NIA CHARLESTOWN NEVIS (December 09, 2024) – The Nevis Island Administration (NIA) has reaffirmed its commitment to fostering economic growth and creating sustainable job opportunities for the people of Nevis. This direction was highlighted in the Budget Address presented by the Honourable Mark Brantley, Premier of Nevis and Minister of Finance, on December 03, under the theme “Moving Forward: People Focused, Supporting Entrepreneurship and Bolstering Job Creation”.

“Job, jobs, jobs has always been our mantra and job creation will forever be pivotal in my Administration’s development strategy,” Premier Brantley stated.

“This people-centered approach embodies the mantra of this Concerned Citizens Movement (CCM)-led Government – ‘People Matter Most’ – putting our people first and putting their interests foremost on our governance agenda.”

The Premier, who is also Minister of Economic Planning and Human Resources,  said his Administration will continue to implement policies and programmes that are people-driven and predominantly focused on harnessing the entrepreneurial skills of the people and creating the economic environment that will bolster job creation.

He outlined some of these policies geared towards this objective which include incentivised investment programmes at the Nevis Investment Promotion Agency (NIPA) and small business programmes which seek to create new micro and small entrepreneurs.

One such initiative is the low interest small business seed funding facilitated by  the Small Enterprise Development Unit (SEDU). The Premier revealed further assistance to persons desirous of starting or expanding their small businesses announcing a reduction in the interest rates of the SEDU loans.

“We have continuously incentivized the growth and development of the business sector through our programmes for concessions on building materials for the physical expansion of businesses, our concessions on furniture and equipment for small and medium size startup businesses and through our small business lending program operated by the Small Business Development Unit. As it relates to that lending programme, to date we have approved $3.1 million in funding to a total of eighty-one applicants across a variety of sectors namely retail trade, agriculture, food and beverage, transportation, general services and industry.

“We are also happy to report that under that programme all loans have been reduced from 4 to 3 percent interest, making it even easier to access seed financing.”

The Premier highlighted the need for collaboration with the private sector in creating job opportunities, citing a continuation of the government’s ongoing discussions and dialogue with its key stakeholder partners in the tourism and construction industries, along with representatives of the Financial Services and banking sector and the Chamber of Industry and Commerce (Nevis Branch).

“Our people need jobs, and the government alone cannot be the source of employment for all. We are of the view that the private sector must be a key growth partner for future job creation…We believe that it is important to have joint public/private sector partnerships if we are to drive policy which advances our island and achieve the level of growth in economic activity as anticipated and ultimately leading to increased employment opportunities.”

Premier Brantley pointed to the collaboration with companies such as Radius Holdings LLC and Telamed Partners, which have brought new opportunities to Nevisians.

 Radius Holdings LLC re-opened the call center at Brown Hill and employment at that site is now at 92 persons. The facility is poised to expand further to accommodate at least 180 persons over the medium term.

Similarly, the new call center, Telamed Partners, has grown from 8 to 36 employees, with further expansion anticipated.

The NIA’s targeted policies are indeed showing positive results, Premier Brantley cited, with encouraging employment data across various sectors expected to improve further in the medium term.

He informed that based on reports from the St. Christopher and Nevis Social Security Board the average number of jobs and the number of people employed on Nevis continues to trend upwards in the post-pandemic era, a continuing trend of more job opportunities than persons being available for employment.

“This trend of increasing employment is a direct result of the incentive policies adopted by my Government over the years,” he stated.