Basseterre, St. Kitts–On December 17, 2021- The Chamber hosted its Annual Manufacturing Awards Luncheon on December 9, 2021, to recognize the achievements of some of the hard-working employees within the Manufacturing sector and showed appreciation for their contributions throughout 2021.
The luncheon was held under the theme, Reimaging the Manufacturing Sector after COVID-19, and featured contributions from Mr. Desroy Tate, chairman of the Manufacturer’s Division, Senator Wendy Phipps, Minister of International Trade, Commerce, Consumer Affairs and Labour, and Mr. Daniel Arthurton, Business Consultant.
The presenters spoke on the resilience of the manufacturing sector and the importance for it to remain agile and responsive considering the pandemic. The sector continues to show positive signs with favorable projections for 2022. The majority of manufacturing plants report confirmed orders for the first half, a very high vaccination rate and all the employees are back on the job. On the other hand, the challenges of increased freight costs, shortages of raw and packing materials, and increase in oil prices pose downside risks to the outlook for manufacturing and require firms to adjust and adapt our operations to ensure that the sector is kept alive.
The awardees for Employee of the Year included: Yeney Ardiles and Elena Taquechel from Kajola Kristada; Robert Tyson and Mrs. Juanita Yearwood of Carib Brewery Ltd; Pearline Harrigan and Kenya Phipps from Jaro Electronics; Diana Francis and Lennox Powell of API HaroweSt. Kitts Ltd; Lorna Wattley from Sun Island Clothing; and Curtis Davis and Sunil Rangaya of St Kitts Masonry Products Ltd.
The President’s Award was presented to Kajola Kristada as the most outstanding Manufacturer of the year. Kajola Kristada was commended by the Chamber for their resilience and agility during the COVID-19, the positive vaccination response by their staff, and community engagement.
