NationWIDE...is now on an economic upswing, continued positive growth in tourism and of the Jazz and...

NationWIDE

NationWIDETHE OFFICIAL NEWS MAGAZINE OF THE GOVERNMENT OF SAINT LUCIA

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WHAT’S INSID

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Christmas 2015 will definitely be the best in recent times for most here. The 2013 Christmas Eve Trough drowned all our hopes for a happy Christmas that year and the announcement of arrival of 7,000 free computers from Venezuela made Christmas 2014 a happier one for students, teachers and principals nationwide. This year, however, the IMF’s confirmation that the country is now on an economic upswing, continued positive growth in tourism and of the Jazz and Arts Festival, the evident return of investor confidence, Jounen Kweyol 2015 and the other lively national cultural festivities during Creole Heritage Month in October, the announcement of plans for construction of a new North-South East Coast highway and rebuilding of the entire Choc-Gros Islet Highway, the launching of the Citizenship by Investment Program, the Festival of Lights and Lanterns last week, the 30th ARC from Grand Canaria and the 21st Annual Gommier Race from Martinique, together with the return of a general sense of caring and sharing with the needy – all contributed to the general feeling that 2015 will be a better Christmas for Saint Lucia. 2013 taught that anything can happen to spoil Christmas before the day arrives. But barring the unforeseen or unwanted, most – if not all – will agree that the Prime Minister and the Government of Saint Lucia have sufficiently well managed the country and economy and attended to the social needs of the most-needy among us, to deserve due commendations for a job well done. The 232 more new NICE Graduates who this week got their certificates for guaranteed future employment and promotion (Story on Page 3), like the Special Needs Children feted by the Prime Minister with toys from Taiwan (Page 8), like the more people who are being touched in one way or another (by others) to ensure them some Christmas cheer in 2015 – it will be a Christmas worth having waited for and looked forward to. Here’s also wishing Season’s Greetings to all our readers and inviting you to enjoy this seasonal update on what the Government of Saint Lucia continued to do for and in the name of people and country, at home and abroad, during the past seven days. Read and Enjoy!

Camping Anse Ger Language Students Learning In Fun - Page 2

Post Office Introduces New Code - Page 4

Belle Vue Organic Princesses Pose For Cause - Page 6

Festival Of Lights Report - Page 7

The Day The PM Feted Special Needs Children - Page 8

Why Our Planet Is More Safe And Secure! - 0

SATURDAY DECEMBER 19, 2015 WEEKLY

Happy Reading! Happy Viewing! Happy Browsing!

A NICE Christmas!

Merry Christmas!Plus: Watch Nationwide TV on NTN and browse the Nationwide Website at stlucianationwide.com

NationWIDE Saturday December 19, 2015

Camping with their teach-ers for the past week are 15 students, aged 14 to 17, all

attending Form Five at the Anse Ger Secondary School. The camp is on the school compound, but the students and teachers are also engaging in excursions to other places near and far – from Vieux Fort to Castries.

The students in this unique edu-cational camp are members of the school’s Students’ Council and Modern Language students. This exercise aims to strengthen their ability to handle core subject ar-eas, including Mathematics, Eng-lish, Integrated Science and Social Studies, as well as French and Spanish; and provide them with the necessary leadership skills.

The overarching aim is to strengthen the holistic develop-ment of the students.

Students are also getting some other valuable direct life expe-riences. For example, none had been to the Ministry of Education in Castries.

Anse Ger Principal, Examin Philbert, says the idea is “to cater for the development of the entire child and help each one be ready for his/her exams.”

She explained, “The camp also allows the students to be able to handle themselves outside of the school environment and be-yond school hours, as they have to manage their time at camp, as opposed to at school where their time is managed for them.”

French teacher Jeannine-Shi Henry, who is also camping with the students, said: “They have to live and grow informally and get other aspects of their exam needs that will help them work better with their teachers.’’

“They are having a world of fun.”

“We also tie the foreign lan-

Prime Minister Dr Kenny D. Anthony returned home earlier this week from Houston Texas, where he addressed Saint Lucians at a special National Day ceremony. The address was delivered to Saint Lucians living in Texas and others from nearby states who also made the trip. The full text of the PM’s address is on Page 5.

PM back home from addressing Saint Lucians in Texas!

guage with their other subject ar-eas which must be applied in the real world.”

The camping students were brought to Alliance Française in at Pointe Seraphine in Castries Wednesday December 16th 2015, to exchange in a French class and watch a French film. This helped them better understand the lan-guage and find more opportuni-ties to read and speak the lan-guage better.

“The camp and related activities also gave the students an oppor-tunity to see that learning goes beyond the walls of the class-room,” the Principal said.

Ms. Henry chipped in, “By not going home for a whole week they are getting a new and unusual, but enjoyable experience.”

“We have had camps before, but not like this one – and the stu-dents just don't want it to end.”

“They know for themselves that they are not ready for all the school will throw at them for ex-ams, so it allows them to better understand where they have been falling short.”

The Principal explained, “The students and teachers are sup-ported by parents who approved

their children’s involvement in this project.

This initiative is an integral part of the Students’ Council’s ac-tivities. The Students’ Council is presently participating in a Com-monwealth Foundation spon-sored programme “Fostering a Democratic Culture in Schools & Local Communities” This three-year programme, currently on its second term, seeks to equip stu-dents with skills in the areas such as “Citizenship and Gender”, “Democracy and Local Govern-ment”, “Ethics and Accountabil-ity”, “Communication”, “Media” and “Culture”.

The Students’ Council is expect-ed to undertake two other major activities next term, a debate and a cultural festival. The Common-wealth Foundation Programme is facilitated by the Caribbean As-sociation of Local Government Authorities (CALGA).

This camp is a manifestation of the continued commitment and dedication of the Principal and Staff of the Anse Ger Secondary School to the students’ overall de-velopment, growth and success, and the determination to tran-scending the impossible.

Anse Ger Secondary Students Learning Beyond The Walls!

The happy campers with their Principal, teachers and sponsors outside The Pyramid, location of the Alliance Francaise at Pointe Seraphine in Castries.

Editorial

This week’s graduation of over two hundred more NICE workers

in means and methods of caring for the elderly and as-sisting farmers to overcome agricultural perils is yet an-other major achievement in the continued growth of the NICE employment program.

The newly graduated NICE workers are now better at what they do and can there-fore better make a living off their trained and upgraded skills.

Where once NICE was con-sidered by the ill-informed or misguided as providing menial jobs for unemployable persons, more know now – including from experience – that apart from caring for the elderly and assisting farmers, NICE also provides for jobs in the private sector, assists at schools, helps host summer camps and does much more than most who don’t know will imagine.

NICE has changed lives – and for the better. It has saved lives and given life to many life projects for people. It touches people everywhere and anywhere.

Samples of Success!

Government’s social policy has ensured that Public As-sistance has increased, par-ents are assisted with student costs, the disabled are made more able and those most in need are cared for first.

There continue to be those who see NICE and STEP – and their tentacle organisms like SMILE, HOPE, YAEP and the Caretakers programs – as government wasting precious money on providing unsus-tainable jobs.

Such thinking has no con-sideration for the fact that every house and home needs food on the table.

But nthanks to NICE, more people have a nicer Christ-mas every year than before, even if from just knowing that NICE will continue to ex-ist for Christmas 2016 – and beyond.

Here’s to a nice Christmas for all the NICE graduates from Thursday’s Class of Success, each of whom, like the one being congratulated by the Prime Minister in the photo above, deserve the best commendations we can give, with added wishes for their continued success!

Prime Minister Dr. Kenny D. Anthony has described a letter by UWP leader

Allen Chastanet to an undis-closed number of organizations at home and abroad as a case of desperation that borders on an act of disloyalty to Saint Lucia and to its people.

Mr Chastanet revealed earlier this week that he has written a strong letter of criticism of the the Citizenship by Investment Programme, suggesting it could be used by terrorists to gain saint Lucian passports.

However, the Prime Minister says Mr Chastanet has shown “a callousness disregard for the welfare and interest of Saint Lu-cians” by “seeking to destroy a programme that is geared to bring benefits at a time when the economy is starting to re-bound.”

Dr. Anthony says he is com-pelled to ask “whether Mr. Chas-tanet is against any progress be-ing made by Saint Lucia, or if he is simply anti-Saint Lucian.”

The PM also asked whether the UWP Leader “is finally accept-ing that Saint Lucians are not responding to his politics of hate and divisiveness.”

And he asks too, “whether Mr Chastanet believes that by be-coming more outrageous and more vicious he will attract more attention”

“If Mr. Chastanet is to be judged by his utterances, it is clear that he is now fast becoming the Donald Trump of Saint Lucian politics.”

The Prime Minister added, “It is shocking that despite Mr. Chasta-net's party support in Parliament for the CIP, the involvement of representatives of his party on the Task Force that recommended

the CIP, he embarks on a contin-uous and ludicrous attempt to economically sabotage the very country that he yearns to lead.

“It is time that Chastanet dis-continues his unabated stream of attention-seeking untruths and malicious actions.” The Prime Minister calls on all Saint Lucians to condemn the unpa-triotic actions of Mr. Chastanet.

Dr. Anthony says “The Govern-ment of Saint Lucia believes in Saint Lucia and in the capacity of Saint Lucians to achieve econom-ic progress through hard work.”

He adds, “I urge all Saint Lu-cians to disregard and repudi-ate those actions of Mr. Chas-tanet, aimed at impeding the island’s economic recovery.” “Soon enough,” he says, “the public will come to know the real reasons for the actions of Mr. Chastanet.”

PM accuses UWP Leader of ‘Callous disregard for the welfare of Saint Lucians!’


The National Initiative to Create Employment earli-er this week hosted an im-

pressive graduation ceremony to recognize the achievements of 232 persons who were trained this year through NICE’s Na-tional Apprenticeship and Placement Program (NAPP).

The graduating class comprised two major groups of graduates trained under the initiative’s Farm Labor Support Program (FLSP) and The National Home Help Program (NHHP), respec-tively. Forty of the 49 graduates of the Crop Production Level 1 Caribbean Vocational Qualifica-

tion (CVQ) training program are currently employed under the FLSP as farm assistants.

All 182 of the individuals trained in the Care of the Older Adult Level 2 CVQ training pro-gram have completed intern-ship and will be employed as Caregivers under the National Home Help Program in 2016.

Training for Care of the Old-er Adult was held from June 9th November 30th in Castries South, Castries East, Castries North, Castries Central, Denne-ry North, Dennery South, Ba-bonneau and Gros Islet. Train-ing for the Crop Production

232 more graduate from Apprenticeship and Placement Program

What a NICE Christmas!

group was held from July 8th 2014 to January 9th 2015 in Ro-seau and Choiseul. The cer-

Saint Lucia-born interna-tional model Mala Bryan has launched a collection

of fashionable black dolls for the Christmas holidays, which will be available for local purchase soon.

Bryan, who said it has always been her dream to create her own doll collection, made the announcement in November on her social media pages, which has since received widespread attention.

Bryan, 33, who hails from La Pointe, Mon Repos and lived in Vieux Fort, said as a doll collector said she found it dif-ficult to find different black dolls with ethnic hair to add to her collection.

She said she realized she was not the only one having that issue but other adult col-lectors and parents wanting to add diversity to their chil-dren’s doll collection. She then decided to launch a collection

of black dolls.The model who now resides in

South Africa said her dolls are unique because she designed them.

“I chose the eye shapes, skin color, their features I designed them all. I made them also with little to no makeup because I wanted their natural beauty to stand out,” she explained.

Bryan said her dolls are not just for kids, but adults who en-joy collecting dolls.

“I have finally been able to create a doll that many young black and brown girls can relate to and many children of other races can now have a black and brown doll to add to their col-lection,” she added.

Mallville dolls will be avail-able at several retail stores across the island in the near fu-ture.

But in the meantime, persons can make purchases online at www.malavilletoys.com

Saint Lucian model launches black doll collection from South Africa

Black Doll collector Mala Bryan

A Saint Lucian woman liv-ing in Brooklyn, New York has launched a new

career as an entrepreneur from making several products from coconut.

Fernuda Paul, who hails from Laffeuille, Monchy said her idea started in October 2014, when she had a dream about coconuts.

“I haven’t disclosed this to too many persons because there’s a saying “when you dream of suc-cess never disclose it until you succeed,” she said.

Paul told St. Lucia News On-line (SNO) in an exclusive in-terview on Wednesday (Decem-ber 16) that having lived in the US for 14 years she never once bought a coconut until she had that dream.

“I decided to buy four coco-nuts last year to make coconut oil. I got a good amount where I shared with a friend. After she tried the oil and it was so good, she called and said I should make oil to sell,” she explained.

Paul said she decided to give it a try and started making co-conut oil the old fashioned way, by using a grater. She recalled grating coconuts for three hours non-stop.The Monchy girl said the most she ever grated was 40, until she purchased a blender. Now she is able to have 250-300 grated coconuts weekly.

But what started as an experi-ment has turned into a small business, where Paul now pro-duces a few coconut products, which includes not only coconut oil, but scented coconut oil and coconut oil soap.

Her coconut oil is sold in differ-ent sizes: 4oz, 8oz, 16oz and 32oz.

Her coconut oil soap also comes in two in one for hair and skin, which is her number one seller.

“The first three weeks of intro-ducing the two in one hair and skin soap, I sold a very large amount that I myself couldn’t believe,” she told SNO.

Paul said she has many cus-tomers in the US and she also ships her products to other countries.The entrepreneur said

she has a few customers in Saint Lucia, but her products are not being sold in stores yet.

“Here in the US there’s one store that sells my coconut oil and I sell a lot from my home, majority of customers who lives in Brook-lyn. I make it very convenient for them. I make most deliveries on Sundays,” she added.

She continued: “So far I have no complains about sales, as time goes by you never know I can definitely expand as co-conut oil is really on high de-mand.”

Paul said it is a dream come true for her and she plans to continue making coconut oil products.

“God has been good to me and he’s also giving me the strength because without him I would be where I am today. I work full-time Monday-Friday and when I get home in the evening, after spending time with my son be-fore he goes to bed, I start my second job making coconut oil,” she told SNO.

The entrepreneur advises ev-eryone to “never say you can’t until you try.”

Saint Lucian developing coconut oil market in New York

Saint Lucian Fernuda Paul has found her way with coconuts…

Fern’s line of coconut products…

On the occasion of the Nobel Laureate Week 2016, the Embassies of

Mexico and Spain in Saint Lu-cia will hold a painting com-petition entitled “A Picture for a Nobel”.

Participants are required to create a painting or a photo (using any technique) whose central theme conveys their feelings evoked by a poem of one of the following Nobel Prize Winners for Literature: Octavio Paz of Mexico, Juan Ramón Jiménez of Spain and Derek Walcott of Saint Lucia.

The paintings should be submitted to the Embassy of Mexico, located at Nelson Mandela Drive, Vigie, Cas-

tries, no later than the 15th January, 2016. A panel of judges selected by officials of the Embassies of Mexico and Spain will then choose the best painting or photo repre-senting each category.

During the Nobel Laureate Week celebrations, there will be a literary soiree in which the winning paintings will be announced and also an exhi-bition of the other participat-ing art pieces.

The winning paintings will be showcased in the Embassies of Mexico and Spain in Saint Lucia, as well as in government offices of each country in Mexico City and Madrid. (See Diplomatic Courier in Page 11).

Mexican and Spanish Embassies hosting joint Nobel painting contest

The graduates left Thursday's ceremony with NICE thoughts of a wonderful Christmas gift -- for life -- to themselves.

emony was held at the National Cultural Centre on Thursday, with all the graduates leaving

the compound with thoughts of having achieved a NICE Christ-mas this year!

Prime Minister Dr Ken-ny D. Anthony will host his annual Chil-

dren's Party and the Prime Minister's Luncheon for Old-er Persons in Vieux Fort this weekend.

The Prime Minister's Children's Party will be held at the Vieux Fort Court

from 3pm today (Saturday, December 19).

Meanwhile, the Prime Minister's Luncheon for Older Persons will be held at the Post Secondary School (formerly Campus A) on New Dock Road from 11:30am tomorrow (Sunday, December 20).

PM hosting Children and Elderly Christmas Parties

today and tomorrow


EU concerned about future progress of IMPACS Report

The European Union (EU) is expressing concern about the fu-ture of progress on the IMPACS Report and is offering to help the local justice system to get it going.

In a statement issued Monday, the office of the European Union Delegate to the Caribbean said the public statement made on the IMPACS Report on March 8th 2015 by Prime Minister Dr Kenny Anthony “is very important” and following that statement, “due process must be followed.”

The EU and it Member States called in the statement “on those responsible, to ensure due process according to the St Lucia crimi-nal law system.”

The EU statement said that “effective judicial systems are criti-cal for a country’s Human Rights record and with much progress achieved on other fronts it would be regrettable if this issue would undermine St Lucia’s reputation in the international community.”

“Without due process,” the EU said, “there would be no effective criminal justice system.”

According to the EU statement, “It is in the full interest of all St Lucians, and of EU visitors and investors, to see this situation move forward.”

EU offering to help repair local criminal justice system

The European Union is offering to support the Government and the local judicial system to take the IMPACS Report to another level.

In the statement issued Monday, the EU says it “reiterates its sup-port and strong commitment to the development of St Lucia, rec-ognizing the challenges it faces as a small and vulnerable island state.”

The EU notes that “Substantive support has been provided [to Saint Lucia] in various areas -- including health, trade, agriculture and infrastructure -- and much progress has been made.”

The statement adds, however, that “Successful growth and de-velopment include effective legal systems and criminal justice.”

The statement says the EU and its Member States stand ready to support development of effective legal systems for criminal jus-tice, including with assistance under the 11th European Develop-ment Fund (EDF) Regional Indicative Program.

The EU says the program has 44 million EURO assigned to pro-grams for fighting crime and enhancing security -- and it is offer-ing to help Saint Lucia significantly improve its justice system by making funds available under that program.

Police bicycle unit widely welcomed in Castries!

The Royal Saint Lucia Police Force (RSLPF) has teamed-up with Universal Cycle Centre to launch what is expected to become the island’s first-ever Police Bicycle Unit.

Guy Larcher of Universal Cycle Centre said the bicycle police unit is a pilot project that will improve the patrol capabilities of the Police over foot patrols and regular transport.

Larcher disclosed that during the three-month pilot phase, needed adjustments would be made to the initiative.

The introduction of the unit met with much positive response in Castries last weekend, with many welcoming it as one that will not only make the police move along more free and fast in crowded areas, but will also keep the riding officers fit for the fight against crime.

Agriculture Minister challenges predecessor to public debate!

The island’s Minister of Agriculture is challenging his predeces-sor – now in opposition -- to a public debate on Agriculture in Saint Lucia yesterday and today.

Minister of Agriculture, Food Production, Fisheries, Co-opera-tives and Rural Development Moses “Musa” Jn Baptiste says: “This Labour administration has a proud record in agriculture” and he has challenged the opposition United Workers Party (UWP) to a debate on agriculture.

Mr Jn Baptiste has said that despite criticism from the opposition, there have been major developments in agriculture under this ad-ministration’s watch.

He noted that the island has recorded the highest revenues for lo-cal produce from purchases either by hotels by local Saint Lucians.

The Minister referred to an increase in the purchase of local cas-sava production, as well as in livestock and poultry ahead of com-pletion of the meat processing facility in Beausejour.

Minister Jn Baptiste says government has also tackled the issue of late payment to fishers and through the new Fisheries and Agri-culture Incentives Act, millions of dollars in investment have been made in local agriculture.

The minister said he thinks the island needs some honest debate and he keep asking the UWP to step up to the plate.

Mr Jn Baptiste issued a public challenge to the opposition UWP for a public debate on agriculture, to be “moderated by someone in the media.”

The Minister said all is not yet perfect, with more still needing to be done, including construction of feeder roads.

But, he says, he is ready for a public debate on agriculture -- whether against UWP Leader Allen Chastanet, or former UWP Agriculture Minister Senator Ezechiel Joseph.

Nationwide News Briefs

As part of plans to mod-ernize the local postal service, the Saint Lucia

Postal Service has moved to introduce new postal codes for communities across the island.

For each community, there will be specific codes used by residents in order to receive mail.

The code will begin with the letters LC, which is the coun-try’s postal code. This will be followed by a numeric sequence and the last two numbers will indicate the community.

Post Office introduces new codes

Some 17 new delivery points have already been established to accommodate this new change,

while previously used post of-fices will be used to introduce this new system.

A sampling of what the new addresses will look like…

“LEGACY”, an art and fashion exhibition, in tribute to interna-tionally renowned Saint Lucian Artist, the late Honourable Sir Dunstan St. Omer, was held at the Alliance Francaise Pyramid at Pointe Seraphine.

It was a magical setting with family, friends and art enthusi-asts as they gathered for a cock-tail reception to celebrate the launch of the new exhibition.

In attendance was the Gover-nor general Dame Pearlette Lou-isy, Members of the Diplomatic corp, Officials of the Alliance Francaise, Honerable Derek Wal-cott, Senator, Kentry Jn Pierre and lady Cynthia St Omer.

The Exhibition showcased the fantastic paintings of Sir Dun-stan’s eldest sons, Alwyn and Luigi, and the innovative Cro-chet fashion by his daughter in law, Marcella.

The 5th Annual Colgate National Dental Spell-ing Bee Competition

held Friday 11th December was deemed a tremendous success by organizers.

Preliminary rounds of the competition were held across

the island during the month of November with eight schools qualifying to contest the final round of the competition.

After an enthralling, exciting and highly competitive spell-ing display in third place was Lianna Jean of Ave Maria Girls

Primary, second place was cap-tured by Tyler Vennar of the Carmen Rene Memorial School and Rohan Charles of Pierrot Combined School emerged as the winner of the 2015 Colgate National Dental Spelling Bee Competition.

Describing the opposi-tion United Workers Party (UWP) as ‘dis-

honest’ for claiming that the current Labour administra-tion has not achieved, Educa-tion Minister Doctor Robert Lewis has said that when in power the UWP was prepar-ing to implement Value Add-ed Tax (VAT).

“The last UWP administra-tion was saying it would have implemented VAT and had

done all the work in terms of the various arrangements. But when election came, we in the Labour Party put in our mani-festo that VAT would be intro-duced,” Lewis asserted.

According to the Castries South MP, the Labour Party, then in opposition, knew that VAT was going to be “a bitter pill to swallow”.

However, he said, leadership is about making decisions with long-term benefits in mind.

“At your own home there are things that your children will not like, or even you would not like to implement, but if it is going to be beneficial in the long term you must take that decision,” Dr Lewis declared.

Lewis observed that this Labour administration’s achievements could be deter-mined by comparing what it has done with the promises made in the Labour Party’s election manifesto.

Minister says UWP was preparing to introduce VAT

Young Rohan Charles of the Pierrot Combined School tops schools Spelling Bee competition.

Pierrot Combined are Spelling Bee winners

Legacy exhibition held in memory of legendary national artist

The Amy Winehouse Steel Pan Orchestra from the Boys Train-ing Centre also featured along with a mini exhibition of Art and Craft and a Fashion show.

LEGACY was an exhilarating tribute and must-see exhibition, an attempt in painting and fash-ion, to capture the beautiful land-

scape and culture of St Lucia, whilst also introducing abstract themes on Climate Change in tribute to a St Lucian legend.

LEGACY was held for one week only and was sponsored by TEPA, LIME, Alliance Francaise, By Charlie, House of St Omer and the St Omer Art Institute.

One of the several paintings displayed at the exhibition earlier this week at Alliance Francaise…


I would like to thank the Association for inviting me to speak

with you on this very important occasion of Saint Lucia’s National Day. I accepted your gracious invitation because I felt the need to speak with you on what it means to be a nation, share with you my views on the chal-lenges facing island na-tions such as ours and to discuss some of my thoughts with you on our place in the world.

Let me commence by stating that it is indeed an honour and a plea-sure to be here to cel-ebrate with you on this occasion. While Hous-ton is not as cold as the Eastern Seaboard, it can never be as warm as home or as hot as the fire that comes with the longing for home in this Christmas sea-son. Just let me remind you that you still have time to join us for a nice heart- warming Lucian celebration. I would also like to welcome the Houston Caribbe-an Community to our celebration. Feel free to also call Saint Lucia home and visit with us. We are one Caribbean family.

WHAT DOES NA-TIONAL DAY MEAN?

Today we celebrate Saint Lucia’s National Day. It is also St. Lu-cy’s Day, the saint af-ter which our country was named. In olden times, the 13th of De-cember was considered the shortest and dark-est day of Advent and was celebrated with the Festival of Lights. St. Lucy's Day was sup-posed to bring enough light to live through the long winter days.

My own reflection on the relevance of the 13th of Decem-ber has nothing to do with whether or not it is “Discovery Day”. Rather, I believe that whether it was for-tuitous or whether it was designed, we have been given the oppor-tunity to be a light to il-luminate the darkness around us.

As Saint Lucians, you must keep that light burning for yourself, your families, your communities and your country. Take every opportunity afforded by your new country to further yourselves and to show that Saint Lucians can excel and hold their own globally.

STAY CLOSE TO FAMILY

Keep your families and friends close to you, in your hearts and in your breast. Re-member you have the chance to take them with you on your jour-ney to excellence. Let your achievements be their triumphs.

By now you must realise that I deeply believe in the intrinsic

NOTHING CAN KEEP US DOWN!Following is the full text of an address by Hon. Dr. Kenny D. Anthony, Prime Minister and Minister for

Finance, Economic Affairs, Planning and Social Security to the Saint Lucian Diaspora in Houston, Texas on the occasion of National Day on December 13, 2015

value of community, fam-ily and friends. I learnt that from my mother who, not only raised a family of nine boys but who also helped other mothers to raise their children. My mother too was also assisted by other mothers in her community to raise the children in her charge.

I remember, with deep longing, all of those who corrected my brothers and I when we got into trouble and mischief.

Though I was born in a little hamlet, a community called Riviere Doree, near Choiseul, I was raised in Saltibus and Park Estate. That is why I often say to my friends that I am a “country boy.”

I remember to this day, a lady named “Cemonese” of Saltibus. She was the com-munity’s baker but she also worked on the estate which my father managed. “Cemo-nese” treated me as her own. You see, I would refuse to go to school unless I had a new pencil every day. She made sure I that I had a well sharp-ened pencil for my slate ev-ery morning. Even when I became a grown man, she supplied me every weekend with a quota of bread and what, in my time, we called “Cut Cake”. She has jour-neyed to the great beyond and how often I wish I could tell her “thanks” and how much I loved and appreciat-ed her. It’s now too late, too, too late.

DEVELOP A SENSE OF COMMUNITY

I want the Saint Lucian diaspora to have that sense of community, to hold on to those values that shaped and made us who we are today. Be a community, hold on to your history and your iden-tity.

Get together and resolve your challenges. Through your differences of opin-ion, find common cause in your love for your home-land. We are there to assist you in strengthening your organisation. I want you to recognise that we are all Saint Lucians and that it is our diversity that makes us the great people that we are and the greater people that we can be.

The Government of Saint Lucia made a promise that it would upgrade the Return-ing Nationals Information Booklet into a policy that would further strengthen that relationship. In other words we wanted a develop-ment policy that would in-clude the Diaspora in nation building. We also wanted to reinforce that you did not have to return to make a con-tribution. Nation building is not restricted by location.

Cabinet has now approved that bundle of policies.

MEASURING CONTRIBUTIONS

Of primary concern is the ability to capture and mea-sure the value of the con-tributions of our nationals overseas to nation building and the development of our society. These contributions are as old as migration of our nationals and while we say thank you on a regular basis we have never stopped to give full credit. Whether it

is remittances, fund raising, the giving of service through the valued time of skilled professionals such as pro-fessors, ICT specialists and doctors and charitable dona-tions, we are yet to quantify the impact on our nation.

In 2016 we will be work-ing with the OECS and the International Organisation for Migration (IOM) under an ACP-EU project to assess the impact of remittances. We hope that the project will finally assist in establish-ing a proper database for all overseas nationals. One of the challenges in this regard has been the reluctance of persons to register. Please be reassured that all infor-mation gathered will remain confidential and will be used only for your benefit.

SHIFTING ENGAGEMENT POLICIES

As our nation develops and evolves, the nature of our en-gagement policy will shift. It should be appreciated that at this juncture Saint Lucia may not be able to extend certain rights to its Diaspora but that could change in the future. The first step must however be improvement of the investment climate for entrepreneurs in the Dias-pora. This has to be accom-panied by structures at the Ministry of Finance, Minis-try of Commerce, Financial institutions and the Statistics Department to facilitate the collection of the data on the contributions of the Dias-pora. This must be accompa-nied by a desire of our over-seas associations to provide information and to work alongside the Government to upgrade our communica-tions. You have to approach your role as nation builders with renewed vigour and conviction.

STRENGTHEN CAPACITY BUILDING

Our overseas organisa-tions must also look to their own capacity building. The effective implementation of

Diaspora Policy will mean overseas associations will have to increase their pro-fessionalism. There must be training for leaders, proper governance structures, in-crease in membership drives and the desire to build these important stakeholder or-ganisations so that all can benefit. I understand that there will be differences of opinion, as there is diver-sity in these organisations. I just want to urge all of you to avoid the temptations to withdraw your support and volunteerism because some people will work and others will benefit. It happens in the best organisations. You are giving of your time, skills and money for the benefit of your country. We appreciate your efforts.

A NEW PARTNERSHIP We expect that in the New

Year we will commence im-plementation of the policy. This policy outlines the way forward for our relationship and the involvement of the Diaspora in the successful development of our country.

A wide range of areas are covered in our policy includ-ing: Social Development, Cultural Arts/Cultural Ex-changes/Export of Cultural Products, Sports Develop-ment, Youth and Children, Agriculture Promotion, Tourism Promotion, Trade Promotion, Health, Commu-nity Development, Human Resources/Capacity Build-ing and Information Com-munication Technology. You have the opportunity of working with us in all these areas. We envisage that this new partnership will yield great benefits.

THE CHALLENGES FACING ISLAND NATIONS

We, are a blessed people. We are a people of the light. However, we are a small is-land developing state con-sidered one of the most vulnerable in the world. The Commonwealth Secre-tariat, in a recent study on

the vulnerability of small island states, concluded, af-ter taking into consideration a range of factors, that Saint Lucia was the most vulner-able island in the world. In some ways, this is a frighten-ing conclusion.

Over the last few years, we have all been burdened by a global recession, whose impact has left small vul-nerable countries like ours with pessimism and doubt. It has been a tough decade. Antigua, St Kitts and Nevis, Grenada have all gone to the IMF.

Since 2008, we have only averaged 1.1 percent of growth. We have moved from managing one crisis only to move to another. The fact is that we unfortunately have structural deficiencies that must be addressed be-fore we can reach the growth levels that will result in sus-tained development.

Over the last for years we have been faced with high levels of unemployment, triggered in most instances by very little investment, job losses and limited capacity of domestic firms to absorb new entrants in the Labour Mar-ket. Export agriculture has been facing an uphill battle. We know that we have com-petitiveness and productiv-ity challenges. The chal-lenges facing us have been analysed and over analysed. We know our problems, we must now find work-able solutions. As I noted at the Growth Forum, “What eludes us is agreement on the solutions and consensus on the way forward.”

I believe that many of our challenges can be addressed if we are able to effectively mobilise the skills of all Saint Lucians globally. Coming from a small island we of-ten impose psychological boundaries on ourselves and our future, often limit-ing our thinking to the land space contained within its boundaries. Tonight I would like to say that our country is more than 238 square miles. Our country, our nation, oc-cupies the spaces where you live. We have to recognize that we have moved beyond our boundaries. The global financial crisis did not spare us because we are a small island. We are inextricably linked to global systems, structures, institutions and processes. Our island may define us but its size must never imprison us. Never ever doubt our impact on the world. Let me give you a recent example of what is possible.

Saint Lucia through its Minister of Sustainable De-velopment, Dr. James Fletch-er, has been providing lead-ership to our region, small island developing state in the climate change talks which has just ended in Paris. Let me just share with you some excerpts from the closing ad-dress of Dr. Fletcher to the Conference. Dr. Fletcher told the world community,

“It is with a deep sense of pride and gratitude that I take the floor on behalf of my country Saint Lucia and the Caribbean Community, CARICOM, for which we hold lead responsibility for Climate Change and Sus-tainable Development.

Mr. President, I can confidently speak on behalf of my fellow Caribbean delegations when I say that for per-haps the first time in a long time, Caribbean and other SIDS truly felt that our concerns were being heard at a COP. Our delegations witnessed a sincere in-terest to craft a fair, bal-anced and ambitious Agreement that sought to address the needs of the most climate-vul-nerable countries.

There are elements in this document for which our CARICOM countries are grateful. The increased ambition of the Agreement, as reflected by the refer-ence to pursue efforts to limit the temperature increase to 1.5 degrees Celsius above pre-industrial levels, is a significant achievement that has already started to resonate with ‘posi-tive vibrations’ through-out the Caribbean. The separate treatment of Loss and Damage in the Agreement is also a most welcomed devel-opment. While I pulled these two elements out for special mention, we view this Agreement not as a combination of separate articles, but as a total package that will provide us with the legal framework for pro-tecting our ecosystems, our islands, our people, our cultures and our planet.

After two intense weeks in this beauti-ful city of Paris, of which unfortunately I have seen very little, I can return home to the citizens of my coun-try and the Caribbean and reassure them that the world cares about them. I can tell the young people in our region who adopted One Point Five to Stay Alive as their mantra that their future looks much brighter today than it did two weeks ago. I can say to the artists who have sung songs and written po-etic verse on the need for urgent action on climate change that their voices have been heard. On a personal level, when I return to my home in Saint Lucia, I can look back fondly and proudly on my two weeks here in Paris and know that together with a group of hard working and determined men and women I helped create history; a history that will ensure that my island and our planet will have a more cer-tain future. My coun-try Saint Lucia is very proud and pleased to associate itself with this historic Paris Agreement.” That is the quality of leader-ship we must continue to provide in all we do, wherever we may be.

Prime Minister Dr. Kenny Anthony adressing the gathering

Continued on Page 12


Belle Vue Kitchen Garden Group and Belle Vue after School Program hosted

Miss Organic Princesses Pag-eant. The Miss Organic Prin-cesses Pageant, which was held on 14th December, 2015, at the Belle Vue Human Resource Development Centre was truly an evening of beauty, elegance, grace, talent and intelligence.

All the contestants did an excellent job at promoting a healthy lifestyle during their in-troduction, sportswear, talent, costume, national wear, and question and answer segment.

Thus, it is against this back-ground that the Belle Vue De-velopment Committee con-gratulates all the contestants for acquitting themselves to the highest order of distinction.

Special congratulations are in order for Princess Naomi Lon-don on being crowned Miss Or-ganic Princesses.

Also, the leaders and members of the Belle Vue Kitchen Gar-den Group and Belle Vue After School Program must be com-mended for hosting a very in-formative and entertaining pag-eant. Overall, kudos to everyone who contributed towards the success of the Miss Organic Princesses Pageant.

Organic Princesses Grace Belle Vue Stage!

Noomi Londonmiss organic princess (winner) Caryn Kadoo Chloe Francis

Mekaje Ernest Najla Mitchell Zanna Frederick

The Princess Royals -- all lined-up for an organic cause!


The city’s skies were set ablaze with a fireworks display on Friday De-

cember 11th, bringing an end to what has been described as a remarkable Festival of Light cer-emony. The Christmas-themed production was staged at the Derek Walcott Square, one day earlier than the traditional De-cember 12th date due to an un-foreseen clash of events within close proximity on the day in question.

Despite the setback however, the ceremony was rescheduled and took place under the aus-pices of the Governor General of Saint Lucia, her Excellency Dame Pearlette Louisy.

The pre-national day celebra-tion, spearheaded by the Cul-tural Development Foundation (CDF), is one of the more popu-lar activities on the national cal-endar of events to usher in Saint Lucia’s Day or National Day on December 13th coinciding with the feast day of Saint Lucy of Syracuse, the patron saint of Saint Lucia.

The celebration of the feast of Saint Lucy is tied with the cel-ebration of “light” as the name “Lucy” means “light” in Latin. December 13th is set aside to celebrate “all things Saint Lu-cian”. The parade of lanterns, switching on of lights and the fireworks display, all add to the splendour on the night to sym-bolize renewal and rebirth.

The Festival of Light ceremony is one of three festivals which takes place during the month of December, sustaining a tradition of capturing Saint Lucians’ artis-tic prowess through the arts.

The Festival of Light incor-porates elements of all the De-cember festivals. On December 11th this year, long before the 7:30 p.m. scheduled start for the night’s proceedings, the Soufri-can drummers began evoking a festive spirit which brought visitors and Saint Lucians to the Castries Town Hall as they danced and sang to the infec-tious drum beats.

The singing and dancing con-tinued throughout the official parade and included fire eat-ers, masqueraders, stilt walkers, enthusiastically spurred on by

Splendour, Brilliance and Beauty shone at Festival of Lights 2015

the drummers from Soufriere. Participants of the lantern com-petition proudly displayed their brilliant creations from the Cas-tries Town Hall into the Derek Walcott Square where an eager gathering awaited them.

Later that evening, the win-ners were announced to an im-mensely appreciative audience. The Lantern Competition which took place on Saturday Decem-ber 5th, followed a series of training workshops during the month of November at various locations around the island.

The lantern-making work-shops were facilitated by Sean Greaves, Gary Butte, Vivian duBoulay, Shawn Francis, and Delthia Naitram in Laborie, Desruisseaux, District 4, Cas-tries and at the Boys’ Training Centre.

Narrated by Shakeem God-dard, Anarcisse Alexander and Kevon Edwin, the scripted pro-duction took the audience on a journey to find the spirit of light in a world which is at times seems filled with overwhelm-ing darkness.

Performances came from Dance Saint Lucia, the Ave Maria Girls’ Primary School Choir, Dalonya Joseph, Nicole St. Croix, Adrian “Drii Notes” Klien, A.S.A.P., Heart & Soul, the Silver Shadow Dance Acad-emy, the Royal Saint Lucian Po-lice Band, Arthur, Nintus and Invader.

Deputy Prime Minister of Saint Lucia, Honourable Phillip Pierre officially switched on the Christmas lights which was im-mediately followed by a display of fireworks during which the Royal Saint Lucia Police band wished all present compliments of the season, through music.

The night was one of splen-dour, brilliance and beauty with support from the corporate community. The Cultural De-velopment Foundation is grate-ful for the assistance provided by Bank of Saint Lucia Limited, Windward Islands Packaging Company Limited (WINERA), Saint Lucia Distillers Limited, Guardsman (Saint Lucia) Lim-ited, National Television Net-work (NTN) and Calabash TV (ALLBIZ Limited).

Press Secretary to the Prime Minister Jadia Jn Pierre-Emmnauel has

extended best wishes to all Saint Lucians as the country marks National Day 2015.

She is encouraging persons to reflect on the meaning of the holiday.

The statement said: Let me wish you all a rest-

ful day, whether you are spending it with family or friends, at church or at play. Whatever you do with your holiday weekend, please take some time out to reflect on the meaning of the holiday, and what Saint Lucia means to you.

Today is the feast day of the patron saint of Saint Lucia, St. Lucy of Syracuse. She is the pa-

tron saint of the blind, and of writers, among other things. Celebrated in several Chris-tian denominations, St. Lucy is also venerated in much of Europe.

Two nights ago, we wit-nessed the National Festi-val of Lights and Renewal. The name “Lucia” comes from the Latin word for light, lux. It was another great display of the creativ-ity of our people, their abil-ity to bring out the beauty in things.

Let us continue to see the beauty in our homeland, Saint Lucia, as we celebrate National Day 2015. Have a blessed day.

PM Press Secretary encouraged Saint Lucians to reflect on the meaning of National Day

Jadia Jn Pierre-Emmanuel

And then there was light!


Prime Minister Hon. Dr. Kenny D. Anthony wel-comed hundreds of guests

to his Official Residence on Wednesday, December 9, 2015. The occasion was one that the Office of the Prime Minister has hosted for several years, a Christmas party for children with special needs.

The children came from The

Dunnottar School, Lady Gordon Opportunity Centre, Soufriere Special Education and Rehabilita-tion Centre, The Saint Lucia Blind Welfare Association, Dennery De-velopment Centre and Vieux Fort Special Education Centre.

They met Santa Claus, and were treated to snacks, lunch, ice cream, toys, a bouncy castle and goodie bags. In turn, they

regaled the audience with song and dance.

In welcoming the children to the Official Residence, the Prime Minister also had special words of praise for their teachers.

Said Dr. Anthony,“People say that your teachers

are looking after you because you are special. Well, I believe that your teachers are very spe-

cial people. They are special because they have a lot of love, they have a lot of patience, they know how to care, and they know how to give love in return.

“And sometimes we don’t tell them thank you. So I want today to tell the teachers thank you very much for what you do for the children, what you do for the country, what you do for the par-

ents, what you do for everyone.”In attendance at Wednesday’s

party were Cabinet colleagues, Minister for Education, Human Resource Development and La-bour, Hon. Dr. Robert Lewis; and Minister for Health, Wellness, Human Services and Gender Re-lations, Hon. Alvina Reynolds; as well as Leader Of The Opposi-tion, Hon. Dr. Gale Rigobert.

St Lucia’s first and only craft brewery, Antil-lia Brewing Company,

has launched a very special Christmas Seasonal Ale: “Sorrel & Spice Christmas Ale”, available now at the brewery in Rodney Bay.

The beer, whose beautiful red appearance reflects the careful use of locally har-vested Sorrel in the process is also delicately flavoured with cinnamon, ginger and clove. “This Christmas seasonal ale was entirely the brainchild of our head brewer, Sidoine Ephraim, and it is absolutely fantas-tic,” said Andrew Hashey, President, Antillia Brewing Company.

“I asked Sid to work on a special Christmas beer that would represent the culture

and traditions of St. Lucia, using all natural, local ingredients. The sorrel imparts a wonder-ful red hue and flavour that is balanced with a careful use of spices to produce an incredibly beautiful and refreshing beer.”

Antillia Brewing Company specializes in traditional, all natural ales. In addition to a lineup of traditional styles such as the Golden Ale, a wheat beer brewed for the Caribbean climate, Antillia brews a series of St Lucian Specialty beers using local, fresh agricultural products.

Antillia Brewing Company opened in February 2015, with a vision of putting St. Lucia on the craft brewing map. Antil-lia operates a brewery and tap room and serves their signature style ales by glass, 1L take away growler and keg formats.

Antillia Brewing Company launches Sorrel Christmas Ale

PM Fetes Special Needs Children For Christmas

Happy local brewers cheering their tasty seasonal local ale.


Saint Lucia is one of the “must-see” islands fea-tured on CNN.com’s travel

section.In the article titled, “30 inviting island escapes”, read-ers were asked to share their “dreamiest island experiences”. And St. Lucia made the list.

The brief piece on our island read: “Saint Lucia stretches

27 miles long in the Carib-bean Sea. iReporter Dennis Litcht enjoyed “the gorgeous scenery, the lush vegetation and watching the storms roll over the Pitons, as this picture illustrates.”

This quote is accompanied by a photo of the Pitons with the caption “Must-see islands”.

Saint Lucia featured on CNN

The Saint Lucia Electric-ity Services Limited puts its best foot forward at

the annual Rodeo competition. Linesmen from the St. Lucia Electricity Services Limited (LUCELEC) have proven they are among the best in the region.

At a recently held Linesman Rodeo organised by The Carib-bean Electric Utility Service Co-operation (CARILEC) in St. Lu-cia, the LUCELEC teams topped the competition that tested their skills, safety standards and speed.

Linesmen install and main-tain electrical power lines. Their role, therefore, in ensur-ing customers have electricity is paramount. The Linesman Rodeo tests on the field of play the skills required to do the job. The CARILEC members partici-pating were from electric utili-ties in Grenada, St Vincent, the Virgin Islands and Saint Lucia.

LUCELEC fielded one three man team each in the Appren-tice and Experience levels of the competition. The Apprentice category is for linesman with

1-4 years’ experience while the Experience category is for those with more than 5 years in the field. Among the events that tested the skills, safety stan-dards and speed of the region-al linesmen were “Hurt-Man

Rescue”, “Speed Pole Climb”, “Basketball” and “Earth Instal-lation”.

The Board, Management and Staff of LUCELEC have since congratulated its Rodeo team of Tomy Adolph, Ed James, Voldon

Hazell, Godwin Brice, Alpheaus Alexander and Wayne Monde-sir whose victory reaffirms the company is a leading regional operator in its field.

Two teams from Saint Lucia took part in the competition -

LUCELEC and the contractor firm of Williams (a major win-ner of the individual events). LUCELEC also assisted with setting up the venue, provided ground crew and other support to the organizing committee of the event.

LUCELEC Managing Director Trevor Louisy says both com-petitors and volunteers deserve high praise.

“We are always happy to do our part to foster regional com-radery among electric utilities. LUCELEC was pleased to part-ner with CARILEC in their host-ing of this event and are very proud our teams were victori-ous. We see this as further dem-onstration of the safe, efficient and reliable service we provide to our customers as what was tested on the field of play is in effect what our linesmen do in the daily execution of their du-ties,” says Mr Louisy.

The CARILEC Rodeo was held at Pigeon Island and culminated a week-long linesman training programme put on by CARILEC at the end of November 2015.

LUCELEC Linesmen best in CARILEC

In light of the increase theft of animals dur-ing the Christmas sea-

son, the Praedial Larceny Unit is urging persons not to purchase agriculture produce from non-farm-ers.

In a press statement is-sued on Tuesday, Decem-ber 15, the unit said butch-ers, vendors, purchasers and retailers should be reminded that the theft of agricultural produce con-tinues to be a major prob-lem for farmers.

They have also advised butchers to be extra cau-tious when purchasing animals from the slaugh-ter house.

The Ministry of Health, Wellness, Human Ser-vices and Gender Rela-

tions through the technical assistance of the Pan Ameri-can Health Agency (PAHO) recently conducted a Smart Hospital Assessment Work-shop which brought to-gether persons from various disciplines in the public and private sector.

In 2007 PAHO intro-duced the concept of the Safe Hospital Index to St. Lucia which grew in 2013 with the addition of the Green Hospital concept. Participants who comprise nurses, architects, fire ser-vice personnel and engi-neers have now conducted assessments on all aspects of every health facility in St. Lucia, in terms of its functionality, structure and safety, all to ascertain how best to build resilience in these facilities.

"At the end of this we will compile all our data together, do up a spend/benefit analysis to find out what the cost of fixing these facilities are, compared to where we are at now. So basically what we are doing now is setting a baseline to know where we're building from and how we're get-ting to where we need to go in the future,' said Monty Emmanuel, Civil Engineer with the Ministry of Health

- one of the main organiz-ers of the workshop.

Emmanuel added that due to climate change re-lated events, such as the Christmas Eve Trough of 2013 which caused sever damage to infrastructure, the need to build resilience in facilities has become even more critical to al-low key structures such as a health centre to remain operational before, during and after a natural disaster.

The United Kingdom Department for Interna-tional Development (DFID) is funding this project to the tune of EC $5 million, which entails the training of personnel to compile relevant data and to retro-fit some of the facilities to make them Smart Health Care Facilities.

"As you know some of the facilities are in better con-

dition than others. Some are small and the capacities are growing so this will as-sist us to retrofit and make the facilities better and provide the necessary ser-vices required out of the health facility...Resilience is not only for health facili-ties it's for schools, houses, it's affecting everybody so we want the knowledge to spread. We used a toolkit which covered a wide range of activities not specific to health," Emmanuel stated.

Valerie Beach-Horne, Country Programme Spe-cialist for PAHO said the Safe Hospital Project is part of PAHO's response to climate change mitigation as the region has not been spared from numerous natural di-sasters in recent years.

"A lot of our health fa-cilities are located in ar-eas where they are prone

to flooding, where they are prone to damage from landslides, wind and other disasters, they're also large consumers of energy. So this project will no only make them safer in terms of location and how we can prevent some of the flooding issues and other negative effects of disasters but also how we can make them greener. How we can make them more energy ef-ficient and therefore more economical to run and this is the way we are trying to mitigate the effects and also impact on providing cheap-er and more economical health care for our people," Beach-Horne said.

She stated that PAHO through the assistance of DFID has already made a hospital in St. Vincent safe and Saint Lucia is now at the stage of assessing its facilities to make a determination as to which ones to retrofit, devel-op or make greener and safer after all the data has been processed and analysed.

The PAHO Official ex-pressed her satisfaction with the manner in which the workshop was con-ducted and encouraged the participants to continue im-plementing the techniques learned at the workshop to help build resilience in facilities to reduce the im-pacts of climate change.

“When purchasing ani-mals from any individual please ensure that the sell-er gives you a receipt for your purchase as well as a telephone number which is in service,” the unit said in a press statement.

Persons are also being reminded that praedial larceny is a criminal of-fense and is punishable by law and if convicted, indi-viduals can face up to 2 years behind bar or fined no more than $10,000.

Persons can report any suspected cases of prae-dial larceny by calling 454-1708 0r 453-8483 or contact the nearest police station.

Praedial Larceny Unit issues early warning to butchers:

Be ‘extra cautious’ when purchasing

animals for Christmas!

Health facilities to build resilience

Workshop participants were encouraged to implement the techniques learned

NationWIDE Saturday December 19, 2015NationWIDE

President Francois Hol-lande, UN Secretary General Ban Ki Moon,

COP 21 President Laurent Fabius, UNFCCC Executive Secretary Christiana Figue-res, Excellencies, Ladies and Gentlemen.

It is with a deep sense of pride and gratitude that I take the floor on behalf of my country Saint Lucia and the Caribbean Community, CARICOM, for which we hold lead responsibility for Climate Change and Sus-tainable Development.

The Government of Saint Lucia and the governments of the countries that make up CARICOM, applaud the process that has culmi-nated in the production of the Paris Agreement that we have just adopted. This has been a resounding tri-umph of multilateralism. You employed an inclusive, transparent, Party-driven mechanism that allowed every country, regardless of physical size or econom-ic circumstance, to have its voice heard.

Mr. President, I can con-fidently speak on behalf of my fellow Caribbean del-egations when I say that for perhaps the first time in a long time, Caribbean and other SIDS truly felt that our concerns were be-ing heard at a COP. Our

Our planet now has a more secure future!

Following is the full text of an address by Hon. Dr. James Fletcher, Minister for Sustainable Development, Energy, Science and Technology, on the occasion of the Closing Plenary of

COP21 on Saturday 12th December 2015, Paris, France

delegations witnessed a sincere interest to craft a fair, balanced and ambitious Agreement that sought to address the needs of the most climate-vulnerable countries. From the visit of Pres-ident Hollande to the Caribbean earlier this year to meet with

Caribbean leaders, to the three informal ministerial meetings co-hosted in Paris by COP20 President Manuel Pulgar Vidal and yourself, right through to COP21, there has been a genu-ine intention to engage, to listen, to discuss, and to find solutions.

Mr. President, equally impor-tant has been the leadership and the guidance you have provided to this process. I speak with a little insider knowledge on this subject, having served on your team of ministerial facilitators. Your focus, your drive, and your empathy played a significant role in ensuring that we adopted this historic Climate Change Agreement tonight. I also want to pay tribute to your excel-lent COP Presidency team, and please forgive me for singling out Laurence Tubiana for special attention. She has been a deter-mined, indefatigable champion.

There are elements in this document for which our CARI-COM countries are grateful. The increased ambition of the Agreement, as reflected by the reference to pursue efforts to limit the temperature increase to 1.5 degrees Celsius above pre-industrial levels, is a sig-nificant achievement that has already started to resonate with ‘positive vibrations’ throughout the Caribbean. The separate treatment of Loss and Damage in the Agreement is also a most welcomed development. While I pulled these two elements out for special mention, we view this Agreement not as a combi-nation of separate articles, but as a total package that will provide us with the legal framework for protecting our ecosystems, our islands, our people, our cultures and our planet.

After two intense weeks in this beautiful city of Par-is, of which unfortunately I have seen very little, I can return home to the citizens of my country and the Ca-ribbean and reassure them that the world cares about them. I can tell the young people in our region who adopted One Point Five to Stay Alive as their man-tra that their future looks much brighter today than it did two weeks ago. I can say to the artists who have sung songs and written po-etic verse on the need for urgent action on climate change that their voices have been heard. On a per-sonal level, when I return to my home in Saint Lucia, I can look back fondly and proudly on my two weeks here in Paris and know that together with a group of hard working and deter-mined men and women I helped create history; a his-tory that will ensure that my island and our planet will have a more certain future.

My country Saint Lucia is very proud and pleased to associate itself with this historic Paris Agreement.

Mr. President, Excellen-cies, Ladies and Gentle-men, I thank you for giving me this privilege. Merci beaucoup.

Senator Dr. James Fletcher

The Caribbean region is experiencing the impact of the ravaging effects of

climate change. Sea level rise, frequent and intense natural hazards; extended dry seasons resulting in water scarcity, loss of livelihoods and the disap-pearance of some of our islands are among the present-day dan-gers that we face.

The tourism sector and the environment are inextricably linked and environmentally responsible tourism is para-mount to the sector’s sustain-ability and overall success. Tourism must be stewarded and balanced so that the ben-efits for the environment, the communities it serves, its em-ployees and the economy out-weigh the costs. Our commit-ment to the climate cause is one way to do this.

The Conference of Parties 21 *(COP21) came to a close at the end of last week and the Ca-ribbean’s position was clear. Caribbean governments and regional agencies joined in one voice to shout their mes-sage of ‘1.5 to stay alive’ which urged global partners to sup-port a call to limit warming to

below 1.5C – a critical call on which our survival depends! The Caribbean Tourism Orga-nization (CTO) also endorsed this call!

Many are touting COP21 a success. The outcome, called the Paris Agreement, has been adopted by 195 nations, and for the first time brings all nations into a common cause based on their historic, current and future responsibilities. This is a huge achievement for the Caribbean.

The universal agreement’s main aim is to keep a global temperature rise this century well below 2 degrees Celsius and to drive efforts to limit the temperature increase even fur-ther to 1.5 degrees Celsius above pre-industrial levels.

This new agreement offers hope. As many of CTO’s mem-bers are Small Island Develop-ing States (SIDS), we remain optimistic that the tremendous strides made in Paris will help to ensure that this issue contin-ues to occupy a prominent posi-tion on the global agenda. Let us all do our part to support the outcomes in Paris in any way we can.

Statement by CTO on the Paris agreement on Climate Change


The Diplomatic Courier

The Bolivarian Republic of Venezuela on Thursday remembered and commemorated the 185th an-niversary of the death of one of the geniuses of America, the Father of the Venezuelan Homeland, The Liberator, Simón Bolívar. Bolivar died 17th December 1830 at the age of 47 in Santa Marta (Co-lombia) in San Pedro Alejandrino Great House. Bolivar triumphed 466 times of the 472 wars that he fought. He was also the Head of State of five nations. His ideas of freedom were written in 92 proclamations and 2,632 letters. He was the originator of the dream of Integration for the Republic of the Great Colombia (1819). The 185th anniversary of Biolivar’s death comes two years ahead of the 200th anniversary of the death of his saint Lucian Comrade-at-Arms Jean Baptiste Bideau, who died in 1817 in the fight for Venezuela’s Independence. During his recent visit here, President Nicolas Maduro said Venezuela and Saint Lucia will work together to ensure Bideau’s Death Bicentenary is properly observed by the two countries. In photo, President Maduro placed a flower at Bolivar’s bust in Place Bideau, the Castries square named after Bideau and dedicated to him and Bolivar.

Venezuelans commemorated 185th Anniversary Bolívar’s death

On Wednesday, Ambassador for the Argentine Republic H.E. Luis Beltrán Martínez Thom-as paid a courtesy call with the Saint Lucian Literature Nobel Laureate Prize Winner Hon Derek Walcott at his residence. During the visit, the Ambassador Martínez Thomas and Hon Walcott discussed various topics, including culture, and in particular the possibility of cultural relations between Saint Lucia and Argentina. Hon Walcott referred to various aspects of his literary and artistic trajectory and anecdotes referring to various renowned Argentine writers. In this sense, Ambassador Martínez Thomas donated to the Nobel Prize Winner works from various Argentine Writers including Jorge Luis Borges, Ernesto Sa-bato and Julio Cortázar. In photo (Left to right): Ms. Delfina Maria Martínez Thomas-Gay (daughter of the Ambassador) and Ambassador Martínez Thomas with Derek Walcott (seat-ed) and his companion Sigrid (standing at right).

Argentine delegation meets Saint Lucian Nobel Laureate

The world's ocean re-sources to play a criti-cal role in the region's

future.The head of the OECS Com-

mission’s Ocean Governance Unit (OGU) in the Organisa-tion of Eastern Caribbean States (OECS) Dr. Asha Singh says the 'Blue Economy' driven by the use of marine resources will play a pivotal role in the near future as re-sources on the earth are get-ting exhausted.

Speaking at a side event held at the Caribbean Pa-vilion at the UN Climate Change Conference (COP21), Dr. Singh said the OGU is leading efforts in the sub-region to develop the blue economy: “The ocean for us in the OECS is our last fron-tier for economic develop-ment. It’s an incredible real estate as we look at finding ways to develop it.”

Noting that a lot of atten-tion is being placed on the marine environment for its benefits, e.g., pharmaceutical benefits, Dr. Singh highlight-ed that one of the leading cancer-fighting drugs came from a Caribbean sponge, and around the world the marine plants and animals are being bio- prospected.

“The pharmaceutical in-dustry is a multi-billion dol-lar industry, and with the recognition of biotechnol-ogy, some of our living re-sources may hold potential, therefore access and bene-fit-sharing and intellectual property rights must be part of our governance. In this regard, the marine research mechanism which is part of the OECS oceans governance is critical.

Scientists say a Caribbean sponge has been discovered to generate compounds used in AZT (zidovudine, Retro-vir), which is used to fight the AIDS virus. A Caribbean

gorgonian (a soft coral) pro-duces a group of compounds with anti-inflammatory properties, which are also included in an anti-wrinkle cream.

Meantime, Dr. Singh, in looking at other activities, highlighted the maritime sector and noted that while some OECS Member States operate open registry, the region harbours a signifi-cant percentage of the global cruise and other maritime traffic, adding that: “We need to ensure that good due diligence is being done in the oceans, hence we are work-ing to update the navigation-al charts to make charting safer in the region.”

The OECS Commission’s Ocean Governance Unit also identifies marine renewable energy as a potential area, and is working to establish

a baseline assessment of the marine renewable potential in the region.

Dr. Singh noted that while currently the policy pre-scription and the policy direction in the OECS look more towards land based type renewable energy op-tions, such as geothermal and photovoltaic, marine re-newable is also growing in its recognition worldwide, and so should the region: “This is relevant, because as Small Island Developing States (SIDS), where land is limited, land based energy policy may face challenges, therefore we really need to look to the oceans as well, as that potential to drive our energy sustainability in both the short and long term.”

With the advent of climate change, Dr. Singh said this poses significant challenges as activities such as ocean acidification have the poten-tial to derail efforts at sus-tainable governance as well as efforts towards truly har-nessing the economic poten-tial in the context of the blue economy for the wellbeing of citizens.

The head of the OECS Commission’s Ocean Gov-ernance Unit adds that Climate change and global warming impacts the oceans in several ways - sea level rise, ocean acidification etc. All of these impacts take their toll on the ocean and its resources. Hence if there are no resources, the earning po-tential from the sea vanishes.

Therefore, she noted the need for mainstreaming cli-mate change to build greater climate resilience. She says the oceans are facing the brunt of climate change.

(This news article is a production of the Carib-bean News Service in col-laboration with the OECS Commission)

OECS Commission says oceans face brunt of climate change

Head of the OECS Commission’s Ocean

Governance Unit (OGU) in the Organization

of Eastern Caribbean States (OECS) Dr. Asha Singh

The Canadian Govern-ment-funded project Im-proved Access to Justice

in the Caribbean (IMPACT Justice) last week hosted its second Arbitration Legisla-tion Committee meeting to discuss drafting instructions for a Model Arbitration Bill.

IMPACT Justice, which is a regional justice sector reform project, is being implement-ed from within the Carib-bean Law Institute Centre, UWI, Cave Hill Campus.

The Arbitration Acts in CARICOM Member States are based on English arbitra-tion legislation of 1889 and 1934, later consolidated into

the Arbitration Act, 1950. The English have since mod-ernized their Arbitration Act in 1996.

Additionally, some 68 countries have modernised their arbitration legislation and adopted the UNCITRAL Model Law while the legisla-tion in CARICOM Member States remains, for the most part, outdated.

The drafting of model arbi-tration legislation is part of the Project’s mandate to draft gender and environmentally sensitive model CSME and other laws for presentation to the CARICOM Legal Affairs Committee for approval.

This is in keeping with the Project’s commitment to pro-vide assistance to CARICOM Member States in formulat-ing laws leading to coopera-tion and economic integra-tion as a means of promoting greater integration and sus-tainable economic growth in the region.

The meeting was held December 12th at the Hil-ton Hotel in Port of Spain, where committee members finalised the drafting in-structions for presentation to the legislative drafter. It is expected that the Model Ar-bitration Bill will be drafted by mid-2016.

IMPACT Justice Committee adopted drafting instructions for modern Arbitration Bill

Minister of the Interior of the Republic of Chi-na (Taiwan) Chen Wei-

zen last week presided over a ceremony marking the opening of a wharf and lighthouse on Taiping Island. The ceremony took place on December 12, demonstrating the ROC’s com-mitment to make Taiping Is-land a peaceful and low-carbon island, as well as an ecological reserve, in accordance with the spirit of the “South China Sea Peace Initiative”

In recent years, tensions have been high in the South China Sea. Parties concerned have claimed sovereignty and maritime rights over is-lands and reefs in the region in a variety of ways.

With regard to disputes in the South China Sea, Presi-dent of the ROC (Taiwan) Ma Ying-jeou proposed the “South China Sea Peace Ini-tiative” on May 26, 2015 to reiterate the ROC govern-ment’s longstanding prin-ciples of safeguarding sov-ereignty, shelving disputes,

pursuing peace and reci-procity, and promoting joint development.

Taiwan is willing to work with other parties concerned, through consultations conduct-ed on a basis of equality and reciprocity, to jointly ensure peace and stability in the South China Sea, uphold the freedom of navigation and overflight, and conserve and explore re-sources in the region.

Several management ef-forts made by the Taiwan government in recent years are aimed at gradually trans-forming Taiping Island into a peaceful island.

The Taiwan Coast Guard Administration was estab-lished in January 2000 and its personnel then replaced ma-rines on the island. This was, in effect, a Taiwan declaration to the international communi-ty of its determination to use Taiping for peaceful purposes.

In addition, medical services were increased at the Island. The Nansha Hospital with 10 beds, two doctors, a dentist

and two nurses, was estab-lished to provide medical care to personnel stationed on the island, as well as fishermen from different countries op-erating in neighboring waters.

With the opening of light-house and wharf on Taiping Island, Taiwan fulfils its in-ternational responsibilities by allowing the safe passage of ships through the surround-ing waters, preventing ship-wrecks, loss of life, and marine pollution and contributing to the safe seaborne transport of goods and the provision of hu-manitarian aid.

Taiwan hopes that to make Taiping Island a peaceful and low-carbon island, as well as an ecological reserve, as a way of further implementing the South China Sea Peace Initiative and showing the international community the ROC’s resolve to be a peace-maker in the South China Sea by shelving disputes and jointly developing resources, to transform it into a “Sea of Peace and Cooperation.”

Towards a ‘South China Sea of Peace and Cooperation’


ON THE ROAD TO RECOVERYOur mission now, is to remain

relentless in our effort to return our country to growth. Our people have sacrificed much. To-night I would like to tell you that we are not hopeless and we are beginning to see the signs of re-covery and growth.

Preliminary data for the period January to June 2015 suggest in-creases in output for most sectors of the economy, led principally by the tourism industry. During the first half of 2015, total over-stay arrivals increased by 5.3 per-cent, to 185,424. This represented a record level of arrivals over the last five years. There was a turnaround in construction and manufacturing grew by 1.8 per-cent. The review in agriculture was mixed. Inflation is on the decline and the overall fiscal po-sition improved.

One of our biggest challenges is to keep Saint Lucia’s momentum going, to accelerate growth even faster and to ensure that everyone reaps the benefits of that growth. We believe that in partnership with our Diaspora, with good policies and sound governance, we will face our challenges with renewed commitment. I believe in Saint Lu-cia. I want you to do likewise!

NOTHING CAN KEEP US DOWN!Continued from Page 5 CONCLUSION: YOUR

ATTACHMENT REMAINSIn our journey to progress

many Saint Lucians have left the country to seek better lives in other countries. In spite of all the musings on the brain drain, I am convinced that Saint Lucians can never be lost to their homeland. You may have removed yourself physically, but your attach-ment remains. The task is how to maintain a dialogue and to undertake to keep the naval string attached.

While National Day is one on which we reflect on the very beginnings of our coun-try and the progress that we have secured for our children and their children wherever they find themselves in the world. It is a day that gives us the opportunity to recall that our country has moved from strength to strength, even as we have faced natural and man-made disasters nationally and globally. We have come a long way, and in this season of optimism, let me say that noth-ing can keep us down.

Happy National Day to all Saint Lucians. If we all shine our light brightly we will light the way to a bright and happy future for our country.

The curtains came down on the National Woulélaba Competition hosted by the

Folk Research Centre on Monday 14th December, on the Dennery playing field. Barre de Chaussee won the toss and sent Mon Re-pos to bat. Mon Repos scored 188 runs off 250 balls for 7 .

In reply, Barre de Chaussee

was only able to score 168 runs off 250 balls for 8 wickets.

Mon Repos is now the new Woulélaba Champion for 2015.

A prize giving Ceremony was held on Thursday December 17th at the FRC Headquarters at 4: 00 p.m.

The Folk Research Centre

would like to say Thank You, to the following sponsors for mak-ing the 2015 Ntioanal Woulé-laba Competition a success. National Lottery Authority, Ministry of Youth and Sports, Paradise Springs, Bounty Rum, Blue Waters, Trophy Centre and Nato’s Sports and Educational Supplies.

Mon Repos is new Woulelaba Champion

The curtains come down tonight on the iconic 30th anniversary edition of

the Atlantic Rally for Cruisers (ARC).

All 194 vessels taking part in 2015 crossing have arrived on Saint Lucia -- safe and sound -- following the 2,700 nautical mile trans-oceanic crossing, which Saint Lucia has hosted for 26 consecutive years.

The over 1,200 crew members, accompanied by family and friends, will gather at the in-door training facility at Beause-jour, Gros-Islet this evening for

the Closing Ceremony, where various prizes and trophies will be awarded.

In early January of 2016, the Saint Lucia Tourist Board will again team-up with World Cruising Club and the IGY Rodney Bay Marina to stage the next edition of World ARC, an 18-month circum-navigation voyage, which will end back here in April 2017.

Scores of mariners and their families will spend the Christ-mas and New Year holiday sea-son here, while others will visit neighboring Caribbean islands.

Sails Down and Curtains Up for ARC 30 tonight!

All yachts that took the 2,700 mile Atlantic challenge arrived safely at Rodney Bay to end the historic 30th ARC.

The annual Club des Gom-miers Boat Race 2015 -- from Trois Islet in Martinique to

Gros Islet in Saint Lucia -- was held yesterday.

This year’s race included six Gommier boats and ten paddling canoes, with some 100 participants expected to make the channel crossing.

The first boat, upon arrival, was greeted with a welcoming cer-emony organized by the Gros Islet Constituency Council and the Saint Lucia Tourist Board at the Gros Is-let Waterfront, with addresses by Mayor for Gros Islet Ms. Alison King, Minister for Tourism Lorne

Theophilus, French Ambassador Eric De La Moussaye and District Representative Emma Hippolyte.

A Cultural Exchange was sched-uled for last night, with a Regatta planned for today, starting at 3pm at the Gros Islet Waterfront; and a prize-giving award ceremony to-night will end the official activities.

The Club des Gommiers Boat Race is in its 21st year and the par-ticipants will return to Martinique tomorrow.

The Gros Islet Constituency Council and the Saint Lucia Tour-ist Board and several other organi-zations contributed to the event’s success.

Gommier (traditional boat) race, Les Trois-Ilets, Martinique, French West Indies, Caribbean, Central America. (Photo credit: robertharding.com)

The national weight loss competition sponsored by the Ministry of health

has come to an end with partici-pants receiving their pried and recognition awards, all having enjoyed shedding weight for better health.

Lucella King of Vieux Fort (Re-gion 5) emerged the overall winner of the inaugural weight loss com-petition dubbed Pedi Gwes Sent Lisi, Bon Santé Pou Lavi organised by the Ministry of Health, Well-ness, Human Services and Gender Relations.

In second place was Zarella Phil-bert from Vieux Fort (Region 5) with third place going to Natalina Altius from Gros Islet (Region1).

The prize for the winning region when to Region 5 (Vieux Fort) with participants loosing a combined 181 lbs.

The 3 month long competition commenced August 27th with 90 competitors from all nine health regions around the island.

During the competition par-ticipants were engaged in a hike/walk to Moule A Chique, a last man standing Dance-A-Thon, a challenging obstacle course and 2 workshops which provided nutri-tion, meal proportioning and exer-cise tips to participants.

The final weigh-in on November 27th assessed not only participants overall weight loss but also tracked changes in their Body Mass Index (BMI), body fat percentage, visceral

fat percentage (internal fat), muscle mass, and waist circumference.

Permanent Secretary in the Min-istry of Health, Cointha Thomas indicated that Chronic Non-Com-municable Diseases (CNCD’s) have reached epidemic propor-tions with nearly 36 million people worldwide dying from CNCD’s ev-ery year. What is striking, she said, is that these deaths are largely pre-ventable.

“Indeed CNCD’s were altering demographics, stunting develop-ment, and impacting economic growth.

“This competition though small by comparison is a key event and an opportunity, when it takes root, will advance the protection of na-tional vulnerable populations.

“Everyone has the right to enjoy the highest attainable standard of physical and mental health and I dare say it is everyone’s respon-sibility to help realize that right.” Thomas stated

Minister for Health, Wellness, Hu-man Services and Gender Relations, Hon. Alvina Reynolds congratulat-ed participants stating that they are all winners as their hard work and determination to complete this com-petition is in itself a success.

“To you the participants, compet-itors, the Pedi Gwesers, you came, your registered, you got weighed, you attended sessions, you danced, you hiked, you walked and whined, you lifted weights what else did you do? What did you not do?

“You had fun, you busted ‘nuff sweat’, you cooked better, you ate better, you drank more water. Let this be your way of life. Embrace this new life. You are all winners; you have all won better health.” Reynolds asserted.

In attendance was Ambassador to the Republic of China (Taiwan) Ray Mou, who presented nutrition booklets to each of the nine partici-pating regions.

In offering remarks the Taiwan-ese Ambassador said he felt the happiness and joy of the partici-pants and the friendships which were formed during the competi-tion.

“Your loss is your gain. This is something we would like to share with our people in Taiwan. If the ladies here can do it, we can do that too in my own country.

“So, now we can see the result af-ter the 124 scales,” Mou stated.Priz-es were also awarded to the Indi-vidual winners of the each region.

Special recognition was paid to Andre Felix, Fitness Instructor and Personal Training Coach, to Sensi Timothy Francis 8th Dan Black Belt and to Tennil Wolff of Zumba Fit-ness, all of who worked with and motivated participants, free of charge, over the three-month-long competition.

The Ministry of Health hopes to make this Pedi Gwes Sent Lisi, Bon Sante Pou Lavi, Weight Loss Com-petition an annual event on its cal-endar of events.

Winners of Pedi Gwes weight loss competition honoured at prize-giving ceremony

The participants in the weight loss competition had fun and their loss was described as their gain!

Trois Islets Gommiers make 21st Gros Islet landing!

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