Nevis News

Nevis news – local Nevis news, and regional Caribbean news.

African Drumming Drums Up Nevis Youth Interest

IAfrikana Drummers in Nevis

Drummers in Nevis

Charlestown, Nevis
June 09, 2008

Culture Advisor to the Nevis Island Administration (NIA) Mr. Halsted “Sooty” Byron has cited that the introduction of African Drumming in schools was responsible for the heightened interest in drumming and the craze for iron bands among Nevis’ youth.

Mr. Byron told the Department of Information in an interview on June 09, 2008, that when drumming was introduced in primary schools as an initiative of the Department of Culture while he served as Director some years ago, the numbers were slight but there had been a spiked interest in recent times.

“Drumming in schools has caught on. When we started first the numbers were very small but up to when I finished dealing with that aspect of the art form in the schools, I think it was going very great.

“We [Department of Culture now the Nevis Cultural Foundation] have now recruited a young man who is also a member of IAfrikana Drummers Keoma George and the young boys and girls in the schools have really taken to it to the extent where we see these iron bands forming all over Nevis. This is a direct spin off from the drums,” he said.

Mr. Byron explained that it was regrettable that parents and adults did not think that an African drum could not make a perfect gift for a young adult or child.

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Nevis Receives Donation From Canadian Fund

Mr. Augustine Merchant

Mr. Augustine Merchant

Charlestown, Nevis
June 09, 2008

The Nevis Growers Cooperative was on Friday June 06, 2008, the recipient of a cheque in the amount of $58 139.33 from the Canadian Fund for Local Initiative (CFLI).

The donation was a joint effort between the CFLI and the Inter-American Institute for Co-operation on Agriculture (IAICA).

Minister of Agriculture in the Nevis Island Administration (NIA) Hon. Robelto Hector, Permanent Secretary in the Ministry of Agriculture Mr. Pearlivan Wilkin, Inter-American Institute for Cooperation in Agriculture (IICA) Representative Mr. Augustine Merchant, President of the Nevis Growers Cooperative Mrs. Muriel Emontine Thompson, farmers and staff of the Ministry of Agriculture attended the donation ceremony.

The Minister addressed the gathering and shared his delight with the generous contribution made by the donors.

“I am one who feels and as a government, we have ensured that directed finances [go] to [the agro processors to] ensure that the agro-processing unit is realised.  I am one who really feels that we are at that stage now when we can begin to explore our export potential,” Minister Hector said.

He also offered words of encouragement to the farmers to work towards the island’s food security.

“We must be organised, we must be growing from strength to strength, we must not be destructive.  We must make sure that at the end, we are supporting each other and we are moving towards the general good of ensuring food security, not only for the island of Nevis but the Caribbean as a whole and that would be our contribution towards the global issue,” he said.

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PM Douglas Speaks About AIDS At United Nations

United Nations Conference on HIV / AIDS Basseterre, Saint Kitts – Nevis June 09, 2008 (CUOPM) St. Kitts and Nevis Prime Minister Hon. Dr. Denzil L. Douglas is leading the Federation’s delegation to the United Nations General Assembly High Level …

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SKN Sponsors Resolution On Crime At OAS Assembly

Orginazation of American States

Orginazation of American States Assembly

Basseterre, Saint Kitts – Nevis
June 09, 2008 (CUOPM)

St. Kitts and Nevis has sponsored a resolution on crime and violence at the just concluded General Assembly of the Organisation of American States (OAS) in Medellin, Colombia.

The resolution, which was co-sponsored by the CARICOM States and supported by all member states of the Western Hemispheric body, places the issue of Crime and Violence squarely on the agenda of the OAS, which has now resolved to take certain actions with regard to this escalating phenomenon that, is negatively impacting the quality of life in all member states.

The Resolution, presented by St. Kitts and Nevis Minister of Foreign Affairs, Dr. the Hon. Timothy Harris, recognises the implications of crime and violence for the social, economic and political development of member states and, while being fully aware of the necessity for a criminal justice-focused approach in particular circumstances, cautions against an over-reliance on this approach, advocating instead a preventive public health approach in conjunction with citizen security strategies.

The public health approach, it is understood, does not replace criminal justice and human rights responses to violence but rather complements their activities and offers them additional tools and sources of collaboration.

The General Secretariat of the OAS has been mandated to support initiatives by member states, in actions aimed at preventing and comprehensively addressing the phenomenon of violence in its diverse forms and to keep the Committee on Hemispheric Security, which has oversight on such issues, informed on all ongoing and planned related activities.

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St. Kitts – Nevis To Attend PSC Conference

Prime Minister - Robert Gonsalves

Prime Minister – Robert Gonsalves

Basseterre, St. Kitts Nevis
June 09, 2008 (CUOPM)

Chairman of the St. Kitts and Nevis Public Service Commission (PSC), Dr. Joseph Halliday and the Secretary, Ms. Beverly Knight, will be among colleagues from Public Service Commissions (PSCs) in the Caribbean meeting in St. Vincent and the Grenadines on Wednesday and Thursday.

The Conference arranged by the Caribbean Centre for Development Administration (CARICAD), a regional inter-governmental organisation specialising in transforming and modernising the Public Sector of Caribbean States, brings the Public Service Commissions together for the first time.

The Prime Minister of St. Vincent and the Grenadines Dr. the Hon. Ralph Gonsalves will deliver the keynote address at the Opening Ceremony on Wednesday.

Representatives will explore issues relevant to the function of Commissions, promote networking among Commissioners and other key officials in Human Resources Management and allow for a sharing of experiences and lessons learnt.

The Executive Director of CARICAD, Jennifer Astaphan said the primary purpose of the two-day conference “is to bring representatives of Public Service Commissions together to review the role of the Commission in the management of human resources in the Public Services in the Region, within the context of Public Sector Modernisation.”

She adds that CARICAD hopes that the deliberations will result in suggestions and recommendations that can be used to design a project to further enhance the role of the Commissions in Public Sector Modernisation in the Caribbean.

Besides St. Kitts and Nevis, 12 other Caribbean countries have confirmed participation. Antigua and Barbuda, Barbados, Belize, Dominica, Grenada, Jamaica, Montserrat, St. Lucia, St. Vincent and the Grenadines, Trinidad and Tobago and the Turks and Caicos Islands.

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