Three thousand young Saint Lucians will get access to funds to help them turn their talents, skills and hobbies into viable business ventures.
This is possible through an agreement between the Government of Saint Lucia and the Caribbean Development Bank (CDB).which will also assist the Saint Lucia Fire Service. The bank will loan the Government of Saint Lucia $20.52 million to support the Youth Economy Agency (YEA).
A government press release stated that Prime Minister Hon. Philip J. Pierre leads a Cabinet of Ministers and heads a government that prioritizes the development of Saint Lucia’s human capital and the protection of public and private assets.
“The Prime Minister has successfully partnered with the Caribbean Development Bank (CDB) to secure funding for the aspirations of our nation’s youth, future business leaders, and to strengthen the country’s national security and protective services,” stated the release.
The release went on to state that Prime Minister Pierre is making the largest capital injection into the Saint Lucia Fire Service (SLFS) by committing more than $26 million from the CDB loan agreement to enhance its institutional and technical capacities. Further, more than 300 of Saint Lucia’s dutiful and hardworking fire officers and first responders will access advanced technical training programmes to strengthen the emergency response capabilities of the SLFS.
The SLFS will also be able to acquire state-of-the-art firefighting equipment, transportation and tools to optimize Saint Lucia’s emergency response services to better protect public infrastructure and state assets like our airports and government offices and private properties like your homes and businesses from natural and man-made hazards.
The Prime Minister and Minister for Finance, this month, secured approval from the Parliament of Saint Lucia to source the financing from the CDB. On October 12, 2023, Vice President of Operations at the CDB, Mr Isaac Solomon, joined Prime Minister Pierre and officials of the SLFS and YEA for the official signing ceremony of this monumental agreement with the Government of Saint Lucia.