 |
| St. Kitts and Nevis Deputy Prime Minister, the Hon. Sam Condor; Lt. Governor of St. Eustatius, the Hon. Hayden Gittens; Commissioner of Finance, General Affairs and Economic Affairs, the Hon. Roy Hooker and Commissioner of Tourism, Health and Women’s Affairs, the Hon. Adelka Spanner. Photo by Erasmus Williams |
BASSETERRE, ST. KITTS (APRIL 1ST 2004) – The Governments of St. Kitts and Nevis and St. Eustatius agreed Thursday to looks at ways of strengthening the already close ties that exist between the Dutch island and the twin-island Federation.
Issues ranging from increased air and sea transportation, health, agriculture, tourism, trade, education and culture were discussed between a delegation from St. Eustatius headed by Lt. Governor Heyden Gittens, Commissioner of Finance, General Affairs and Economic Affairs, the Hon. Roy Hooker; Commissioner of Tourism, Health and Women’s Affairs, the Hon. Adelka Spanner; Director of Tourism, Ms. Alida Francis; Airport Manager, Mr. Ellis Schmidt and Protocol Officer, Mercedes Lopes-Spanner.
Deputy Prime Minister the Hon. Sam Condor in welcoming the Executive Council of St. Eustatius led by its Chairman, Lt. Governor Heyden Gittens on what is said to be a working visit which included a courtesy call on the Governor General of St. Kitts and Nevis His Excellency Dr. Sir Cuthbert Sebastian.
“We always consider the people of St. Eustatius as our brothers and sisters, our neighbours, our friends and we are happy to have you,” said Deputy Prime Minister Condor who invited the delegation to visit other areas of St. Kitts and Nevis to become familiar with the developments that are taking place.
 |
| Director of Tourism, Ms. Alida Francis; Airport Manager, Mr. Ellis Schmidt, Protocol Officer, Mrs. Mercedes Lopes-Spanner and Permanent Secretary in the Office of the Prime Minister, Mr. Oaklyn Peets. Photo by Erasmus Williams |
“Our islands are separated but just by a little bit and it is just several miles away and so in deed we are brothers and sisters and the relationships that we have had over the years should continue,” said Lt. Governor Gittens, who noted that it was his first official visit outside of St. Eustatius, since he assumed office on January 1st this year.
Lt. Governor Gittens said his Executive Council also planned to meet with representatives of Caribbean Sun to discuss the possibility of the airline scheduling flights between San Juan, Puerto Rico to St. Eustatius and maybe via St. Kitts.
“This morning, we had to fly via St. Maarten to St. Kitts but we are hoping that in the future that there will be direct air connections,” said Gittens.
Deputy Prime Minister Condor noted that in this era of globalisation and trade liberalisation, the need exists for neighbouring states to maximise the use of human and natural resources. Both officials also exchange gifts.
The Governor General hosted the St. Eustatius delegation to lunch at the Royal St. Kitts Marriott Beach Resort before they left for a similar visit to Antigua and Barbuda.
