BASSETERRE, St. Kitts - WITH the continuous rise in food prices in St. Kitts and Nevis, Prime Minister and Minister of Finance Dr. Terrance Drew has assured the nation that he is committed to lowering the cost of living in the Federation.
That assurance comes against the backdrop of the increases continuing from the challenges coming out of the COVID pandemic.
During his press conference at the NEMA Building on Thursday (Jul. 13), Dr. Drew drove home his point on the rising inflation level by noting that “we see fuel prices and transport costs rising”, which have prompted his Government to take a number of actions to cushion the blow as citizens and residents continue to complain about the hardship being experienced.
“We as a Government are taking it very seriously and doing what we have to do to lower the cost of living for you, our beloved citizens,” Dr. Drew said. “We have taken significant measures to ease the burden and make a positive impact on your daily lives.”
The Government has rolled out a number of concessional programmes for school supplies and the reduction of Corporate Income Tax from 40% to 2%, and Unincorporated Business Tax from 33% to 25%.
“We have granted concessions on school supplies, and it is extended up to September 30, 2023. As the new term begins, most likely in September, we want to ensure that families are in the best position to get what is needed for their children to go to school,” added Dr. Drew.
Data from the Eastern Caribbean Central Bank at the end of 2022 noted that the inflation rate increased by 3.8 percent last year, underpinned by an increase in the prices of food and non-alcoholic beverages. Additionally, the transport (9.9 per cent) and alcoholic beverages, tobacco and related items (8.4 percent) accounted for much of the inflation increase last year.
“We have taken decisive action to address the rising cost of food, recognizing the impact it has on every household. Shipping charges for food containers have been capped at pre-COVID rates, stabilizing prices and providing much-needed relief for our people. In addition, we continue to monitor to see how the food prices will move and to be ready to make any other adjustments that are necessary to make sure our people get the best price that we can have,” revealed Dr. Drew.
But the rising food prices, which are determined by international factors, underscores St. Kitts and Nevis’ dependency on imported food supply. This is now forcing the Government to focus more on the ‘25 by 25’ in order to reduce that bill.
Data obtained for 2022 showed that St. Kitts and Nevis import nearly US$200 million worth of food.
“But speaking to our food security, it is critically important, that is why the Minister of Agriculture, the Hon. Samal Duggins, is pushing for the 2025 agenda and which is to decrease food imports from 25% by 2025, and so we are pushing for that agenda. The hope is that we have more food for our people, more locally grown and at a more affordable cost,” Dr. Drew said.
The ‘25 by 25’ initiative is expected to be launched later this month, and will focus on speciailized crops to be grown locally to reduce the dependency.
