Prime Minister Mia Mottley has called on all Barbadians to recognise what she deems as five key principles necessary to guide the island toward a sustainable, safe, and prosperous future.
During her keynote speech at the Barbados Labour Party’s 85th annual conference at the Christ Church Foundation School, Mottley expressed her hope that the five “beacons” — voices of accountability, guardians of cleanliness, agents of respect, creators of solutions and embracing global citizenship — will be soon seen as an updated policy direction for the government as it seeks to face mounting global and domestic challenges head-on.
“We may not have the power to prevent the challenges that are coming at us globally from the outside, but I say to you that we have the capacity to be able to do the things to be able to make us more resilient and to do deal with the domestic problems like violence, like becoming more resilient, like becoming more healthy, like becoming innovative, like becoming confident global citizens,” Mottley said.
According to the Prime Minister, the guardians of cleanliness principle is to promote pride in the environment [and] for Barbadians to keep their communities clean. This principle will also serve as a call to action to clean and beautify all of the island’s schools within the next 12 months.
“I want the schools beautified. I ain’t talking about it no more. [Minister of Education Kay McConney] and [Minister of Environment Adrian Forde] have the responsibility in the next year to get every single school in this country looking as though children want to be there and want to be part of it.”
Mottley also added that safety measures previously requested for schools will also be worked on during the process.
She noted that the agents of respect principle is geared toward combating the rising violence, delinquency, and lack of empathy being seen among citizens.
“At the core of this equally, is to treat each other with dignity, to resolve conflict rather than flying off the handle and wanting to fling at somebody or worse shoot somebody. It is about developing empathy and building bridges instead of walls. We need to foster a spirit of unity and compassion.”
She added: “Bajans now need to be involved in solution building. Empowered to contribute and to be able to create positive change. Don’t just identify the problems for me from now on. Tell me what the solution is. Come with a solution and not just the problem.”
The Prime Minister said that as Barbadians band together and work collectively toward prosperity, the future will remain bright for the island.
“I am asking us please in this global volatile environment, from cost of living to the climate crisis, we are at risk, but we can survive and do better. For 2024 that is our word,” she said. (SB)
