President of the St, Lucia Chamber of Commerce Industry and Agriculture, Trevor Louisy, led a delegation of Board Members to meet with Prime Minister Philip J. Pierre on Wednesday 24th March, 2022 at the Office of the Prime Minister in the Graham Louisy Administrative Building. This was the first Meeting between the recently elected President of the Chamber and the Prime Minister since they both came into Office. Joining the President of the Chamber was Immediate Past President Karen Peter, 1st Vice President Ross Gardner, 2nd Vice President Jason King, Board Member Martin Dorville and Executive Director Brian Louisy.
The Prime Minister started the meeting by welcoming the Chamber representatives indicating his intention to meet regularly and frequently with the Board of the Chamber. The Meeting was considered timely as the Prime Minister was extremely occupied with preparing his 2022-2023 Budget, at a critical time for the country. The Chamber for its part relished the opportunity to reaffirm the institution’s commitment to working with Government and articulating the interests and perspectives of its members.
The Prime Minister provided the Private Sector with a quick overview of the state of the economy highlighting the performance of key economic indicators and sectors, with the promise that full details will be provided when he delivers the Budget Address in April The Chamber Board in turn enquired about the Government’s perspective and plans on issues related to Law and Order, Covid-19, Food Security, St. Jude Hospital, and the Hewanorra International Airport Development, among others.
The Prime Minister provided frank and insightful information on the Government’s perspective on the issues raised. The Chamber agreed that the crime situation was an urgent and difficulty one and that the level of crime was at unacceptable levels and pledged to continue to work with Government to bring the situation under control. The continued close monitoring of the Covid-19 situation was also another area where the Chamber and Government both felt required continued vigilance, however greater attention to the broader health care issues was urgently needed. The Prime Minister welcomed suggestions from the Chamber on areas where immediate action could positively impact national food security. Meetings to further those discussions were agreed upon.
In closing, the Chamber reiterated its longstanding commitment to work constructively with Government and utilize dialogue and direct communication to address the concerns of its members. The Prime Minister ended the two-hour meeting with a commitment to meet again with the Chamber Board, prior to the finalization of the Budget process by Government to identify implementable measures that will positively impact the economy and citizens
For more information contact: Mr. Brian Louisy, Executive Director