2023 New Year Address to the Nation

January 9th 2023

by Office of the Prime Minister

THE NEW YEAR ADDRESS BY HON. PRIME MINISTER PHILIP J. PIERRE.

Happy New Year 2023 to fellow Saint Lucians, living here and in the diaspora. I want to wish you peace, prosperity, and a blessed New Year.

Let us begin the new year in the spirit of kindness and unity; working together to build a better Saint Lucia for all. Let us strive for a Saint Lucia where every child will have an opportunity to realize their true potential with the support of family, community, and the State.

Let us pray for a just and safe society, but like Matthew 6:5 advised “... when you pray, do not be like the hypocrites for they love to pray standing in the synagogues and on the Street corners to be seen by others”. Instead let us pray with humility, truthfulness, and good intentions for ourselves and our country.

On July 26, 2021, you elected a government that pledged to put people first. I want to assure you that our philosophy has not and will not change. My government remains steadfast in its commitment to providing opportunities for all, especially the less fortunate and marginalized in our communities.

The year 2022 continued to pose economic and social challenges locally, regionally, and globally. However, collectively, we have faced every challenge, matched every adversity, and assisted the more deserving and marginalized citizens in our country.

Battling the COVID-19 Virus

It seems like a long time ago, but at exactly this time last year, we were preparing for the onslaught of the fifth wave of the Covid-19 Omicron variant in our country. It was a very difficult and uncertain period for our country, with an economy that had been severely affected for two years.

We persevered with the task of combating the Omicron variant and by the second half of 2022, the situation with virus spread and hospitalization of patients had improved to manageable levels which allowed us to remove the health restrictions, and for society to return to normalcy.

Let’s take a moment to remember the many families who were left in grief over loved ones, taken from them too soon and with little warning by this Covid Virus.

I take this opportunity to once again thank all public servants - the frontline health, medical, and emergency services workers, and the police, in particular, for your hard work, dedication, and commitment to the national fight against the Covid-19 pandemic.

I want to place on record my thanks to the people of Saint Lucia and members of the Covid Management Committee for their support and cooperation in our battle with the pandemic.

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