Last year by sheer coincidence I found myself at the 4th Annual Anguilla Dinner and Dance Gala by APANY, Florida. I was very impressed. And I had the honour of being asked by the President of the Branch, Mr. Carty, to make a few remarks. On that occasion I promised that for the 50th Anniversary Celebration here in Florida there would be official Government representation.
It has been said that I pulled rank to divide up the assignments in my favour — and that is how I got Florida. I will neither confirm nor deny that charge — but I will confess that I am extremely happy to be here.
Let me exceptionally and unapologetically recognize the presence of one of my favourite and most talented young persons — Miss T’arah Niles — who I am confident will blow you all away with her presentation. The organizing committee has been extremely wise in inviting her to be a part of this occasion.
Our Government strongly believes that we cannot properly celebrate this Jubilee Year of the Anguilla Revolution without respecting the important contribution of the Anguilla Diaspora before; during; and after that historic event. Indeed, the vision of the stalwarts of the Revolution could not have been realized without the active participation of Anguillans from all parts of the region and the world.
The Dominican Republic; Curacao and Aruba; the US Virgin Islands; St. Kitts-Nevis; Antigua; England; the United States; Canada; St Maarten/St Martin; are among that long list of places where Anguillans have travelled to make a better life for themselves; their families; and for their patrimony, Anguilla. And so I am here in an official capacity to show our appreciation to Anguillans living in Florida for their contribution to the successes of the last fifty years. It could not have happened without you! (Give yourselves a round of applause!)
I have been asked to present on the topic: “Fifty Years after Anguilla’s Revolution and initiatives happening today.” I have been allotted 7 to 9 minutes to do so — obviously I am being asked to earn my Dinner. However, I must not spoil your dinner or your dancing by a long and boring speech. I will endeavour to be brief. But please consider that fifty years is a long time and jubilee celebrations only happen every fifty years. So I would be grateful for your tolerance if I were to run over just a wee bit!
To fully appreciate where we are today compared to where we were fifty years ago may require that you experience both periods in our history. And as I look around the room I have noticed that by virtue of my age — I am among a minority of persons who have that privilege. Let us recognize persons who have been blessed with long life to be here. We may also realize that there is little chance that we will be around to celebrate another jubilee. So make us feel special and blessed to be a part of this history with your applause.
Because of the constraints of time as I just expressed them — I will abbreviate my comments and get right into it.
I am pleased to announce that the National Commercial Bank of Anguilla (NCBA) your bank, has made great progress in the first year since it began operations on April 25, 2016 and is on the launch path to be the leading provider of banking services to the people of Anguilla as had its predecessors NBA and CCB over the years. It remains a work in progress but with the unwavering support of loyal and patriotic customers we have experienced many successes — and the future looks bright.
The Government has been approached by many developers and is considering various proposals for investment in the private sector. As you are aware we spent almost a year working on closing a deal for the sale of Cap Juluca Hotel. Eventually, the deal we worked so hard on, failed. However, we can now tell you that we persevered and achieved success with a solution, that is in the best interest of all concerned and has resulted in the full unification of Cap Juluca and placed it on a path to returning to its former glory under the ownership and management of the Belmond Group which owns and operates top class luxury resorts around the globe including St. Maarten.
The Altamer Marina project is well advanced towards the implementation of its first phase barring some last minute challenges with a landowner, which we are now negotiating.
We have also concluded more than a year of negotiations of a development agreement for the Conch Bay Project in the Forest Bay/Tanglewood area. In fact Government signed the MoU some ten days ago and the joint venture partners in Dubai and North America are putting ink to paper as we speak. We envision an October start up. This project includes a marina; a cruise ship port; a town center; luxury tourism accommodations; golfing facility; and other amenities. Along with this other projects at various stages of negotiations — we realistically calculate that from the second half of this year and onwards, things will be brighter for Anguilla.
In the public sector we anticipate that both the ANGLEC Headquarters Building and the Anguilla Community College Project will commence construction this year or very early in 2018. There have been some setbacks on both of these projects but they are being managed as we speak.
The Government is working very closely with the Anguilla Air and Sea Ports Authority (AASPA) and with the support of Her Majesty’s Government we are undertaking a detailed analysis of the business case. This will be followed by in depth project design and planning for the expansion and development of the Clayton J. Lloyd International Airport to provide the capacity to handle commercial passenger jets direct from the USA and Europe. We have strategically set the stage for an amicable agreement of the land required in the MoU signed with the Conch Bay Development partners.
Planning is also being advanced rapidly on infrastructure and facilities improvements at the seaports, the Albena Lake-Hodge Comprehensive School and in other areas of government infrastructure development. In short I will say that through the hard work and dedication of your elected Government with strong support from the Civil Service, Anguilla is lining up on the launch path, for sustainable take-off in the immediate future.
The outlook for our two leading sectors for long term sustained growth, our tourism and financial services sectors is positive. We achieved a healthy increase by over 8% in the number of stay over visitors. And we expect that the number of day-trippers, which saw a decline in 2016, will grow again in 2017.
The efforts of the Tourist Board, the Anguilla Hotel and Tourism Association, individual hotels, restaurants and other businesses in the tourism sector along with the support and efforts of your Government are bearing fruit. And I am cautiously optimistic that we will achieve the targets we set in our Manifesto for the growth in our tourist numbers during our term in office.
I am extremely proud to tell you that Anguilla has made a notable achievement as a financial services jurisdiction. We placed number 20 out of 219 countries in an international survey by an independent organization that monitors standards in the industry. We have an opportunity to leverage this highly positive showing to help in attracting new and substantial international financial and business services to our shores.
I am also obliged to draw your attention to BREXIT and its implications for Anguilla. As I am sure you are aware, on March 29 2017, the UK Prime Minster Mrs. Theresa May invoked Clause 50 of the EU Agreement, setting the stage for the eventual exit of the UK from the EU in two years.
Anguilla is unique among the UK Overseas Territories in that it borders Saint Martin and Saint Maarten (two EU territories) and depends on them for international access, medical services, imports, exports, mail, and a myriad of other goods and services. Our heritage is entwined and spans centuries with many Anguillians having close family ties with these French and Dutch neighbours.
So I must invite you to start to thinking about how BREXIT will affect Anguilla and its people. To date, we have advised the UK Government that Anguilla needs to be put in a position where its reliance on St. Maarten/St. Martin is greatly reduced. This we argue can be achieved by providing us with extended and upgraded airport and seaport facilities. In the furtherance of this objective, an infrastructural adviser funded by the UK, has been contracted for the next two years. Fortunately, for us that person is Anguillian — which we expect will give him an excellent frame of reference in dealing with the realities of our situation.
This list is not exhaustive but I hope it provides a wide area shot of what is in the offing for Anguilla from a developmental vantage point. However, all of this must rest on a solid social sector environment, which must include health, education, social justice; stability and peace. These are all critical elements for securing our future as an aspiring nation.
But at times like this we must have an attitude of gratitude. There are many persons who continue to suggest that we have not progressed since 1967. There can only be two reasons for this: either a genuine ignorance of where we were — or a deliberate attempt to be mischievous.
At any rate such persons desecrate the memory and the contribution of the stalwarts of the Anguilla Revolution and their vision. Which includes the contribution of the Father of the Nation, the Honourable James Ronald Webster, who was laid to rest in a fitting ceremonial earlier this year.
Indeed over the last fifty years Anguilla has had a great deal to be thankful for. Therefore our celebrations for the remainder of this milestone year must be clothed in that attitude of gratitude — a realization that we have come this far by his Grace. And that this milestone is not the end of a journey — we still have a long way to go!
But it would be remiss of me if I do not, in this place where our Diaspora has exceeded our expectations, thank the Government and People of the United States, (even on the eve of their own Independence celebrations) for their welcoming ways and their generous support to our people in making our vision a reality. We could not have done it without you — and we continue to be grateful.
Jobs, business opportunities, investment and training are what you have afforded us — but most importantly genuine friendship. So I offer a special thank you to officials here present on behalf of the Government and people of Anguilla.
God has made a way for Anguilla by the great power he wields upon the earth and its people. Let us continue this journey with the same faith of our founding fathers and be thankful for the way he has helped us through. This day the noise of battle, the next the victor’s song!
Happy Golden Jubilee!
May God Bless Us All and May God Bless Anguilla!
(Published without editing by The Anguillian newspaper.)
