Last Updated on August 23, 2022, 4:27 AM AST by Anthony Morris
Newly appointed Minister of Foreign Affairs, Dr Denzil Douglas, says, “St Kitts and Nevis must not be passive in our interaction with the rest of the world” He noted that the twin-island Federation does “not intend to sit by and just let the world make decisions for us.
A video was released by the Government Information Service (GIS) following Douglas’s first meeting with the staff of the Foreign Affairs Ministry. In the video, Douglas said, “we want to be part of those decisions, and we want to make decisions that the rest of the world will understand and appreciate what we are doing”.
Douglas, the former prime minister of the Federation of St Kitts and Nevis and one of the Caribbean’s longest-serving legislators, was appointed to the position of Foreign Affairs, Economic Development, International Trade, Investment, Industry and Commerce, following the August 5, victory of St Kitts and Nevis Labour Party (SKNLP) in the general election.
Douglas told the staff that while the twin-island Federation has no natural resources to export, like Trinidad and Tobago with asphalt, oil and natural gas in Guyana, and bauxite in Jamaica and Guyana, the country had one crucial resource that we must not neglect.
He said, “St Kitts and Nevis is a small nation; our only resource is our people. Some people say passports, but it’s a people that we have as a resource at this particular time, and so, it is important for people to be trained properly. Training is extremely important. The people must understand what is happening in the rest of the world.”
Douglas expressed he was humbled to serve in his new capacity and expressed gratitude to his predecessor, The Premier of Nevis, Mark Brantley. The latter served as foreign affairs minister in the last coalition administration.
“I want to thank the former minister of Foreign Affairs, that is, Premier Mark Brantley, for serving in this capacity, serving the interest of the people of St Kitts and Nevis and the government of St. Kitts and Nevis in this particular capacity for I think the last near seven years.
“Of course, a lot has been achieved, but [what] we want to do now is build on whatever has been achieved from the standpoint of the Ministry of Foreign Affairs,” he added.
Anthony Morris covers stories related to politics and regional developments. His in-depth reporting about governance and reforms makes him stand out in regional journalism, with a deep analysis of political trends and their impact on Caribbean communities.
