanding Contribution
2013/2014
to Special Education
2013/2014

23. Donated by Digicel
Outstanding Performance

Principles of Business
6. In recognition of Outstanding Contribution to
CSEC/CXC
Special Education
2013/2014

2013/2014
24. Donated by Digicel
Outstanding Performance

CSEC/CXC
Economics

NameofAwardee

GabrielleAFlavien
SamuelFrancis

ForestiereMethodist
RocynJ.Vitalis
Combined
TapionSchool
RocynJ.Vitalis
LanceGeorge
DaniellaL.HenryPhillip
RocynJ.Vitalis
MarieCharles
TriciaCheong

26. Outstanding Performance

CSEC/CXC
Electronic Document Preparation and
Management
2013/2014
27. Outstanding Performance
CSEC/CXC
Human and Social Biology
2013/2014

28. Outstanding Performance
CSEC/CXC
Biology
2013/2014
29. Outstanding Performance
CSEC/CXC
Physics
2013/2014
30. Outstanding Performance
CSEC/CXC
Chemistry
2013/2014

31. Outstanding Performance
CSEC/CXC
Integrated Science
2013/2014

32. Outstanding Performance
Agricultural Science (DA)
CSEC/CXC
2013/2014

33. Outstanding Performance
CSEC/CXC
Agricultural Science (SA)
2013/2014

34. Outstanding Performance
CSEC/CXC
Building Technology (Woods)
2013/2014

Donated by the Embassy of the Republic of
China (Taiwan)

35. Outstanding Performance
CSEC/CXC
Building Technology (Construction)
2013/2014

Donated by the Embassy of the Republic of
China (Taiwan)

CarmelitaMatthew
RegistrarofExaminations

Mr.MarcusEdward
ChiefEducationOfficer

Mrs.NathalieElliot
DeputyChiefEducation
OfficerPlanning

RocynJ.Vitalis
JeanLukeMonrose
QileeSimeon

2013/2014

25. Outstanding Performance

CSEC/CXC

Information Technology
2013/2014
26 Outstanding Performance
CSEC/CXC
Office Administration
2013/2014

Representer

NikkiF.S.Serieux
TriciaCheong

Mr.MarcusEdward
ChiefEducationOfficer

PinkyJoseph

Ms.MariettaEdward
DeputyPermanentSecretary

OrnellaZ.Flavien
NikkiF.S. Serieux
AmberE.St.Rose
KirmaniJean
TjimonM.Louisy
RonaldC.Lewis

KirmaniJean

ArlinaF.Hunte

ChanceD.M.Jean

MiguelGeorge

LynviaJames

Ms.MariettaEdward
DeputyPermanentSecretary

Saturday February 7, 2015

NationWIDE

Page 11

National Awards for Excellence in Education

NameofAward
36. Outstanding Performance

1. CSEC/CXC
Top Achiever
Electrical and Electronic Technology
Common Entrance
2013/2014
2013/2014

2. Donated by the Embassy of the Republic of
Top Performing School
China (Taiwan)
Common Entrance
37. Outstanding Performance
2013/2014
CSEC/CXC

3. TVET
Outstanding Performance
Mechanical Engineering Technology
Top Performing School (Private)
2013/2014
Common Entrance

2013/2014
Donated by the Embassy of the Republic of

4. China (Taiwan)
In recognition of your Outstanding Contribution

to Special Education
38. Outstanding Performance
2013/2014
CSEC/CXC
Donated by Digicel
Technical Drawing

5. 2013/2014
In recognition of your Outstanding Contribution
to Special Education
Donated by the Embassy of the Republic of
2013/2014
China (Taiwan)
Donated by Digicel


39.
6. Outstanding Performance
In recognition of Outstanding Contribution to
CSEC/CXC
Special Education
Clothing and Textiles
2013/2014
2013/2014
Donated by Digicel

Donated by the Embassy of the Republic of
China (Taiwan)

40. Outstanding Performance
40. Outstanding Performance
CSEC/CXC
CSEC/CXC
Food and Nutrition
Food and Nutrition
2013/2014
2013/2014

Donated by Consolidated Foods Limited
Donated by Consolidated Foods Limited

41. Top Performer
41. Top Performer
Division of Teacher Education and Educational
Division of Teacher Education and Educational
Administration
Administration
SALCC
SALCC
2013/2014
2013/2014


42. Top Performer
42. Top Performer
Division of Technical Education and
Division of Technical Education and
Management Studies
Management Studies
SALCC
SALCC
2013/2014
2013/2014



43. Top Performer
43. Top Performer
Division of Health Sciences
Division of Health Sciences
SALCC
SALCC
20132014
20132014


44. In appreciation of your outstanding service
44. In appreciation of your outstanding service
Donated by National Workers Union
Donated by National Workers Union

45. In appreciation of your outstanding service
45. In appreciation of your outstanding service
Donated by National Workers Union
Donated by National Workers Union
46. In appreciation of your outstanding service
Donated by National Workers Union
47. In appreciation of your outstanding service
Donated by National Workers Union

48. In appreciation of your outstanding service
Donated by National Workers Union
49. In appreciation of your outstanding service
Donated by National Workers Union
50. In appreciation of your outstanding service
Donated by National Workers Union
51. In appreciation of your outstanding service
Donated by National Workers Union

52. Best Overall Performance
CXC
2013/2014

Donated by St. Lucia Electricity Services Limited
53. Top School Performance
CSEC/CXC
2013/2014
54. Special Award
CAPE
2013/2014

NameofAwardee

JessieC.Paul
GabrielleAFlavien

ForestiereMethodist
Combined
DyllonP.Layne
TapionSchool

LanceGeorge

SilasNicholas
MarieCharles

Representer

CarmelitaMatthew

RegistrarofExaminations

Ms.MariettaEdward
DeputyPermanentSecretary

Mrs.NathalieElliot
DeputyChiefEducation
OfficerPlanning

JeanLukeMonrose
ShaniseJ.James

MarvaA.Wellington
MarvaA.Wellington

Mrs.BeverleyFrancis
Mrs.BeverleyFrancis
DirectorHRD
DirectorHRD

KashaJohn
KashaJohn

Shaquill Felicien
Shaquill Felicien

Carlene Wilfred
Carlene Wilfred
Cyiana Dormant
Cyiana Dormant
TheresaCharles
TheresaCharles

Ms.EstherBrathwaite
Ms.EstherBrathwaite
PermanentSecretary
PermanentSecretary

TerranceThomas
TerranceThomas
MonicaReynold
DelphinusPelage
NorvilleButcher
CeciliaPoleonFlavius
MarthaD.Mitchel
LauraFelix

AmberE.StRose

St.JosephsConvent
SecondarySchool

CrispianJn.Baptiste

Ms.EstherBrathwaite
PermanentSecretary

NationWIDE

Page 12

Saturday February 7, 2015

2015 Independence and Jazz Festivals launched!

he National Independence Coordinating Committee has launched an

official schedule of activities to
celebrate Saint Lucia's 36th Anniversary of Independence.
The activities will seek to develop the islands tourism product, by promoting Saint Lucias
culture and authenticity to the
international market.
The celebrations will showcase the talents of several local
musicians such as Boo Hinkson,
Teddyson John, Barbara Cadet,
The Tropics Band, Cold Sweat
and Mongstar.
Cabinet Secretary Darrel

Montrope, who chairs the committee, said the celebrations will

also be used as an opportunity
to market Saint Lucias local
products.
Independence activities have
also been planned by Saint Lucians in the UK, the USA and
Canada, as well as in other
Caribbean islands where Saint
Lucians reside, including Barbados, Martinique and French
Guiana (Cayenne).
Meanwhile, plans have also
been launched for this years
Saint Lucia Jazz and Arts Festival.
The annual Saint Lucia Jazz
and Arts Festival -- now in its

24th year -- will start on April

30, with a line-up of performers
blending island culture, famed
musical talent and diverse music genres.
Internationally renowned performers taking center stage this
year include Jamaican reggae
musician and actor Jimmy Cliff,
along with a host of other Caribbean, Latin American and International singers and musicians.
Completing the line-up is a
string of other local entertainers, together with more than
100 local artisans, who will perform at jazz venues island wide
throughout the festival.

The 11-day festival continues

until May 10, featuring hundreds of musical performances
and art showcases throughout
the island.
Locations range from Pigeon Island National Park, where main
stage events will kick-off on Friday, May 8 to Castries, Dennery,
Vieux Fort and Soufriere.
Presented by the Saint Lucia
Tourist Board, the festival continues to attract some of the
most recognizable and soughtafter names in the music business and has become a magnet
for visitors from the USA and
the Caribbean.

Cabinet Secretary
Darrel Montrope

Commerce Ministry hosts visiting Taiwanese investors

aint Lucia is trying hard

to attract Taiwanese
investors. That much
became clear when the Ministry of Commerce and the
Taiwanese Embassy hosted a
Business Networking Forum
earlier this week.
The forum on Wednesday
provided a venue for local
business owners to forge relationships with members of
a visiting Taiwanese business delegation.
Taiwans
Ambassador
James Chang explained that
the delegation -- The New
Jersey Taiwanese Chamber
of Commerce -- is a US-based

non-profit, non-political organization.

It was founded in 1996, he said,
to encourage fraternity and
friendship among businessmen
and professionals from Taiwan
who operate in the New Jersey
area in the USA.
The ambassador said all the
original founders of the association came from Taiwan and
they represented diverse occupations.
The Ambassador also said he
believes the project would create stronger economic ties between Saint Lucia and Taiwan.
Commerce Minister Emma
Hippolyte said she look forward

to the Taiwanese investors contribution to building St. Lucia.

She said St. Lucia has great
support from the government
and people of Taiwan, but it
also now needs the contribution
of the Taiwanese private sector,
in collaboration with the local
private sector.
The visiting Taiwanese business delegation represented
investors in restaurants, recycling, hotels, banking, insurance, real estate, fishing, as well
as the manufacturing of plastic,
film, chemical and fibre products.
Meanwhile, Commerce Minister
Hippolyte says Saint Lucia is more

than just a tourist destination.

The minister encouraged a
visiting Taiwanese business delegation to look beyond tourism
for investment, to sectors such
as manufacturing and infrastructure, which can also produce returns on investments.
Describing St. Lucia as a
land where free enterprise and
dedication produce generous
rewards the minister emphasized that the islands geographic location can also facilitate trade throughout the OECS
sub-region.
She pointed to St. Lucias natural deep water harbours and the
island being located three hours

from the southern United

States, with year-round tropical weather.
As a result, she told the
visiting investors, they will
not suffer the type of loss of
productivity associated with
harsh winters.
The Minister also boasted
of Saint Lucias extensive and
well-connected road infrastructure, its two airports,
modern telecommunications
systems and reliable water
supplies.
But more than anything
else, the minister said, St.
Lucians are intelligent and
hard working.

National Awards for Excellence in Education

55. In recognition of your outstanding contribution
to the Education Sector

EreniusCharles

Donated by RBC/RBTT Bank Caribbean Limited

56. In recognition of your outstanding contribution
to the Education Sector

Donated by RBC/RBTT Bank Caribbean Limited

57. In recognition of your outstanding contribution

to the Education Sector

Donated by RBC/RBTT Bank Caribbean Limited
58. In recognition of your outstanding contribution
to the Education Sector

MaryannMontoute
ShariGirard

Donated by RBC/RBTT Bank Caribbean Limited

59. In recognition of your outstanding contribution
to the Education Sector

Donated by RBC/RBTT Bank Caribbean Limited
60. In recognition of your outstanding contribution
to the Education Sector

HildaLeon

Donated by RBC/RBTT Bank Caribbean Limited

61. In recognition of your outstanding contribution
to the Education Sector
Donated by RBC/RBTT Bank Caribbean Limited

62. In recognition of your outstanding contribution
to the Education Sector

JacintaVaudroqueJames

SoriahJohn

Donated by RBC/RBTT Bank Caribbean Limited

63. In recognition of Outstanding Contribution to
Education by an individual
64. Outstanding Contribution to Education by an
organisation

CherilynG.Anderson

Dr.RobertK.Lewis
Minister

BernadetteOsfiajiaku
Mr.ConradWagner
SaintLuciaHoteland
TourismAssociation

65. Best Overall Performance

CAMBRIDGE
Island Scholar Award
2014

Donated by St. Lucia Electricity Services Limited

Dr.RobertK.Lewis
Minister

UniversityoftheWest
IndiesOpenCampus

Jeannine Bertin
Rachel Cheong

Dr.RobertK.Lewis
Minister

DamePearletteLouisy
GovernorGeneral