‘Sustainable Island State’ vision for St Kitts and Nevis : Dr Geoffrey Hanley

Basseterre, St Kitts and Nevis: The Deputy Prime Minister and Minister of Education, Dr Geoffrey Hanley on the occasion of New Year, made an address on behalf of the Prime Minister, Dr Terrance. As PM Drew was unable to deliver the New Year address live due to the flu virus.

During his address, Minister Hanley at first extended his heartfelt New Year greetings to each and everyone and then shed light on the challenges and the uncertain situations faced by the nation during the last year.

However, the minister added that “the vision for the nation has always been creating a ‘Sustainable Island State’ to promote the economy and enhance the betterment of the people for their current and future generations.”

Focusing on the achievements of the nation, Minister stated that, “the administration has worked towards the transformation and betterment of the nation by giving special attention to the factors which includes, healthcare, financial stability through investments, digital transformation, education, housing, tourism and agriculture.”

While emphasizing on the agriculture sector, Minister added that “Our aim is on the verge of realization, prompting a commitment to escalate investments in infrastructure, the integration and utilization of technology and the enhancement of our workforce’s capabilities, particularly in the technological and scientific realms within our agricultural sector.”

The Minister also talked about the signing of Memorandum of Understanding (MoU) with Southern University and stated that “this agreement will prove to be a greater advantage for the farmers and the wider population.”

He added that, “this collaboration will shed light on the enhancement in the cultivation of crops, research into the medicinal plants and the advancement of livestock farming practices.”

It was also mentioned by the Minister that, “the government is aiming on decreasing the food import expenditure by 25% by the year 2025.”

Moreover, shedding light on the administration’s pledge to construct 2400 accommodations within the next four years, the Minister stated that they are making significant progress in order to fulfil this motive initiated by them. They are focused on improving the lifestyle of the citizens by providing them with the better housing facilities.

“We made a deliberate decision to extend a reduced Vale added tax rate of 13 percent to first-time homeowners or existing homeowners looking to renovate their properties,” stated by Minister Dr Hanley.

Furthermore, Minister Hanley, in the address has also made key focus on the Education sector. For that, the administration has introduced various programs which includes, One-to-One Laptop Program, Back-to-School Voucher Initiative, Free education at Clarence Fitzroy Bryant College, two-story cutting edge audio-visual smart classroom at AVEC, the notable progress in technical and the vocational education through training and enhancing qualifications and the signing of ground-breaking Memorandum of Understanding between the Ministry of Education and Southern University in September. These initiatives by the government outlines various benefits for the entire nation.

Dr Hanley also pointed out the transformation made in the health sector. The Minister highlighted the measures taken by the healthcare sector of the Federation. The measures include:

• Introduction of 15 new dialysis machines and inauguration of the renal transplant program has enhanced the quality of life for the people dealing with renal diseases.
• Eye clinic with state-of-the-art equipment has provided huge amount of relief to the citizens by reducing the drastic increase in the eye surgeries.
• Expanding training opportunities for the medical staff which also ensures making proper and efficient use of technologies and advancements.
• Essential renovations at the JNF General Hospital such as installing ac units in the medical and surgical wards for the comforting and the healing environment of the patients.