PM Skerrit provides updates on electoral reform, geothermal project and regional meetings

Dominica: Prime Minister Roosevelt Skerrit provided updates on several national and regional matters during a press conference on Thursday, July 2. The discussions covered electoral reforms, the geothermal energy project, upcoming regional meetings, the Roseau North by-election, and Dominica's support for Venezuela.

Dr. Skerrit updated the citizens about the electoral reforms and described it as the most comprehensive electoral reform programme in Dominica’s history.

He then announced that the issuance of voter identification cards is expected to begin by the end of July. Dr. Skerrit encouraged all eligible citizens to complete the voter confirmation process since “protecting our democracy is a shared responsibility,” he said.

Concerns regarding the electoral register were also addressed by the PM. He said, “there is no constitutional or legal requirement that the final register must equal, or even closely approximate the estimated number of eligible voters”

He explained that the responsibility of the Electoral Commission is to provide all eligible citizens with the opportunity to register while participating in the process remains a personal choice of the citizens.

PM Skerrit addressed the concerns surrounding the island-wide power outage that occurred on June 17 and 18, and provided an update about the Geothermal Energy project.

He said that a common issue involving the coordination of protection settings between the battery energy storage system and the geothermal power plant was identified upon investigation by engineers and technical specialists. 

Following this, the necessary adjustments were completed. He said the mandatory seven-day reliability test resumed on July 1. 

According to Dr. Skerrit, the geothermal plant currently supplies approximately 10.4 megawatts of electricity to the national grid.

He further expressed confidence in the project and said that it would soon be able to provide cleaner, more reliable and more affordable electricity for Dominicans.

Dr. Skerrit also announced that he will be travelling to Martinique to participate in the Conference de Coopération Régionale and the Caribbean Regional Security Conference before attending the 51st Regular Meeting of the Conference of Heads of Government of CARICOM in Saint Lucia.

Many important areas will be discussed among the regional leaders, including, climate resilience, disaster preparedness, transportation, security, health, sustainable development, food and energy security, youth development, the rising cost of living in the Caribbean and other regional issues. 

Before Dr. Skerrit concluded his opening remarks, he also acknowledged the upcoming Roseau North by-election and encouraged residents to participate in the democratic process.

Dr. Skerrit also expressed Dominica’s sympathy and solidarity with the people of Venezuela following the twin-earthquake tragedy and announced that the government had approved an initial donation of US$500,000 to support the disaster response efforts.