(By Ernesto Cooke) – SVG’s government did not drop the ball on COVID-19, rather the extensive measures implemented succeeded in preventing the rise in cases for 10 months, which was seen in every neighbouring country in 2020.
This was in response to a question by the Opposition leader of St Vincent as to whether the Government had dropped the ball on COVID response.
Health Minister St Clair Prince says this country recorded a hundred and ten cases while neighbouring countries such as St Lucia, Grenada, and Trinidad were experiencing scores in cases for months.
St Vincent and the Grenadines as of January 26th recorded a total of Seven hundred and ninety-eight (798) cases of COVID-19 cases.
Through various agencies, the government implemented continuously and adopted measures to keep with the constantly changing knowledge of the covid-19 pandemic and local events and situations.
“Attention was paid to measures implemented in other nations their successes and their failures, emerging knowledge about the virus and adoption of measures suitable to the context of SVG”.
Prince said the multi-pronged strategy included reducing the risk of the introduction of the virus into St Vincent and strengthening the country’s capacity to detect, test, treat and contain the virus.
Poor compliance with existing protocols once persons are outside the mandatory quarantine hotels is without a doubt, a problem, Prince said.
“This is not unique to St Vincent and the Grenadines and is found even in countries with draconian measures”.
Six hundred and thirty-one (631) cases remain active, and two (2) persons with COVID-19 have died in SVG since the start of the pandemic.
On Tuesday, the Ministry of Health announced that 16 persons are in isolation, while 7 are hospitalised and remain stable.
According to Ministry officials, while cases exist in all health districts, 50 percent of the cases come from three.
Calliaqua Health District holds the majority with 20.1 percent, Pembroke Health District 19 percent and Georgetown with 15 percent.
