Government and the Social Partnership have signed the six-point Declaration of Mission Barbados, with Prime Minister Mia Amor Mottley urging the labour force to help meet the objectives by 2030.
During the Barbados Workers’ Union May Day celebrations at the National Botanical Gardens, Waterford, yesterday, Ms. Mottley outlined the six goals to be achieved during the seven-year exercise.
The document was signed electronically by Prime Minister Mottley; Minister of Labour, Social Security and the Third Sector, Colin Jordan; Chairman of the Barbados Private Sector Association, Trisha Tannis; President of the National Union of Public Workers, Kimberley Agard; President of the Barbados Secretary Teachers’ Union, Mary-Anne Redman, and General Secretary of the Barbados Workers’ Union, Toni Moore.
According to the Prime Minister, the six missions were first shared with the nation on November 30, 2022, and from last December, the Social Partnership had been working on the six missions based on critical issues brought to the Government.
The six missions to be achieved by 2030 are as follows:
- We will become a clean and beautiful large-ocean state, championing sustainable development locally and globally – with the goal of all domestic activities becoming 100 per cent sustainable by 2035;
- Transform Barbados into a country of active, involved citizens. All Barbadians will feel empowered and engaged in the social, economic, and cultural development of the country as confident, creative, compassionate and entrepreneurial citizens.
- Ensure that every Barbadian has equitable and reliable access to clean water and nutritious food that is affordable.
- Create a society that prioritises wellness and happiness, improve public health and safety, leading to a 50 per cent reduction in new cases of non-communicable diseases and a 50 per cent reduction in crime.
- Empower and enfranchise all Barbadian workers and families by creating opportunities for ownership and wealth creation that enable Barbadians to take better care of themselves and each other and reduce the rate of poverty by 50 per cent.
- Transform Barbados to be a high-functioning, resilient society with seamless access to services and meaningful digital inclusion for all Barbadians.
In the next two months, Ms. Mottley stated that officials would continue working on the missions to identify the next steps for each. She described the occasion as a “statement of trust” in the citizens’ ability to “make it if we do it together”.
“My friends those are six missions…. It’s not about us on this platform; it is about you… and each and every one who chooses to make a difference in the land of their birth. These things are all achievable and I want to salute the leadership in the Government who is here, all the public servants and Chief Technical Officers of related grades hold your hands up and let us salute you please.
“I want to salute the Ministers and the Parliamentary Secretary who is also here making a difference to show that we can achieve this. Hold up your hands too because you have heavy lifting to do very soon,” Ms. Mottley insisted.
The Prime Minister continued: “I want to salute the members of the private sector and the labour movement who are up front. Please hold up your hands too because you all constitute the leadership of this country. But all who are also here, you cannot have leadership without people who are prepared to follow and to build. But I asked all who are in [the National] Botanical Gardens… to commit and to raise your hands if you believe that Barbados can be made better by you doing a little more, a little longer, a little stronger, a little harder…a little more every day….”
The Prime Minister thanked all workers who laboured especially through the COVID-19 and the other crises that the country faced during the last three years, pointing out that the consequences would be far worst had all workers not played a part in keeping Barbados afloat.