BASSETERRE, St.Kitts (Friday 16th April 2021)-  In addressing attendees at a Tourism Stakeholder’s Meeting held on Wednesday 14th April 20201 held at the Marriott Hotel, Minister of Tourism stated that a 100% immunity in the tourism sector must be achieved as he promoted and appealed for cooperation in taking the COVID-19 vaccine and likewise spoke about a policy for such going forward.
 
“We must achieve a 100% immunity in the tourism sector …and this is the only way  to balance  what we all crave for and I crave for  and I am pleading with you to get and that’s to get vaccinated.”
 
Grant informed that in June 2021, cruises will begin  in St.Kitts and Nevis all things being equal with what is planned to be a first phased approach.
 
“Now what does that mean? We have been in discussions with the Ministry of Health and their team and we’re going to have a phased approach to cruising.That means come June when the cruises begin as the CEO said …we don’t expect five ships in harbor  and we also don’t expect it to be business as usual.”
 
According to Grant: “Obviously, it means that likewise we are going to have to be vaccinated and so the policy going forward for us will be that any purveyors of the industry will have to be vaccinated which means that if you’re a tour operator you’re going to have to be sanctioned  by the St.Kitts Tourism Authority and all the members of the team who work in the industry who will come into contact with those individuals who are on the cruise ships will have to be vaccinated.”
 
As understood, any cruise line that comes to St.Kitts and Nevis, all the crew  will have to be vaccinated and all the passengers  likewise will have to be vaccinated.All cruise ship passengers over the age of 18 must be vaccinated while children under 18 must present a negative RT-PCR test within 72 hours  prior to home port disembarkation as well as negative RT-PCR test taken prior to home port departure for all onboard guest and crew.
 
The Tourism Minister said vaccination is not being made mandatory.
 
“We are not making vaccination mandatory; let me put it quite clearly so we don’t have any miscommunication in the message.We are not saying that the vaccination is mandatory.  We are saying to you that as a policy, we are asking the employers to make sure that their employees are vaccinated and that every single employee  who will come into contact  with the passengers and the crew are likewise vaccinated.” 
 
It was highlighted that all travel approved tours or attractions, employees and agents interacting with the vessel and engaging in tours must be vaccinated which include ship agents, St. Kitts Tourism Authority (SKTA) staff, SCASPA (ST. Christopher Air and Sea Ports Authority) staff, immigration, Customs, taxi and tour operators and shore excursion teams.
 
According to Grant, staff who do not take the vaccination will be required  to take an RT-PCR test at their own cost every two weeks.
 
Additionally, he said tour operators on the island will be required to agree  to random testing or testing requirements decided by the CMO [Chief Medical Officer] at the owners and employers expense or the employee’s  expense.
 
He said taxi and tour operators and attraction owners must bear the cost of testing, quarantine and isolation of their staff.
 
Grant went on to say that the Ministry of Health and SKTA will negotiate for discounted sector rates for testing at JNF for quarantine and isolation  with approved quarantine site managers and owners.
 
The Minister of Tourism pointed to the neighbouring  island of Anguilla indicating that through changed protocols, the island has seen an almost  state of normalcy as a significant amount of the population is vaccinated.
 
“…everything really hinges on the vaccination,” he told the local stakeholders.
 
“This is our first step to reviving what we consider to be a very critical industry, a critical element of our economy and so we are expecting that the vaccinated tours and attractions  are our pathway and our attract to hopefully full recovery,” Grant stated.
 
“I’m hoping that we would have much cooperation  by persons in the industry so that we can get and arrive at our necessary goals  so that we could come back to some state of normalcy,” he said also.
 
 
Front Page Photo: This source photo which was posted on www.facebook.com/facesofstkittstourism has the caption, which reads in part, “Tourism Minister The Hon. Lindsay Grant convinces craft vendors who work in the tourism industry to #ChooseLife, by taking the COVID-19 Vaccine. The St. Kitts Tourism Authority in conjunction with the Ministry of Health arranged for a Vaccination Clinic on Port Zante for tourism workers in that area…”
 
Workers which included workers from the retail shops, restaurants and bars, Amina Craft Market, Port Zante Security and Island Constables Unit