BASSETERRE, St. Kitts, April 25, 2023 (SKNIS) – Prime Minister of St. Kitts and Nevis, the Honourable Dr. Terrance Drew used this morning’s (April 25) opening ceremony for Diplomatic Week 2023 to share his government’s vision of creating a sustainable island state with the Federation’s visiting diplomatic and consular corps.
“Your government promises to bring about positive change and pledges to transform our nation into one that is more resilient, modern, self-sufficient, prosperous, peaceful, and indeed sustainable,” said Prime Minister Dr. Drew.
The Prime Minister continued, “The theme of this week’s event, ‘Driving Change: Advancing a Vision for a Sustainable Island State’, succinctly captures the aspirations of our Government as we forge a different path for our people—one that is at pace with the evolving demands of our global community and can meaningfully address our socio-economic challenges while creating the enabling environment to achieve the sustainable development agenda.”
Dr. Drew stated that since assuming office in August of last year, his administration has made considerable steps in laying the solid foundation necessary to build the transformational change required to attain a sustainable island state agenda, which focuses on several key pillars including food security and green energy transition.
“As it pertains to the very critical area of food security, in the next five years, we aim to significantly increase production and manufacturing of agricultural products by introducing or scaling up the use of technology and innovative techniques. We are cognizant that many of your countries are much more advanced in these areas, and we, therefore, hope that we can count on your invaluable support to assist us in becoming equally competitive in this market,” the Prime Minister expressed.
He added, “Green energy transition is also fundamentally important as we continue to champion the issue of climate action and mitigation to minimize the hazardous effects of climate change on our very vulnerable society. We also share the vision to transition St. Kitts and Nevis to a position where water and energy are sustainable and in sufficient supply to meet the growing demands of our country.”
The five other key pillars for building out the sustainable island state agenda are economic diversification, sustainable industries, the creative economy, COVID-19 recovery, and social protection.
Approximately 42 countries are being represented for this year’s Diplomatic Week celebrations. Remaining activities for the week include a panel discussion on the topic of Multilateralism, a visit to the island of Nevis, and the first-ever Diplomatic Boulevard on Thursday which will allow members of the public to engage with the Heads of Missions and will also feature goods and souvenirs from the countries that the Ambassadors and High Commissioners represent.
PRIME MINISTER DR. DREW SHARES HIS GOVERNMENT’S VISION OF CREATING A SUSTAINABLE ISLAND STATE WITH MEMBERS OF THE DIPLOMATIC AND CONSULAR CORPS
