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| St. Kitts and Nevis Prime Minister Dr. the Hon. Denzil L. Douglas (l) and Director General of the Kuwati Fund for Arab Economic Development, His Excellency Mr. Bader M. Al Humaidhi signing the documents at Thursday's ceremony. Photo by Erasmus Williams |
BASSETERRE, ST. KITTS (AUGUST 5TH 2004) – St. Kitts and Nevis Prime Minister Dr. the Hon. Denzil L. Douglas said Thursday that the construction of a second cruise ship pier at Port Zante, is consistent with the mandate of his St. Kitts-Nevis Labour Party Administration, to increase the number of cruise visitors to 500,000 in the medium term.
Welcoming the Head of the Kuwaiti Fund for Arab Economic Development, His Excellency Mr. Bader M. Al Humaidhi, the St. Kitts and Nevis leader said the signing of the loan agreement clears the way for the expeditious construction of the second pier.
“The project entails the construction of a second pier at Port Zante with a length of 437 meters that would accommodate the berthing of ships including the mega cruiseships. This is consistent with the aim of the Government to bring the number of cruiseship visitors to our shores to approximately 500,000 in the medium term per year,” said Prime Minister Douglas.
He disclosed that the project will be supported by a range of economic and entertainment opportunities that would improve the tourism product and enhance the experience of the visitors to the Federation.
“A new Dolphin Park is to be located at the South East Peninsular and scheduled to begin operation later this year. There is also a new Horse Race Track at Dieppe Bay, as part of the White Gate Project and this has already started. The Basseterre Urban Renewal projects will also be supplemented with the pier project at Port Zante and there is the construction now underway of the La Vallee Golf Course as part of the Whitegate Development Project,” disclosed Prime Minister Douglas.
He said the establishment of BET Sound Stage will combine with other attractions such as the St. Kitts Scenic Railway to enrich the visitor experience and establish St. Kitts and Nevis a premier cruise ship destination.
Prime Minister Douglas, who is also the Minister of Finance, said the loan of EC$16.4 million is to be repaid over 18 years in semi-annual installments with a moratorium of three years. Interest is at 3.5 percent.
Dr. Douglas disclosed that the Kuwaiti Fund has already indicated a willingness to provide additional resources for the expansion and modernisation of the Robert Llewellyn Bradshaw International Airport to accommodate the massive increase in the traffic that the Federation is presently experiencing and traffic will dramatically increase over the next few months with direct service by PAN AM and American Airlines in the next few months.
The signing ceremony was attended by Minister of Tourism, the Hon. Dwyer Astaphan; Minister of Works, the Hon. Halva Hendrickson; Minister of Public Works and Transport, the Hon. Halva Hendrickson; Attorney General, the Hon. Delano Bart; Chief Secretary, Mr. Joseph Edmeade; Financial Secretary, Mr. Wendell Lawrence; Permanent Secretary in the Office of the Prime Minister, Mr. Oaklyn Peets; Chairman of the St. Christopher Air and Sea Port Authority, Mr. Peter Jenkins and General Manager of the Port Authority, Mr. Donald Cable.
