Last Updated on July 9, 2021, 5:25 AM AST by Anthony Morris
Nevis: In a virtual discussion on July 8, 2021, the Ministry of Foreign Affairs met the Federal Honorary Consul, the Ministry’s staff, overseas mission and stakeholders in the civil service to discuss how the diplomatic and consular network can support the restoration of the Federation.
While the Federation continues to fight the public health crisis caused by the pandemic, and the accompanying economic turmoil, Foreign Minister Mark Brantley pointed to the peculiar vulnerability of Small Island Developing States (SIDS) such as St Kitts and Nevis which are expected to linger at the back of the global recovery due to the inability to access loans and official development assistance (ODA.)
The Finance Minister also reminded those on the actual call of the need to guard against complacency if we enter an above-average hurricane season that St. Kitts and Nevis’ recovery could still seriously affect. This reality has led Minister Brantley to once again call on the International Financial Institutions (IFIs) to establish a universal vulnerability index.
To minimize this impact, Minister Brantley called on the Federation’s honorary consuls to help diversify partnerships, including with institutional investors, foundations, hedge funds and business associations. In this context, the Virtual Conversation has benefited from senior official briefings by agencies and outreach agencies, including the Ministry of Health, the Ministry of Sustainable Development, the St. Kitts Investment Promotion Agency (SKIPA), Nevis Investment Promotion Agency (NIPA), the St. Kitts Tourism Authority (SKTA) and the Nevis Tourism Authority (NTA). The Citizenship at Investment Unit was also available to update the consular corps. The presentations by these critical ministries and agencies made it possible to communicate the sectoral priorities and strategies of the Federation to a critical group.
To emphasize the central role of honorary consuls in the ministry’s arsenal, the Minister of Foreign Affairs noted that “as an honorary consul, you are ideally placed in global cities with significant impacts that drive trade, finance, scholarship, culture, travel and investments. In this area of the downturn, I ask you to double your roles as honorary consul. He also seized the opportunity to thank the honorary consuls for their service in assisting Kittites and Nevisians who may have been stranded while travelling internationally during the pandemic.”
The Permanent Secretary welcomed colleagues to use the forum to share information, promote communication and work more strategically and coherently around St. Kitts and Nevis to secure important economic and development interests.
Honorary Consuls expressed appreciation for the dialogue and took the opportunity to share ideas to forge deeper links, to explore greater collaboration and to improve communication between all stakeholders.
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.
