St K-N: Prime Minister Harris’ opening remarks at yesterday’s press conference (11)

August 12, 2020

Opening Remarks by Prime Minister Dr. the Hon. Timothy Harris
at the Monthly Press Conference
NEMA Headquarters, August 11th, 2020

As Prepared for Delivery

My fellow citizens and residents, it is an honour and pleasure to be able to utilize this press conference to account to you on matters of national interest.

Our Government continues the careful management of the reopening of our
economy, allowing our people to return to as near normalcy as existed prior to the COVID-19 global pandemic. Our excellent management of the pandemic has resulted in our being considered a low-risk COVID-19 destination. A key factor in gauging the control of the coronavirus is the R number or reproductive number.

This is in essence the number of persons each infected person may infect.
Countries should aim to keep their R number below 1. This number is affected by a range of factors including how infectious the virus is, the population behaviour, population density and measures put in place to contain the virus. We have successfully and consistently kept our R number below 0.3, which is considered excellent. This is indicative of our effective control measures in containing this deadly virus and the personal responsibility you took in changing your behaviour and adapting to the new norms. It is for these reasons we see that the virus appears to have petered out in our community, but it is still present Worldwide. We
therefore must not become complacent because of our successes thus far.

It is important for us as a Country that values health – and a tourist destination – to preserve our low-risk status, as travelers will prefer safe and COVID-19 low-ris destinations. We will also have a healthier and more productive population.

The success of St. Kitts and Nevis in flattening the curve has caused some members of the public to behave as if COVID-19 is no longer with us. I ask our people to take note of the reality that COVID-19 is still with us, causing disruption of our lives, economies and death within the region and beyond. The situation among member
states of CARICOM as at August 10th, 2020 may be insightful.

Of all independent states of CARICOM, St. Kitts and Nevis has the least number of confirmed cases, no active cases and no deaths. To God we give thanks.

The situation surrounding COVID-19 is still very fluid and challenging and the statistics change from day to day.

The experiences elsewhere, for example in England, Australia, Vietnam, Germany, Hong Kong and Japan, have shown that as the countries relaxed restrictions too quickly, after their apparent success at controlling the virus, they suffer a resurgence. Last week, Australia was forced to declare a state of disaster in the state of Victoria and closed its border between its two most populous states: Victoria and New South Wales, for the first time in 100 years. Australia then had 18,000 cases as at last week Monday with 221 deaths. Australia now has 21,084 cases and 295 deaths (August 10th, 2020). In May, when Australia’s Prime Minister Scott Morrison announced
plans to reopen the country by July, its case count stood at about 7,000 with 97 deaths. The moral: never become complacent. It is not over until it is really over. Germany, Spain, and Denmark have recently introduced drastic measures, including lockdown to curb the spiraling of COVID-19 cases. Bahamas, Belize, Aruba and other countries in our region have done likewise.

The prescriptions given by our health experts must be faithfully and consistently followed, particularly relating to the wearing of masks in the company of others outside one’s household and the regular, thorough washing of hands with soap, as well as the observance of etiquette as it relates to sneezing and coughing will help us to protect each other so long as all of us abide by these simple rules. Please let us do our very best.

Government offices and businesses, including operators of buses, bars and
restaurants, must not allow anyone entry who is not wearing a mask appropriately. The fine for not wearing masks in the company of others in public can be avoided by simply wearing or carrying your mask with you at all times. It can be a life-saving measure in the absence of a vaccine.