 Welcome to NTN Nightly. I am General Norvel. This edition stops stories. The Larger Early Childhood Development Centre welcomes a new playground. Parents receive skill support under the Youth Empowerment Project. And the Love St Lucia campaign concludes an exciting component. For the second time in as many months, corporate citizen rainforest adventures, based in Babuno, has not only contributed to the community, but invested in its future with the donation of another facility for toddlers. The management of rainforest adventures officially handed over a children's playground to the Larger Early Childhood Development Centre. More from Herma de Mark. The Larger Early Childhood Development Centre has been gifted a new playground. The long-awaited project is the second donation of its kind by rainforest adventures in the community of Babuno and was facilitated by the Ministry of Education as well as the Minister for Agriculture, Fisheries, Physical Planning, Natural Resources and Cooperatives and Parliamentary Representative for Babuno, Honourable Isikal Joseph. Principal at the Early Childhood Development Centre, Junior Shasni says the new facility will help develop the motor skills and self-esteem of students. We at the Larger JK are delighted to be recipients of this impressive facility. It's been a very long wait and we know our kids will love it. From a bleak, damp, cold school ground, from having to play indoors with sometimes post-difficulty to a beautiful, green, well-fenced, well-tuned playground. It is a hard-working occasion for us. General Manager of Rainforest Adventures Darrell Raymond, speaking on their contribution to the project, highlighted key considerations made in building the playground, including the creation of a green space through the planting of trees and flowers. I also want to say that while we have made this investment specifically for the school, we also believe that the wider community should be able to benefit and participate. So, we have had initial discussions with the principal to determine a modality where children from the wider community can use this space, particularly on the weekends. Of course, it would have to be done in a responsible way, ensuring close supervision and control, safety and security, and the following of the necessary COVID-19 protocols for sanitation. And as a company, we stand ready to assist you in finding that balance where the school can benefit as well as the community at large can benefit. District Education Officer Sarah C. Powell showed immense appreciation to Rainforest Adventures for their contribution to the project and outlined the many benefits of learning through play. Early childhood education often focuses on learning through play. How does learning through play? Based on the research and philosophy of Jean-Pierre G., which posits the play meets the physical, intellectual, language and emotional and social needs of the children. Children's curiosity and imagination naturally evoke. Listen to this, naturally evoke learning when unfettered. Listen to this, very interesting. Learning through play will allow a child to develop cognitively. Parliamentary representative for Babu No Honourable Izekal Joseph expressed his commitment to improving the learning environment for students in the community. We had the recognition program for students who perform well at the common entrance that has been going on for many years now. I've given support to many schools as it pertains to improving the infrastructure equipment, paying salaries to assist with the implementation of programs at school. We have the after-school program, we have the school, we employ at least three individuals who want to go around to look at the whole aspect of netball, football and cricket. And I must say that I'm really satisfied with what we've seen happening with the netballers under the leadership of Mrs. Moutoud. Honourable Joseph said he hopes for future collaboration with Rainforest Adventures for the development of the community. From the Government Information Service, Helmete Mark reporting. The parenting program under the Youth Empowerment Project, yep, Wednesday 5th May 2021, began operation. The pilot is engaging 32 parents in the Cassarys region for a three-week period from the Wilton's Yard Human Resource Centre and the City Hall. The program is intended as a source of support for parents and carers and offers an opportunity to share parenting experiences, develop a greater understanding of child development, build positive relationships and learn skills to deal with challenging behaviour. For effective execution of this initiative, yep is collaborating with the Division of Human Services. Beverly Ann Poyert is the Director of Human Services. The parenting program was initially conceptualised sometime in October 2020 when the Youth Empowerment Program Director, Coordinator, reached out to us at the Division of Human Services and we actually welcomed this opportunity because this is something that we at the Division have been wanting to do for a very long time. And so with the assistance of the Youth Empowerment Project, we embarked upon putting this program together. We already had some resources in terms of our manuals and so it was a matter of just getting this program off the ground. The yep and the Division of Human Services fall under the Ministry of Equity, Social Justice, Local Government and Empowerment. Permanent Secretary Vela Joseph looks forward to the successful rollout of the pilot program consistent with overall efforts to strengthen social support offerings by the Ministry. We remain committed to building strong families and enhancing social resilience in the interest of the development of St. Lucia. It is my hope that this parenting program proves useful to all participants and that we will see many more such initiatives in the future. I listened to Director and I am looking forward to those additional initiatives around the island as this becomes a national endeavor. After the three-week pilot phase, a yep intends to upgrade the parenting program to a national scale. The Love St. Lucia campaign has concluded an exciting component which drew participation from a wide cross-section of the population. The Ministry of Commerce, Industry, Investment, Enterprise Development and Consumer Affairs as part of activities for St. Lucia's 42nd Independence Anniversary who set a video competition. The video competition was held another Ministry's Love St. Lucia campaign with a view of increasing consumer awareness and domestic market share of local products. Marketing specialists in the Ministry of Commerce Cindy Eugene highlighted the thrust behind the competition. The overarching vision of the Love St. Lucia campaign is to build resiliency in the St. Lucia economy by maximizing the potential of local industry, improving consumer awareness and increasing domestic market share of our local manufacturers and service providers. Although COVID-19 has forced us to recognize the value of developing local industry, many are unaware of the variety of goods manufactured or services offered. Therefore, as part of the 42nd Independence Celebration, the Ministry of Commerce, International Trade, Investment, Enterprise Development and Consumer Affairs hosted a video competition, a 42-second video competition dubbed Local Product Challenge. The competition ran from February 22 to May 5, 2021 and received some 28 submissions. As part of the competition dubbed Local Products Challenge, participants were required to create a 42-second video showcasing as many local products as possible, include the Love St. Lucia logo in the video and upload the video to the Ministry's Facebook and tag Love St. Lucia and Commerce St. Lucia. Public Relations Officer for Export St. Lucia and Panel Judge for the competition, Jason Darius, indicated that individuals were judged based on six categories with a maximum allocation of 20 points each, totaling 120 points on the tally sheet. Number four, technical quality. This is where we looked at the overall quality of the submission for both video and audio noting the effort and attention to detail and if the message is communicated effectively. Number five, the link to the theme. It was a Local Products Challenge. So we had to allocate points to as to how St. Lucia and the overall production was and lastly we had creativity and originality. We were looking for something extraordinary, something that really stood out from the rest. So each of these categories were scored out of 20 points, making a perfect score of 120 points on the judge's tally sheet. Literally no one got a perfect score with our judges being so scrutinous and meticulous with their approach, sorry. So when it was all said and done and the scores had to be counted, we still came very close to a tie for first place with just one point separating the winner and the runner up. The People's Choice Award went to Shana Joseph. Perth Selector P Prospect came in third with 301 points, winning a $500 cash prize. Lendley Hunt came in second with 322 points, winning $1000 and Gail Charles secured first place with 323 points, and earned $3,000 in cash. The Ministry of Commerce is confident that with continuous sensitization activities, consumers will pivot their purchasing options towards domestic consumption. Chairman of the COVID-19 Command Centre and Minister for Tourism, Information and Broadcasting, Culture and Creative Industries, Honourable Dominic Fede, revealed that over 100 frontline workers are part of the COVID-19 infection toll in St. Lucia. While endorsing the state of emergency extension in the sitting of House of Assembly, Honourable Fede emphasized the importance of eliminating as many threats to the national health and security systems during the pandemic. When your frontliners are being affected, Mr Speaker, you have to take the extra precaution to make sure that the people whom you're asking to protect the population are also at risk. And so this is not a time, Mr Speaker, where things are normal. And so what we have to do is to make sure that we secure the country, we secure the health system, we secure the police and the enforcement system so that we can have the best capacity to be able to manage this pandemic. And so, Mr Speaker, so about 128 frontliners have been affected to date with COVID-19. They include nurses and doctors and other medical practitioners, including pharmacists and health personnel, Mr Speaker. The Command Centre chair reinforced that the state of emergency as experienced on Ireland in the past year has not been oppressive but has been effectively utilized as a proactive measure. We have seen, Mr Speaker, that where there have been a curfew as recently as Easter, we see, Mr Speaker, that we're able to manage the pandemic well. The job and the work of the police becomes a lot easier. It is with more clarity. It becomes a lot easier for people to comply, Mr Speaker, to the protocols. As well, Mr Speaker, we've had several months of this, the state of emergency during the course of the pandemic. People have been able to go to the supermarket. People have been able to go to the beach. People have been able to go pay their bills. People have been able to go see their families. People have been able to go to church. And the list of liberties, Mr Speaker, is long. And so I reject those suggestions that we're trying to restrict those liberties. Parliament has approved the extension of the state of emergency and in October 16, 2021. Meanwhile, over the week, more than 36,000 people have died from COVID-19 related complications. Nearly 40% of all global COVID deaths reported last week took place in this region of the Americas. More Latin American countries than ever before are reporting over 1,000 COVID cases a day. Director of the Pan American Health Organization, Dr. Carissa Etienne, says hospitals are fuller than ever. A sad reminder that we are still in the midst of an ongoing crisis. Canada is continuing to report significant jumps in infections in highly populated provinces as Ontario, as well as in less populated territories of the North and Yukon, which are home to remote and indigenous communities. Puerto Rico and Cuba remain significant drivers of COVID cases in the Caribbean, although infections are also on the rise in many smaller islands. And Willa, for example, has reported nearly 70% of its total COVID cases in just the last 10 days. And in St. Vincent and the Grenadines, cases are increasing among internally displaced people following the recent eruption of the Lasso Freya volcano. In Central America, Guatemala is seeing significant spikes in cases and Costa Rica is reporting record high infections. Across both countries, hospitals are full of patients, most of them under 70 years of age. Cases are rapidly accelerating in the Guyanas and across Argentina and Colombia, where weekly case accounts are five times higher than they were this time last year. Hospitals are reaching capacity in Colombia's metropolitan cities and death rates have jumped by more than a quarter over the last week. Dr. Etienne says despite all that has been learned about this virus in a year, the control efforts are not as strict and prevention is not as efficient. And we are seeing what happens when these measures are relaxed. COVID spreads, cases mount, our health systems become overwhelmed and people die. The power director urges all to practice social distancing, masks and avoiding gatherings in closed spaces, as doing so is the key to reducing transmission, especially as dangerous variants of concern circulate in the region. This is Etienne Knightley, up next primers Hutchinson with the Etienne Nouvelle Aquéol. One of the age universally recognized rights of the consumer is the right to satisfaction of basic needs. This means that every consumer has the right to basic goods and services that guarantee survival. This right includes adequate food, clothing, shelter, healthcare, education, water and sanitation. Welcome back. We join primers Hutchinson for the Etienne Nouvelle Aquéol. Monsieur Tha Genelle. Monsieur mesdames departements, c'est une responsabilité pour la formation en gouvernement celle-ci, c'est JIS et la télévision nationale PIA NTN, qu'il y a pour la nouvelle Aquéol, pour la primers Hutchinson. Travail pour bâtir le premier, un communiqué de sac, j'ai commencé avec le projet salaire qu'il a fait pour renforcer la capacité pour éclater la construction pour plus la hibe et plus fort que ça qui était qu'à exister avant. Pour j'ai pour bâtir le premier salaire, qui a aussi l'occasion de plus de travail et qui a aussi poussé vitesse économie celle-ci. Ça a fait un grand assistance finance en hôtel de 27 millions de dollars au gouvernement Japon. Le premier salaire a fait une école de sac et qui a aidu autant à secrétiser les pournuites pour rester fermées à résultats de gaudelous et de mauvais désass. Le premier salaire a stabilisé la longue et plus long et plus large. Pour le premier salaire, il a aussi fait possible pour réduire ce gaudelous à ces communes qui les ont comme sans gaudelans et de soucis. À part de ça, il a aussi poussé force à dégouiller la vie sociale économique, comme un salaire, qui a une cause pour le chemin plus résilient que le désass. Pour le premier salaire, qui a bâtir le premier salaire professionnel et qui a aussi bâti un bâillon au déguis international, même du terrain, le département des affaires de construction et de travaux et de nouveaux responsabilités pour lesquels tout le travail a supposé ça, marcher comme doit être. Il y a un conseil humain qui peut se passer. Pour le premier salaire, il y a des constructions et de travaux en Europe, Stavinson King, des affaires de développement économique, et un Parlement pour Passage Sud-Est, Gai Joseph et le gouvernement Japon. Merci au gouvernement à pays Japon pour continuer à soutenir l'avancement et à développer un pays pour assister finance pour bâtir le premier salaire du Québec. Merci au gouvernement à la province de Charleston pour assister plusieurs discussions et pour la province du Québec et du Québec pour bâtir le premier salaire du Québec pour bâtir le premier salaire au déguis international. Merci au gouvernement pour bâtir le premier salaire and pay carry come check up with the match and preparation for season new touristic Salah. I'm going to miss the description. I'm going to miss the chance to discuss development. I'm not going to be there for VFO, for service go, battle, touristic. I'm going to miss the chance to chat with you a little bit. I present myself in quarantine for 14 days because of the protocol that is in place because of the corona. The one time I'm going to miss the lot pay. I'm going to miss the possibility to do a call. We are going to ask Joseph to write a position that will be able to miss. National conservation. The set list that supports the project that was funded by the touristic agency, called TEF, to help find and promote the organization of the Nager. The set list is called a bagel. The set list is for Yon Lannay. The set list is for the capacity of the Nager. The set list is for the organization of the Coral. A bagel is Nager for the scuba service. The set list is also for the way to build a Coral in this place. The set list is also for the capacity of the Nager. The set list is mainly for the youth to find a way to build a scuba service and a set list that supports the certificate that supports the participation of the Nager to assist the organization of the Coral. The set list is for the start of March 2021. There are 10 participants who participated in the Nager competition and more than that, they did the Nager at Pigeon Island. Sunder's Resort is for the equipment and the boat to be able to participate in the experience and exercise. There are more than 6 participants who can do the service. The set list is also available in different places. The set list is also available in different places. Thank you very much for joining us. Thank you very much for watching. If you have any questions or suggestions, please send them to our channel. Merci, Apel Primus. That brings us to the end of NTN Nightly. Join us next time at 7pm with a repeat at 7am. You can also catch up with us anytime on the St Lucia Government Facebook page or YouTube channel. I am Janelle Norvel.