Members of the Grenville business community have made several suggestions on the way forward for the Grenville economy and on a wider scale the economy of Grenada. This as the Leader of Her Majesty’s Opposition Dr. the Rt. Honorable Keith Mitchell and a Team from the Opposition continue their round of meetings with various stakeholders around Grenada. An Opposition Team led by Former Prime Minister and Opposition Leader Dr. the Rt. Honorable Keith Mitchell, Former Minister of Sports, Honorable Roland Bhola, Former Minister of Social Development Mrs. Yoland Bain Hosford and Former Minister of Youth Mrs. Emmalin Pierre meet with the business community at the Bain’s Hall Grenville, St Andrew on Thursday.
The discussions which centered on ways of boosting the economy of St Andrew and on a wider scale Grenada saw some fruitful discussions on what is considered the major pillar of the St. Andrew economy Agriculture. Some of the issues raised by the business community are the importance of creating a Land Bank, the composition and mandate of the various agricultural boards such as the cocoa, banana and nutmeg board and the issue of fishing and the plight of local fishermen.
Another issue brought up by the business community was that of the need for Tourism to include the other parishes outside of St. George. It was stated that since the closure of the Pearls Airport, tourism had taken a nose dive in the Grenville area and this needs to be addressed since there are various tourist related sites in St Andrew to be exploited.
Dr. Mitchell in his comments to the audience spoke of the importance of understanding what drives an economy in a country before being able to make a dent in it. He spoke of the need to use what is available to the people of Grenada in order to move the economy forward. The former Prime Minister also spoke of the Caribbean Development Bank funded thirty two million dollar funded project to change the face of Grenville. He spoke of a committee of prominent and capable people having been put in place for the project by his government who are yet to receive a final report on it after nearly three years.
The Opposition Leader stated that the first phase of the project should have been completed by this time and the second phase commencing at this time. He blamed the lack of movement on the project on the NDC Administration. The Grenville Market Square Project should have seen the redevelopment of the Grenville Market with proper vending booths and toilet facilities as well as a new abattoir in the Mirabeau area and a cold storage facility in the Grenville area. The Greater Grenville Project would have seen the expansion of the town of Grenville with parking facilities, improved drainage and improved sidewalks etc.
Calls were also made by the business community for the improvement of the Health System in particular the Princess Alice Hospital. Issues related to Local Government and the legal system also came up for discussion with some members of the community asking that there be true continuity in the governance of the country. The Opposition continues their weekly meetings with stakeholders around the island over the next few weeks.