 Welcome to the NTN Nightly. I'm Nisha Charles. This edition stomps stories. The Ministry of Health and Wellness prepares for the arrival of US Naval Ship Comfort. Major rehabilitation works are being completed at schools island wide in time for the opening of the new academic year. All that plus the latest in youth development, France and the NTN Nouvelle Arc-Puillon. As Nisha prepares for the arrival of the United States Naval Ship Comfort for its humanitarian mission in September, the Ministry of Health and Wellness is putting measures in place to facilitate the free medical care which will be provided by the ship. The ship intends to be in St. Lucia from September 23, 2019 to October 2, 2019. Officials involved in preparing for the mission spoke to the media earlier this week about the preparations thus far. Chief medical officer Dr. Merlyn Fredericks James says all the health professionals will be vetted before practicing in St. Lucia. We do have in St. Lucia laws and regulations which speak to the licensing and registration of medical professionals, health professionals, pharmacists and there are various councils. So there's a medical and dental council which is going to review and vet all of the doctors and dentists on the program. We have the Allied Health Council which would look at the lab tests, the physiotherapists and any other Allied Health professionals. We have Pharmacy Council to vet the pharmacists and we have the St. Lucia Nursing Council which will be vetting the nurses. The ship will be berthed at port cache trees and will have two walking clinics. Medical care is free of charge and residents are encouraged to take advantage of the service. Medical officer of health Dr. Sharon Belma George reminded the public of the services which will be offered at the walking clinic. Internal medicine, pediatrics, general medicine, dental services, optometry including the provision of spectacles as glasses, physical therapy, women's health, dermatology and pharmacy. The estimates according to the US team based on the number of medical staff that they will have at those clinics, they could see up to 500 persons at each site per day at these walking clinics. The ship will also provide diagnostic services and surgical care. These services however are pre-scheduled and require a referral from a physician or a request from a local doctor. They have available a CT scan, ultrasound, X-ray, echocardiogram, laparoscopy, chemistry and hematology as well will be done soon during testing. All of those are available on the boat. They will be working, they are working very closely with our local solution health practitioners. Both on the boat we have a team of nurses and physicians who will be a part of the team on the boat working alongside them seeing our patients. Following on from St. Lucia, the ship will visit Trinidad and Tobago, Grenada, St. Kitts, Jamaica, the Dominican Republic and Haiti. Thousands of students across the island are preparing to return to the classrooms this coming week for the academic year 2019-2020. Over the summer break, the Ministry of Education, Innovation, Gender Relations and Sustainable Development has been undertaking significant rehabilitation works to have the school plants ready. While most schools will reopen on Monday, September 2, 2019, a few have been delayed. There are approximately 73 primary and 26 secondary schools in St. Lucia. Before independent, schools in St. Lucia will manage by different religious dominations, in particular the Roman Catholic Church, the 7-day Adventists and Methodist Churches. Today, all public schools are funded and maintained by central government. As a result, many schools go years without any significant maintenance works. The Bavano Secondary School was built in 1999. Last year, the school had to be closed temporarily to allow for roof repairs, mould remediation and to solve some pestering electrical issues. Dr. Gil Rigabet is the Minister for Education, Innovation, Gender Relations and Sustainable Development. The teachers were very incensed about the condition of the school, very literally having to vacate classrooms, sometimes with the slightest drizzle because of the state, the infrastructural decay of the building. Previous administrations would have allocated a million dollars to attend to the repairs of all 100-plus schools. The Mondidor Primary School was built in 1982 and receives a subvention of $4,000 annually, principle of the Mondidor Primary School just into August, explained that the school is plagued with a litany of infrastructural problems. Our roof was a major problem where it rained, the teachers had to use bins and all kinds of things to collect water. In the classes where some of the ceilings were missing, it was so hot that we had to employ other methods to try to keep the heat out. Our annex, we had to vacate it. This year, the Grozile Pre-School and Primary School, Vibhutai Secondary, Millet Infant and Primary, Monripopasius Combined and the Beanfield Secondary School are some of the schools receiving major infrastructural improvements. From bathrooms to painting, replacement of windows and upgrades, the building technology wing, the Sufra Secondary School will be receiving a significant portion of the allocated budget for repairs. Alton Mondizi is the Ministry of Education's building officer. Definitely, we have not seen this kind of money put into school. I mean, I welcome it. It started from last year and this year we've got the same sort of budget to work with and I welcome it. Aldin Louis 39 is the Director of Works at the Ministry of Education. The $10 million, a lot of people seem to think that it's a summer program. No, it's a capital program for the entire 2019-2020 school year. Of course, a lot of it happens during the summer period because this is the time where a lot of the students are out and we get a long enough break so that we could do infrastructure refurbishments on the schools. We had a lot of schools getting the brunt of that $10 million, probably 60% of that money would have been spent or is being spent during the summer period. After the signed visits, Prime Minister the Honourable Alan Shasne reflected on the state of various education plans while reaffirming its government's commitment for greater investment in the sector. I was one of those who was holding back on a lot of the work initially because I was very keen on understanding where our education system was going to go and with technology coming in. And then when again the Minister took me around to some of the schools and I saw the conditions, basic things, bathrooms, doors, roofs. I knew we had to move much quicker and that's why we found $10 million last year. I was able to get an additional $10 million this year and we're going to be allocating another $10 million next year. The rehabilitation works were conducted by community-based contractors recommended by local government. For the Government Information Service, I am Genal Norville. And this is the NTN Nightly, Ryan of Rhymes, up next. Be aware of and follow water conservation practices. Here are a few tips to help you save water. Wash dishes in a basin of water instead of a running tap. Soak pots and pans instead of letting the water run while scraping them. Check toilets for leaks by putting dye in the tank. If colour shows in the bowl without flushing, there is a leak. A leaking toilet can waste thousands of gallons of water. Use a bucket instead of a hose to wash cars and reuse grey water from laundry to water plants. Water conservation reduces energy consumption and strain on the water distribution system. Conserve water whenever possible and remember, every job counts. A message brought to you by the Water and Sewage Company Incorporated, Wasco. Welcome back. We join Ryan O'Brien for the latest happenings in youth development and sport. Thanks, Misha. Welcome everyone to your weekend update from Youth Development and Sports on the NTN Nightly News. I'm Ryan O'Brien. The National Sports Academy will be open soon to harness the sporting talent that exists among St. Lucien youth and boost their academic development at the same time. Ministry responsible for education, innovation, gender relations and sustainable development. The Honourable Gail Rigabet explains the rationale why the Grosely Secondary School became a natural choice to be transformed into the National Sports Academy. Why the Grosely Secondary School? One, its proximity to other sporting facilities, the Darren Sammy Grounds, the Table Tennis or Tennis Center, the Aquatic Center. But also, Grosely had additional benefits which include that the compound still had a lot of unused land and therefore expansion for dormitories, gym, kitchens, etc. The space was there and the school itself had demonstrated a keen interest in the sporting development of its own students. The school benefits from strong leadership in the person of Mrs. Charles and her team. So all these variables led themselves to Grosely being the school of choice. Dr. Rigabet also noted there was additional scope for further development of the physical plant when the Academy is up and running. Despite not coming home with the championship trophy after the recent Calabrian Charity Football Tournament in Grenada, coach of the Boys Training Center team Alvin Xavier said the behaviour of the boys was exemplary and he was satisfied that the objectives of the tour to Grenada were met. No one could point their fingers at BTC. We have been modern players, modern citizens, nothing to talk about. Whether we got bad tackles, we still got up to play the game. If referee calls were not going our way, we never will add the referee because we had already prepared them for that. And I must say, we have been doing greatly. Some of the organisers have given us that feedback that they see us as one of the more disciplined teams in the tournament and for me that's the victory I was looking for. The St. Lucian team returned home on Sunday and were named the most disciplined team in the competition. That's your weekend update from youth development and sports on the NTN Nightly News. I'm Ryan O'Brien. Thanks Ryan. The private sector continues to partner with the Ministry of Health and Wellness to promote healthier lifestyles. Magical insurances recently collaborated with the ministry for their second health fair. The Ministry of Health has partnered with Magical to host a health fair promoting healthier lifestyles and regular screenings. The fair allowed for diet consultations, free screenings as well as exercise tips. Janelle Alexander-Dupre is a family life educator with the Bureau of Health Education. We're hoping to get our numbers and persons screened so they get to know their health status. So for example when the persons go and do their blood sugars that they get to understand where the sugar level is at and also since we have our nutritionists on board if the sugars are within the ranges where we become concerned then they could go to the nutritionists and be able to get a sort of diet plan. From that diet plan we also have our exercise people on board. This is the second year that Magical has partnered with the Ministry of Education to host a health fair. Adele Jabati's general manager of Magical Insurance explained the rationale behind the collaboration. As a health insurer we saw the need because we see the rising cost of health care in Central Asia and we understand that not everyone can afford insurance. So we partnered with the Ministry of Health to put on this event to facilitate questions coming in, to get consultation etc. and also in a more relaxed environment so you could feel free to ask those questions. With some music in the background and you have your family with you it's a Saturday and we chose a Saturday because it's a... we understand that a busy work week doesn't allow much time for you to run in and out to get that routine checkup. And you tend to put it aside, you tend to make it the last minute priority I should say. So we wanted to give back, we wanted to do our part and ensure that we at least try to better the health of our nation. The health fair took place at the Magical grounds in Raidwee on Saturday, August 17th, 2019. From the Government Information Service, I am Anisia Antoine-O'Quarting. And stay with the NTN Nightly. Up next... ...Pharmas Hutchinson is here with the NTN Newville Aquarium. Welcome back. We join Parmas Hutchinson for the NTN Newville Aquarium. We have a $40 million video for you. The school started last season. The University of St. Louis, for education, we have Dr. Gail Rigabet. And the Newville Aquarium has announced that... ...there are some tips to get out of the water before the government comes to see you. According to Dr. Rigabet, the Ministry of Education could only get $10 million to address the situation at the school. I am happy that the Ministry of Education is looking for confidence in its students. The Ministry of Education is also looking to address the situation at the school. The Ministry of Education is also looking to address the situation at the school. I am also looking to get confidence in the students. The school is always looking for a very serious problem. An electric problem, a septic tank problem. A toilet that has to be cleaned. A toilet that has to be cleaned. A wooden pole. We are not satisfied with the condition of the school. But we will continue to do that. And the last program we will do at the school is... ...the school that is trying to improve the quality of the water. We are not satisfied with the situation at the school. The Ministry of Education is also looking to address the situation at the school. We are not satisfied with the situation at the school. We are not satisfied with the condition of the school. The Ministry of Education is looking to address the situation at the school. We are not satisfied with the situation at the school. The Ministry of Education is also looking to increase the quality of the water. The Ministry of Education is looking to address the situation at the school. We are not satisfied with the situation at the school. The Ministry of Education is looking to address the situation at the school. The first year we've done that, but without bagai, we know that this is what we've been doing for a long, long, long, long time. There's a lot of young people who are very talented. This is a quality opportunity for young people who are very talented and have a lot of bagai. If you have a quality job, you can develop a sport that you can do well. This is a quality opportunity for young people who are very talented and have a lot of bagai. This is a quality opportunity for young people who are very talented and have a lot of bagai. This is a quality opportunity for young people who are very talented and have a lot of bagai. This is a quality opportunity for young people who are very talented and have a lot of bagai. This is a quality opportunity for young people who are very talented and have a lot of bagai. This is a quality opportunity for young people who are very talented and have a lot of bagai. This is a quality opportunity for young people who are very talented and have a lot of bagai. This is a quality opportunity for young people who are very talented and have a lot of bagai. This is a quality opportunity for young people who are very talented and have a lot of bagai. This is a quality opportunity for young people who are very talented and have a lot of bagai. This is a quality opportunity for young people who are very talented and have a lot of bagai. This is a quality opportunity for young people who are very talented and have a lot of bagai. This is a quality opportunity for young people who are very talented and have a lot of bagai. This is a quality opportunity for young people who are very talented and have a lot of bagai. This is a quality opportunity for young people who are very talented and have a lot of bagai. This is a quality opportunity for young people who are very talented and have a lot of bagai. This is a quality opportunity for young people who are very talented and have a lot of bagai.