PM Harris and Minister Liburd visit Amina Craft Market vendors

BASSETERRE, ST. KITTS, December 27, 2019 (MMS-SKN) — In light of the recent opening of the second cruise pier at Port Zante, Prime Minister Dr the Hon Timothy Harris, and the Hon Ian Patches Liburd, Minister of Public Infrastructure with responsibility for the St. Christopher Air and Sea Ports Authority, paid a visit to vendors at the Amina Craft Market in Port Zante on Boxing Day.

“I welcomed the opportunity that we had to tour several business facilities in St. Kitts including our local people in the Amina Craft Market, and to thank them for sharing with us,” said Prime Minister Harris. “It shows the confidence of the people in the policies of the government. Many of them came personally to thank myself and to thank Minister Liburd for the transformation of the Port Zante in general as a result of the second cruise pier.”

The tour at Amina Craft Market enabled Prime Minister Harris and Minister Liburd to witness the functionality and the need for such a facility as there was another cruise ship, the MV Aida Diva, which had docked alongside the second cruise pier on Boxing Day. The original cruise pier had MV Serenade of the Seas, and MV Norwegian Epic.

Dr Harris noted that Government will work with all stakeholders, the Department of Tourism, and the vendors at Amina Craft Market to ensure that there is greater inflow of traffic into their stores because it wants to have a higher degree spending in country by every cruise visitor and anything that can done to facilitate that, in the build out of the second cruise pier arrival and upland development, government will do that.

“We want all of our local people to consider themselves a successful partner and stakeholder in cruise ship development and in the economic life of St. Kitts and Nevis,” stated Prime Minister Harris. “I want to say thanks to the vendors and operators here who shared their views – they were highly complementary of the work of the government.”

In the meantime, Minister with responsibility for the St. Christopher Air and Sea Ports Authority the Hon Ian Patches Liburd observed that the three cruise ship at Port Zante on Boxing Day had brought about 9,000 passengers.

He noted it was a boon to the vendors at Port Zante as all of the passengers had disembarked from one exit in Port Zante, as previously some cruise ships would go to the cargo berth.

“The feedback was really good,” said the Hon Liburd. “Their handmade craft is good and we are looking at ways to really give them great exposure to the cruise ship passengers, in fact so that when tourists embark to the taxis they can meander through towards Amina Craft Market and increase their business and that is something we are going to look at.”