 Mr. Speaker, once again I wish to thank you and indeed your Honourable Prime Minister and member for Caster East, for the opportunity to present to the people of St. Lucia and this Honourable House, and particularly our business community, the policy direction and area of focus of my ministry, which is the Ministry of Commerce, Manufacturing, Business Development, Cooperatives, and Consumer Affairs for the current financial year and budget of 2023-24. But Mr. Deputy Speaker, with your permission, let me take a pause and to honour and thank my constituent, Osufre Foshajak, on whose behalf I stand today. I want to thank my constituent for the support that they continue to provide and today I want to tell them that I commit once again to serve them. Mr. Deputy Speaker, earlier while making your own presentation here in this Honourable House, you made reference to the behaviour of the United Workers' Party in Sufre about two weeks ago. Mr. Speaker, Mr. Deputy Speaker, quite a few people question whether, quite a few people question why we allowed the, why we gave permission to have that meeting at all traffic. Mr. Deputy Speaker, it's a democratic country. We felt that it was very game to allow the members opposite to use the platform to speak to the people of Sufre. But what we saw was a party empty and bereft of ideas. That's what we saw. So instead of them using the opportunity to present the policies, they showed how they were not prepared and they are not prepared to take these people to the promised land. So what I'm going to do, I'm going to invite the people of Sufre on May 1st to be at the same spot on May 1st at four o'clock where we will launch the Vendors Association of Sufre. Ninety members. We will not insult, but we will sow the seed. I have approximately 90 vendors in one association. We will partner with the Foshish Health Cooperative Credit Union. We will partner with the Sufre Foundation to plant a seed. To plant a seed, Mr. Speaker. So, Mr. Speaker, back to the issue before us, and that is the 2023-2024 budget, Mr. Speaker. When the Honourable Prime Minister presented, in his address, he focused on three strategic priorities for our government. Namely, health, security, and economic sustainability. The issue of health and health service is critical for all of us, Mr. Deputy Speaker. And as part rep for Sufre, I was elated when I saw a provision in the budget for the commencement of the new Sufre. So, I want to take this moment to thank both the Minister of Finance and the Minister of Government. Mr. Speaker, Mr. Deputy Speaker, the level of responsibility of my ministry is to collaborate with all the ministries, the government agencies, the private sector, and the government to ensure that there is an enabling environment to foster that economic sustainability environment, which is vital for the development of our economy. So, then, Mr. Speaker, one of the key ingredients we have for sustainable economic growth is the private sector that is energised, globally compensated, and resilient to domestic and external challenges. So, as we journey, as we go back on this journey to develop our private sector, one ends up there, one small business at a time, that is meaningful, but working together. Now, Mr. Speaker, in addition to the services you are writing, so why then, Mr. Speaker, who said that, for example, my ministry will focus on a certain number of priority areas as we seek to close the policy gap and provide even the greatest support to the business community we should see. Mr. Deputy Speaker, we shall focus on the most important areas during this scenario. As we are, one, ends up the very development, the commissioning, the tasking, providing capital financial and technical support to our MSNAs. We provide technical support for customers. C, promoting a shift in e-commerce in domestic and trans-border trade. D, continuing power with our women. And, E, focus on real business integration. Two, promote quality and standardisation through the work of the San Lucia Bureau of Standards by increasing awareness and use of packaging, leveling and testing standards. Three, increase in San Lucia's exports by leveraging the standards of export solution. We will continue to explore export opportunities for our local private sector in the current one region and elsewhere, strengthening our consumer-sized department in terms of its local functions. And, repositioning the property movement with an enhanced legislative framework. And D, key development of the business process of social services. Putting the use of generalisation and other alternative renewable energies to reduce operating costs and enhance our competitiveness. Three, develop San Lucia's fashion sector. Three, develop an office in Newport to serve the people in the south. Seven, establish a legislative and regulatory framework to support orderly use and development of cannabis at an industry. And eight, revitalising San Lucia's freedom area with a development of a strategic action plan. Mr. Speaker, I believe that if we are successful in preventing this ambitious weather agenda in part or in both, we will have come along with in improving the business environment and addressing many of the concerns which include growth and development of our private sector while also guiding the interest of consumers and the gains that we have made. Mr. Speaker, let me begin with the policy action intended to enhance think-of-the-gain developments. The initial converse I went back on a number of initial reasons. In all, it is our MSME loan grant facilities. And this facility, Mr. Speaker, Mr. Speaker, this MSME loan grant facility is an easy $10 million facility that is recommended to some 500 micro or small million enterprises. Mr. Speaker, this is an easy $10 million loan facility regulated by the Ministry of Finance with the current development plan. This initiative was launched on the 24th of April. Not long time ago. This facility was launched in March. But on the 25th of April, we were able to have a new number MSME grant check-over where we have distributed checks to six politicians on the program. Mr. Speaker, as we speak, we have succeeded in over 100 attributions under this program. We have done this, Mr. Deputy Speaker, and you, Mr. Deputy Speaker. Deputy Speaker, the technical break, I was speaking on the MSME loan grant facility and I was saying that so far we had just over 100 persons applying and I want to take this moment to again encourage all business owners, small business owners and persons who are interested between the ages of 31 to 60 to bring in their application. And if you have any challenges in preparing your business plan, we at the Ministry of Commerce will help you with this. It is your government trying to ensure that we give you an opportunity of a lifetime and I want to urge you to seize that opportunity. Mr. Speaker, Mr. Deputy Speaker, under the area of entrepreneurial development, while we went and we had this outreach for the MSME loan grant facility, we were having a request from persons 60 and above and the request was what is in this for us or why have you not addressed our needs? So Mr. Speaker, Deputy Speaker, today I want to inform the over 60s that we at the Ministry of Commerce have not forgotten you, that we've heard you, we appreciate that you have special skills and that we will work with you to develop a customized business support package and we will come back to the table to address you. Let's say I'm subheading Mr. Deputy Speaker, technical support for vendors. Our vendors are very hardworking, applying their craft within these markets, offering a diverse range of goods and services. These vendors deserve every opportunity to continue to grow their business, increase their revenue and expand their focus. For these reasons Mr. Speaker, my ministry in collaboration with the Ministry of Agriculture and Tourism will work collaboratively during this fiscal year to put a plan in place to assist our vendors. But I must say that I have started in Sufra and I have the ball on MEPHOS. I am launching my vendors association so that we put the structure in place to assist our vendors. I urge colleagues in this Honorable House to continue putting, let us start putting structures in place. I will travel MEPHOS four o'clock, put the structures in place so that we can help our various stakeholders. Mr. Speaker, it's also important for us to support the vendors in adapting to change. Our visitors who visit us do not work with cash anymore. They do not work with traveler's checks. Instead they work with debit cards and credit cards. And we are committing this year to work with the financial centres to ensure that our vendors have an avenue to accept debit and credit cards so that their sales could increase and that their businesses could grow. Mr. Speaker in the area, Deputy Speaker in the area of e-commerce, we all know that the future of business, whether it's in Central Asia or globally, resides in digitisation. And Mr. Speaker, I want to applaud the work currently being done by the public service in terms of public service modernisation as well as the Ministry of Education and the first to us introducing smart technology within our classrooms. For this reason Mr. Speaker, my ministry wants to report that it's in its second year of implementing the Central Asia Digitisation Program, an initiative funded in part by the OAS and the Government of Central Asia. Through this collaboration, we have enlisted four e-commerce platforms to help lead the thrust towards digitisation of our Central Asian businesses. I take this opportunity Mr. Speaker to applaud our external parties, the OAS, for their continued support. I also welcome the intervention of USAID through its recently announced Caribbean Business Enabling Environment Reform initiative, which will also be lending needed support to Central Asia in the field of e-commerce. Mr. Speaker, again the OAS is also working with us in another program, Women Economic Empowerment Initiative, geared at assisting women in the region to participate in the digital economy. The goal of this 36 month project which is funded by the United States is to sensitise women to the opportunities and develop capacity to benefit from the digital economy. Mr. Speaker, only last week we had a call for expression of interest which was issued by the OAS and we are really hoping Mr. Speaker that our MSMEs, the same persons who are participating in the MSME program will also take advantage of this program. Mr. Speaker, under the same sub-head we are looking at the area of business incubation. Since returning to office in 2021, I've had the opportunity to live daily with entrepreneurs and business owners across all constituencies and across all industries. Mr. Deputy Speaker, I have concluded that the entrepreneurial spirit is alive and well here in Central Asia. But despite this, there is a critical element which is lacking. That element comprises of the facilities, the infrastructure and targeted technical support that helps take a manufacture from the cottage industry and product prototype into mass production, into standardisation, into industrialisation and eventually into market dominance. We need facilities to better nurture these entrepreneurs. So Mr. Speaker, we need to delve into the business incubation business. I am pleased to report Mr. Speaker that we have had discussion with our partners in West Central Asia, Export Central Asia and we have identified a place in Odessa to house this initiative. However, Mr. Speaker, apart from housing this initiative, we need to fund and retrofit the facility. I know that the business persons would say that they've heard about incubation for a long time. But I am saying now that we are moving from just talking about it to taking the requisite action Mr. Deputy Speaker. We have identified this issue as a major bottleneck in growing our productive sector, resulting in many product prototypes and so many initiatives going under. This year, we will consult, we will plan, we will identify funding for this critical project. Mr. Speaker, I now look at the second area that we are looking at and that is promoting quality standards through the Bureau of Standards. Mr. Speaker, we cannot speak about entrepreneurial development if we do not focus on standards, packaging and labeling of our domestic products. In this fiscal year, we will welcome the commencement of an approved project by the Caribbean Development Bank to facilitate compliance to packaging and labeling requirements by MSMEs which will complement the assistance available under the MSME grant loan facility. Mr. Deputy Speaker, we expect some 200 MSMEs to benefit from enhanced packaging and labeling under this initiative. Mr. Deputy Speaker, the Bureau of Standards has played a critical role in making sure that we have a national agricultural diagnostic facility. And through collaboration with the Ministry of Agriculture, we provide effective conformity assessment mechanisms for the assessment of safe agricultural products to local, regional and international markets. Mr. Speaker, the facility will offer services to the sector in the areas of soil testing, nutrition analysis, and the testing of our waters. The facility will assist the manufacturers and agro processors with the testing of inputs and finished products to allow for improved agricultural practices, certification and market access. The Bureau of Standards Compliance Department has achieved ISO 17-021 accreditation in October 2022 which will ensure that our conformity assessment process with respect to the inspection, electrical appliances, testing and label assessments meet international requirements. Mr. Speaker, John Public can have further confidence in the quality and safety of the products that we import. Mr. Speaker, Deputy Speaker, in May 2022, my government instituted a mandatory conformity measure for new and used vehicles. This measure is administered by the Bureau and it addressed issues to the importation of defective vehicles and reduces the impact of disposal of non-compliant ones on the environment. Consumers can now have valuable information about their purchase and be able to choose options that are safer for the environment. In the area of metrology, Mr. Speaker, our metrology department at the Bureau has now received ISO accreditation for ISO 17-025. With this initiative, Mr. Speaker, the Bureau will do the following. Ensure all utility meters and automatic catch weighing instruments used in central shore have valid pattern approval. Two, ensure all automated blood pressure meters are clinically validated as a prerequisite for verification. This measure has improved the quality of blood pressure meters imported into central shore, thus enhancing the quality of health services to our citizens. Mr. Speaker, these strides in the development of our quality infrastructure, in particular, increasing our production of products that satisfy the various national, regional and international standards, will enhance our ability to export goods to clericom and beyond. Three, we will speak about increase of central shore's exports. Mr. Speaker, as a small developing country, our internal markets is likewise relatively small. Therefore, we must look beyond our shores for larger markets to support the growth and development of our foods. Mr. Speaker, one area of target for us this year is to strengthen trade relations with our sister country of Guyana. Mr. Speaker, currently, Guyana is experiencing exponential growth in economic activities given by recent discovery of oil. The injection of over US $170 billion over the next two years is harrowing significant growth across every single sector of the Guyana's economy. For this reason, Mr. Speaker, my government has endorsed a strategy to explore opportunities for increased trade with Guyana. This strategy, Mr. Speaker, is being coordinated by export solution. We have had at least one visit to Guyana in June 2022 where we focused on the construction industry. Currently, Mr. Speaker, Centrucia exports paint and finals, finals, pebble and gravel to Guyana. After our second visit, we expect to add to this steel and roofing materials. Mr. Speaker, another initiative by export Centrucia, Mr. Speaker, is the twice-unique wave-all. And this is an initiative where we are working with the ambassador of the diaspora and the consulate in Magnic and Guadalupe to host a series of events aimed at formalizing an increasing export to our French-Caribbean overseas region, Mr. Speaker. The agency has conceptualized this program and this includes three days of cultural exchange in Magnic, Guadalupe, and French Guyana, which is Cayenne, culminating in Centrucia. Twice-unique wave-all will culminate in Centrucia during June, where people from Magnic, Guadalupe, and French Guyana will be formally invited to participate in Centrucia's unique wave-all. Again, Mr. Speaker, on the export Centrucia, you may recall last year we reported on our trip to Dubai. I'm pleased to report, Mr. Speaker, that this trip has resulted in some of our products being on the supermarket shelf, especially our CMOS. Interest has also been shown for other items. Including beauty products. Mr. Speaker, export Centrucia will lead another mission to Dubai to solidify and convert other leads into exports, thus increasing the export basket and the list of countries that we partner with in trade. On the export Centrucia as well, Mr. Speaker, one of our initiatives for this fiscal year is developing the soap industry in Centrucia. Deputy Speaker, there has been a proliferation of manufacturers of soap over the last 10 years. Soap, huh? Soap. Although prospective buyers have expressed significant interest in these products, Mr. Speaker, the growth of soap exports has been hindered by a formidable barrier. And this barrier is the ability to test the soap, Mr. Speaker. And it is quite prohibitive, the cost of testing the products. Most times we have to send it overseas, and that is very costly. So now, Mr. Speaker, with the Diagnostic Lab up at Union, the Ministry of Commerce, the Bureau of Standards and Export Centrucia are collaborating to advise and oversee the growth and development of soap manufacturing and exporting. The ultimate deliverable is to get our soap manufacturers the necessary certification to meet the demands of our domestic market, like the hotels, and also to get new emerging export markets. I encourage all soap manufacturers to take note and present themselves, either to Export Centrucia or the Ministry of Commerce, as we are ready and willing to work with you. Mr. Speaker, another area of focus for us this year is the breadth to increase our export of breadfruit. Mr. Speaker, Export Centrucia has identified breadfruit as a priority crop for export, based on its unique characteristic and market potential. And I want to confirm that because over 10 years ago, or 8 years ago, when we actually did a tour of the United States, New York, Connecticut, New Jersey at the time, and we visited the large markets there, every market wanted the Centrucia breadfruit. So there is a market in the US for our breadfruit. There is no question about this. The work we have to do is the preparation. How do, what work do we have to do in terms of addressing what you call the pruning of the trees, the harvesting, the post harvesting, and that type of work. So this year, we have agreed to collaborate closely with our partners at the Ministry of Agriculture and Export Centrucia will do something else. It is going to, because of the nature of the fruit, we are going to explore various branding strategies and initiatives to showcase the unique quality of Centrucia's breadfruit and highlight its benefits to consumers. By raising the profile of the fruit in the international market, we hope to increase demand and create new opportunities for Centrucia's breadfruit growers and exporters. In the area of CMOS, Mr. Speaker, we've seen exponential growth in the export market for CMOS, but one of the things we want to do in this fiscal year is to focus on value-added in key export areas. These value-added products, such as CMOS powder, capsules, gels, and other derivatives have undergone development and refinement for the purpose of exports. These pioneering products have gained substantial traction and demonstrate significant potential for expansion in the export market, Mr. Deputy Speaker. Mr. Speaker, Deputy Speaker, these interventions are all aimed at growing our local economy and increasing our manufacturing sector, which has grown by 11.4% in 2022, the highest since 2007. I now turn my attention to the Department of Consumer Affairs. Mr. Deputy Speaker, I want to speak on the area of consumer protection, and I want to say with the passing of the Consumer Protection Act, the issue of consumer protection is no longer a dream, but a reality. No longer would our Consumer Affairs Department hope that our suppliers of goods and services would do the right thing. Now, we have a structure. We have established two legal bodies for the protection of consumers' institutions. One, the Consumer Protection Council, and two, the Consumer Protection Appeals Tribunal. Mr. Speaker, there is now the avenue for consumers' redress where parties can reach an amicable solution. My ministry is very pleased that we have this avenue for our consumers. Consumers do not have to go to the courts, but now, if there is an issue, there is an avenue for the supplier and the consumer to sit down and get it sorted out. Mr. Speaker, under this area, I want to focus a bit on the competition law and policy. This is a very important issue for us in St. Lucia at this time. My ministry is committed to monitoring and regulating the local business environment so as to ensure that trade and other commercial activities are done in a manner that promotes economic efficiency in the production of goods and the supply of services. Accordingly, Mr. Deputy Speaker, this is an area that will be given renewed attention in this fiscal year. Mr. Deputy Speaker, you will appreciate as part of our efforts to maximize the welfare of our consumers, there is a need to prohibit or eliminate, as far as possible, anti-competitive, abusive practices by business enterprises operating in our market. In addition, our market, as our market develops and becomes more sophisticated, we are likely to see changes in the scale, structure, and relationship among firms as they seek to grow and to formalize strategies to better compete in the local original market. This may result in mergers and acquisitions, various alliances, and the creation of more horizontal or vertically integrated companies, among other strategies in an effort to create more viable and competitive business enterprises. I must listen to add that as a signatory to the revised feature of Shagoramas, which establishes the curriculum single market and economies, we as a country have obligations with respect to the regional regions policies on competition. More specifically, we are required to have in place the necessary institutional arrangements in terms of the legislative measures and administrative procedures to ensure compliance with the rules of competition. Mr. Deputy Speaker, my ministry will provide a contact person to deal with complaints associated with anti-competitive behavior which may have taken place in the given sector in our market. I now turn, move from competition to cooperation. And in that area, I will speak on the reposition of the cooperative sector. Mr. Deputy Speaker, as administrator of the Cooperative Society Act and the minister responsible for cooperatives, I'm committed to taking the necessary action to revitalize and reposition the cooperative sector. Since its establishment, Mr. Speaker, this sector has played a critical role in our economy in terms of complimenting household incomes and providing financial resources to institutions. Mr. Deputy Speaker, the clearest evidence and testament to the value of cooperatives and credit unions in the lives of its members can be seen in the significant growth in the number of credit union accounts which is estimated at over 142,464 in 2022. The credit union movement has a loan portfolio of EC1 billion, which is approximately 14% of the total asset base of the banking sector. Mr. Deputy Speaker, while on one hand many of our credit unions have embraced technology as the ATM machine and have good corporate governance practices, others, unfortunately, have recorded unsatisfactory performances which have resulted in regulatory interventions. For this reason, credit unions must be empowered with the regulatory framework needed to enable them to adequately identify and deal with potential risk to improve their performance. As a result, regulators in St. Lucia and within the ECCU region have expressed their concerns regarding recurrent governance, poor governance and high level of non-performing loans in some credit unions. In light of this, Mr. Deputy Speaker, regulators in the ECCU area have enacted legislation. However, our legislation for St. Lucia is lagging behind. Mr. Deputy Speaker, we have a draft bill and we've had significant consultation on the draft cooperative bill. We are hoping to pass this bill during this financial year. Mr. Deputy Speaker, one of the main areas highlighted in the draft bill is deposit insurance. The cooperative society bill will have a deposit guarantee facility and a stabilization fund for credit unions which guarantees automatic protection, compensation or return of funds in the event of systemic risk and failure of a credit union or other financial cooperative society. Mr. Deputy Speaker, I will now focus a bit on the non-financial cooperatives. As we looked at this sector, Mr. Deputy Speaker, some of the challenges faced by the non-financial sector include high energy costs, aging membership and human resource capacity constraints, inadequate equipment and facilities, need for greater adherence to proper entrepreneurial managerial practices and high cost of direct input. In response to some of these challenges, the cooperative department will embark on a process of hand-holding to provide close quarter supervision to some of our cooperatives with a view to support their revitalization. In addition, Mr. Deputy Speaker, the department will pursue other interventions such as the establishment of a mentoring relationship between cooperatives that are weak with those that are stronger. We've had one such example between the Black Bay Farmers Cooperative and credit unions in the community. Mr. Deputy Speaker, we have already taken steps to address the high cost of energy faced by our fishing folk through the solarization of free fishing cooperatives in this fiscal year. In response to the reality of facing an aging cooperative sector, the ministry will sensitize our young people to the principles of cooperatives by inviting them to participate in various initiatives in the aim of developing a junior and new cooperative sub-sector. Mr. Deputy Speaker, as Minister for Commerce, I represent all businesses large, medium, small. We focus quite a bit on the MSMEs. We focus on the cooperative sector, and now I want to focus on the large businesses by speaking a bit on the electronic single window. In establishing an enabling business environment, we in Central Asia need to initiate an electronic single window. In the world of globalization, trading across borders must become easier and safer, and that is critical. Many governments across the world recognize this and have implemented electronic single windows, and this is necessary for trade facilitation. Mr. Deputy Speaker, the single window is also a commitment which St. Lucia has under the WTO trade facilitation agreement. With the implementation of this single window, all government agencies dealing with imports and export-related permits and certificates will be linked through a digital interface via a virtual platform. Mr. Deputy Speaker, I know that we have spoken about this for a little while, but this project has been very long-outstanding. But I know that the key players on this project, which is Slasper, Customs, the digital group of persons, there are some differences. Everybody wants to stick to their own piece of software. Everyone wants Customs, wants to keep ASECuda, this one wants to keep this, this one wants to keep this, and it's been a challenge. So we at the Ministry have, we went out and seek technical assistance from the Canada Caricom Export Deployment Initiative to assist with the technical specification for the Port Community System which will address the bottleneck which we face at our ports. On the business facilitation, Mr. Deputy Speaker, I want to look at the area of business process outsourcing. Earlier, I noted the shift towards technology and digitization and outlined my Ministry's strategic policy direction in that area, particularly through our MSME Digital Enhancement Program. Mr. Deputy Speaker, I want to highlight the contribution of one of our fastest-growing industries in Centrucia and that is the business process outsourcing which generally persons call centres. Mr. Deputy Speaker, this area for us when we look at it is an important area in terms of employment. The BPO's have been instrumental in helping us cushion the impact of unemployment as they create job opportunities for our young people, especially our young women. BPO's were able to transition and by having the majority of staff working at home during COVID. They maintain production and maintain income for thousands of households across Centrucia. Mr. Deputy Speaker, considering the sector's steady growth in Centrucia, my Ministry will be working closely with Export Promotion Agency, Export Centrucia and invest in Centrucia to develop a more strategic approach and policy for the sector. The objective is to attract more players in the field of BPO's and knowledge process outsourcing. Mr. Deputy Speaker, BPO's now have moved from just being making calls to using professional services, accounting services, legal services, IT services, architectural services. Mr. Deputy Speaker, you have 10 minutes left. Thank you, Mr. Deputy Speaker. Architectural services and other top-level professionals. I need 15 minutes. Mr. Speaker, I asked for the invocation of standing order 42110, so as to allow the member for Souffre and additional 15 minutes within which to complete the presentation. Members, the question is that standing order 42110 being invoked and the member for Souffre for Sejaq be given an additional 15 minutes to go into the presentation. As many of these opinions say aye. As many of the country opinions say no. Ayes have it. Go ahead, member, for Souffre for Sejaq. Thank you, members. Mr. Speaker, under this area, I also want to focus on renewable energy. Mr. Deputy Speaker, a secure and sustained energy supply is critical to national development because we need energy for every sector to function. All sectors have been impacted by the recent surge in oil prices. My government has recognized the impact that global oil prices have had on our country and so we will adopt a tripartite approach involving government, consumers and businesses to achieve higher energy security and independence. My ministry's initiative regarding renewable energy is the Deputy Speaker is such that the government of Taiwan and the Global Enhancement Fund have agreed to donate grant funding to three Fisher Cooperatives that have already commenced the conversion effort to renewable energy within this financial year. We will also continue to encourage further private sector participation in renewable energy technologies. Mr. Speaker, I want to say that when I interact with the various businesses, especially our large businesses, they are all saying that they are ready to transition to renewable and they all await the new electricity, the revision of the Electricity Supply Act. Mr. Speaker, I want to take this moment, Deputy Speaker, I want to take this moment to thank the Minister for Infrastructure and the Minister for Infrastructure as my constituency of Sufre will benefit from the World Bank, Caribbean Efficiency, Green Energy Building Project where government institutions such as the Itang Self-Centure, the Itang School, the Bhutan School, the Sufre Stadium and the Sufre Hospital will all benefit from this project. Mr. Deputy Speaker, an area of focus going forward in terms of business environment is the development of the fashion sector. The Ministry of Commerce continues to work towards the development of a sustainable fashion sector in St. Lucia. And in this respect, we continue to raise the St. Lucia Fashion Council on specific initiatives and work programs that will seek to graduate industry players from the current micro-enterprise status to become part of a local and eventual global value chain within this multi-billion dollar industry. We recognize the move, the necessary to move past the traditional tailor shop and community seamstress into professional design and build of high value outputs. For this reason, the Ministry is working to develop a proposal by the Fashion Council to establish a fashion institute right here in St. Lucia that will provide world-class training to the next generation of fashion enthusiasts as well as to consider a central distribution hub for St. Lucia fashion. We have been lazing with our system ministries to further infuse St. Lucia fashion into the fabric of culture and traditional activities including jazz, junequiel and carnival. Mr. Deputy Speaker, a few weeks ago I had the opportunity to meet the business community in Viewfort together with the Honorable Prime Minister. And out of this meeting came a requirement for the Ministry of Commerce to have a presence in the town of Viewfort. I am extremely pleased that the Honorable Prime Minister and Minister of Finance has given a commitment to fund an office in Viewfort. And I'm also extremely pleased that a member of the private sectors and glue metals have agreed to furnish that office. Mr. Speaker, this is what moving together really means. Government and private sector responding to the needs on the ground. Together we transform. Together we achieve. Together we progress. Mr. Deputy Speaker, the revised cannabis regime shall be part of an overarching regime for regulating substances in St. Lucia. The regime is conceptualized to include cannabis at the initial stage and later expanded to include other regulated sorry substances. The regime, Mr. Speaker, is not just a suggestion of a few, but the work, but it was a development of many. Over the last few years we've had significant dialogue in the area of cannabis. I wish to assure the public that great effort has been invested in the development of this regime to ensure that the proposed international compliant regime for cannabis will adequately permit commercial activity under the heading of medicinal, industrial and scientific research. Mr. Deputy Speaker, this we will do under what you call a controlled substance regulatory authority. Mr. Speaker, based on your undertaking to enact legislation for this cannabis regime and the advanced stage of development of this act, it is expected that the authority would have its effective commencement in this fiscal year 2023-24. And I am extremely pleased that the Minister for Finance has facilitated this by ensuring that there is an initial amount of half a million dollars in the estimates for which I thank him. Mr. Deputy Speaker, a critical enabling mechanism to this budding industry will be the support services through the Ministry of Health, Substance Abuse Secretariat and the Bureau of Health Education as it is necessary that we remind our citizens of the public health approach to cannabis reform. Mr. Deputy Speaker, the Ministry of Agriculture and National Agriculture Diagnostic Facility will also play a critical role in the facilitation of research in cannabis and assistance to farmers and agro processors. Mr. Deputy Speaker, the work done in the context of this regime has been long and painstaking, but we intend to see it through. One point that is deserving of note in this honourable forum, Mr. Deputy Speaker, is that the interest of centrusions in this regime has not, is not, and will not be overlooked. The interest of persons who have been part of this long overdue industry has remained a consideration of this administration and the task force responsible for the development of the regime. Mr. Deputy Speaker, no foreign interest shall usurp that of the sands of the soil. We cannot, however, do it for our players. We call upon prospective players in the industry to condition their minds to the changes which will result from this industry and to understand that it will not be business as usual as it cannot remain business as usual. The time is upon us to transition from an illicit drug trade to the legitimate pharmaceutical industry. We will ensure that there is a place at the front of the line to keep our locals in. It is your duty to take this opportunity to work shoulder to shoulder with other reputable legitimate businessmen and women in Centrusia. Mr. Deputy Speaker, as the minister with responsibility for commerce, I wish to assure the current and prospective industry players that the government, financial sector and general population are ready to see you as commercial actors and legitimate contributors to the economy and encourage you to see yourself likewise. It is the next important step in Centrusia's cannabis story. Mr. Deputy Speaker, I move now to the free zone. In our free zone, there are over 23 free zone businesses in Centrusia and they operate within six locations. They are involved in manufacturing, processing, trading and services. The Gold Distribution Free Zone is home to a variety of industries including pharmaceuticals, medicinal devices, manufacturing and other services. These businesses provide employment to over 3,000 Centrusians. Mr. Speaker, this is close to 4% of Centrusia's employed labor force. Mr. Deputy Speaker, I present the free zone houses to BPO's and among them they employ some 990 employees and over 90% are young female Centrusians. We believe that attracting more BPO's to the free zone will improve the country's standard of living and cushion the impact on employment. Notwithstanding, we believe that the true potential of our free zone has not yet been realized. For this reason, my ministry has embarked on a review of the performance of the sector with a view to maximizing its benefits to the national economy. We are going to do this with another Caricom Export Deployment Initiative. Mr. Speaker, including today I want to take a pause to thank a few persons and institutions. I want to conclude by putting on record my appreciation, my thanks to my permanent secretary and staff at the Ministry of Commerce, our allied agencies, my cabinet colleagues, the persons who serve on our various boards and committees, members of the private sector organizations and some key partners that have made significant contribution to the work of the Ministry of Commerce. Let me thank the government and people of Taiwan from Ambassador Peter Chen for their invaluable support in funding some of our MSME initiatives. Secondly, I want to thank the OAS who is also assisting with funding technical support for MSME loan grant recipients and for supporting the Women Empowerment Initiative. I want to place on record my gratitude to the Caribbean Development Bank for funding the MSME grant facility. And fourthly, I want to thank the Government of Canada through the four-year Canada Caricom Export Deployment Mechanism by providing very useful technical assistance to my ministry in four of the eight key areas of focus. Today the Ministry has secured assistance in four areas. We have a strategic plan for the free zone in view of thought. Secondly, we have used the experience of Canada in developing the commercial and medicinal cannabis industry. And we were fortunate to have a legal draftsperson to work with the cannabis task force. Thirdly, we got technical assistance to formulate the requirement for the electronic single window. And the fourth assignment is the review of the effectiveness of the cooperative sector, both the financial societies and producer cooperatives. This assignment is expected to begin within the coming weeks. As Parliamentary Representative for Souffre, we are looking forward to using the services of this in this facility both for the Souffre foundation and the SMMA. Mr. Speaker I wish on behalf of my ministry and the Souffre community to welcome this totally free and highly effective program for technical assistance. We wish to offer again our thanks to the Government of Canada, the High Commission in Barbados and the managers of that program. Mr. Deputy Speaker having outlined our plans and policy direction for the coming physical year we are confident that if we focus our attention and implement the initiatives outlined in the fossil fumatic areas we will achieve success in terms of setting the foundation for enhanced growth and development of our private sector in the near term and thereafter. Mr. Deputy Speaker the elements of the policy direction and work program presented above provide us with the necessary formwork to build a resilient and competitive economy based on a strong and robust MSME sector. Through this plan of action we can begin to revitalize the business sector and help you to create more wealth higher income and employment institution. This plan which encourages the adoption of best practices such as reducing dependency on fossil fuel as a source of energy will help to develop a more sustainable and vibrant market for existing sectors such as the cooperative movement as well as new sectors such as cannabis. Therefore Mr. Deputy Speaker with the support of the business community the consuming public together with together with the joint and collaborative efforts of the various departments of government affiliated bodies allied agencies ministries and friendly governments we will implement our stated policy initiatives and achieve our desired results and objectives in the coming fiscal year 2023 2024 and beyond. I want to take this moment again to thank the minister of finance the prime minister for the support that he has provided us I want to specifically thank all my cabinet colleagues their support through this journey and as I am about to take my seat I want to say that I support wholeheartedly the appropriation deal 2023 2024 May God continue to guide our beloved country and may we always best look forward. Thank you.