Basseterre, St. Kitts, September 01, 2020 (SKNIS): United States Ambassador to Barbados and the Eastern Caribbean Her Excellency Linda Taglialatela publicly commended the Government of St. Kitts and Nevis for its continued success in ensuring that citizens and residents remain safe during the COVID-19 Pandemic.
Her Excellency Taglialatela expressed this during her August 31 virtual presentation to hand over 10 ventilators from United States Agency for International Development (USAID) in response to the COVID-19 Pandemic.
“We recognize the government’s strong leadership in keeping the people of St. Kitts and Nevis safe during the pandemic. St. Kitts and Nevis has been one of the most successful countries in the Hemisphere at containing the spread of the disease. We know this has come at a great cost to the country’s economy and its people and we acknowledge the pain this has caused,” said Her Excellency Taglialatela.
Very early on the government implemented measures to ensure the safety of citizens and residents. On March 25, 2020, the government closed the borders to all commercial airline flights to continue protecting citizens and residents against COVID-19 (Novel Coronavirus). However, flights for medical emergencies and International Air cargo and cargo by seafaring vessels were exempted to maintain connectivity and enable the Federation to import much-needed commodities such as food, fuel, medical supplies and equipment.
Other success stories of the government thus far include but are not limited to restoring the agricultural sector by investing EC$ 10 million through the stimulus package, actively engaging the manufacturing sector to prepare them to operate under new norms, as well as moving towards restoring the hotel and hospitality industry to near normalcy during the last quarter of 2020.
To date, St. Kitts and Nevis has had 17 cases of COVID-19 with all recuperated. No deaths have been recorded.
