 Coming to you from our GIS studios, I am General Novel and this is your midday news brief. The St. Lucia Public Service joined the United Nations in celebrating Public Service Day, held annually on the 23rd of June. A week of activities was planned in an effort to commemorate the day, including an ecumenical service for public servants. Permanent Secretary in the Department of the Public Service Peggy-Anne Soudat addressed the congregation reminding public servants that what they do is not just a job but a vocation and not just about the money but the service. Soudat also addressed what she described as a misconception about the public service, calling on public servants to change the public's perception through hard work, commitment and dedication to the job. This year's commemoration was observed under the theme of transforming our public service, building excellence and promoting good governance, our journey, our future. The day was dedicated to celebrating the value and virtue of public service to the community, highlighting the contribution of public service in the development process, recognizing the work of public servants and encouraging young people to pursue careers in the public sector. Meanwhile, the Department of the Public Service has embarked on its revamped Comprehensive Orientation Program for new officers in the public service. The new Orientation Program brought together its first group of 22 staff members from various government departments and focused on topics such as professionalism and ethics in the workplace, customer satisfaction, time management, productivity in the workplace, stress management, understanding NIC benefits, conflict prevention, safety and health in the workplace and personal financial planning. A new training policy for the public service has also been approved by the Cabinet of Ministers in February of 2019. The unit has proudly touted Cabinet's decision to reintroduce study leave with pay and tuition refund for public officers who meet the set criteria. Minister for Education, Innovation, Gender Relations and Sustainable Development, Honourable Dr. Gail Rigabet sent a special congratulatory message to St. Lucian students. He recently graduated having been studying in Taiwan for some time now. She expressed that the country is extremely proud of the students' achievements and wished them the very best in their future endeavors. Every year, the Government of the Republic of China Taiwan makes available a number of scholarships to St. Lucian's including the Taiwan Scholarship, ICDF and Aishu Medical Scholarship Program. These scholarship programs provide opportunities to young talented St. Lucian's to study in Taiwan for Bachelor, Master or PhD degrees. Since re-establishing diplomatic relations with the Republic of China Taiwan in 2007, over 150 St. Lucian's have benefited from the annual scholarships. That's all for the midday news brief. Thanks for tuning in.