Programme

Chairman	Mr. Oaklyn Peets Member – SIV National Coordinating Comittee
National Anthem	Saxophone – Basseterre High School
Invocation	Mr. Elvis Richardson
Welcome Remarks	Mr. Oaklyn Peets - Chairman
Project Overview	Ms. Dauna Manchester – SIV National Coordinator
Cultural Presentation	Drums with oration Larry Armony and Royd Phipps
Greetings	Madame Hélène Gosselin Director – UNESCO Office for the Caribbean
Remarks	The Honourable Dr. Timothy Harris Chairman : St. Kitts and Nevis National Commission for UNESCO
Cultural Presentation	Nevis
Feature Address and Official Launch	The Honourable Dr. Denzil Douglas Prime Minister
Vote of Thanks	Mr. Halstead Byron Coordinator : Nevis UNESCO Sub-committee

 

Left to right: Mr. Halstead Byron, Hon. Dr. Timothy Harris, Madame Hélène Gosselin, Ms. Dauna Manchester at the launch of Small Islands Voice in St. Kitts and Nevis.

Drummers at the official launch of Small Islands Voice

Audience at the official launch of Small Islands Voice in St. Kitts and Nevis

Mrs Paule Turmel-John, Secretary-General of the St. Lucia National Commission for UNESCO, attended the official opening and described the event.

In my capacity as Secretary-General, Saint Lucia National Commission for UNESCO, I was invited to attend the official launch of the 'Small Islands Voice Project,' held at the Ocean Terrace Inn, Basseterre, St. Kitts on April 25th, 2002 at 11:00 am.

The purpose of this UNESCO initiative is to give a voice to small island states by 'building capacity and strengthening local, regional and inter-regional communication.' Thirteen Caribbean islands (Antigua and Barbuda, the Bahamas, Barbados, the British Virgin Islands, Dominica, Grenada, Jamaica, St. Lucia, St. Vincent and the Grenadines, Trinidad and Tobago, Aruba and the Netherlands Antilles) are part of this project with St. Kitts and Nevis being the focal point. The other two focal points are the Seychelles in the Indian Ocean and Palau in the Pacific.

This two-year project started in early 2002 with its main objective being to contribute to the review of the Programme of Action for the Sustainable Development of Small Island Developing States in 2004. Madame Hélène-Marie Gosselin, Director, UNESCO Office for the Caribbean, urges the participation of the civil society. According to Madame Gosselin, the views and opinions gathered through the Small Islands Voice Project will 'directly contribute to this review and will determine the focus for future actions to be undertaken to further develop Small Island Developing States (SIDS)...' She also stressed the fact that small islands need to be 'heard globally' as they are confronted with challenges 'many of which are different from those faced by larger and more developed nations.'

In his feature address, Dr. the Hon. Timothy Harris, Minister of Foreign Affairs and Education, and Chairman of the St. Kitts and Nevis National Commission for UNESCO reiterated the importance of this project for small island communities. This initiative 'endeavours to ascertain the pulse of civil society on issues such as environment and economy so as to contribute to development and growth, which can be sustained despite ongoing challenges.' It is, therefore, imperative that persons at the community level be given 'access to timely and accurate information to empower them to make decisions which will bring about positive and relevant changes in their communities, nation and the world as a whole.'

The event also afforded me the opportunity to meet with Madame Gosselin, who emphasized the need for closer collaboration between her office and the National Commissions of the Caribbean. She indicated that the decentralization process which is part of UNESCO's general reform gave rise to intensified efforts on the part of her office at effectively serving the Caribbean. It is the hope of the Office of UNESCO for the Caribbean that the National Commissions in the region will unite their voices and that small islands will take the leading role in dealing with global issues.