 Welcome to NTR Nightly, I am Janelle Norvel, this edition's top stories. The Casstrees Provisions Market is officially opened as part of the Casstrees Redevelopment Plan. The Ministry of Health heightens efforts at containing community spread of COVID-19 and $51.4 million is allocated to the Department of Health for the COVID-19 response. A major component of the Casstrees Redevelopment Plan has been completed. On Sunday 3rd May 2020, the Casstrees City Council presided over the official opening of the Casstrees Provisions Market. Heres Lisa Joseph. The handing over ceremony for the Casstrees Provisions Market marked the beginning of a new era for the capital city of Casstrees and the completion of the first phase of the Casstrees Market Redevelopment Project. The first phase saw the construction of a covered vending area, refurbished comfort stations, and over 100 newly built vending stalls. Opened in 1894, the Casstrees Market has seen its fair share of transitions over the years and it keeps getting better. The National Geographic recently listed the Casstrees Market as third in the world. Prime Minister Honourable Alan Chastney praised the vendors for their resilience and patience during this time adding that the end result was well worth the wait. There is no more important persons than who we've come here to celebrate today and I generally mean that which are the vendors of our country. They are the ambassadors every single day. We talk about tourism but they're the ones who touch the hand of all the tourists. They're the ones who give the smiles and give the character of our destination. Permanent Secretary in the Ministry of Economic Development, Claudius Emmanuel, highlighted the economic impact of the project. The covered vending area, the construction of the locally manufactured vending stalls and the refurbishment of the comfort stations have come at a cost of EC5.1 million dollars. These facilities are expected to provide improved working conditions and lead to increased productivity. They also are expected to create a new and exciting shopping experience for vendors and shoppers and boost returns to the economy in general and in the agriculture sector in particular. The first phase of the project was funded via grant funding from the Government of the Republic of China, Taiwan. President Josh DeFair, the Embassy of the Republic of China, Taiwan, Councillor Bill Yung said that Taiwan is proud to be a contributor to the project and by extension the development of St. Lucia. I believe that it is an important time for organizing such an event and a milestone in St. Lucia's fight against COVID-19. The completion of the new vending area and the upcoming duty-free stalls is a solid pledge to the people of St. Lucia and outside world that the economic recovery is just around the corner. More jobs will be generated and more business opportunities will be created soon. We must have faith and confidence along the way. Mayor of Castries, his Worship, Peter St. Francis, highlighted his commitment to working with all stakeholders for the betterment of the city of Castries. To the vendors, he said the best is yet to come. We must recognize the workers among us and those who strive for the collective good of a nation. My objective is to continue working very closely with all stakeholders, particularly our vendors. So far, I've received, the vendors have received free access to public contact stations, issuance of job letters, identifying you as an authorized vendor, awards and recognition for our market fees, registration for our vendors, registration program, training and development through the OECS Regional and Competitiveness Project. I must remind you that the work is not yet completed. As the other phase, you will give light to the entire project and further enhancement to all vendors. The President of the Sinusia Craft and Dry Goods Vendors Association, Peter Isaac, welcomed the new facility. And we hope to bring about comfort and a comfortable experience for the vendors and also their patrons. We, the Vendors Association, will welcome any development that will bring about any improvement to the operation of our members. The Cassius Market Redevelopment Project consists of three phases to be completed to the tune of $32 million. From the Government Information Service, Lisa Joseph reporting. The Ministry of Health and Wellness has completed another week of aggressive contact tracing and broad-based testing for COVID-19 in the continued fight against the highly infectious novel coronavirus. On Sunday, 3 May, Sinusia recorded its 18th case of COVID-19. The individual is a 51-year-old male who sought care at a respiratory clinic with a dry cough but none of the accompanying symptoms of COVID-19. The Ministry of Health has ramped up testing in communities to ensure that community spread is contained. Testing for the coronavirus has thus far been limited to symptomatic individuals who present another various clinics throughout the island. Director of the Azraelong Laboratory Dr. Wayne Felician explained that the country had been dependent on the Caribbean Public Health Agency, CARFOR, to assist with testing while training local personnel in an effort to develop the capacity for local testing. Sinusia has since done more tests than CARFOR with a shorter turnaround period. Dr. Felician noted that efforts are now being channeled into broadening the country's testing capacity. At present, we're testing symptomatic people and the push is always for greater testing capabilities and increasing the spectrum. And obviously, you've got to move into the realm of asymptomatic people. That is a troublesome population as how do you define the population that you're going to test? So we've had to put groups together, groups of personnel from the public, private sector just to look at how we're going to approach that and what categories do we put them? Do we put them in very high risk or high risk, medium risk or low risk to approach it? Obviously, epidemiology has a major role to play in that because if you have a cluster of population within a specific area, for example, say, Sufra, what do you do? You have to attack that population more significantly as opposed to prioritizing the limited resources that you have right now. The ability to collect samples from the human resource to do that, these are things that we need to play. He noted, however, that while the aim is to increase testing capacity, it is not without its challenges as several factors come into play. We have limiting factors when you look at testing and that also affects our strategy towards testing. There's usually a call that persons would like us to expand the test into at-risk groups, essential workers, widespread clusters of small populations that we think might be at risk as opposed to others. So what we've done is due to the limiting capacity, when I say limiting capacity is all limiting factors, it would be the availability of kits to test, to extract the viral components. Also, just the simple biosafety cabinet where you do the extraction, you can't have two or three persons extracted at the same time because you only have one. Also, the ability to collect samples as well from the various centers we have. But at present, we're currently in discussion in multiple groups, public, private, and governmental, to see how we can eliminate some of those limitations. Dr. Felicia indicated that work is being conducted so as to further enhance testing capacity and that includes the procurement of new equipment. We're trying to also acquire more equipment that can also give us even a greater capacity to test on a daily basis. We're also looking to have all our personnel trained to use it. We're also looking to purchase automated systems, which will reduce the need for human resource to be extracted on an hourly or two-hour basis. For example, with extraction, you would have one person being able to extract 15 samples within a two-hour period. With an automated system, you increase the number you can extract and you reduce the time to an hour. So that will also increase our volume as well. The director assured that St. Lucia is utilising the gold standard, recognised globally when conducting tests. Meantime, the government has allocated $51.4 million or 11.72% of the development budget to the Department of Health as part of the COVID-19 response. Prime Minister and Minister for Finance, Hon. Alan Chastney, made the announcement as he presented the estimates of revenue and expenditure for 2020-2021. The allocation will also go towards remedying some issues identified at the OKEU hospital. And St. Lucia will benefit from US $10.5 million, activated from World Bank projects to support the country's COVID-19 response. This financing will strengthen St. Lucia's efforts to address the health and economic impacts of the pandemic. The financing for the healthcare system will help increase testing capabilities, build isolation units and enhance public information campaigns to assist with awareness and prevention. It will also support the rehabilitation of Victoria Hospital and other medical facilities, creating employment for the associated labour-intensive civil works that will also enhance infrastructure resilience. These funds will access under the contingency emergency response components of the St. Lucia Health System Strengthening Project and the Disaster of Vulnerability Reduction Project in the amounts of US $5 million and US $5.5 million, respectively. Prime Minister the Honourable Alan Shasne has also informed that government is working with development partners as it guides St. Lucia through the COVID crisis. The government will tap into the National Economic Development Fund, which holds contributions from the Citizenship Investment Program. However, given the passage of legislation during 2019-2020, for the establishment of a National Economic Development Fund, inflows from CIP are expected to be deposited into the NEF. In light of this, revenue for voluntary transfers reflects anticipated receipts of $30 million from the NEF. Mr. Speaker, given the difficult fiscal situation confronting our country, it is my government's intention to make an application to the NEF Board to request the use of $30 million to be contributed towards the debt principle requiring a bullet payment. Overall, revenue from the voluntary transfers is estimated to increase by $27.3 million over the outturn of 2019-2020 fiscal year. Prime Minister the Honourable Alan Shasne, as he presented the 2020-2021 Estimates of Revenue and Expenditure. The Bo-Firm-Ger Foundation and Barron's Food have made a significant contribution to the National Mills Program in response to COVID-19. The Government of St. Lucia recently hosted a national response telephone raising in excess of $2.5 million for frontline workers and other vulnerable individuals in society. As St. Lucia continues to fight against the COVID-19 pandemic, non-profit organisations and companies are continuing to give their support towards the provision of the necessary personal protective equipment for frontline workers as well as the National Mills Program. Ronald Ramjatan Jr., the Executive Director of Barron Foods Limited, was on hand to present their donation of $60,000. On behalf of the Barron Foods team, this is just our way as a company, local company, which is well-developed in the St. Lucia Society. On our way of just giving back to all of our frontliners and on behalf of everybody, we say thank you. They would have mentioned that we gave an overall donation worth of $60,000. So $25,000 is monetary and $35,000 in products which is sauces, condiments, spices. The Bo-Thum-Jer Foundation, a non-profit organisation focused on providing aid for the most vulnerable, also donated $5,000. Desma Charles is a board member of the Bo-Thum-Jer Foundation. On behalf of the Board of Directors of the Bo-Thum-Jer Foundation, we are indeed happy and humbled to honour our commitment in assisting our frontline workers who are working so hard to ensure that our lives are saved, that health is preserved. And we take this opportunity to hand over this donation from the Bo-Thum-Jer Foundation to aid in such a trying and troublesome time. Bo-Thum was a very thoughtful, kind, caring and generous individual, and he would no doubt be at the frontline in assisting those who are assisting us. So to carry on his legacy, the Foundation saw it fitting to give this donation in aid of our frontline workers who are helping us in this time. Minister for Tourism, Information and Broadcasting, Culture and Creative Industries, Honourable Dominic Fede, expressed gratitude to the entities for their donations. The $35,000 worth in products is going to go to a national feeding programme and that feeding programme is going to reach out to the vulnerable where attempting to reach at least 10,000 individuals all across at Lucia. At times in our COVID response, we will have to limit the commercial activities which would include supermarkets which would no doubt put disabled individuals, elderly individuals, better-ridden individuals, at severe risk and so what we are attempting to do with care packages and the food is to try to meet them every step of the way. So this will no doubt go a very long way. Secondly, I would like to thank Ms. Jobs and the Board of the Bo-Thum-Jer Foundation. For their tremendous donation here today, your foundation is one that's built on faith and courage and hope and tenacity and it's such an inspiration to all of Lucia and we are very, very grateful that you are coming on board. The St. Lucia frontline workers COVID-19 response GoFundMe campaign has been set up for a 30-day period commencing April 11th for anyone who may want to contribute towards the battle against COVID-19. Individuals can also donate via the National Community Foundation at the Bank of St. Lucia using the account number 1045-111-1. From the Government Information Service, I am Anicia Antoine reporting. This is NTI Nightly. Up next, Primers Hutchinson with the NTI Novel, OK All. On a virus, I am worried Gaza is only old people dying from that. Hold up, being young does not mean being safe. Yes, it's true that the elderly are at higher risk but anyone can get the virus. The effect is even worse if you have a chronic condition like hypertension, heart disease, lung disease and diabetes or weakness in your immune system. If you are living with these conditions, be extra careful. Wash your hands with soap and water. Use hand sanitizer with at least 60% alcohol when hand washing is not possible. Avoid touching your face. Take steps to boost your immunity through proper nutrition, exercise, rest and take your medication as prescribed. Limit being around people who have flu symptoms, even close family members. Our health is in our hands. Together through simple actions, we can stop the spread of coronavirus. This message was brought to you by the Bureau of Health Education of the Ministry of Health and Wellness. Welcome back. We join Prima's Hutchinson for the NTN Nouvelle Aquéol. You can confine Slah at least. So, I bow my hands to you again. Minister Slah, the University of Pensacola for Agricultural University, Ezekiel Joseph, a weeping young, concerned with the situation in Gwala Plasca Street. The young who, he was, deserved a great change. He declared that nearly every Prime Minister had agreed to go to Gwala Plasca Street to buy a good piece of land. And since every hotel is closed for example it's a good opportunity for the farmers to be able to go to Gwala Plasca Street. So, we are very happy that you have been able to come to Gwala Plasca Street. in order to remember a lot of facilities that have been advanced. Convertible in this case, I decided to take action to address the situation of several individuals who are struggling to stay and who have completed the week-astry night as usual. Consequences of COVID-19. Most of these people have been placed in an establishment for the VJ. That's what's complex. But that was not the case at the time because there was no establishment that would serve as an accommodation for people like that. Prime Minister Onibab Allen Chastney visited the establishment of Lady Bomartie and the other officers to examine the situation of these people and to decide in which way to relieve the conditions. Otherwise, Prime Minister Chastney said that it was a really good initiative but the only way to strengthen this initiative is to engage and assist these people in the best possible way to finance and provide the money in place to continue this exercise. Prime Minister Chastney said that it would be a pleasure and for the National Government to wish the poorest people to eat and to consider sooner a day or a year when they will be able to pay for everything that they find to eat. Prime Minister Chastney said that it would be a great benefit for the culture and the whole local community. Prime Minister Onibab Maria Isaac visited the establishment of Lady Bomartie and the other officers who were placed in the establishment of Lady Bomartie. So, I decided to do a medical service for the doctors. And what I want to do now is to look after the patients and the doctors so that they can help them with the assistance they need. We have a lot of young people who are working in this area. We have a lot of people working in this area and we have 28 people working in this area. We have a lot of young people working in this area and we have a lot of people working in this area. We have a lot of young people working here and we have a lot of young people working in this area. I want to complement the people who have participated in this program and have the place to be established. We really want to simply see where money is. So This is the recording of the COVID-19 vaccine, and this is the recording of the third month of May. This is the recording of the new COVID-19 vaccine. In total, the second month of May was tested. This is the name of the second month of May. I'm very happy to share this information with you. I'm very happy to share this information with you. I'm very happy to share this information with you. I'm very happy to share this information with you. I'll also like to thank you for being here today. Please, add one more question. First, I think this question is very important for you. What is the purpose of the case? You mentioned it before. That brings us to the end of NTIA 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 Norville.