Basseterre, St. Kitts, February 18, 2021 (SKNIS): Thirty-seven (37) persons – 26 in vegetable and 11 in ornamental – are registered to participate in the 2021 National Backyard Garden Competition, an initiative by the Ministries of Tourism and Agriculture, aimed at encouraging more locally grown food.
During her appearance on Wednesday’s (February 17) edition of “Working for You” Shaline Welcome-Lewis, Community Tourism Officer said the competition, which was launched in October 2020, is designed to promote healthy eating, as well as to encourage persons to beautify their communities and homes.
“The project is to encourage the development of backyard gardening while increasing the awareness of healthier eating for persons with fresh daily consumption. We want to encourage locals to grow what they want to consume and with the economic impact that we would have all endured recently we want to ensure that persons can reduce their supermarket bills, they eat healthier and spend less,” said Mrs. Welcome-Lewis.
The competition will be judged on plant cultivation and health (40 points), layout (15 points), and environment (25 points). A bonus segment using drone footage will allow persons to score an extra five points.
Under plant cultivation and health, participants are required to implement and adopt creative measures, demonstrate proper use of the garden space, have healthy plants, as well as label plants properly so they can be easily identified, just to name a few.
Kyle Flanders, Assistant Secretary in the Ministry of Agriculture, said that the physical layout of the garden is an important component of the competition.
“We are going to look and see exactly how you decided to lay out your garden, where the footpaths are, and the organization of plants in the garden. We want to know if you are going to pair the plants properly and we want to know that you have clear, comfortable access to your overall garden,” said Mr. Flanders.
Mrs. Therez Ambrose-Versailles, Tourism Research Officer, stressed the use of recyclable materials as recycling can help to protect the environment.
“We want persons to utilize recyclable materials in their garden. We will be able to see the impact of the recycled materials used. [I want to see] the uniqueness when I enter your garden and what materials were used that I have never seen before. We want to have this wow factor when I enter your garden,” said Mrs. Ambrose-Versailles, adding that the sustainable aspect of the competition is important because “it is not about just gardening for a competition but to be able to feed yourself and your family.”
Participants hail from all around the island including St. Peter’s, Sandy Point, Half Way Tree, Old Road, and Newton Ground to name a few.
In the vegetable section, the top three competitors will be rewarded while the top two will be rewarded for ornamental. Some of the prizes include an irrigation system, wheelbarrow, gardening tool kit, plaque, basket, and gardening hose with control head.
]]>Basseterre, St. Kitts, December 31, 2020 (SKNIS): The Explorers Youth Clubs now have a permanent place to call home following the official opening of their headquarters in Phillips Village.
The new 10,420 sq. ft building was opened by Prime Minister and Minister of National Security, Dr. The Honourable Timothy Harris, at a ceremony on Thursday, December 31, 2020. It was built by M&D Construction at a cost of $2.47 million. It features a number of amenities for the members of the twelve Explorers Clubs across St. Kitts. Each club is expected to have weekly sessions there when the threat of COVID-19 ends.
Project Engineer, George Gilbert of the Public Works Department, congratulated Myron Percival and his company M&D Construction for the excellent work in building the facility. Mr. Gilbert said that the sleeping rooms with accompanying bathrooms for males, females, and staff will allow camping events. Also featured are a recreation room, offices, a common dining room and kitchen, and a laundry area. There are three 500 gallon water storage tanks on the roof.
In giving remarks, Prime Minister Harris referred to the incredible growth of the Explorers Movement, which started in July 2017 with the launch of the Mol-Phil group. Since then, other communities have joined including Tabernacle, Shadwell, Cayon, Newtown, Lodge, Old Road, Dieppe Bay, St. Peter’s, St. Paul’s, Trinity, and Newton Ground.
Dr. Harris said that there are over 1,200 hundred explorers and he expects the numbers to continue growing as other communities have signalled an eagerness to establish clubs.
“This is a legacy development in the context of law and order in our country,” the prime minister stated. “This is a legacy initiative that generations after us will speak to as being an important stabilizer of our society and contributing to the advancement of St. Kitts and Nevis.”
He added that the government remains committed to the empowerment of young people as well as the rule of law within society. This is reflected in the record amounts allocated to related ministries for the 2021 fiscal year.
The Ministry of National Security was allocated over $86.1 million. The Ministry of Education received over $103 million, while the Ministry of Youth, Sports and Culture was allotted over $10 million.
Prime Minister Harris appealed to parents, businesses, and other stakeholders to join with the government in building a stronger and safer future for all.
]]>BASSETERRE, ST. KITTS, November 19, 2020 (MMS-SKN) — A grand prize giving ceremony to be held on Sunday November 22 at the Edgar Gilbert sporting Complex pavilion in Molineux brings down the curtain on the 25th edition of the country’s longest running domino league, Constituency Number Seven Dr the Hon Timothy Harris Domino League.
“League sponsor, Prime Minister and Area Parliamentary Representative for Constituency Number Seven, Dr the Hon Timothy Harris, will preside over this year’s prize giving ceremony which will be held on Sunday November 22,” announced President of the league’s Executive Committee, and League Coordinator, Mr Calvin Farrell.
He added: “We will have a packed and entertaining afternoon which will start with an exhibition domino game between two female teams. One is a team from Newton Ground, and the other will be made up of female players from the various clubs in the Constituency Number Seven Domino League. The winner will get four cases of drinks. After that game we will have a three-hand competition involving all the teams in the league.”
The ceremony which takes place from 1:00 pm will see the new champions, Tabernacle Domino Club, walk away with the championship trophy and a cash prize of $5,000. In a hard fought competition, Tabernacle who had returned to the league after a two-year hiatus overcame the other thirteen teams in the competition to earn the title for the first time.
At the end of the round robin stage, which due to Covid-19 protocols that were in place saw all games played at three venues, Phillips Domino Club finished at the top. However in the last four play-offs they found themselves in the fourth position.
Immediate past champions, Parsons Domino Club, did not feature in the last four and neither did they qualify to play in the Best of the Rest competition on grounds of having forfeited one of their games.
“The second placed team in this year’s competition, Unity Domino Club, will receive a cash prize of $3,500 for their gallant effort,” said Mr Farrell. “Lodge Domino Club will receive $2,500 for the third place, while for the fourth position Phillips Domino Club will receive $2,000.”
Other cash prizes, according to Mr Farrell, will be awarded to the three top winners in the Best of the Rest competition, to include $800 for this year’s champions, Small Corner Bar Domino Club; runners’ up Sylvers Domino Club will receive $600; and third placed Unstoppable Domino Club will receive $400. Phillips Domino Club will receive an additional $400 for having led at the end of the round robin stage.
“There will be other consolation prizes, some to be given out by friends of Constituency Number Seven Dr the Hon Timothy Harris Domino League, which will be made known at the prize giving ceremony on Sunday,” said Mr Farrell. “All other teams will receive two cases of drinks of their choice.”
Fourteen teams took part in this year’s Constituency Number Seven Domino League. They were Tabernacle Domino Club, Unity Domino Club, Lodge Domino Club, Phillips Domino Club, Small Corner Bar Domino Club, Parsons Domino Club, Molineux Domino Club, Christ Church Domino Club, Saddlers Domino Club, Mansion Domino Club, Sylvers Domino Club, Unstoppable Domino Club, Guinness Domino Club, and Giants Domino Club.
“Looking at the last twenty four years, this twenty-fifth year I think has been the best year I have seen for such a long time, and I wonder if it is because of the Covid why the teams them stepped up with their masks and their uniforms and really put all out to be where they are now,” remarked President of the league’s Executive Committee, and League Coordinator, Calvin Farrell.
]]>BASSETERRE, ST. KITTS, September 6, 2020 (PLP PR Media Inc.) — Ambassador His Excellency Kevin ‘Ninky’ Williams held a well-attended and successful Back-2-School event on Saturday September 5 where he distributed school supplies and snacks to pupils of the four primary schools in Constituency Number Six.
The school supplies distribution held at the Newton Ground, St. Paul’s, Dieppe Bay, and Saddlers Primary Schools was well attended by students and their parents, and Prime Minister Dr the Timothy Harris who came to lend support to Ambassador Williams praised parents in Constituency Number Six for being visible in the lives of their children.
“I want to congratulate Ambassador Kevin Williams for taking the initiative today, and to ensure that the students from Number Six who will be going out to school next week, are better equipped to do so,” said Prime Minister Harris who assisted in the distribution of school supplies at the Saddlers Primary School.
He noted that the distribution of satchels, exercise books, and several other educational supplies would be beneficial as it would take that expenditure off the parents and significant adults in the lives of the children. The act would at the same time incentivise the children as they will be put in a better frame of mind regarding going back to schools which open on Monday September 7, but the students will report on Wednesday September 9.
“I want to thank the young people of Number Six who have given tremendous support to this initiative to Ambassador Williams for coming out today, and organising for the large turnout we have had everywhere which tells us that this programme is one which has high demand,” commented Dr Harris. “It meets the felt needs of the people and we will want it to go stronger and better year after year.”
The Prime Minister thanked the organisers of the Back-2-School activity who assisted Ambassador Williams in organising such a highly successful event which was not only attended by the students, but their parents as well who ensured that the children came out and took part, which he noted was as a good sign.
“Based on the science, the more parents are involved in the educational life of their children the more interested the students are,” observed Prime Minister Harris. “So we need to see parents visible at every function of the school, at its assembly when this is permissible, the sports field, and at the PTA meetings. All these activities, in which parents are engaged help enthuse children to learning more; learning more quickly and having a more satisfying experience.”
Ambassador Williams who is Team Unity’s caretaker for Constituency Number Six and who ran in the June 5 General Election was one of the three Peoples Labour Party (PLP) candidates, the others being Prime Minister Dr the Hon Timothy Harris in Number Seven, and Minister of Health the Hon Akilah Byron-Nisbett in Number Three. Prime Minister Harris is the National Political Leader of the Peoples Labour Party.
“We know over the past months it has been a troubling time for the most people of the constituency and St. Kitts and Nevis in general, because of Covid-19 and the cut back on work so the finances and everything is a bit challenging for some parents,” said Ambassador Kevin Williams. “My team and I we decided it will be a good gesture if we could get together and muster some back to school supplies for the children of the primary schools and going onwards, which will help to build a strong and safer future.”
He thanked his team, which is led by Mrs Sylvia Williams-Francis who along with Ms Verneen Rawlins, Mr Calvin Leader and others worked hard to ensure the event was the success it was. He also thanked teachers at the four primary schools for lending support to the effort and making the school premises available.
“We were blessed and graced with the appearance of our Prime Minister who joined me here to show his support in distributing the packages and to let the kids know that the whole government is with them supporting them, and that is very good,” said Ambassador Williams. Also helping with the distribution of school supplies and snacks to the students was Deputy Speaker, Senator the Hon Dr Bernicia Nisbett.
]]>BASSETERRE, ST. KITTS, August 9, 2020 (MMS-SKN) — In a concerted effort to decrease the rates of non-communicable diseases (NCDs) in the country, the Ministry of Health will in 2021 focus on primary healthcare and community health services, and Minister of Health the Hon Akilah Byron-Nisbett is encouraging everyone to visit their local community health centres to get more information on health related issues.
“We at the Ministry of Health are trying to encourage everyone to exercise, to eat healthy, and to get your regular check-ups,” said the Hon Byron-Nisbett on Saturday August 8, when she addressed SKN Moves first anniversary Health Walk participants at the end of the walk at the Frigate Bay lawns.
“We must be able to decrease our NCDs rates and the only how we will do that is if we adopt new health measures for ourselves, and so the focus of the ministry for the year 2021 and beyond would be on primary healthcare, and the community health services.”
According to the Health Minister, everyone in the Federation has a community centre close by and she noted that the centres offer so much to help persons to manage their health, and to help them to understand the dos and the don’ts when it comes to healthcare. She encouraged everyone to visit their closest health centre in order to get more information.
The SKN Moves first anniversary Health Walk which attracted hundreds of participants including Prime Minister Dr the Hon Timothy Harris was a collaboration of the Office of the Prime Minister and the Ministry of Health. The walk started at the Caribbean Cinemas parking lots in West Basseterre taking the participants along the FT Williams and Kim Collins Highways and ending at the Frigate Bay lawns.
“Throughout the year as well you would be able to hear us talk about different initiatives from SKN Moves as well as others, and we are encouraging persons to stay tuned to our Health Promotion Unit Facebook page and our YouTube channel where you will be getting a lot more information on what the Health Ministry is doing,” advised the Hon Byron-Nisbett.
The ministry’s expectation is to be able to partner with everyone in St. Kitts and Nevis as it tries to ensure that it builds healthy lives, healthy families, and healthy communities. Minister Byron-Nisbett said she was looking forward to the year ahead, and looking forward to seeing everyone.
She encouraged persons to wear their SKN Moves shirts while going out for walks and other forms of exercises and post the pictures on the Ministry’s Facebook page, promising that there might be something special waiting for them during SKN Moves anniversary next year.
The Minister also informed that there is an initiative with the different business places, where the Ministry is trying to encourage the business community to start different initiatives within their different businesses to make sure that members of their staff, as well, live a healthy life.
“There is a lot that is going to be happening with the Ministry of Health, and we want everyone to pay attention to whenever we make that call, because it is all about changing the lifestyles, changing you to a healthier lifestyle, making sure you eat healthy, making sure you exercise so that we can reduce the risks of NCDs in our Federation,” she observed.
In conclusion, the Honourable Minister of Health advised: “Stay tuned to the Ministry of Health – more events such as these will be planned and we want to see just as much and even more persons. So next time around we are asking you to bring ten persons with you, because we are going to ensure that this becomes a movement and in the end we see the whole of St. Kitts and Nevis moving.”
The entire exercise was coordinated by Permanent Secretary in the Ministry of Health Dr Delores Stapleton-Harris. Present included Chief Medical Officer Dr Hazel Laws, NCDs Programme Coordinator in the Ministry of Health Dr Marissa Carty, and District Medical Officer for Parsons to Newton Ground and Deputy Speaker Senator the Hon Bernicia Nisbett.
Others included Resident Ambassador of the Republic of China on Taiwan His Excellency Tom Lee, Permanent Secretary in Ministry of Education Mr William Vincent Hodge, Mrs Carla Astaphan who heads the St. Kitts and Nevis National Reparations Committee, and leadership and membership of National and Branch Executives of the Peoples Labour Party (PLP).
]]>BASSETERRE, ST. KITTS, July 28, 2020 (MMS-SKN) — As part of celebrations to mark the 25th anniversary of Constituency Number Seven Dr the Hon Timothy Harris Domino League, a special invitational domino tournament featuring four visiting teams playing against four specially selected local teams was held on Sunday July 26 at the Lodge Community Centre in Lodge Project.
After hugely competitive and entertaining games, two of the local teams made it to the finals. Among the spectators was sponsor of Constituency Number Seven Dr the Hon Timothy Harris Domino League, Prime Minister Dr the Hon Timothy Harris who is also the Area Parliamentary Representative for St. Christopher Seven.
Initially six visiting teams were expected, but only four turned up. With only eight teams taking part in the ‘Hon Prime Minister Dr Timothy Harris Constituency Seven Invitational’ tournament, the teams went straight to the quarter finals where two of the visiting teams advanced to the semis, and two fell by the way side.
The visiting teams were Taylor’s which was captained by Craig Tuckett, New Comers from New Town that was captained by Keithly Blanchette, Poor Man’s Pocket from Newton Ground captained by Carl Francis, and Til Ah Morning from Market Street, Basseterre, captained by Lennell ‘Ice Pop’ Warner.
Local teams meeting the visitors were made up of a mixture of players randomly selected from the fourteen teams taking part in the 25th anniversary of Constituency Number Seven Dr the Hon Timothy Harris Domino League and were identified by the names of their captains.
The captains were Allington Berridge of Phillips Domino Club, Samuel Wilson of Unstoppable Domino Club, O’Niel Thomas of Lodge Domino Club, and Jerome ‘Spy’ Clarke of Molineux Domino Club.
In the first round, the Jerome ‘Spy’ Clarke team humbled the visiting Taylor’s team 7-1, while the visiting New Comers team beat the Samuel Wilson team 7-5. The other two games were very close, which saw the visiting Poor Man’s Pocket team squeeze a 7-6 win over the Allington Berridge team. An equal score was recorded in the game between the O’Niel Thomas team who beat the visiting Til Ah Morning.
The games which were held under Covid-19 protocols and played under two tents outside the community centre in Lodge Project were interrupted by failing light, and one of the two semi-final games had to be completed inside the community centre.
The semi-final games were closely contested, with the winning teams scrapping through to the finals. The O’Niel Thomas team beat the visiting Poor Man’s Pocket 7-6, and the Jerome ‘Spy’ Clarke also beating New Comers 7-6.
With two local teams in the final, the players fought tooth and nail and in the end, the O’Niel Thomas team which included seasoned players Ericson ‘Wixie’ Wescott, Francil ‘Wazim’ Brombill, and McAllister Thomas carried the day by beating the Jerome ‘Spy’ Clarke team 9-6 in a game that ended at about 10:30 pm.
]]>BASSETERRE, ST. KITTS, July 24, 2020 (MMS-SKN) — In celebration of the 25th anniversary of Constituency Number Seven Dr the Hon Timothy Harris Domino League, sponsor of the league Prime Minister Dr the Hon Timothy Harris will on Sunday July 26 along with members of the domino fraternity attend a special worship service.
“On Sunday the 26th of July, 2020, we will be having a church service at the Estridge Moravian Church in Mansion, at 8:30 am with all the teams of Constituency Seven Domino League,” said Mr Calvin Farrell, President of league’s Executive Committee, and League Coordinator.
He added: “There are fourteen teams presently registered for our 25 years of domino in our constituency, and that is really remarkable for the Prime Minister and our Area Parliamentary Representative, Dr the Hon Timothy Harris, representing that constituency very well and sponsoring this tournament for past 24 years plus this 25th year. It is remarkable as it is not 25 days but it is 25 years of hard work and dedication.”
According to Mr Farrell, the domino league started in 1996 at Mansion and it is therefore fitting that the church service to mark the 25th anniversary is held in the same village. When the league was started it was meant to bring communities together, and when they approached the Area Parliamentary Representative the Hon Timothy Harris to be its sponsor, he came on board.
“I am saying thanks to our Prime Minister and the sponsor of the league,” said Mr Farrell. “I do not think any other league has been going for the 25 consecutive years in the country or even further afield in the region and I am proud to be a part of this league for 25 years. I have been there from the inception and I am happy to be here still and I do hope we will continue to have a great league and be not selfish in whatever we do and keep fair play at all times in this league.”
Clubs taking part in this year’s tournament are defending champions Parsons Domino Club, Saddlers Domino Club, Unity Patriots Domino Club, Unstoppable Domino Club, Sylvers Domino Club, Christchurch Domino Club, Molineux Domino Club, Small Corner Domino Club, Guinness Domino Club, Giants Domino Club, Phillips Domino Club, Lodge Domino Club, Mansion Domino Club, and Tabernacle Domino Club.
After the church service a special ‘Hon Prime Minister Dr Timothy Harris Constituency Seven Invitational’ tournament will be held at the Lodge Community Centre in Lodge Project from 2:00 pm. It will feature six visiting teams, New Town, St. Pauls, Taylor’s, New Comers, Fig Tree/Sandy Point, and Newton Ground.
The visiting teams will come up against six special teams made up of players from the fourteen teams taking part in the 25th anniversary of the Constituency Number Seven Dr the Hon Timothy Harris Domino League. According to the league’s Executive Committee, the first 36 players from Constituency Number Seven league will form the six teams, and a captain named for each of the teams.
To identify the six teams facing the visitors, each team will take the name of the captain.
The first round will be on a knock-out basis, and the six winning teams will move on to the second round which will also be on a knock-out basis. Third round or semi-final will be on a round robin basis involving the three winning teams from the quarter finals, and the finals will feature the top two teams from the semi-final round robin.
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