The first anniversary of the Agri-Christmas Night Market at the Basseterre Public Market was a rousing success in terms of attendance, with Prime Minister Dr. the Hon Timothy Harris spending nearly one and half hours patronising the various stalls, leaving the market at 10.10 pm.
Market vendors were overjoyed when PM Harris toured the various stalls for talking with them or posing with them for pictures and felt honoured when PM chose goods from their display and purchased them.
The event, which the Ministry of Agriculture hosted, Fisheries, and Marine Resources, drew many merchants compared to the previous year’s attendance and an equal number of patrons, including Governor-General His Excellency Sir Tapley Seaton.
At a quarter to 9:00 pm, Prime Minister Harris was met at the market by the Minister of Agriculture, Fisheries, and Marine Resources, Alexis Jeffers, and the Permanent Secretary, Mr Ron Dublin Collins, who had earlier attended the Royal St. Christopher and Nevis Police Force graduation ceremony of Course #45 held at the St. Kitts Marriott Resort.
Meanwhile, PM Harris said, “I want to say tonight that I was happy and surprised to see the vast array of agricultural produce. Apart from the fresh produce, we also had an exciting variety of agri-processed products. We had wines, rums, other beverages, and candles, all of which were created on St. Kitts, which is something we want to promote.”
As pointed out by Dr Harris, “If we have to encourage our sellers and our agriculturalists and we have to ensure that they can earn a livelihood life. I believe that the large turnout tonight, the hundreds of individuals that came through and did a brisk business, encouraged those who were participating, and I am confident that we will see more people.”
According to the Prime Minister, the evening was a massive success on all fronts. As someone who has always frequented the market and engaged with the merchants, and done business with them in the past, he got that impression from his observation.
