Prime Minister Skerrit Ready to Help Haiti

In this piece, Prime Minister Roosevelt Skerrit lends his support to the people of Haiti, saying that the entire region stands in solidarity with Haiti and is ready to help.

Prime Minister Skerrit Heads CARICOM

In addition to his many other responsibilities as the Prime Minister of Dominica, Roosevelt Skerrit is also the Chairman of the Caribbean Community (CARICOM). He will continue in this role until June 30th of this year. The Chairmanship of CARICOM rotates, with someone new within the Member State taking over every six months.

This change also changes the Bureau of the Conference of Heads of Government of CARICOM, as it is made up of the current Chairman, the ougoing and incoming Chairmen and the Secretary-General. As a result, the current Bureau includes: Hon. Roosevelt Skerritt Prime Minister of Dominica; H.E. Bharrat Jagdeo, President of Guyana, H.E. Rene Preval, President of Haiti, and H.E. Edwin W. Carrington, CARICOM Secretary-General.

Prime Minister Skerrit & His Plan

Prime Minister Roosevelt Skerrit has big plans for Dominica. He recently told his ministers that their job is certainly not an 8 to 4 job. As he said to his ministers, “I’m not going to waste my time in this cabinet; we have a lot of work to do; this is a very serious matter; you have to roll up your sleeve and put your boots on and go in the field and solve the problems of the people of Dominica and to create better opportunities for them.”

In addition, Prime Minister Skerrit outlined a long agenda that he hopes to pursue over a five year period. He wants new jobs in Dominica, higher salaries for public servants, better infrastructure on the island and more foreign investors.

Dominica is soon going to be able to have night landings at the airport, and he is inviting people to watch the first flight. Finally, he hopes, in the next five years, that Dominica will have the status of test cricket host.

Remembering Dominica's Mable Moir James

On Monday, February 1st, the Dominica flag was flown at half staff on all public buildings in the States, as a sign of mourning for Mrs. Mable Moir James. Prime Minister Roosevelt Skerrit, and the government of Dominica declared it a day of morning in respect for this former Member of the House of Assembly.

Mable Moir James created history in 1966 by becoming the first female Minister of Government in Dominica. She served as a minister in various capacities from 1966-1970 and was also the founder of the Women’s Guild and a proponent of women’s rights.

Cruising to Dominica

In recent Dominica news, the internationally famous MV Queen Mary II docked in Dominica on Wednesday, December 30, 2009. This port in the Caribbean is actually one of the few that can accommodate a boat of this size.

Captained by Mr. Bernard Warner, The MV Queen Mary II will only make this stop to Dominica during the 2009/2010 cruise ship season.

Cruise tourism is a major piece of Dominica’s growing tourism sector. Prime Minister Roosevelt Skerrit invites tourists and groups to enjoy the wealth of offerings in Dominica. Over 500,000 cruise passengers visited Dominica during the 2008/2009 cruise season. This year, following on the heels of the most recent win by Roosevelt Skerrit, 278 cruise ships are expected for the 2009/2010 ship season.

Caricom Lending a Hand

Caricom, led by Chairman Prime Minister Roosevelt Skerrit of Dominica, has about 36 medical personnel assisting the relief effort in Haiti at the moment. Caricom has been able to provide people with emergency supplies of water, blankets and other health necessities. In addition, they have performed minor surgeries on patients and assisted in whatever way necessary.

Edwin Carrington, the Secretary General of Caricom said that the Caricom community has decided to focus their attention in the health sector in Haiti. As he said, “The danger of contamination… and diseases like dysentery and cholera… makes health one of the critically needed areas… and we felt that we had some capacity in that area,”

Sending Water to Haiti

The government in Dominica is working on a plan to export drinking water from Dominica to Haiti. At a recent press conference, Disaster Preparedness Minister Charles Savarin made this announcement, with the backing of the Dominica government including Prime Minister Roosevelt Skerrit and others.

Certainly, everyone agrees that water and medicines are of the utmost importance in Haiti right now. As the Disaster Minister explains,“We have been in touch with Loubiere and Trois Piton water and we will seek to mobile as much as we can from Dominica. We are also seeking to mobilize air transportation to take the water to Haiti today or tomorrow.”

Skerrit Heads to Haiti

Following the tragic earthquake in Haiti, Prime Minister Roosevelt Skerrit from Dominica planned to lead a fact-finding mission to Haiti. Prime Minister Skerrit will be accompanied by Barbados Prime Minister David Thompson, Jamaica Prime Minister Bruce Golding and others.

The regional response group has found four main areas where Haiti can use the most assistance. They need emergency aid, shelter, search and rescue and communication. Jamaica will be the staging point for all regional response and the Bahamas has offered Haiti the use of its embassy since Port-au-Prince was so severely damaged.

Drug Awareness Month 2010

The director and staff of the National Drug Abuse Prevention Unit recently put out a message to all churches in Dominica. Since 1997, Dominica, with Prime Minister Roosevelt Skerrit, has observed Drug Awareness Month in January. This year, the observance is under the theme, “Responsibility is the key to being drug free!”

The National Drug Abuse Prevention Unit works tirelessly to promote programs and activities that encourage resistance to drugs and they encourage society at large to assist in these efforts.

In their letter to churches for January 2010, they said, “Truly, responsibility is the key to being drug free and an essential pillar in character development. We take this opportunity to thank you for your unwavering support over the years and do wish you a bright and prosperous 2010.”

Matthew Walter Says This Term His Last

Re-elected Member of Parliament, Matthew Walter, says that this term will be his last. This term will last from 2010-2015 and Mr. Walter will be continuing working for the Paix Bouche constituency.

Dominica just finished elections, with Prime Minister Roosevelt Skerrit winning the election again for a third time. Walter has assured his constituents that he won’t leave office without making sure that a number of his projects make it to their completion.

As he says, “I will be working feverishly and vigorously, to ensure that before the five- year term is expired, that most of those projects will be implemented and completed for the Paix Bouche constituency.”