PRIME MINISTER MEETS BUSINESS COMMUNITY IN CARRIACOU

St. George, August 6, 2008 -- Prime Minister Tillman Thomas says he is committed to giving Carriacou and Petit Martinique its fair share of development, describing the islands tourism potential as excellent. The Prime Minister was speaking at a luncheon with the business leaders in Carriacou on Tuesday where he outlined the government’s vision for the islands. He spoke to the establishment of local government as a priority for the future for the island.

“My administration is committed to giving Carriacou and Petit Martinique a fair share of development and to provide the environment for businesses to succeed and make their contribution to the nation,” he told the close to 100 business persons gathered at Laurina’s in Hillsborough.

Mr. Thomas spoke of the need to develop the cultural, tourism, diving and agricultural sectors of the island at a time when there is a significant increase in the cost of living. His comments came just after visiting the Ministry of Agriculture and a farm in Limlair on the northwestern section of the island.

The Prime Minister spoke of the need for the expansion of the runway of the Lauriston Airport to accommodate larger aircraft, noting that upgrades to the airport -- including night landing facilities, were done under a previous National Democratic Congress administration.   “Maybe its time to do some more work on the airport at this time,” he quipped.

Hon. Tillman Thomas, accompanied by Minister of Carriacou and Petit Martinique Affairs, Honorable Senator George Prime and Minister of State in the Ministry of Culture Honorable Senator Arly Gill, took questions from the business community representatives.

One of the critical issues of concern from the meeting was that of sand mining which researchers say is causing a loss of up to one meter per year of coastline especially on Carriacou’s West Coast. “The fact is that we cannot continue with the sand mining when we are facing this problem. It must stop, because all the evidence point to a level of erosion that is undermining our tourism potential,” said Senator Prime. His call was supported by some in the meeting.

He said there were alternatives that should be used by the construction industry since there is a “bigger picture” that should be attended to urgently if Carriacou is to benefit from its available resources.  The meeting on Tuesday followed a tour of the ministry of Carriacou and Petit Martinique Affairs and a series of meetings with the staff at the four locations.

The Ministers, along with the Minister of Finance, Hon Nazim Burke and Attorney General James Bristol on Monday toured an archaeological site where pottery and human remains among other items dating back about 1000 years were recently discovered.

The visit to Carriacou was the Prime Minister’s first official visit to the sister island since taking office about three weeks ago. He received a red carpet welcome at the Lauriston Airport upon arrival on Monday.