 The Government of St. Lucia joins OECS Member States in congratulating Dr. Hygienus Jean Leo on being appointed President of the Caribbean Development Bank, CDB. The appointment of Dr. Leo marks the second time that a St. Lucia has been called upon to head this prestigious regional institution. Reacting to the news of the appointment, St. Lucia's Prime Minister, the Honourable Alan Shasne, congratulated Dr. Leo, indicating that it was a proud moment for St. Lucia, as Dr. Leo follows in the footsteps of one illustrious son of St. Lucia and soil, Nobel laureate Sir William Arthur Lewis. When Dr. Leo assumes the CDB presidency on May 1, 2021, he will succeed Dr. Warren Smith, who has been at the helm of the regional financial institution for the last 10 years. First of all, I want to say thank you to Warren Smith for an outstanding job over many years at the helm of the CDB. Every day was a new challenge, and I think that he conducted himself and managed the affairs of the CDB extremely well. But I am also very thrilled at the announcement of the selection of Dr. Jean Leone as the new president of CDB. One, it is 50 years since the inception of CDB, and the first president of the CDB was none other than Sir Arthur Lewis, a solution. And so to have Dr. Leone coming in at this time from St. Lucia is very exciting. But times have changed. Dr. Leone is not just from St. Lucia, but he is the candidate from the OECS, something that we're very proud of, that we participated collectively, and I see him as a citizen of the OECS, and I think we're all elated of having him there. Prime Minister Shasne noted that Dr. Leo has attained this presidency at a time when members, particularly the smallest and most vulnerable, are in dire need of a new and more constructive relationship with financial institutions. Dr. Leo has over 30 years of experience in economic development and has worked with the International Monetary Fund for over two decades, where he served as mission chief for over five countries. The St. Lucia National was also an associate professor at the State University of New York. In addition, he served as director of research at the Central Bank of Barbados and country economists at the CDB. Dr. Leone's experience at IMF could not come at a better time. The IMF is the leading institution globally, particularly and plays a significant role in its policy framework for us here in the region. And having a person of his experience with the insight into the IMF, I think it's going to help carve a new direction for us as a region and as SIDS in particular. There has to be a change in how we're going about accessing funding for small and developing states in light of everything that has taken place. And so I'm elated, proud of his announcement and looking forward to great things in the future. Dr. Leone holds a Doctor of Philosophy in Economics from the University of South Hampton in the United Kingdom and a Bachelor of Science degree in Economics from the University of London.