BASSETERRE, St. Kitts – LAST Saturday (Sept. 19), as St. Kitts and Nevis celebrated its 37th Independence Anniversary, Prime Minister Dr. the Hon. Timothy Harris reminded the nation of the significant strides that the Federation made during that period.
According to Dr. Harris, over the last 37 years, from the highest per capita income to the low debt to GDP ratio, St. Kitts and Nevis has seen “growth and success, and some tremendous national achievements”.
“As a nation, we have the lowest Debt-to-GDP ratio in the OECS. We were the first to outdo the Debt-to-GDP target of 60 percent by 2030 set by the Eastern Caribbean Central Bank (ECCB). We have the highest reserves and the best fiscal outcome in the region.
“Our per capita income remains the highest in the OECS and the highest among our peers in the Hemisphere (excluding the USA, Canada and Mexico). We rank high on the United Nations Quality of Life Index. Indeed, we are among the top performers in the sub-region and tower above many larger and older independent states in the wider Hemisphere.
“On the World Justice Rule of Law Index, we are consistently among the top performers, ranking top of the class at least twice in a row. Our spectacular build-out of ICT saw us receiving the award for a major improvement in the Information Communications Technology Sector during the 14th World Telecommunications Conference in Botswana on December 12th, 2016. We were the only country to receive two awards,” PM Harris explained.
Going further, he noted that St. Kitts and Nevis continues to highlight and exemplify leadership in continuing the fight against the COVID-19 Pandemic.
In his speech, Dr. Harris explained that when the threat of COVID-19 was at its height there was no playbook and every country around the world was literally making it up as it went.
However, the Government of St. Kitts and Nevis “endeavored to be diligent in all our decisions. It was that thoughtful and diligent deliberation that has brought us our successes thus far”.
Currently, the Federation has 19 confirmed cases of the virus; the lowest among member states of the region.
