PDF Link to Full Text of Prime Minister Harris’ Opening Statement:
https://gallery.mailchimp.com/bb7c8b2d02cf287e7132078a2/files/25bb3049-8cb0-4cbe-80a3-ca67017e4bf1/PM_Harris_Pressconfjanuary162019.pdf

Opening Statement by the Prime Minister of St. Kitts and Nevis, 
Dr. the Hon. Timothy Harris, at his Monthly Press Conference 
Parliamentary Lounge, Government Headquarters, Basseterre
Wednesday, January 16, 2019

Fellow Citizens and Residents, representatives of the media, I wish all of us a wonderful New Year and I hope that 2019 will be a remarkable year for the positive things that our people and the Country will accomplish. 2018 was a very positive one for us.  Our economy grew for the 4th year in a row and our fiscal performance saw surpluses on every account i.e. Recurrent, Overall and Primary.   It is the accumulation of surpluses that has provided the wherewithal for your government to do good things for so many people and to move the Country forward in the right direction.  As a new government, we have been able to do in less than 5 years what some governments have not been able to do in 20 years.  This is a blessing, which our people truly deserve, and we give God the Glory.

Tourism

According to the St. Christopher Air and Sea Ports Authority (SCASPA), some 149,871 passengers came through the Robert L. Bradshaw (RLB) International Airport in 2018, compared to 140,338 in 2017.  This represents an additional 9,533 passengers over 2017 for a seven (7) percent increase year on year. Some 7,947 flights came to the RLB Airport in 2018 – up 315 over the 7,632 flights in 2017. Regarding cruise tourism, SCASPA is reporting cruise passenger arrivals of 1,103,571 in 2018 versus 1,058,662 cruise passengers in 2017.  This represents an increase of 44,909 passengers. Twice in our history – and only under Team Unity – we have passed the one (1) millionth cruise passenger milestone. Congratulations to all stakeholders in the industry and to the Honourable Lindsay Grant, our Minister of Tourism.

For 2019, we witnessed a record number of arrivals by air with RLB Airport receiving the largest number of passenger arrivals on 5^th January 2019 when over 2,728 passengers travelled through our international airport.  Our RLB airport is now twenty (20) years old. There has been no major expansion over that period. Given the record-breaking arrivals, the increase in airlifts and new destinations from which we now access direct flights, our Administration must seriously determine the next steps in the modernization and expansion of the RLB Airport.   In the interim, the St. Christopher Air and Sea Ports Authority (SCASPA) and related Departments such as Tourism, Immigration and Customs will work cooperatively with other stakeholders to determine and implement measures to enhance the customer experience at the RLB Airport.

Capital Projects

I am pleased to report that the following projects are poised for early implementation in 2019.