![Image: The cast currently bringing the land policy message to the masses. [PHOTO: Stan Bishop]](https://thevoiceslu.com/wp-content/uploads/2015/10/The-cast.jpg)
Popular Theatre To Be Used To Spread Message.
![Image: The cast currently bringing the land policy message to the masses. [PHOTO: Stan Bishop]](https://www.thevoiceslu.com/wp-content/uploads/2015/10/The-cast.jpg)
The OECS Commission is providing support to the awareness campaign, with the cast of actors coming from the Ministry of Planning under the theatrical guidance of director Kennedy “Boots” Samuel.
The theatrical presentation opens with the actors reciting poet KendelHippolyte’s “De Land”, which speaks about the patrimony of Saint Lucia’s vital natural resource. Throughout the performance, key issues dealing with the management and ownership of land are discussed.
The document, “Proposed revised national land policy for Saint Lucia”, comes out of an earlier policy and was published by the Ministry of Physical Development, Housing and Urban Renewal last July.
Consultant in the Ministry of Physical Development, Housing and Urban Renewal, Yves Renard, spoke to The VOICE following one of the cast’s performances at the CSA Centre last Friday afternoon. Renard said that while Saint Lucia has had a land policy for quite some time, it was decided last year that it be revised and updated in the context of climate change and new issues.
“That review was done through a number of interviews, focus group sessions, community consultations, and so on,” Renard said. “So the idea is to put it out now so that there is a bit more feedback but, more importantly, some awareness. What is also important is to get the strong messages out. A policy can be many pages of good ideas but we want to know what people think are the most critical things that must be done?”
Questions that came up during the question and answer segment of last Friday’s presentation focused on such issues as the Queen’s Chain, land prices, land markets. Chartered Valuation Surveyor, Celsus Baptiste, who was one of the actors, gave insights into Saint Lucia’s land policy issues.
According to Baptiste, about 35% of Saint Lucia’s land mass is owned by the State. With the citizenship by investment programme now a legal prospect in government’s endeavour to raise much-needed foreign direct investment (FDI), Baptiste said the issue of land ownership and land usage will become increasingly important.
Renard said the use of popular theatre was strategic in getting the critical message across, adding that the aim is to refine the document so that when it goes to Cabinet “it does so with a bit more power because it has been influenced by and reflects the priorities of the people.”
“One of the things that the policy document says that really has to be in people’s minds is that there needs to be a cultural change regarding the attitude towards land. That’s why it’s so related to housing. We will not be able to continue the way we have. So there needs to be an important shift in terms of how we relate to land: how we view housing and how we manage the settlements to make it more rational. So it’s a big challenge,” Renard explained.
Renard said Saint Lucia needs to have some sort of land use plan, one which may not have to be exactly precise, but at least something that guides what the citizenry wants and what should happen on what type of property. The final document, he said, should go to Cabinet by next year but not before being given sufficient awareness in the community, he said.
“We’ve been managing land much too reactively up to now and have to be more proactive,” Renard said. “One of the lessons is that disasters happen at long intervals, so we have to keep them in mind. They will inevitably happen. What climate change is likely to do is increase the severity of those unusual events.”
The awareness campaign will continue over the next few weeks in various communities across Saint Lucia.
