Nevis Island News and Notes

St. Kitts’ Tourism Aims For The Luxury Market

Bob and Elvis Tour Bus - St. Kitts

Luxury Tourism In St. Kitts Is The Goal
Photo By Erasmus Williams

Basseterre, Saint Kitts – Nevis
June 25, 2008 (CUOPM)

Targeting the luxury traveler may seem out of sync given the current economic climate of soaring fuel prices, high air fares, inflation and a sagging dollar.

But not to Sen. the Hon. Richard “Ricky” Skerritt, St. Kitts and Nevis’ Minister of Tourism, Sports and Culture.

“We’ve got challenges, to be sure, but I’m reading the right market,” he was quoted by Gay Nagle Myers in the Travel Weekly ““ the National Newspaper of the Travel Industry.

When St. Kitts moved from 350 years of sugar production to a tourism-based and tourism-driven economy in 2005, Minister Skerritt was instrumental in orchestrating a revised tourism policy and a strategic tourism plan. Key elements of the plan included the development of high-end resorts with residential components.

“The luxury market continues to look for investment opportunities in second and third homes,” he said. “St. Kitts is a fresh opportunity.”

However, the current economic scenario forces travelers to be more creative and careful in their quest for vacation experiences, according to Skerritt, who said: “More than 50 percent of our revenue comes from tourism. St. Kitts has to fight for market share where there is growth.”

Cruise Ships Docked In St. Kitts – Nevis
Photo By Erasmus Williams

Basseterre, Saint Kitts – Nevis
June 24, 2008 (CUOPM)

A few weeks after Celebrity Cruise Lines, announced that its newest ship, the 2,850-passenger Celebrity Solstice, will have St. Kitts – Nevis on its maiden voyage, the twin-island Federation is on the itinerary of another new Celebrity vessel.

Celebrity Solstice will embark on its maiden voyage in November this year and make three calls to St. Kitts before December 14th, the original date.

Now Celebrity Cruise Lines has announced that the 2,850-passenger Celebrity Equinox, which will be inaugurated on August 8, 2009 will have St. Kitts – Nevis on its 10- and 11-night “Ultimate Caribbean” cruises roundtrip out of Fort Lauderdale.

These will also feature stops at the ports of Charlotte Amalie, St. Thomas; Roseau, Dominica, Bridgetown, Barbados; Philipsburg, St. Maarten; Grand Cayman; Colombia; Costa Rica and Mexico. The 11-night itinerary includes a stop at Roatan, Honduras, which Celebrity has not visited since 2007.

Venisha Pringle – Clarence Fitzroy Bryant College Graduate
Photo By Erasmus Williams

Basseterre, Saint Kitts – Nevis
June 24, 2008 (CUOPM)

Caribbean nations are opposed to the full-scale liberalisation or opening up of the region’s tertiary education sector, which is seen as a public good and not as an economic or commercial enterprise.

Speaking at the just concluded Caribbean-New York Conference last week at which a Memorandum of Understanding was signed between the University of the West Indies (UWI) and the Medgar Evers College in New York, St. Kitts and Nevis Prime Minister Hon. Dr. Denzil L. Douglas noted that the United States, the lead competitor in the tertiary education sector and as a member of the WTO, the US has sought “”¦full commitments for market access and national treatment in higher education and training services, for adult education, and for ‘other’ education.” The request has been made to all 145 WTO members.

Douglas said given that one significant aspect of the GATS is non-reciprocity, CARICOM Member States understandably, are quite cynical about and resistant to this quest by the USA.

“This is one area that is worthy of further discussion and cooperation since developed countries such as the USA are much more competitive in this sector and the domestic providers such as those in the Caribbean Community are not ready for an open, market driven environment,” said Dr. Douglas, the region’s lead spokesman on education.

Nevis Represenative – Hon. Robelto Hector Charlestown, Nevis June 23, 2008 Parliamentary Representative for the St. Pauls Constituency Hon. Robelto Hector, described two weeks of training hosted by the Commonwealth Parliamentary Association from June 07-20, 2008 in Europe, as beneficial …

PM Douglas Speaks With Students
Photo By Erasmus Williams

Basseterre, Saint Kitts – Nevis
June 23, 2008 (CUOPM)

The CARICOM Community (CARICOM) is currently re-examining the scope and effectiveness of the overarching philosophy of “education for all.”

Prime Minister of St Kitts and Nevis, Hon. Dr. Denzil L. Douglas at the Education Symposium of the New York Conference on the Caribbean felt the discussion could not be timelier.

St. Kitts and Nevis boasts of being the first Caribbean nation to introduce free secondary since 1965.

“In New York, it is clear that you are grappling with the reality of the principle of “˜no child left behind’ especially its implications for poor black and Latino children, among whom I am sure are some descendants from the Caribbean. In the CARICOM Community as in New York, educators and researchers are quizzical about the growing trend of male underperformance or under achievement and are sensitive to the need for corrective action that may have significant social consequences,” said Dr. Douglas.

He noted that for the Caribbean Community, there is the additional issue related to the migration of skilled and highly trained professionals and the discussions on how to tackle the ‘brain drain’ or ‘brain gain’ to the mutual benefit of both societies.

“While this panel focuses on collaboration among our higher educational institutions, it is critical to note that viable tertiary systems are highly dependent on the foundations laid during pre-school and kindergarten through to the elementary and high school levels,” said Dr. Douglas.

St. Kitts’ Tourism Aims For The Luxury Market

Another Celebrity Cruise Ship For St. Kitts – Nevis

The Caribbean Needs To Protect Its Educational Role

Nevis Parliamentarians Benefit From Training

CARICOM Re-evaluates Caribbean Education Policy