 Thank you very much Mr. Speaker and I stand Mr. Speaker to give Mr. Deputy Speaker to give support to what I believe is a very meaningful, timely and appropriate resolution to this Parliament which gives the, which seeks to grant the Minister of Finance to borrow an amount of 60 million US dollars from the African Export-Import Bank to finance the construction of social infrastructure and other facilities damaged or destroyed by tropical storm breaks under the Education Rehabilitation Climate-Length Facility. Mr. Speaker, I believe this more or less identifies this government, this administration, an administration of inclusivity, collaboration and of course unity committed to the cause of the people of this country. And when we speak of people, Mr. Speaker, for us the foundation of our community, of our society, of our country is embedded in the future of that country and that future lies in the young people of this country. So oftentimes when we condemn young people for being cause of some of the social programs, social problems rather which we are encountering in our society, beat crime and anti-social behavior. There is indeed a silver lining, one that is very bright, in the potential of our young people when we consider the performances beats in academics, in sports, in cultural activities or social endeavors, when they demonstrate their performance, their potential by virtue of their performance, this country has a bright future ahead. And the only way we can deliver on and fulfill that bright future is through the genuine support of the government that cares. The commitment that is necessary, not merely to speak about things and in some cases sweet talk, fancy talk, no delivery, but to demonstrate in reality our commitment to the needs of our people, particularly our young people. And therefore Mr. Speaker, I must commend the Prime Minister for what I consider to be his passion, his commitment and his dedication to that cause of reaching out to the people of this country and reaching out to all and sundry, whether it's the poor, the marginalized, the professional, the young and upcoming, the youth particularly, the children of this country, we have seen it demonstrated without the benefit of a doubt that this government cares and it reaches out to our people. To the minister responsible for education, I must commend him also. On his love for what he's doing, his commitment, his dedication and his passion. And oftentimes when he makes his presentations to cabinet, you can feel that passion, that commitment and that dedication and his determination to reach way beyond the limits established by those who believe that they established limits. And so Mr. Speaker, for me, it means a hell of a lot because as we speak of poverty in this parliament and we claim to believe that we know what is poverty, we heard the Minister for Equity when he made his presentation earlier and his own experiences as a young man growing out of poverty, I can associate to that. I can associate to it because out of poverty and the Prime Minister made a statement early on and it certainly touched me and that is the issue of being poor does not mean that you should not aspire to educate yourself. And in many instances, and I think he is the one who said it, we have seen young men and young women who performed, got to the point of resistance where they could not overcome the adversity and to get to a location, a position to continue that excellence. But Mr. Speaker, my commitment has been demonstrated over the years and I feel proud that in a number of cases, we have seen governments respond to some of those situations, particularly in my constituency. Mr. Speaker, as far back as equipped and beep, even while in opposition, I recall at least appealing to the then government to respond and to do and to fulfill some of the commitments made under the equip and program. I appealed for the Methodist School and I'm proud today as a past student of the Methodist School that we have seen with the commitment of the government, the completion, I should say the commencement and completion of the Methodist School after years, years of promise. We also, that is a golden walk at Memorial School. We also have seen the commencement and completion of the Vibhutel Primary School and they are very proud that they've got excellent facilities and the spirit and the mood and the confidence has been risen. But Mr. Speaker, even out of this, Mr. Speaker, because of my own experience going into a primary school that I thought was not privileged to sit next to the Methodist Primary School, I made a firm commitment to continue to persevere to assist that school and I can associate with a number of projects at the Methodist School from PE system installation, playground establishment and as we speak, Mr. Speaker, I'm just on the verge of completing a two-story block without government resources. All through fundraising efforts, all through fundraising effort, going out there and mobilizing resources and not touching one single cent from the public posts to create a sixth classroom and block that hopefully will be able to open early next year once the final set of resources come in to complete, to complete the project. That is the, that this one is the Methodist School. I heard the Minister speak of Cassie's comprehensive school. We've had a number of collaborative efforts and it's down now for the construction, commencement of work at the school under this program and I'm very proud that this school is being considered. I have worked with the principals who have served at that school, the Canadian government who have served and others who have come forward and to continue to contribute towards that school, keeping it up and standing, rather demolished for people's dreams and aspirations. Also, Mr. Speaker, the Vidbutel, I spoke of Vidbutel, it's an Ira Simmons school. We continue to work. I continue to give support and I'm proud of what we have done. The SD Academy, which is my secondary school, we have worked together and provided a music lab, a maths lab, the painting of the school and the upliftment of the school, Mr. Speaker. St. Mary's College, the assembly hall, computer lab, all through support from various agencies and private sector and this week, Mr. Speaker, the Prime Minister was very gracious. Last week rather, the Prime Minister was very gracious in approving a grant to the St. Mary's College for the commencement of a multi-purpose Scott to the value of $68,000 as the government's contribution. Then you have the St. Joseph's Convent, Mr. Speaker and again through the CDP program, we have been able to give them a grant of $75,000 for their own construction of a new court on the grounds of St. Joseph's Convent so as to relocate and to surrender through negotiation of course, the existing court at the lower level for the general public. Mr. Speaker, I often refer to Kastri's North as the Education District of St. Lucia. With five or six secondary schools and Mr. Minister for Education, maybe you can correct me, the 70 Adventist Academy, the St. Mary's College, the Kastri's Comprehensive Secondary School, the Sir Ira Simmons Secondary School, the Patricia D. James Secondary School and the St. Joseph's Convent, all within the constituency of Kastri's North, six secondary schools. I didn't mention the Patricia James Secondary School, but again that school I've worked tirelessly to uplift it from what used to be to a school now of greater presence and the esteem of the teachers and students. Then you have the Camille Henry Secondary, I'm sorry Primary School and the Vidbutel Primary School, all of which are outstanding schools on the island. So Mr. Speaker, when a government makes that kind of commitment and stops talking, the Eucharist SGA Primary School, another excellent school in the district, a school of choice to a certain extent and you have the Mondino, I didn't even mention Mondino where I worked also in doing a number of things there. Only this year we granted them some, I think, $25,000 to assist them and all of that is coming from the government. Mr. Speaker, Deputy Speaker, when a government can demonstrate its commitment to its people and not just talk, but to do what is necessary and can find every avenue to make that contribution to the children, to give them hope so as to understand that life was never meant to be a walk through the park, but rather an aspiration to aspire to the top, but to give them the necessary tools and avenues to get them to the top. I believe it is commendable and I must thank the Prime Minister and commend the Minister for his vision and his commitment to that cause. Mr. Speaker, I believe that the government is committed and hopefully notwithstanding the fact that the Prime Minister has sort of indicated that next year will be the Year of Infrastructure. I believe the fact that the Prime Minister understands the need to have an environment, a school environment that are conducive to learning, not only the physical structure, but to be able to train our teachers, to be able to equip our teachers, to give them the necessary supplies and equipment that they need to be able to administer the education. I think it is indeed, Mr. Speaker, a commendable thing, but you know, Mr. Speaker, in this country, there's no thank you, no one would thank, but there'll be those who will criticize and will find every reason to criticize and fail to say thank you for doing this, or you have done a commendable thing. Mr. Speaker, I want to commend the Prime Minister and to commend the Minister on what they have done. And I can only say, Mr. Speaker, I can only say, Mr. Speaker, that as Minister responsible for infrastructure, I stand ready to give all of the support, all of the support necessary in ensuring that the work in education, in uplifting our schools, in creating new environments, environments of learning, in bringing back to our students that hope and that confidence that as Minister for infrastructure, I stand ready to give that support. And next year, Mr. Speaker, as we deal with the year of infrastructure, we also will be launching another program that will speak to addressing the deficits in infrastructure, and not simply road infrastructure, roads, bridges, culverts, et cetera, et cetera, but also given support to infrastructure in telecommunications, energy, utilities, public utilities, and loose leak, water, telecoms to strengthen our infrastructure and to prepare for the year 2030. This, Mr. Speaker, I believe is important, and therefore that support will not only sit in the realm of only the subjects directly associated to the Department of Infrastructure, but, Mr. Speaker, will also give support to the other sectors, support to education, support to tourism, support to agriculture, and showing that the infrastructure necessary for those sectors are made available by the year 2030 so that those other sectors, those other departments, other ministries now can then design their programs, understanding that they will get the infrastructure necessary, whether it's the roads, whether it's the telecommunication system, whether it's electricity, whether it's water, whatever the case may be, the necessary support infrastructure will be coordinated through a national strategic plan that we hope all will come on board and join with us. So, Mr. Speaker, I therefore end here by commanding you, Deputy Speaker, by commanding the Minister for Finance for having seen the need and having the foresight to access the African Export-Import Bank, and I believe St. Lucia must have been the first country in the Caribbean to have access to the offer of the bank, first country, to be very expedient in its application and to be able to get approval for this US $6 million, which will be a start in the way forward. Now, some jokers will sit down and laugh and make a fool of themselves. But Mr. Speaker, the point is that this government, this government is committed. This government is not bluffing. This government knows when it speaks, it means what it says. And that is the difference between this government that I'm part of and what I used to be part of. That is the difference of the two administrations. I thank you.