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DECEMBER WITHOUT RELIEF: ST. KITTS & NEVIS AT ITS LOWEST ECONOMIC EBB

Never before in the modern history of St. Kitts and Nevis has a December arrived with such a heavy cloud of economic stagnation—and such an overwhelming national expectation for an economic rescue from somewhere. December has traditionally been the month of circulation, relief, confidence, and renewal. Today, it is a month of anxiety, quiet desperation, and unanswered questions.

Between 2015 and 2022, the expectation of an economic boost was not hopeful speculation—it was earned, logical, and fiscally grounded. Under the visionary leadership of the Third Prime Minister, Dr. the Hon. Timothy Harris, and the Team Unity administration, the country experienced unprecedented fiscal prudence, recording surplus after surplus in the public accounts. Those surpluses were not hoarded. They were returned to the people.

December double salaries became synonymous with St. Kitts and Nevis. Civil servants could plan. Businesses could forecast. Families could breathe. The economy moved—confidently and consistently.

But the double salary was only part of a wider, people-centered economic architecture.

There was the $500-per-month Poverty Alleviation Programme (PAP)—a lifeline that stabilized households, sustained consumer spending, and preserved dignity. There was the PEACE Programme, which did more than provide stipends; it rescued at-risk youth from economic exclusion, pairing support with education, rehabilitation, and pathways to employment. Money flowed into communities, not just spreadsheets.

Fast forward to today.

Four years into an SKNLP administration, the country is facing a staggeringly high cost of living, the dissolution of PAP, the effective dismantling of the CBI programme, and the evaporation of the very social buffers that once protected ordinary citizens. The result is unmistakable: the lowest economic ebb in years.

This is precisely the moment when an economic boost is not optional—it is imperative.

A double salary alone is no longer sufficient, given the inflationary pressures now crushing households. What is required—urgently—is both:

• a December double salary, and
• a $2,000 Social Security dividend payment, as promised annually by Prime Minister Dr. Terrance Drew’s administration nearly four years ago.

Anything less is unacceptable.

Without these measures, economic hardship will deepen, small businesses will continue to struggle, consumer spending will remain depressed, and social strain will intensify. This is not alarmism; it is arithmetic.

The People’s Labour Party (PLP) and Dr. Timothy Harris are correct in calling for immediate intervention. The country needs relief now—not speeches, not excuses, not deflections.

Frankly speaking, the payment of both the double salary and the $2,000 Social Security dividend is no longer just about economic survival. It has become a question of political survival for Prime Minister Drew.

December has always been the month when leadership shows up for the people.

The nation is watching.
The need is undeniable.
And the time for half-measures has long passed.