International organisations commending Dominica for handling COVID: PM Skerrit

Prime Minister Dr Roosevelt Skerrit stated that independent international organizations are commending Dominica for tremendous handling of the COVID-19 pandemic. PM Skerrit made the remarks during the contract signing for the construction of Hillsborough Bridge on Tuesday. He stated that people criticized the government for requiring negative RT-PCR testing to travel in Dominica and making 14-day quarantine mandatory. PM stated that now all countries, including the United Kingdom, and other countries in the Americas, Europe are also opting for similar measures to control the rising coronavirus cases. He stated that the measures that the government took in 2020 have paid off. "We always said that the pandemic which is a health emergency, our priority is the safety and well-being of the people," added PM Roosevelt Skerrit. Furthermore, he stated that the government have taken every measure to ensure the safety of people. He said the administration also mobilized resources to have PPE and COVID-19 testing kits.He noted that Dominica was the first country in the Caribbean to start diagnosing COVID-19 at labs because of the forward-looking ideas and investments in the healthcare sector.  PM Skerrit stated that testing labs in Dominica have been certified by the Centre of Disease Control (CDC) and PAHO. Nevertheless, speaking on procurement of COVID-19 vaccine for the country, Prime Minister stated that the government utilized its international allies to ensure that Dominica gets vaccine on time. "We became the first in the Caribbean to have the vaccine and provided vaccine to our citizens," stated PM Roosevelt Skerrit.Tourism and VaccinePrime Minister Dr Roosevelt Skerrit stated that tourism is important to keep the activities rolling, and to resume the sector, it is eminent that a wider population is vaccinated against COVID-19.He stated Cruise-ships have indicated they want to visit Dominica and resume their activities. "We have to prepare ourselves to get back to a sense of normalcy and also protect ourselves from COVID-19," added PM Skerrit.He stated that the resumption of cruise-industry and tourism sector is in the hands of the Dominicans.