 Greetings to you. My name is Mousy Jabattis, Minister for Health, Wellness, and Early Affairs. Today, I'm joined by Dr. Sharon Belma George, our Chief Medical Officer, and also the Medical Director at the Victoria Hospital, Dr. Eugene Ford. We will be discussing the COVID-19 situation in St. Lucia and the extension of the protocols until September 30th. I now invite Dr. Sharon Belma George to speak with you on the COVID-19 situation here in St. Lucia. The Ministry of Health, Wellness, and Early Affairs continues to manage the fourth wave in country. From July 25th to September 19th, we note 5,077 cases at an average of 89 cases per day. During that period, we note 58 COVID-19 deaths with a case fatality rate of 1.1%. Females account for 52% of the deaths. The average age of the deaths is 66 years. At present, we have 2,181 active cases in country. The daily infection rate for the past week was 47.9 per 100,000 per day at an average of 86.9 cases per day. In relation to this new wave, 5,077 persons were positive. 51% in the age group, 25 to 49 years, 58% of the cases are female. The majority of the cases are from castries, grosile, Vufort, and Babano. Based on contact tracing data, the majority of the cases diagnosed are related to workplaces and spread between families. From the review of the epidemiological curve, we are at a plateau at this point and we note reduced transmission rate. To date, from the positive cases diagnosed in country, less than 2% have been fully vaccinated. 98% of the COVID-19 deaths and COVID-19 related deaths at the respiratory hospital were unvaccinated. The 2% of the deaths who were fully vaccinated had other serious underlying health conditions, which contributed to their demise. Today, we report 1 COVID-19 related death and 17 COVID-19 deaths, which occurred during the period September 14th to the 19th, 2021. All of these reported cases were unvaccinated and the majority are from castries and Vufort. 10 of these are male and 8 are female. St. Lucia is working with the Caribbean Public Health Agency to improve the health and safety of citizens and visitors. The regional tourism and health program was officially launched on Saturday, September 18th, 2021. This innovative program, executed by the Caribbean Public Health Agency, aims to enhance the health and well-being of visitors and locals by strengthening the surveillance system to pick up infectious diseases and also capacity building and certification for all of the tourism-related activities. This will reduce the negative impact of the industry in a sustainable way. A full schedule of activities is planned between the Ministry of Health, the Ministry of Tourism, the various stakeholders, and is coordinated by the Caribbean Public Health Agency. We continue to ask the public to work with us and exhibit responsible behavior to manage this fourth wave. Let us all take personal responsibility to keep ourselves and our families safe. At present we have available both the Pfizer and the AstraZeneca vaccine, free of charge in country at the various wellness centers and sites. These vaccines have been proven to be safe and effective in protecting persons from developing COVID-19, its severe forms, complications, and hospitalizations on death. With the high level of community spread noted in country at this point, we continue to advise the public to remain vigilant and adhere to the protocols that have been put in place to keep us safe. These include regular hand washing, the use of face masks in public places, avoiding crowds and persons with respiratory symptoms, and keeping frequently touched surfaces clean. At this point, I will hand over to the medical director of the Victoria Hospital to give us an update on the present situation. Thank you CMO. The respiratory hospital has a bed capacity of 123 which can be ramped up to 127. Since we started vaccination from February 1st, 2021 to September 20th, 2021, we have had 1623 admissions out of which 23 were fully vaccinated and 34 with first dose. It must be highlighted that the majority of the vaccinated patients had milder symptoms when compared to the unvaccinated patients. From June we had 136 admissions, in July and August we had 142 and 261 admissions respectively. As of September 20th, 2021, we have had 234 patients, a total of 773 admissions. Some of the main challenges at the respiratory hospital are lack of specialty human resource physicians such as ICU and A&E specialists, nurses such as ICU and Nephrology Services. We have recruited staff through the Cuban bilateral agreement as well as requested through diplomatic channels such as the Embassy of France. A second challenge is technological and communication issues. Flow is currently upgrading the telecommunications system. We have enhanced internal and external communication between administration, clinical team and patients, families. A third challenge is increased patient flow in the accident and emergency department. But we have received additional support extending to an annex with a seven bed capacity. We also have another challenge with increased demand for medical gases. We have a semi-automated system which feeds ICU and our high dependency unit. We have dedicated teams assigned to manage and monitor the medical gas system and regular training and debriefing, forecasting of the medical gas system. Another challenge for us is the staff burnout and stress. So we do have counseling and debriefing services, empowerment and motivation from management and a more conducive working environments with staff lounge with tea corners and staff meals. The management of the Victoria Hospital wishes to remind the general public to adhere to the recommended protocols and to vaccinate. These measures have scientifically proven to save and protect lives. Let us do our part to combat this pandemic. I now hand over to Honorable Minister Mozi Jabatist. Thank you very much Dr. Eugene. My fellow St. Lucians, the government of St. Lucia recognizes the efforts of all who are adhering to the COVID-19 protocols. We acknowledge the sacrifices which everyone has had to make over the last few weeks to prioritize health and safety. I extend heartfelt condolences to the families of all those who have passed away as a result of COVID-19 or COVID-19 related illness. It is a difficult time for you and may God grant you and your families strength and peace. At this stage, we note the overall reduction in the transmission rate. But as the medical professionals have explained, we are still at a critical phase and we cannot let our guard down. We must ensure that we continue to bring down the transmission rate. After discussions and dialogue with the members of the COVID-19 Management Centre, the decision was made to extend the COVID-19 protocols currently in place until the end of September. We hope by that time amended protocols will include benefits for fully vaccinated individuals. The government continues to urge you to get vaccinated and will intensify our efforts to make the vaccine available to you in the best way possible. The extended protocols shall commence on Wednesday, September 22nd, 2021 and end on Thursday, September 30th, 2021. The COVID-19 protocols are the same as the last two weeks. As a reminder, the protocols are as follows. 1. Coffew will be in effect Monday to Friday from 7pm and ends at 4am. Saturday coffews start at 4pm and end on Monday at 4am. This means that there will be a 24-hour coffew on Sunday. 2. Suspension of the sale and disposal of intoxicating liquor at bars, rum shops and restaurants. 3. Sale and disposal of intoxicating liquor from supermarkets, gas stations or wholesaler with a valid liquor license will be permitted. Of course, there shall be no consumption of intoxicating liquor on the premises. 4. The suspension of dining services at restaurants and food establishments. Take away or what we call grab and go and delivery services will be permitted. 5. Recreational and social activities at hotels will be permitted on property during the coffew hours, provided that such activities take place on the property. Water sports and other water-related activities such as boat rides, skiing, etc. must be suspended during the 24-hour weekend coffew, meaning from Saturday 4pm to Monday 4am. During this period, the Government of St. Lucia will continue to meet with six stakeholders and the newly reconstituted COVID-19 Management Centre to review these protocols and to provide further updates on the protocols. Let us all continue adhering to the protocols to reduce the transmission of the COVID-19 virus and return to some level of normalcy. I thank you for viewing. I thank Dr. Sharon Belma George, our Chief Medical Officer for being here with us today. And also, I wish to thank Dr. Ford for being here with us today, the Medical Director of the Victoria Hospital. I thank you very much. Please stay safe, follow the protocols and let us combat COVID-19 together.