I greet you this evening to provide to you with a full report on the Poverty Alleviation Program (PAP) complete with information as to the next steps.

When the St. Kitts – Nevis Labour Party won the general elections of August 05^th 2022, there were seven thousand, four hundred and sixty-nine (7,469) payees receiving either Regular PAP or PAP as expanded for Covid.

The monetary value for each was three million, four hundred and eighty thousand dollars ($3,480,000) payable to the 6,960 regular PAP beneficiaries and two hundred and fifty-four thousand, five hundred dollars ($254,500) to the PAP as expanded for Covid 509 beneficiaries. This totalled a grand payout of three million, seven hundred and thirty-four thousand, five hundred dollars ($3,734,500).

These figures are alarming for three reasons:
Firstly, according to the 2011 National Census, the Federation has a total of 17,291 households: St. Kitts with 13,078 and Nevis with 4,213. Based on the beneficiary total, the results of the PAP would infer that 43% of the households in the Federation earn less than $3,000 per month. Note I said households and not individuals.

Secondly, the annual budgetary allocation for the Poverty Alleviation Program is thirty-two million, two hundred and fifty thousand dollars. As of July 31^st 2022, the program had spent 26,121,500 dollars. This left a balance of $6,128,500 for the remaining five months of the year.

Finally, there is a public outcry that not all eligible households are being serviced by this Program despite the number of payees.

As you can see, continuing the Poverty Alleviation Program as is, was not financially prudent. As such, my first action related to this program was to direct the Treasury to cease payment to any public servant with a salary above $3,000 – the eligibility criteria for enrollment. This resulted in 100 persons being removed from the payee listing saving the Government $50,000 per month. Full disclosure, the monthly salaries of those who were removed ranged from $3,018 to $5, 291 dollars.

The Treasury Department then proceeded to temporarily cease any payment to an account which did not have a valid or verifiable Social Security number. This practice remains in effect up to the present.

As of October 31^st 2022, 6,569 Regular PAP payments were made for a total of $3,284,500 with another 395 payments made to Covid PAP beneficiaries for a total of $197,500.

Compared to July 2022, regular PAP payees decreased by 391 – this includes the 100 civil servants with income over $3,000 and the remaining 291 which included death, households earning more than $3,000 and temporary suspensions. For the Covid expanded PAP recipients, their numbers decreased by 114 payees owing to confirmation that the payee was making more than $3,000 per month.

On October 03^rd 2022, the Ministry of Social Development and Gender Affairs received from the Ministry of Sustainable Development files related to applications for the Poverty Alleviation Program. A preliminary examination of the information has revealed the following:

1. No social security number being provided. This was a result of the submission of names and not full application forms or persons simply not providing the same.

2. Not all payees have an actual application on file. The central reason for this was a process called Ministerial submission whereby any member of Cabinet could have submitted to the attention of the Treasury Department a listing of persons to be added without any verification.

3. Incorrect application information which included names. The incorrect names made it possible for one person to be receiving two benefits by juxtapositioning their names. For example, John James Doe and James John Doe.

4. Incorrect banking information. As for the banking information, this led to incorrect postings to banking accounts not belonging to the beneficiary which without a waiver or consent, the state had difficulty requesting and receiving the return of the funds.

5. Though promised since the inception of the Programme, case management has not been provided. As a result, no individual/household has formally graduated from the program since December 2018. This is particularly alarming for two reasons. The first is that such an omission defies the best practice of a cash transfer system whereby a clear graduation date is provided. Secondly, the programme has moved away from assistance to a requirement for living. The beneficiaries require the assistance to meet their basic needs instead of using it to correct challenges and advance.

Based on these and the earlier findings, it is the decision of the Federal Cabinet that a Registration Process be undertaken to regularize the Poverty Alleviation Program.

Regularization means that the new process will ensure that all payees have a valid application form that can be used to confirm the eligibility criteria of a household earning less than $3,000 per month.

The Registration process is open to all present eligible payees and to any person who had not yet applied for or received a PAP benefit but whose household circumstance fits the eligibility criteria.

Following this national address, the online application form will be available. The address is pap.gov.kn. An instructional video will be added to the Government’s website (www.gov.kn) on or before Wednesday, November 30 to assist those who may need guidance in completing the application form.  

I use this opportunity to indicate that ALL eligible existing recipients of the Poverty Alleviation Program are MANDATED to reapply by completing the application form by December 16^th 2022. Failure to do so would mean that your payment will cease effective December 31^st 2022.

To support this registration and reregistration process, officers from the Department of Community Development and Social Services and the Department of Social Services on Nevis will be available at key community locations to assist those who may need assistance from 9 am to 4 or 6:00 pm daily. A schedule can be found on the Government website, all Facebook pages and posted at community centers across the Federation.

Before I close, I wish to notify the general public that the MENDING of the PAP will commence from January 2023 with the introduction of case management.

Case Management shall form the basis of the empowerment process for all beneficiaries. Utilizing the process from the M.E.N.D Families in St. Kitts and Nevis Program, individual and group sessions shall be instituted based on the needs of all persons in the households. The intention is to provide information, assistance and services to households that will be used to assist them to build resilience and independence with a view to successful graduation from the programme.

The former Labour Party Administration founded the Ministry of Social Development and Gender Affairs in 2001 to provide social safety net programs to the most vulnerable in our country. As the Ministry prepares to celebrate 22 years of existence, I take this opportunity to assure the general public that this Labour Administration remains committed to ensuring that all persons will have access to the information and resources necessary to accomplish their individual goals.
Please visit the Website pap.gov.kn to register


Good night and God bless!

The Ministry of Social Development and Gender Affairs has launched a new regularisation and registration process for the Poverty Alleviation Programme (PAP). This new process is designed to eliminate multiple irregularities that have been discovered, and to ensure that qualifying persons in need of help can benefit.

The new process is now open, and applications will be conducted exclusively online at pap.gov.kn. Regularization means that the new process will guarantee that all payees have a valid application form that can be used to confirm the eligibility criteria of a household earning less than $3,000 per month. The Registration process is open to all present eligible payees and to any person who had not yet applied for or received a PAP benefit whose household circumstance fits the eligibility criteria.

Deputy Prime Minister and Minister responsible for PAP, the Honourable Dr. Geoffrey Hanley, announced the new process during a televised address on Sunday, November 27, 2022. He indicated that on October 03, 2022, the Ministry of Social Development received the files related to PAP from the Ministry of Sustainable Development and a preliminary examination of the files revealed some troubling information.

The first issue mentioned was the absence of an application file for some PAP recipients. The persons were primarily added to the list of beneficiaries through a ministerial submission by Cabinet members without any verification process. Secondly, some names were added to the list without a valid social security number. This was as a result of the submission of names and not application forms.

Another irregularity highlighted was incorrect names being listed on application forms.

“The incorrect names made it possible for one person to be receiving two benefits by juxtaposing their names. For example, John James Doe and James John Doe,” Deputy Prime Minister Hanley said in his address. “As for the banking information, this led to incorrect postings to banking accounts not belonging to the beneficiary which, without a waiver or consent, the state had difficulty requesting and receiving the return of the funds.”            

These irregularities contributed to a significant draw down of the $32 million allocated to PAP in the 2022 Budget. At the end of July 2022, more than three-quarters of the funds were spent leaving a balance of just over $6 million.

Dr. Hanley added that since the inception of the programme there has been no case management. Consequently, no one has graduated from the programme although some households make over $3,000 and no longer meet eligibility requirements.

“I use this opportunity to indicate that all eligible existing recipients of the Poverty Alleviation Programme are mandated to reapply by completing the application form by December 16, 2022. Failure to do so would mean that your payment will cease effective December 31, 2022,” the Deputy Prime Minister stated.

Officers from the Department of Community Development and Social Services in St. Kitts, as well as the Department of Social Services on Nevis, will be at key community locations to assist persons requiring assistance to complete the online registration. The venue and time schedule can be found on the official Government and SKNIS websites and Facebook pages and posted at community centres across the Federation.

The Order Paper has been circulated for a Special Sitting of the National Assembly to award the 25 Most Remarkable Teens in St. Kitts and Nevis. The Special Sitting will be held at the St. Kitts Marriott Resort Royal Ballroom, Frigate Bay, on Wednesday 30^th November, 2022, at 6:30 pm. Notice has been given.
 
The Sitting will be attended by the Honourable Dr. Geoffrey Hanley, Minister of Youth Empowerment and the Honourable Isalean Phillip, Junior Minister within the Ministry of Youth Empowerment, along with other Cabinet members. Dr. Hanley will make a statement in his capacity as Minister of Youth Empowerment. 
 
The Public Business will take the form of the reading of individual profiles by current CARICOM Youth Ambassadors followed by an Award Presentation by Members of Parliament.
 
The Special Sitting of the National Assembly will be carried live on ZIZ Radio (96 FM) and participating radio stations. It can also be viewed live on TV Channel 5 in St. Kitts and Channel 98 in Nevis. It will also be streamed live via www.zizonline.com and the SKNIS Facebook page.

The Federation of St Kitts & Nevis has been elected by Commonwealth Law Ministers to represent the Caribbean and the Americas on the Commonwealth Law Ministers Action Group. The Federation and Jamaica will serve with seven other countries elected by Attorneys General and Law Ministers at the Commonwealth Law Ministers’ Meeting in Balaclava, Mauritius on Thursday, November 24, 2022.

The Law Ministers Action Group is a newly established advisory body to the Commonwealth Secretary-General on the building of effective rule of law and equal access to justice frameworks in the Commonwealth. The Federation’s Attorney-General and Minister of Justice and Legal Affairs, Hon. Garth Wilkin, who is currently attending the Meeting, said that he is—

“proud that our small but internationally impactful Nation has been elected to represent the Caribbean on this important Action Group which is tasked with reviewing progress and advising on key rule of law and equal access to justice strategies, action plans and projects being undertaken by or with the involvement of the Commonwealth Secretariat, including promoting member countries’ realization of their Sustainable Development Goal 16 targets. The Action Group will also be implementing decisions, declarations and action plans adopted by Law Ministers at their biennial meeting; and implementing decisions, declarations and action plans endorsed or proclaimed by Commonwealth Heads of Government at their biennial meetings.”

The Law Ministers Action Group is comprised of Law Ministers from 9 of the 56 Commonwealth member countries: 3 from Africa, 3 from the Asia/Pacific region, 1 from Europe and 2 from the Caribbean/Americas region. Other similar Action Groups include the Education Ministerial Action Group, Commonwealth Advisory Committee on Health, Commonwealth Advisory Body on Sport, and Commonwealth Ministerial Action Group.

On Tuesday, 22^nd November, 2022, the Minister of Foreign Affairs et al, the Right Honourable Dr. Denzil L. Douglas, met with the Ambassador of the United States of America accredited to Saint Kitts and Nevis, Her Excellency Linda Taglialatela, during a working visit to the Federation of Saint Kitts and Nevis.

The conversation surrounded national, regional and international issues that would assist in modelling programmes and policies as part of the Government’s mandate.

Her Excellency was eager to learn of the Minister’s priorities for his Ministries as well as the national agenda. The Minister highlighted the transformation of Saint Kitts and Nevis from fossil fuel dependence to a renewable energy generating state, a reduction in the dependency on the Peace Programme, the ability to bridge the digital divide, the provision of employment opportunities for the young people, an increase in the manufacturing capacity of Saint Kitts and Nevis, as well as the advancement of agriculture to become one of the main drivers of the economy.

The Right Honourable Minister expressed his appreciation for the 39-year relationship between Saint Kitts and Nevis and the United States of America and is looking to further deepen and strengthen that bond.

 The Consulate of Saint Kitts and Nevis in Toronto, in partnership with the Ministry of Foreign Affairs, the Ministry of Tourism, and the High Commission in Ottawa, Canada, officially launched a Citizenship by Descent Drive geared to first, second, and third-generation Canadians between the ages of 18-39 of Kittitian and Nevisian heritage in October 2022.  The Citizenship by Descent Drive aims to encourage youths in Canada to become Saint Kitts and Nevis citizens by descent and steep themselves in the islands’ idyllic stunning natural beauty, rich history, and culture while contributing to the national development through their different skill sets. 

The Citizenship by Descent Drive 2022 will continue until June 30^th, 2023. The draw to win a trip for 2 to St Kitts and Nevis has been postponed until July 2023. The Consulate Office will post updated information on its website www.skncgtoronto.gov.kn and all other relevant Government social media channels from January 2023.  

*Note: Third Generation Citizenship may be obtained through parents who have received the Saint Christopher and Nevis Certificate of Citizenship.

Fellow citizens, residents, listeners, viewers and friends, today marks the launch of the annual world-renowned 16-Day Campaign on activism against gender-based violence against women and girls. Every year from November 25th to December 10th people around the world rally together to raise awareness and advocate for more decisive efforts to combat and end all forms of gender-based violence against women and girls.

Violence against women and girls is considered the most widespread and pervasive human rights violation worldwide. In fact, 1 in 3 women and girls have been affected by some form of physical, sexual, financial or emotional violence in their lives. Recent global estimates indicate that a woman or girl is killed by someone in her own family every 11 minutes. In the United States, it is estimated that women and girls are impacted by violence every 3 seconds.

Based on these statistics, the reality of gender-based violence is pervasive and has become far too commonplace. Moreover, the socioeconomic impact of the Covid-19 pandemic would have intensified domestic relations due to stay-at-home mandates that added to the stresses of job loss, economic hardships and new mental health challenges, which placed additional strains on spousal and domestic relations, thereby resulting in a significant increase in reports of domestic disputes and violence against women and girls. In St. Kitts alone, during the pandemic, reports of domestic violence increased by over 400%.

Evidently, gender-based violence has worsened. And violence against women and girls specifically, has become so normalized that verbal, physical and sexual harassment in public has increased along with individual apathy and nonchalance towards incidents of abuse in public.

In light of these concerning trends, the 16 days of activism campaign was originally initiated in 1991 by a group of activists at the inaugural Women’s Global Leadership Institute. Thereafter, the United Nations Secretary-General established the “UniTE by 2030 to End Violence Against Women” initiative. The UniTE movement seeks to increase global action on combatting the scourge of gender-based violence. The UniTE campaign calls each of us to action in a few ways, specifically, we should unite:

1. To honour and acknowledge women’s movements,
2. To leave no one behind
3. To respect survivors of gender-based violence
4. To work together across sectors
5. To be transformative and
6. To elevate the voices of young advocates

Launch activities for the 16-Day Campaign help to bring together advocates and activists working to end gender-based violence by making it a priority on political agendas. The global #MeToo movement was one such effort that helped to expose the prevalence of sexual harassment and violence against women, particularly in work environments.

Today, the Ministry and Department of Social Development and Gender Affairs, along with local NGOs and CSOs join the global 16 days of activism campaign to remember victims who lost their lives to gender-based violence, to echo support to survivors and to raise awareness of the problem so we can work towards solutions that help to reduce incidents and change the culture of violence and abuse that exists.

The colour orange is the primary colour used to represent the 16 Days of Activism Against Gender-based Violence Campaign. Orange is used to symbolise the vision and mission of this global campaign which is to achieve a brighter future, free from violence against women and girls. As we work towards this goal, I encourage all of us to support activities being hosted in honour of the campaign from today until December 10th.

Tune in to panel discussions, join rallies, and invest time and resources into supporting and funding projects and programmes that work to educate the public and assist women and girls in need of safety. I also take this opportunity to remind the public that if you are in need of assistance or support you can use any of the following resources. For emergency response or to report incidents of domestic violence contact the Special Victims Unit at 662-7077; for information or social assistance support call Gender Affairs at 765-5492; for mental health support contact the National Counselling Centre at 465-5000.

Together we must take a stand to condemn gender-based violence in all forms and we must help each other to build healthy and positive relationships that are free from abuse and violence. This is vital for the development of nurturing families and strong communities. As always, I look forward to your support and thank you for listening.

Stakeholders across St. Kitts are learning more about the UN Convention on the Rights of Persons with Disabilities as the government prepares to move forward with policies and programmes that will improve the lives of the differently-abled.

Two stakeholder consultations are taking place at the St. Kitts Marriott Resort this week as part of the Universal Periodic Review Trust Fund Disabilities Project. On Thursday (November 24) representatives from the organisations of persons with disabilities, civil society, the private sector and differently-abled individuals held discussions. Friday (November 25) will see engagement with public sector entities. Similar consultations were held in Nevis earlier this week.

The discussions are being led by Juana Sotomayor, Human Rights Adviser to the UN Resident Coordinator for Barbados and the Eastern Caribbean. Ms. Sotamayor said that the discussion is a follow-up to the Federation’s ratification of the Convention in 2019.

“Here we are following up on that ratification to ensure that the principles and the rights incorporated in the Convention are also brought into domestic policy and legislative plans of action and the Government of St. Kitts and Nevis is making quite a few advancements in that direction,” she stated.

President of the St. Kitts and Nevis Association of Persons with Disabilities, Joseph Bergan, commended recent steps by the government to engage his association. He said the Federation must adopt a Human Rights approach to inclusion for differently-abled persons. President Bergan expressed pleasure with the mix of persons in the room and urged that they ensure disability is never seen as an obstacle to success.

The Honourable Isalean Phillip, Junior Minister responsible for Aging and Disabilities, said that the government is committed to doing more to incorporate persons with disabilities into mainstream society.

“We need to do more in terms of supporting them through different areas whether that be through education, social services intervention, housing, infrastructural development that would be able to accommodate them to function fully within our society,” Honourable Phillip expressed.

She added that in January 2023, the new Ministry of Youth Empowerment, Aging and Disabilities will be launched with a specific focus on these three areas.

“We want to finally formalize some sort of national disability policy. Part of the plans that we have is also to establish a registry for persons with disabilities, and of course, we will in a new ministry be able to coordinate more programming and activities hence why we will be establishing some sort of unit that is dedicated to disability services,” the Minister indicated.

Thursday’s consultation included an Overview of the Convention on the Rights of Persons with Disabilities with a specific focus on providing information on the obligations and responsibilities of the State, discussing priority areas and how they relate to the Convention and identifying key thematic areas, and related action items on the specific steps to be taken.

It was a carnival-like atmosphere in Basseterre when the Wonder of the Seas, the world’s largest cruise liner, made its inaugural call on Port Zante, St. Kitts, on Thursday, 24^th November, 2022.

The ship from the Royal Caribbean Group captained by Henrik Loy brought with it 6495 guests and 2259 crew.

At the customary plaque exchange ceremony whenever a ship makes its initial call, Prime Minister of St. Kitts and Nevis, Hon. Dr. Terrance Drew welcomed the captain, crew and guests.

“You have confidence in the destination by adding St. Kitts and Nevis to your now largest vessel the Wonder of the Seas with a passenger capacity of 6988,” said Prime Minister Dr. Drew. “We are immensely proud of what you do as a captain taking care of this.”  

The wonder of the Seas is scheduled to bring a projected passenger capacity of 34,940 passengers for the current cruise season.

“We look forward to receiving the Icon of the Seas in 2024 as she will surpass her sister vessel in size,” Dr. Drew said. “We invite your passenger and crew to enjoy all of the destination and to venture deeper and experience the essence of our people and engage in authentic and enriching experiences. Welcome to St. Kitts and Nevis and you are always welcome to come back.”

Captain Loy thanked the Prime Minister and his “colleagues from beautiful St. Kitts” for all the hard work and preparation that went into making the maiden call of Wonder of the Seas successful.

“We are very happy to be here,” Captain Loy said.

Also, in attendance at the ceremony onboard were Deputy Prime Minister Hon. Dr. Geoffrey Hanley, newly appointed CEO of SCASPA, Ms. Adeola Moore, other officials from SCASPA, Delisle Walwyn and the Ministry of Tourism.

With abundant lands and a significant pool of human resources, St. Kitts and Nevis has what it takes to create a robust and sustainable agricultural sector, said Prime Minister the Honourable Dr. Terrance Drew.  

Speaking recently, the honourable Prime Minister said the creation of a robust agricultural sector is one of the immediate goals of his administration, as the Government looks to truly diversify the Federation’s economy.

Prime Minister Dr. Drew said, “We have a lot of lands; we have a lot of people on the STEP programme; why can’t we put these persons to work on farms or produce food for our people? We already have the workers; we are paying them; we have the land here in St. Kitts and Nevis and so if we have a robust agricultural sector with land and people we can start to really grow much more food. So, if we can produce fish, chicken and produce much more crops here in St. Kitts and Nevis where we can use the land wisely, I think that would set us on a path to make sure we become sustainable in terms of our food source and to become more food secure.”

In this regard, the Prime Minister commended the Minister of Agriculture, the Honourable Samal Duggins, for leading the Government’s thrust of ensuring sustainable food security in St. Kitts and Nevis.

“[Minister Duggins] is actually bringing the plan forward of what is already constituted as the plan to make us more food secure. We are looking at what you call ’25 by 25’ – cutting our food bill by 25 percent by the year 2025 and we think we can be on the track for that,” Prime Minister Dr. Drew said on WINNFM’s ‘Voices’ programme on November 23.

In addition to what can be done locally, Prime Minister Dr. Drew said the Government is actively pursuing investment opportunities specifically targeted towards the agricultural sector.

“In my first discussion with the Afreximbank (African Export-Import Bank), for example, was the development of a fish processing plant so that we can start producing enough fish here…as part of an industry. We have also discussed a chicken plant where we can actually produce chicken at a high enough level to really support what we need,” Prime Minister Dr. Drew added.