 Yeah, so we have an update on noise pollution also the semi-pro football league and also Alternative sports season And to me there's something else. I have an update for you all on it. So you can quiz me Cricket woke up. Yes So the Attorney General did provide a false draft of what that legislation in fact Amendment to the noise pollution Legislation would look like It found itself in a public domain and as a public as a government that is in full relief for transparency We have absolutely no issues with People from the community opining on what they've seen what I can say is the Police the police went throughout the community subsequent to that to do their evaluation of decibel levels in terms of what would be acceptable in the different areas in Grossly and of course indeed legislation is national for St. Lucia and They've presented some of their findings in terms of what decibel levels that we should be looking at So as we speak we are pretty much fine-tuning everything We are still communicating with the police with residents with bar owners Just to get a feel for how it is that we come to some form of a compromise The fact of the matter is everybody's not going to be happy There is just absolutely no way to make everybody happy as it pertains to noise pollution but what we have to do as a government is to provide the legislation and to ensure that The police as much as possible ensure that the laws have held and so we certainly hoping that very very soon we will have the final the final legislation and Of course, we will take it to parliament for full Sweden Well, the key parts of the legislation in terms of what did not exist before Before we as a government decided that we going to do what we said we're going to do and provide representation for all I can see my predecessors never did Was to deal with decibel levels this is a new a new method of of measuring an objective method of Measuring noise and so at the end of the day once you get the different decibel levels That should provide some level of comfort for you know people to enjoy This self while at the end of the day not really infringing on the rights of others to have some level of peace The fact of the matter is we have we have different parts of St. Lucia that are dual dual sort of It functions as both an entertainment area and residency and so you will not find common ground All the time, but we are definitely as a government We've worked very hard to ensure that we arrive at a level that that should be should be able to give the police something to work with Yes, you're thinking like a modern young individual certainly we've given a lot of thought to what it is that we can do To ensure that you don't want to go. I mean, I'm still relatively young Don't want to go to a nightclub and it's quiet. You want to feel the music you want to at the end of the day Enjoy the vibration with your friends But we must ensure that it's done in a responsible manner and a considerate manner for others And so we are considering some of the alternatives that we can actually give to those bar owners those restaurant owners those Individuals who have nightclubs and how we can partner to ensure that some of the the edifices that you spoke of and some of the Different methods we can use to mitigate against noise getting out is is done in a very very strategic way I don't want to let the cat out of the bag is yet, but we definitely as a government looking at modern ways of doing that and we certainly hope in that everybody can come on board and appreciate all the efforts and Just really be it each other's keeper. And so that's the direction we're moving into Yes, as a matter of fact today a lot of the work Regarding preparations for ICC World Cup would be physically started What you would appreciate is since last year September October we put together a locale organizing committee Featuring individuals from all stakeholders within entertainment and of course marketing and sports So they have been doing their work having regular meetings with ICC and cricket West Indies But today you would see serious activity at the Darren's army The removal of the existing roof and to replace it so we deal with all the leaks You would see also the surface given the issues that we've had with flooding And the drainage you would also see some significant work being done on the pitch and outfield also at the Mendo Phillip Park and Very soon you would be seeing work happening at the Rosalie playing field So there were pretty much three main areas of concern the lights at Darren's army They are not LED. They were installed in in 20 in 2001 and so we had to move towards LED and as a as a minister of sport and of course an environmentalist I always wanted the opportunity to move towards LED and then of course move towards solar solar lighting for the Darren's army cricket ground and so we've Officially contracted in an individual to bring in LED lights to St. Lucia as well. So the lights the plane surface and of course the roof to do the leaks and the stands will also be getting some attention ahead of cricket workup And so you would be invited to the actual launch very very soon Very soon. Okay, so that means they work in very fast. Yes Recently attended a Conference for Sports Ministers in the region So I met with my colleagues from St. Kitts from Barberos from St. Vincent from and we are all going through something similar A lot of the times we are send oceans believe that something has happened in Saint Lucia has only happened in Saint Lucia We are battling with climate change We are battling with the fact that perhaps for the first time in a very long time Every single month from January last year to January this year. We've seen Significant amounts of rain. This really hampers what you can do in your facilities. For instance We've we've done a lot of work on the stands at Mendophili Park, but in terms of the surface We will prepare in our surface for a lot of the interhouse competitions and also cricket Westin is ICC T20 and also for the launch of the semi-pro league But we've had a number of issues simply because of the fact that we've just been experiencing incessant rain And that's the same thing for our road networks the same thing for a number of other aspects of how we develop our country It's really prohibitive to do things in rain so we continue to work Martinis Avril continues to work on the drainage at the Mendophili Park and The expectation is that again We're going to have delays because some of the interhouse competitions would have been postponed and pushed back And so he's going to continue to work on the drain and on the surface and it will be available for cricket woke up and We will have a special dispensation for the launch of our semi-pro league on match food Which is slated for the Mendophili Park for obvious reasons. It's historic. It's the home of Lot of footballers in St. Lucia. It's Mendophili Park is pretty much Where it goes down and I think the historic nature of it warrants us having that D We are then going to move to the other grounds the other venues while we are preparing for cricket woke up and thereafter We'll continue to host games at the Mendophili Park for the northern clubs and organizations Other than the fact that anytime you have a St. Lucia looking somewhere in cricket Westin this we get success I mean it's it's uncanny. I mean ever since Darren Sam is not the coach of the test team But you've seen his exploits with the shorter version of the game and it's all it is Transferring to what we are actually seeing with the test team The cricket Westin this took the policy took the position that they were going to invest in a team And I think that is what's critical There was so much conversation about why young Bravo didn't make the team and some other people did not make the team and We are going with so many young people but Darren Sammy as a coach always preaches the unity and Not necessarily stardom of an individual so it's a team So what we see in real cricket Westin this right now is a a paradigm shift a Mentality shift where the younger players understand that they have to lean on each other for success This is what Darren Sammy did as a captain and this is what he is bringing into cricket Westin is as a coach And so whereas we are celebrating 27 years. We've not won in Australia I think all of us who followed the life of Darren Sammy Understands that hey, he may not be the coach there, but the culture within what cricket Westin is is right now along with the president another young individual Really cultural shift in terms of what the focus is when it comes to Westin is cricket And so congratulations hats off to them It's historic But we expect for it to continue and to carry on and for us to have a very good showing When we come to the Westin days for cricket woke up in in June Actually because There are a couple of realities in the West Indies a couple of realities for instance If you look at the population of the West Indies as a people we are barely breaking 16 million people Barely and I think I have exaggerated what it is here When you look at a country like Australia when you look at India with billion people And you look at some of what we have to compete with Pakistan Pakistan perhaps another 300 million people We we do not have the human capital that brings in the resources That brings in the sponsorship and the investment from corporate the corporate world into The cricket in our region and that that is what has shifted from the 90s into the 2000s the actual You know shift in where A corporate the corporate world has prioritized and so we as a government We have launched an hbc a high performance center for cricket So we have almost 20 of our best cricketers in a program where they are given a stipend every month They are given nutritional advice and food. They are given mental mental coaching game situation Development and so we focus on in these individuals so that they can play all formats of the game because An individual can become a millionaire instantly by playing franchise cricket But we do have individuals that are purists that like the longer format of the game And we want them to focus on that because once you have those tactical tactical skills It transforms into the 50 and the 20 over so for us as a government We are really focused on the holistic development of the person and the mental development of the individual because once we do that We understand that these individuals will become financially competent And we'll be able to support their family and give back to our society. So it's a balanced approach Here are some other facts before we became the government. There was no support There was no support for alternative sports or there was very little support, you know, sometimes We we rush the brush. We are only in government for two and a half years And what we've tried to do is to get people to come together Get the corporate society to come on board and the government to do their part We are not going to be able to furnish everybody with all their desires But what we've done is we've committed to partner with them at every step every step of the way Some people will be disappointed with the amount of support But it is absolutely crazy for anybody to say there is no support considering we put this together And so the reality of this situation is there are a lot of personality issues There are a lot of issues with the association that that I as a minister believed could be resolved And it could be dealt with differently, but we continue to provide a lot of support for chess We continue to provide moto Drag racing with a lot of support All of the sports like dominoes You know drafts and all of the sports, you know And so it's a wider sector of people that we've put together and we've clustered And the fact of the matter is a sum total of these people Might be similar in terms of those people involved might be similar to what's involved in the traditional sports And so as a government, we continue to try to get people to to come to the fore and provide sponsorship But it's not just going to happen within two years and it's going to be all humbly duri So for anybody to have pulled out so early, I think would be ill advised But we continue to provide as much support as we can and encourage people to unify behind the development of sport Absolutely. Absolutely. Absolutely. We've made a lot of a number of side visits in the area because there were some issues with dca And the usage of that area. I remember myself I'm touring that area being through some of the activities. I mean showing my support At the very end we as a government cannot interfere in the activities of an association and we cannot force an association to be with us We will to this day if we're provided with a proposal that we can financially absorb and assist with we would And that is our policy and our position with all sport in st. Lucia and continue to be just that We launched the semi pro football league On friday for the first time in st. Lucia's history Footballers will be given compensation For playing the game as I said during this ceremony It is not going to be pretty at the beginning anytime you're changing and you're bringing something in new Certain people would feel aggrieved if what they get and others would feel happy with what they get But the fact of the matter is we ran our election Indicating that we're going to be focused on people. We're going to be people focus And the prime minister also educated before he was elected that a youth economy Youth young people being involved in economic activities based on their talents would be the order of the day And so this is what we've seen For the first time and as I said in that ceremony I played the football for st. Lucia and we have a number of other individuals who played football All their life and the sum total of what I probably got financially from playing football even at a national level I calculated was negative $20,000 because at the end of the day I never got paid a cent for my time and my effort And I had to deal with my injuries and pay for anything medical that occurred on the field And if you speak to any other national players, they would tell you it's negative 100,000 negative 70,000 and for some individuals who cannot walk as a result of playing football The price goes up and the fact that this government has moved every individual from getting zero dollars Per game in their life to 200 dollars at the beginning per match. I think it's very good It's a start and we ask in corporate st. Lucia and all community residents and the businesses within the communities to come on board To augment this amount and ensure that we continue to develop Football in a in a huge capacity in addition to that we've said training Commitment discipline is going to be something important So we've decided that we are paying what we call somewhat of a retainer a particular amount Let's just say 500 every month For training so at the end of the day if you miss a training session That amount goes to 475 if you miss two it goes down to 450 But your commitment to training is going to pretty much indicate the amount you get at the end of every month And again that same amount would be used for discipline if you get a red card You might be and the understanding would be you understand that from your league if you get a red card If you curse if you do something I mean illegal then that amount goes down significantly could you could lose a hundred dollars for for descent for different things So we are investing in developing the person While they develop their finances and we are going to have a number of programs for these footballers in terms of money management In terms of developing themself off the field And so it's a program that we ask in all of st. Lucia to do their part especially corporate st. Lucia do your part This is novel there's never happened in our history and we did say we're going to export to another level and this government is definitely doing so I definitely leave that to the the minister of equity who's doing an absolute excellent job By the way, I mean historic A number this government has been doing a number of novel and historic programs within our communities to target ordinary people And this is another example where we don't just Talk the talk, but we walk the walk we target those individuals and we go after them strategically for my ministry We have a wiry program with us aid where in in the communities We look for more intervention for displace young people to actually Find out from them what some of the issues are and provide training and partnerships And do you see with the ministry of equity this thrust Towards targeting these individuals because if you don't have a targeted approach to what you're doing And you'll just be spinning top in mud going all over the place But this is another example of how this government is definitely doing their part Just as sports a semi professional league Individuals understanding that you can get off the block right now You can go to training you can become part of a club an organization where you can get compensated at the end of the month For your talent and skill. These are game changes We're expecting those things to be game changes where young people can realize. Hey, I have an alternative path to success In st. Lucia rather than just going in illicit activities Good morning Ladies and gentlemen Okay, I'm here to to share with you Some news I consider to be exciting. Of course, you would have heard of of the msme the small loan arrangement that this government you've heard of the youth economy Directing into terms of providing more supported people But we've had the bell fund that has been around for for 20 over 24 years they're about and One would have asked what has become of the bell fund Of course the bell fund was arranged providing loans of 20 000 dollars You need some guarantors to sign off and of course they were doing quite a bit To date more than 1500 persons can boast of the support of the bell fund But during the economic hardship covid on what of you and the fact that persons are not able to even have guarantors The bell fund i'm happy to report that bell fund has made some adjustments so to date you You can get at least over from five to fifty thousand dollars without having the need of three guarantors You can have at least one guarantor based on the amount that you you you you were seeking Um, and also if you prepare to have a salary reduction you probably would consider not having any guarantors So bell fund has made it a lot easier For you to access microloan. They would do the assessment They evaluate what you come in to do Of course and it provides an avenue to tie in with what we are doing and that a set of persons Who are not able to go to a world who will not receive the support from the ministry of commerce under the small loan arrangement Or persons who would not be able to find it through age Group not able to access the youth economy bell fund is available And bell fund would provide support microloans for you to pursue your business again this time without the Which a reduction in some of the the the rules associated in accessing it So you do not need to come up with three guarantors to get a loan from bell fund. This is good news for persons who Are interested in pursuing business recognizing that we're dealing with your unemployment situation solution Of course, we recognize a great number of persons are interested in pursuing small business You know, I'm extremely happy about this as well Yes Of course Of course bell fund would accommodate because of course it has to do with the business arrangement that you embark on And of course bell fund would be Would be able to assess what is the business what business you and they would Take a they would take the chance with you based on the nature of what you I'm not a business person I'm a surveyor by profession But there are people who are able to come up with business ideas and they just need to get the support Yes retirees Person senior persons can go to bell fund and you can get as much as 40,000 from five and look at the range from 500 to 40,000 you know, again bell fund is marketing this and of course this statutory arrangement was established in 2000 You know and to date we can boast of having to success of approximately 1,500 persons You know sometimes persons speak about how many persons has failed But not discuss how many persons have been successful if bell fund has assisted and 1,500 persons can boast Of going through bell fund to have something to do or doing something that is significant in the context of providing opportunities for people I saw you coffee on the side there How From an equity standpoint How does this improve the lives of young people of young many particular and the professionals who are employed in the football scene? The principle of equity How I think The opportunities for people it provides another layer of support So we are targeting people and I'm happy that the minister of youth and sports is also looking at livelihoods He's also looking looking at the issues of providing food to people Looking at the our humanity So a set of young men who want to engage in football would not just engage in football at At their expense, but the government is investing in saying that you can at least Find your meals by playing football if you're not able to do better than that and if you are working Otherwise, but you it's not adequate to carry your football career that will you know Supplement your income and what have you so the principle of equity I think it provides additional opportunity because we do not have that happening at any level currently Um, I do not know for the other spot in disciplines where the golfers I do not know what happened in the area of golf in st. Lucia, but I think it's a different set of people Um participating in that as against to the persons who are participating in football So Football is really where the um more persons participate in football than any other sport in discipline on this island So of course the investment is significant It provides opportunity and not just the initial but it will grow the minister of the minister of of of youth and sports And the prime minister The trajectory is that we continue to invest and we expect it to grow So not where we stand in today that that is important, but where we want to go with all people. I think is What is critical? You know Yes, so they get a grant from government and they have that has been going on for some time now But also this year we are looking at support from the Caribbean Development Bank for Institutional strengthening. So we're looking to strengthen Um bell fund through the Caribbean Development Bank so that they can do a lot more than what they're doing So quite a bit will be um will be done where bell fund is concerned So just the idea of having an environment where micro enterprise and support for vulnerable people Are available at the youth economy the small business arrangement and now we are equipping bell fund To to respond. So persons I know that there's the fast cash and there are the Money setups But they're not directed They're not bell fund is not profit driven as much as it has a social conscience to help vulnerable population And that's significant in in the scheme of things the youth economy is not a profit making it's not set up to make profit It's set up to facilitate persons the youth who wants to participate in small business and of course If you look at the design of the small business arrangement from the ministry of commerce again There's a heavy emphasis on people and the social arrangement to facilitate our people So bell fund is is is committed to that and it's from us It's from you the support is really coming from the people is taxpayers money coming from you to yourselves and how There's no there's no better way to help people than when we are able to to get taxpayers to facilitate Improvement of our people so the government has contributed over the years and we'll continue to support bell fund But it will grow a lot more especially listen closely to to What what will be approved in the budget as we speak to improving bell fund? Yes The importance of the alliance speaks to what all of us Have been saying the issue of crime and violence and deviant behavior is a matter for everyone and the the alliance is Really it epitomizes this concept that everyone is involved and everyone should take That as the responsibility and see what is it we can do Um, certainly we have a problem on on our hands across the region in terms of gun violence deviant behavior and all sorts of You know behavior that that makes it uncomfortable for the average citizen Um, so the alliance coming together the support of the government again Is to bring all of the individuals with capacities With with competencies that can help respond In different ways so the the issue of having rise and and you see persons like like dr. King was been associated with youth interventions You know and a number of other Social agencies and partners NGOs and and and cbo's They all are together Discussing the issues advising government designing programs And and the more persons that are able to contribute to the design of responses In communities that we believe that that has The tendency to become that way is the better for us The more accurate will be the response and there will be a collective approach to it as against government sitting within the offices The officers and coming up without having that broad level of consultation and participation dealing with the issue of crime and violence So the alliance Is novel in the sense that it it mobilizes our our human resource and island And I think it's also would be very responsive and timely Especially what we're dealing with at this time Okay. Good morning ladies and gentlemen I want to take this opportunity this morning to report on a short trip that I made to gianna I was Heading a delegation. In fact, I headed a delegation to gianna To actually view Some of the agricultural innovation projects that Is happening there and I was very happy to see Some very very key projects That contribute immensely to food security in gianna One of the projects that I was very that that I was really interested in was a youth entrepreneur project where the young people in gianna will Involve or are involved In what we call shade house agriculture Or preferably called greenhouse agriculture Or you can also call it protected agriculture and that form of agriculture is important especially in the rainy season where The rains heavy rains consistent heavy rains can reduce your yield and impact your production So we were able to visit a site in gianna where The government established 54 greenhouses And those greenhouses are used to produce various vegetable crops like celery cabbage Sweet pepper tomatoes, etc But that project is linked to the university of gianna And the gianna school of agriculture So what happens those students would come in They would use that site for the sbas and the other projects at the university They would benefit by getting the training necessary And after a period of time between one year To four years they would leave and go out there and establish their own agricultural business I believe that is very good for the young people because that type of agriculture Is what I believe can attract a lot more younger folks into agriculture I we also had the opportunity to visit An agro processing facility Sorry a hydroponic farm where The government of israel Is collaborated with the government of gianna To establish hydroponic systems throughout the country But there is this company that was able to establish a specific Farm Where young people are being trained The hydroponic system can produce up to 100,000 seedlings And that includes Celery, sweet pepper, lettuce A range of agricultural products That I think is well for us And I believe it's an opportunity for us to replicate the same In st. Lucia And link it to south louis and the other secondary schools Where our students very early can get involved in agriculture And see agriculture as a profession that is That they can survive and earn a livelihood from We also visited demonstrated demonstration farms in various regions in gianna Where those farms are actually established for farmer training For training of young persons aspiring to become professionals in agriculture We also had the opportunity to engage the gianna school of agriculture Where we saw the students actually getting involved In agro processing Where they are using the produce that are grown On the school compound or in the vicinity of the school And using it to convert into agro process products Very very interestingly We were able to visit the gianna marketing corporation And there we were able to see the whole agro processing sub-sector And its vibrancy Because there were more than 300 local products on display And you can name it wines and chips and so many things that Were able to be on display there And we think that is an opportunity for us to work together with them to secure market opportunities For our agro processes only How we can collaborate in terms of sharing the experience with them And being able to help us in terms of moving our agro process and sub-sector We did engage the University of gianna in terms of opportunity for training And we have been promised an opportunity Sometime this year to get at least two scholarships For persons who do agriculture at the University of gianna But all in all I must say it was a very wonderful trip and from what I saw Gianna is taking the right direction and putting the measures in place to ensure That they achieve the 25 by 25 that's next year I must say as a follow-up to that We are already in discussion as to identification of a site To establish that sort of agricultural innovation And we've been given the guarantee that we will get technical support And other financial resources to support us In bringing this opportunity for our young people in st. Lucia All in all I think moving forward we have agreed to Establish an MOU for technical support and cooperation between the government of gianna And the government of st Lucia I'm sure you recall some of them last year We did sign an MOU between the government of st. Vincent and the government of st. Lucia Considering the importance of climate change and how it can impact The agricultural sector in our region We think it is very opportune now for us as a region to come together and work together Share information and give support to our countries in the region to ensure that we are food secure Well we left the visit was from Monday last week to Thursday It was basically a three-day visit Yes Yes so they say like it's basically communities of Latin America and the Caribbean meeting We had the opportunity to put together a food and nutrition security plan Because Latin America and the Caribbean you know we are together Although the climate is different in our region This is the Latin America but we felt it was necessary For us to work together to address the whole food and nutrition security issue I think what is really important in this plan Is the understanding that climate change can have Very negative consequences on the agricultural sector There is urgent need for us to build resilience in the sector We just recently experienced last week Consistent heavy rains something that is almost rare in the month of January Last year during the period august to september we experienced extremely high temperatures And all of those concerns needs to be addressed because it can really impact our food security So the whole select approach was the Caribbean region coming together of Latin America And work on what we call a food security and action plan To address the issues that confront the region and Latin America on the one umbrella Well the plan basically looks at where we are in terms of our Imports and we know our food import bill is extremely high We this it has areas in terms of how we can move More of our produce in within the region If there are issues in terms of support for small farmers There are issues in terms of Marketing of our produce agricultural insurance is a very important aspect of that because Every time we have a hurricane in St. Lucia The Portax Payals Have to be We have to use their resources to compensate or assist our farmers If we have agricultural insurance the pressure on the government will be less Because those insurance or whatever insurance company We have will be responsible for assisting or compensating those farmers There were issues in the plan relating to water and water availability water soil Conservation methods So it's a very comprehensive plan, which I believe if implemented We'll see our region doing extremely well in terms of reduction of our food import bill I have heard of it But I have not seen it anyway I have heard of it And if it is something that's happening it's very unfortunate for us But sometimes we don't understand The pressures that our farmers go through when they invest their time And money Into production But when they are ready for harvest Somebody else would have collected it and that is why pre-year larceny Is a major factor in the agricultural sector that we need to Address Now the pre-year larceny, pre-year larceny unit within the ministry is very small I think it's less than 20 persons And you're talking thousands and thousands of acres or bananas Vegetable planting All together So aside the pre-year larceny team I believe we need to establish what we call community group Community farming groups to be able to assist those teams Because it's just like the police Every time somebody Something happens somebody is dead They blame the police and people see The policemen cannot be everywhere at the same time So the pre-year larceny small team is just not sufficient To be able to address the issues of pre-year larceny But it's unfortunate That you go by the market And you buy a plantain Or a hand of banana But when you go and cook it There's needles and pins inside This is not what we expect from our persons But as I tell you The agricultural sector You can invest your time and resources But you may never be able to reap the benefits At the end of the day Because of pre-year larceny No, no, don't even continue that There is no way we will encourage people to put pins And those things in produce for people This is something that should never happen So this is something we will never encourage as a ministry It's not quite true I had a discussion with Renault Because I'm very familiar with the arrangement Renault has with St. Vincent And Renault wanted to Indicate that interest in doing the same thing here And I believe at the end of the day personally It is going to be beneficial to the farmers Because if the farmers know That when they produce a particular crop They harvest every single commodity They take it to the market They get their money minutes after They will obviously increase their production Because at the end of the day They know when I take it to the market I get people We have the St. Lucia Marketing Board Which is an entity That was established for marketing and of the farmers produced We have Forget the name Not export St. Lucia Super J I forget the Massey With arrangements with farmers in terms of Thank you for correcting me Massey A lot of farmers have special arrangements In agreement with Massey And they sell to Massey Then you have the hotels So we have to consider How this is going to impact those other Marketing sources that our farmers are already engaging But in the absence of that That would have been the best for our farmers But not because it's working well In St. Vincent That it may work just as well for St. Lucia That too But the other entities that are already buying from the farmers May be impacted as a result of that Going into that new venture That is a good one But just imagine You have the marketing board You have Massey You have the hotels Would you as a farmer want to sell to Massey Knowing that you have to wait Seven days Or knowing that You were given a price per pound today The next day when you go is reduced Or you have to wait three months To get your pay from the hotel Any farmer Whose business minded would go straight to That company, Renault Because at the end of the day They buy every single item that you have And you get your money right on site But at the end of the day Juliofort It is the best for our farmers That is also possible Because he is doing it Yeah, but what would happen to the marketing board What would happen to the marketing board What would happen to Massey When Massey went to the marketing board I was there last week You talking about referring to the shop Yeah You mean by the Outlet about the market Yeah When I thought you were referring to the The place at Odson From marketing board Have contracts with farmers Supply the marketing board on a regular basis I sell to the marketing board too They sell to the hotels They sell to the small restaurants And they sell to the public I realize that No, I like the Renault idea But there are other factors that you have to take into consideration To make it a reality in St. Lucia You have a final? I saw you laughing at me a while ago I'm just joking Yes, yes Let me just mention agriculture There are a range of insects and pests That just emerge So for example recently We've been witnessing or experiencing some problems in watermelons The crop is grown very healthy Weeks before harvesting All the foliage disappears We have problems in our coconuts Our coconut might You remember we were exporting mangoes Maybe you're not born yet Mangoes to Barbados And because of the mango seed we will We stop exporting So there are a range of insect pests that are just emerging Because of the whole issue of climate change and so on Now the yam issue is a first time thing We've not had that experience before Before we had insects in the soil Attacking the yam And sometimes when the yam is harvested it's hard But those insects could have been controlled But just last week I was told that there is a new disease that's Been seen in the yams And the farmers are experiencing some difficulty What our research team is doing is to We are now conducting an investigation To identify the disease, the source And to see how we can get it under control But in agriculture You would grow your cucumbers And you know seven days after I just had to spray my cucumbers My cucumber field last week You know So you have to be doing that because the insect pests They are there to feed on the plants But at the end of the day Your objective is to rip off them Most you can get from your crop And so you have to ensure that you get it under control Putty Lizer A lot of salt I prefer the word putty Lizer There are a number of factors that can cause it You can move a disease from one country to the next If you step in a particular area on your arm But for example the T.I.O.4 disease It can move from place to place by human beings Now our soils There is what we call food tile soils And less food tile soils As you continue to grow crops on the same piece of land Your fertility level will diminish Did you rate And as a result The healthiness Because of the fact that the soil is less healthy The plants are more Subscessible It's prone or susceptible to disease Sorry for the lack of mentioned word properly So it's just like you if you don't eat well On a day to day Obviously it's easy for you to be faced with a disease Or he'll mend anything like that So what we need to do Is to practice that form of agriculture What you call rotation So you plant corn And then the next time you plant something else But remember we have had that Monoculture form of cultivation with bananas So the roots of the plants were at the same level all the time And obviously if that continues to happen there is At some point We will not be able to get that level of nutrients That was once available So that is why it's important to adopt What we call a kind of mixed type of agriculture So you have the banana You have the tree crops And you have the other crops That can reach different levels of the soil But your question in terms of climate change Yes it may Because the winds when you have natural disasters Hurricanes you have strong winds That can move past and this is from place to place So this also is a factor But our soils will be diminished If it is not well managed And if you do not do the type of practices in agriculture That would cause what we call nutrient recycling And to ensure your soil remains as fertile as possible Mixed farming Yeah that's why we encourage our farmers And in the days when we were Our farmers were involved in bananas What were we encouraging them to do And I remember when I was in forestry We were encouraging them to put in more tree crops On that same piece of land where they had the bananas What would happen is They would be getting an income from the bananas But they would also be getting an income from The avocado The coconuts The breadfruit The mango The lime But during that time the focus was money And this whole monoculture thing is It is a light demander So I do not want anything to grow between my bananas And so they cut a lot of the tree crops That if they did not would be benefitting from today And this is why when you have a Have you see we have a hurricane After hurricane you see the fields Nothing else And this is not the type of agriculture we want to encourage our farmers to Engaging We have been advocating that We have been advocating that But it is one thing to tell this young lady to Put trees on the land and for her to say This is nonsense I do not believe in this in those guys I will do what I am accustomed to And this is why we have to begin or continue to Educate our farmers to change their approach to agriculture Mechanization new technologies in agriculture This is the way to go Because if not we will have a failed agriculture Because our young people like you and her Will not come before speed When they can use a simple drone to do what can be done Am I right sister? Yeah, thank you very much Honourable Dr. Ernestillé Who's also Minister for Tourism Investment, Creative Industries, Culture and Information Good morning Been a while too many since I last saw you Yeah I heard you all have not invited me So at least thank you very much Maybe we can start with you Are you having any questions you want to ask? Yeah, it's called the Tourism Advising Committee Where we meet on a quarterly basis with The stakeholders of the tourism industry to discuss Developments in the industry to review The performance of the industry And for us to plan how we can address Some of the critical issues So last week's meeting reviewed The performance of the industry for last year And we did have good news to report In terms of the growth in tourism arrival numbers Both crews and stay over We also looked at the new developments That will be coming on stream The one PNMAD development The Raidre Beach development Shabusha in Surazel Black Bay And some other developments that will Be implemented over the next few months I highlighted to the meeting The major challenge will face this coming year As a number of rooms come off the market Already St James Club Which is almost 150 rooms Those rooms are not on the market right now And we expect in the middle of the year For both Mystic and for Staffish To also close for the new construction to start So you're really talking about almost 900 rooms Off the market right now And that will put a lot of stress on the stream on us Because there's a huge demand for rooms in St. Lucia So as we prepare to get more room stock We will go through a challenging period But we expect in the next two to three years To add over about a thousand new rooms in St. Lucia Which is a desirable state that we want to achieve We're expecting the cruise passengers Infrastructure Cruise services infrastructure to improve With the GPH project being implemented The developments in podcastries And of course You know that we will be doing some dredging At Point Seraphine The boardwalk that will be built at the waterfront To introduce an entire new experience An amphitheater at Serenity Park A new vendor's arcade The Fisherman's Village In Banan And of course the redevelopment of the Souffre Waterfront So St. Lucia's cruise tourism infrastructure Will be significantly upgraded Over the next couple of years In the next sitting of parliament We will be tabling the Tourism Development Bill Which is aimed at transforming the tourism industry Offering more support for St. Lucia's Getting involved in the tourism industry And the incentives regime To be expanded beyond just accommodation But to all sectors of the tourism industry Is a major piece of legislation So certainly looking forward to presenting it In the house Another big announcement which we'll be making Is the re-establishment of the rangers unit You'll remember a few years ago We had a unit that was dedicated to performing Providing support to the police In certain areas That fall under the ANCA The beaches The dedicated areas And of course we will be relaunching the rangers unit It was stopped by a past government But it will be re-established To ensure that we provide adequate security And support for the police in strategic areas We expect in some major announcements again As I said in terms of the tourism Product development in St. Lucia A lot is going to happen Over the next couple of years So improve our tourism infrastructure And improve the product But most important for us Is that we want more St. Lucia's To get involved in the tourism industry We want more St. Lucia's to participate And to own the tourism industry We believe the best approach Is to achieve two main goals One, to get visitors to spend more money in St. Lucia And secondly, to get more St. Lucia's Own in the tourism industry So as more money is spent More St. Lucia's will benefit from it And that is our driving motivation So we have some exciting days ahead For the tourism industry And like I said Very shortly the tourism authority Will share with you the official figures But we saw an increase in arrivals Last year over 2022 And getting closer to 2019 figures Our biggest challenge in surpassing 2019 Right now is regional travel And if you look at the figures in 2019 We had almost 88,000 arrivals originally Last year we would have done just over 50,000 We still have a challenge with original arrivals And for that reason we've not been able to Match 2019 figures Which were the highest figures achieved in St. Lucia My question is about 2020 I think that's the first time I've Asked you since the announcement of the package What are your thoughts on St. Lucia's The package that we received In addition, it's been two preparations Particularly because you spoke a while ago About the challenge with the rooms And how would we cope during that time Particularly because this was just in the middle of the year Yeah Well, I mean put it that way If you ask me what I think of the package I certainly would have wished We could have gotten all the matches But that's not possible And other countries be there a lot more money than us The approach that was used this time As against Cricket World Cup in 2007 And the World T20 in 2010 I happen to have been the tournament director in 2010 And a completely different approach was used This approach, the West Ness Cricket Board Actually asked territories to bid for matches Which matches they didn't have packages per se But they said what you can bid for the finals The semi-finals And you can bid for England matches What not And they did not give you a price They would ask you to declare a bid So where you might bid 5 million US for the finals Somebody else gave 8 million US for the finals So you wouldn't get it And nobody knew It was a closed bidding process So we didn't make our bid for what we wanted We got a good package I think Saint Lucia did get a good package But obviously others bidded a lot more than us Because I know what we bidded And for them to have gotten so much more In some instances Tells a lot about how much they bidded And how much they valued hosting World T20 matches Saint Lucia's cricket infrastructure also needs to be upgraded As you can imagine, the outfielder, the Darren Summit Cricket Ground was completed in 2002 So you know, you're talking about the surface That's 22 years old And you know, it really needs upgrading The lights were put in shortly after By I think 2003, 2004 So those lights are like 20 years old Lighting has advanced considerably since then So everybody has gone LED And even solar to power the LED lights So we weigh behind in that regard The technology infrastructure has also been upgraded When we did this, it was for 2007 And there's been major upgrades in the world of technology As it relates to that So we really need to upgrade the Darren Summit To be world-class once again And of course the practice venues at Rosalie And Mendo Filipak also need to be upgraded So we will see a lot of investment in those areas As it relates to accommodation I mentioned both Starfish and Mystic will be closed But Mystic will only close after cricket Because it is going to be used You know, as one of the cricket in hotels In 2007, when we will set Cricket World Cup Under Dr. Kenny Anthony and Minister Pierre And with Prime Minister now We actually started the home accommodation program In Saint Lucia As far back as then Even before they had Airbnb and those things Saint Lucia had a special incentive for Saint Lucia To add rooms to their home To enable us to host the persons That would come in for Cricket World Cup In 2007 So a lot of the room stock we have now Actually start Came into play in 2007 There was a special legislation at Spass To give Saint Lucia incentives To add to their homes for rent Presently based on our calculation At the Tourism Authority We have about 5000 rooms Well, let me be correct We can accommodate about 5000 persons At home accommodation in Saint Lucia right now We will go towards paying some of those bills I don't think it takes away from our patriotism Our commitment to country And our sense of independence I don't think so I can tell the opposition A lot of things they can focus on instead But I don't think that's my business to do so Yeah And the last comment The Bahamas has recorded 18 homicides for the year And the US has put a travel advisory on the country citing gun violence and so What are your fears that that might be the case for Saint Lucia? Well, I can tell you every time I read a story About a homicide in Saint Lucia It really pains me And it's not even so much about tourism It's just about our society And what it is becoming When I read it about other Caribbean societies Having similar challenges like ours It really sets me thinking as to What's going on in our region And even the world That individuals are becoming so desensitized To the lives of other people They're becoming so indifferent And this thing is really getting out of hand I know that there are a lot of discussions Taking place in the police Like the Prime Minister always says And he's absolutely right in that regard Our role as government is to sit to the police And say to them What are your strategies? What do you need from government? And then to provide it for them We are not trained law enforcement We're not experts in criminology and whatnot So we don't design and develop strategies for them But they have to come up with it And they have to ask for the resources And we have to find a way to provide as much as we can Everybody can share their view as to how they believe This problem should end Should be dealt with I have my own views too Like I said, it's not a low net view Because I'm not a trained law enforcement officer I have my own views And I can tell you that Because of my own background and my own groundings I'm less enforcement and more social intervention I mean, I'll make it very clear I grew up in the youth movement I grew up in community organizations I grew up in an area where, you know Face its challenges And young men growing up And people living face challenges So I'm always predisposed to support it First and foremost Greater social interventions To create opportunities for people For educating our people For providing psychological and other support For our people to try and change patterns of life And of course, law enforcement comes in when all else fails But in different approaches And there's no single approach that can solve the problem All the approaches must come to bear From the church to the law enforcement To the social agencies All of us must work To make sure we address this problem But, you know, every single day, like you said It's at the back of my mind That this is not yet out of hand And we have to face the threat of a travel advisory Yeah Yeah No, no, I mean This is a serious, serious point you're making And, you know Only this morning I received a presentation From my team at the ministry In terms of some experiences in other countries And we also had a community tourism agency in attendance Because we need to look at castries And to see what we can do from a tourism ministry perspective To help, you know, present a better castries A more functional castries And I think you're absolutely right We need to focus on castries And what we can do differently There have been many attempts in the past You know, about modernization of castries And what to do and many suggestions We have to find a way to make it work Because, like you said, the cruise experience Along the waterfront would be enhanced But if you venture a little deeper into the city The experience would not be so refined And we need to find a way, so That's all I can tell you, we need to Well, the modern one plans is From the time of Compton There's a plan that was done under Kenny Anthony That was done by NLBA Claude Guillaume, Neville Skeet They've been, in fact, that same plan Inspired Walkout House on Showsay Road And some of the other developments What we don't have is an action plan So what we're going to do I know, for example, for community tourism I can tell you what will happen for the next year In terms of infrastructural improvements And very soon in parliament I will make an announcement on some of those things We know what we want to do for community tourism development But we've not focused on castries Castries have so many dimensions It's the commercial capital It's the administrative capital It's not a tourism center Because most people tell you they go to Souffre And Souffre is probably the place most visitors want to go Not castries, ironically But it's the closest to the ships And people will just walk there And it's easy and it's convenient And we have to put it on our agenda Sorry about that And what you're saying is that it seems to be a lax If you're not doing what you're supposed to do And that the city is... You're asking me some very difficult questions I think I've said as much as I can On this matter But you know We have a lot of work to do To improve the experience So that's why I'm saying that it is in castries Especially back in the past Right now, you're continuously campaigning Of all of very many coffee drivers Or more companies Or lower rates They've basically stood in their customers And they've invested a lot of themselves So basically get this communication And they want somebody from the ministry Visiting to come and see what's happening down there Any matters towards the... Well, they've reached out to me I mean, I visited Point Seraphine last month You know, naturally so for myself And I initiated some action To kind of control it The GPA development will address their concerns It will Because as we said The old customs building will be broken down The parking and the controls will be put in place To ensure that what existed in the past Do not continue to exist So I expect us to address that problem I know they're very anxious and they... You know, there's a lot of anxiety and whatnot But we will address it It will take us a little while to do so Because to address it You need to have the space and the infrastructure To be able to do it And all I can tell you is that we have a plan To address in it What not Yes There's a lot of issues in the building And also, what are your views on the... The Derek Watkins way? You said they knew what I meant Like nothing is what you think Yeah Yeah The hospitality ambassadors are in effect And what it probably shows us That we need a lot more Because when there are large numbers of visitors You really need to have more people for them to really be visible But they are working Some in Soufre, the city and some up north Some at Point Seraphine and whatnot But we need a lot more than that for them to really be present I'm hoping that the program will expand next year And then expand again And as we will approach a more optimum Derek Watkins has to be part of the solution That was asked earlier in terms of the city We have to make it a feature And there's a few developments that will take place For example, in the next budget We will be announcing a religious tourism project That the cathedral will be undertaking A shrine that will be built to commemorate The incident that took place at the cathedral a few years ago And a commemorative shrine which will be incorporated You know, with support from government as part of our castries experience So between the square and the cathedral And you know And there'll be quite a lot taking place there Because very soon government will be starting work on the halls of justice Which will include the old Mitchell Education Building And the old courthouses So there will be some developments taking place there But we need to have the holistic plan for castries To really raise up the profile of castries Well, I don't know if you remember that the last government stopped the project And the money that were available for the project Was diverted to some other project Some other project So we need now to decide how it's going to be reintegrated And some private individuals decided to go ahead If a plan which we equally had Which is to involve that entire street Into our concept of community tourism We felt that you can create an experience You know, there where people can actually go on and You know, from Derek Walker's house all the way to the end To create experiences along the way for them And in fact, we're thinking now of expanding it even beyond that Because we're now going to include the cash, the masher market As an artisan market for leather work and whatnot So we're going to refurbish the masher market And to actually create an artisan market There that will attract visitors who want particular types of souvenirs Primarily leather works and other crafts What not, so we probably can start an experience From more in the masher area coming all the way to Shosei Road And we think there's tremendous potential for that A very kind of indigenous, very kind of artistic expression I mean, I'm a big supporter of street art And you know, those kinds of expressions So I think that there are possibilities there I guess it just for us to do it bit by bit But it's not a forgotten piece of asset Is financing an issue? Well, that's part of it, raising the financing for it And also so they have numerous stakeholders That you need to constantly engage A few, they have different stakeholders All right, thank you very much