As part of a humanitarian package, St. Kitts and Nevis government has offered to receive 300 hundred persons who were displaced as a result of the volcanic eruption in the neighbouring Caribbean nation also known as the Gem of the Antilles.
Abdias Samuel, National Disaster Coordinator of the National Emergency Management Agency (NEMA), said that accommodation commitments have already been made. Koi Resort St. Kitts has made available 70 rooms that can accommodate two to three persons while the St. Kitts Marriott Resort, as well as the Sugar Bay Club has identified 30 rooms each. That brings the total available rooms to 130 in St. Kitts. A hotel in Nevis has also committed 30 rooms to the humanitarian assistance programme.
“We are also advocating for citizens of St. Kitts and Nevis as well as Vincentians who are here … to accept persons from St. Vincent and the Grenadines,” Mr. Samuel said on the April 13, 2021 edition of Leadership Matters: A Virtual Forum Series.
Interested persons can register at NEMA located at Lime Kiln Commercial Development or the Nevis Disaster Management Department at Long Point.
Mr. Samuel added that a multi-agency public and private sector committee is being established to manage the process. It will be led by officials from the Department of Social Development and include representatives from the Ministries of FHinance; Foreign Affairs; Education, and Health, as well as the Department of Labour, and St. Kitts and Nevis Chamber of Industry and Commerce. Representatives from the National Emergency Management Agency and the Nevis Disaster Management Department will also serve on the committee.
The La Soufrière volcano erupted on April 09, 2021. Further eruptions have taken place as it remains very active.
In addition to welcoming 300 displaced persons, the Government of St. Kitts and Nevis has pledged financial assistance in the sum of EC $1 million to assist with the evacuation and resettling of citizens and residents from the danger zone; has agreed to provide human resources through the Regional Security System (RSS) recruited from St. Kitts-Nevis Defence Force and the Royal St. Christopher and Nevis Police Force to support humanitarian, technical and peace-keeping efforts on the ground in St. Vincent and the Grenadines; and contributed US $20,000 towards the Special Emergency Assistance Fund of the Caribbean Disaster Emergency Management Agency (CDEMA) in order to bring immediate relief to St. Vincent and the Grenadines and support its logistical operations.
Like St. Kitts and Nevis, St. Vincent and the Grenadines is a member of the Organization of Eastern Caribbean States (OECS) and the Caribbean Community (CARICOM).
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BASSETERRE, St. Kitts, November 26, 2020 (Press Unit in the Office of the Prime Minister) – During the Tuesday, November 24 edition of the Leadership Matters virtual series, Chief Executive Officer (CEO) of the Citizenship by Investment Unit (CIU), Mr. Les Khan, said the Government of St. Kitts and Nevis continues to implement the necessary measures geared towards improving the brand of the country’s Citizenship by Investment (CBI) Programme and protecting the clients who invest in the country.
One such measure has been the passage of the St. Kitts and Nevis Citizenship (CBI Escrow Accounts) Bill in November, 2017. This piece of legislation provides the guidelines relating to escrow accounts and agreements under the Federation’s citizenship programme.
Mr. Khan stated that, “The Escrow Bill was established to ensure that funds are placed into escrow if a title for property was not available. St. Kitts and Nevis is the only country in the OECS that has drafted and gazetted an Escrow Bill. This legislation continues to be improved, and by the end of the year we will be implementing a payout schedule that all developers must adhere to.”
An escrow account is a bank account opened with an escrow agent in the escrow agent’s name for the benefit of the parties to a principal agreement such as a real estate purchase contract. The escrow agent oversees the management of an escrow account subject to certain conditions based on the principal agreement and the escrow agreement. The escrow agent – who is a neutral third party – temporarily holds the purchase money and supervises the payments (the timing and amounts of disbursements).
Mr. Khan further indicated that the final stages of the St. Kitts and Nevis Citizenship (CBI Escrow Accounts) Bill, which is currently being drafted into regulation, will provide for a payout schedule for funds placed in escrow.
“The schedule is based on completion of certain stages of development and will ensure completion of projects. With this schedule, the Government is ensuring that construction continues, jobs are created, and an overall direct contribution to the economy is achieved,” CEO Khan said.
Through this significant piece of legislation, Mr. Khan said the Government of St. Kitts and Nevis is again solidifying its position as a leader in the economic citizenship industry.
]]>Basseterre, St. Kitts, November 19, 2020 (SKNIS): St. Kitts and Nevis is commemorating two international observances that highlight the need to protect and raise children in a safe environment.
Today, Thursday, November 19, 2020, is the World Day for the Prevention of Child Abuse while tomorrow, Friday, November 20, is World Children’s Day.
According to apa.org, the World Day for the Prevention of Child Abuse was launched in 2000 by the Women’s World Summit Foundation. The website un.org, notes that the World Children’s Day observance was first celebrated on November 20, 1954, as Universal Children’s Day. Five years later in 1959, the United Nations General Assembly adopted the Declaration of the Rights of the Child on November 20. The day also marked the adoption of the Convention on the Rights of the Child in 1989.
Staff from the Department of Probation and Child Protection Services appeared on the radio and television programme Working for You on Wednesday (November 18) to highlight the need to safeguard the well-being of children.
Gerald Connor, Acting Director of the Department of Probation and Child Protection Services said that St. Kitts and Nevis was the first OECS (Organization Eastern Caribbean States) member state to sign the UN’s Convention on the Rights of the Child in 1989. He said that the country’s record of child welfare is commendable.
“We have led the way in the charge when it comes to protecting children, putting frameworks and facilities in place … as we go about doing what we have to do in the department,” Mr Connor said.
Naren Maynard, Supervisor for Probation, highlighted that children do have rights too as enshrined in the Convention of the Rights of the Child. The Convention features 54 Articles including the right to life; freedom of expression; education; freedom of association; protection of the law and others.
“It is very important for us to teach our children these rights,” Mr Maynard stated. “We want parents to be mindful of that. Children do have rights; they are humans just like we as adults and we need to know these rights and respect these rights.”
The Convention on the Rights of the Child can be accessed at www.unicef.org/child-rights-convention.
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