 The Department of Finance via the Accountant General's Office, or Treasury Department, has launched a long-awaited initiative dubbed Micro Payments Convenient Check Collection. Accountant General Matthew Branford said this initiative is said to directly impact the ease of doing business with the Treasury Department by decentralizing the collection of checks via its sub-officers in Sufre and Vuefort. So introducing Micro Payment Convenient Check Collection in the South will transform the landscape for the Treasury Department and enhance the government payment services. Vendors who have provided services to the government will have three locations, Castries, Vuefort and Sufre, where they can collect the check payment. Ten delays will be significantly reduced and in some instances eliminated, but will be more convenient for many people. Thus beginning in December 2022, the Treasury Department will commence the printing of checks at the Sufre and Vuefort sub-accountant office. The staff have already been trained and are ready to deliver on this promise. As well as technical requirements are all in place for a smooth transition. Director of Finance, Imran Williams, highlighted that this initiative not only builds resilience within government's payment systems but creates greater inclusion for the population. He also proposed the challenge to the Treasury Department. Most forms of payments you deal with now in the most advanced countries and he did speak to it to his credit. We now deal with electronic funds transfer, direct deposit into bank accounts. So now we have to start thinking, while we already remove the risk in the system, we can even go a step further to make it a little more efficient. We can now try to encourage, let's not say force or mandate, encourage that most persons that interact or do business with government at a very minimum have to enter the banking system by way of a credit union bank account. We now have decash coming in and stream, we have electronic wallets. Once you do that, you realize how you can, even when you have to get rid of, even now you can get rid of the printing of the checks and deliver direct deposits. Minister for Commerce and Parliamentary Representative for Sufre, Honourable Emma Hippolit, acknowledged the obvious direct benefit for her constituents and further stated that such initiatives are part of government's thrust to improve competitiveness and the ease of doing business in St. Lucia. We promise to remove the impediments to transacting business and we continue to deliver and will not stop until St. Lucia becomes the number one in the region for transacting business. Honourable Dr. Kenny D. Anthony, Parliamentary Representative for Viewfort South, though applauding the Micro Payments Initiative, called for greater attention to be focused on the decentralization of government services to foster increased social inclusion and equity in the provision of government services. In a sense, this service here is long overdue. As much as I compliment the Treasury Department and the Accountant General's Office and I congratulate them, let's face an inconvenient truth, it's long overdue. It should have happened a long time ago. But you know what? Sometimes as the Accountant General indicated, change is difficult and complicated. And we create artificial barriers as to why we should not do things, why we should not make a difference or why we should not change things. It really requires a fundamental change in the mindset of those who manage your affairs and those who manage your businesses. Those who manage the delivery of services emanating from the government. Also endorsing the initiative was Parliamentary Representative for Shwezel, Saltybus, Honourable Bradley Felix and Cyprian Lantico, representing Honourable Wayne Girard, Parliamentary Representative for Anselary, Canrys. The Micro Payment Convenient Check Collection will commence on December 1st at the Sufra sub-office and on December 8th at the sub-office in Viewfort. For the National Competitiveness and Productivity Council, Glenn Simon reporting.