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A Stronger, Fairer Future for St Helena: Government Sets Out New Vision Strategy

St Helena has come a long way in recent years with the successful delivery of some key projects and policies, including the delivery of a new port in Rupert’s, improved road infrastructure, the recovery of tourism through the Tourism Recovery Strategy, internationally recognised marine and terrestrial conservation initiatives, and the commencement of primary re-organisation.

Despite these wins, St Helena still faces a complex set of interlinked social, economic, and environmental challenges that threaten the island’s long-term sustainability and the well-being of our community. Rising costs of living, an aging and declining population, labour shortages, fragile national infrastructure, and declining trust in institutions have eroded public confidence and reinforced a cycle of uncertainty and outward migration. These dynamics reinforce one another. Population decline reduces the labour force and tax base; weak systems undermine confidence; environmental degradation threatens water, food and health; and uncertainty drives outward migration.

The Government is developing its new Vision and Strategy setting out a clear path to first stabilise and start to reverse these trends and build a fairer, more resilient, and forward-looking St Helena. We believe in a community where every person is valued, has the opportunity to live a healthy and fulfilling life, and where families, businesses, and the environment can thrive together.

Our vision is for a fair, inclusive, more resilient and forward-looking St Helena, confident in its future, responsible in its stewardship and united in purpose to become a sustainable thriving community with people at its heart.

We recognise that rebuilding confidence will require phased reform, and a clear focus on what is affordable and what can be delivered sustainably within our financial and institutional capacity. We also recognise the increasing costs of service delivery, as a result of our aging population and shrinking worforce as well as the impact of increasing international costs, for example supply of pharmaceuticals. This means we need to look carefully at the sustainability of our current range of service delivery.

The strategy will be built around three themes that have been shaped by the voices and experiences of St Helenians across the island:

  1. Stabilising the Population and Labour Market: Creating conditions for people to stay, return, and contribute through fulfilling careers, skills development, and fair access to services.
  2. Protecting Living Standards and Core Services: Ensuring immediate support for those under pressure, while reforming health, social care, education, and infrastructure for long-term sustainability.
  3. Enabling Sustainable, Locally Driven Growth: Diversifying the economy, investing in digital and physical infrastructure, and developing productive economic sectors which safeguard the environment as a strategic asset, creating an enabling environment to accelerate opportunities for growth.

Key actions include aligning education and workforce planning with current and future needs, commitment to partnership with the community in preventative healthcare, affordable utilities, and public service modernisation. The strategy also recognises the need for incremental tax and revenue reform and disciplined public financial management. The strategy will support initiatives already in train, such as the continued implementation of the Tourism Development Programme,  Company Registry and Financial Services Development Programme, and completion of the long overdue immigration reforms. It also seeks to explore new areas of goverment intervention, with fresh thinking already commenced with the fishery, in high value agriculture, wharf redevelopment, and on expanding the St Helena Research Institute.

Implementation will be phased, with clear milestones and measurable outcomes, which will be shared pending the outcome of budget discussions with the UK Government. Government will communicate openly about progress and constraints, adapt as needed based on evidence and lived experience, and work in partnership across portfolios, communities, business, and civil society.

Government is clear that St Helena cannot only tax its way out of structural challenges by increasing the burden on wages in a shrinking population. Long-term sustainability requires a broader and fairer revenue base, improved compliance, and growth-linked revenues, alongside disciplined public financial management.

By focusing first on stabilising people’s lives and rebuilding trust, while strengthening the foundations of our economy, services, and environment, we will restore confidence and set St Helena on a more secure and hopeful path, step by step, and together.

Policy Priorities 2026–2029

Following on from the above, the Government will focus on nine cross government policy priorities:

1. Stabilise the population and labour market

2. Protect health and social care and improve prevention outcomes

3. Reform education and build the future workforce

4. Reduce the cost of living through investment in utilities and infrastructure

5. Enable sustainable, locally driven economic growth

6. Grow revenues fairly

7. Reform and strengthen the public service

8. Safeguard the environment as a strategic asset

9. Protect living standards during transition

These priorities are aligned with a set of Strategic Outcomes, that reflect the importance of cross portfolio partnerships, the reality of resource limitations, and the interconnections and interdependencies inherent in bringing about changes.

Each outcome guides the various work streams and activities across the different sectors, for example:

Over the coming weeks, the Government will discuss the draft strategy more widely with focused stakeholder groups and invite discussion to help identify any remaining gaps, including issues relevant to groups we have not yet reached. Our aim is to finalise and publish the strategy once we have confirmation of our budgetary aid settlement, expected in April 2026 and at this time clear milestone and timelines will be confirmed. We will review the strategy annually to ensure it remains responsive to the island’s changing needs which time we expect to know our budgetary aid settlement, and we will review it annually to ensure it remains responsive to the island’s changing need.

#StHelena #VisionandStrategy

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A meeting of the Police and Crime Panel took place on Thursday, 05 March 2026.

A recording of this meeting, which was also live-streamed, is now available for viewing via the SHG YouTube Channel at https://www.youtube.com/@sthelenagovernment1638

The report summary can be found on the SHG Website: The Royal St Helena Police Service | St Helena Government

Printed versions of the report summary and the full report are available to read at the Library and the Customer Service Centre in Jamestown.

For more information, please contact the Temporary Director of Police, Kevin Weir, by telephone on (00290) 22626 or via email through kevin.weir@sainthelena.gov.sh

#StHelena #RSHP #PoliceandCrimePanel

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SHG

11 March 2026

The St Helena Government (SHG) today announced the launch of a Business Support Scheme to provide financial relief to tourism-sector businesses directly affected by the temporary closure of St Helena Airport in February.

Background

On Friday, 6 February 2026, St Helena Airport was unable to operate under normal conditions. Unfortunately, the airport could not provide the ICAO Rescue and Firefighting Category 6 required to support the scheduled Airlink service.

This situation led to four flights being cancelled before Category 6 was restored. The interruption had an immediate and significant impact on the tourism sector, particularly for businesses reliant on visitor arrivals.

Who Can Apply?

The scheme is open to businesses that are incorporated or normally domiciled in St Helena, operating in one of the following sectors:

To qualify, businesses must be able to demonstrate that a confirmed booking or contract was directly affected by the airport closure, and that this resulted in a loss of guaranteed profit. Supporting evidence will be required as part of the application.

What Support Is Available?

Once an application has been approved SHG will provide assistance to affected businesses.

Support options approved by Executive Council are:

These schemes provide businesses with both immediate relief and confidence going forward. Businesses may apply for one or both types of support.

Minister for Economic Development, Environment, Natural Resources and Planning, Karl Thrower, stated:

“This scheme demonstrates SHG’s commitment to supporting our private sector through extraordinary circumstances. We recognise the very real impact this disruption has had on businesses and the livelihoods that depend on them, and we want to act quickly and fairly.”

How to Apply

Application forms are available on request from Head of Trade and Investment, Michael Ormrod, by telephone on 22470 or via email at invest@sainthelena.gov.sh. Completed application forms and supporting documents must be submitted to the SHG Trade and Investment Team by Thursday 9 April 2026.

If you believe you may be eligible, please get in touch as soon as possible.

#StHelena #BusinessSupportScheme

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The MV Karoline is scheduled to arrive at James Bay on Tuesday, 10 March 2026, at 22:00. Weather permitting, the vessel will berth alongside Rupert’s Jetty at first light on Wednesday 11 March.

During this time, Rupert’s Cargo Management Facility, the beach, the Jetty, and Rupert’s Bay will be placed under Access Level 3, meaning these areas will be restricted to authorised personnel only.

Access will remain restricted until all cargo operations are completed and the vessel has departed.

Once the vessel leaves, security will reduce to Access Level 2, at which point only the Cargo Management Facility will remain restricted during normal working hours (8:00–17:00).

The beach, Jetty, and Rupert’s Bay will reopen to the public and may be accessed via the public walkway beginning at Liberation House or via the Ferry Service (charges apply).

After working hours, the Access Level reduces to Level 1, whereby vehicular access is allowed through the Facility.

St Helena Port Control thanks the public for their cooperation and understanding.

The Roads Section are pleased to advise the public that slurry works on Phase 5 of the Road Resurfacing Project (Longwood Gate to Hutts Gate) have been successfully completed. No further road closures are planned for this section.

Final finishing works will continue along the sides of the road over the coming days. Motorists are kindly asked to drive with caution, as road workers may still be operating in this area throughout this weekend and into next week.

The main slurry team has now moved to the final phase of the project, covering the stretch between Briar’s Junction and Button-up Corner. Preparation works are ongoing, and slurry operations are expected to commence during the new week.

Please note that the existing weekday road closure (09:00 – 15:00) on this section will remain in place until late March. Initial works will take place between the top of the concrete section of Side Path Road and Briars Junction, carried out in half-widths with traffic directed as required. Appropriate signage will be in place.

The Roads Section thanks the public for their continued patience and cooperation as these essential works progress.

SHG

6 March 2026

Since early 2026, South Africa has been experiencing an escalation of Foot and Mouth Disease (FMD) outbreaks with cases now experienced across all nine provinces. Urgent steps are being taken by the South African Government to curb the outbreak through mass vaccination, implementing a livestock identification, traceability system, managing movement controls alongside expanding diagnostic capability and awareness campaigns. On 13 February 2026 authorities in South Africa classified the FMD outbreak as a national disaster under the Disaster Management Act 2002.

The St Helena Resilience Forum has discussed a veterinary risk assessment by the Senior Veterinary Officer for the island in light of this situation in South Africa and have supported preliminary proposals to protect St Helena, which are aligned with applying the precautionary principle to reduce the risk of the disease reaching St Helena.

Relying on South Africa’s measures will not minimise the risk to the island’s livestock and St Helena needs to implement its own measures to prevent the introduction of the virus into the island.

The Executive Council has approved the prohibition on the importation of live animals and their germplasm and meat products and dairy products from cloven-hoofed animals originating from South Africa. We are applying the precautionary principle to protect St Helena.

What is being prohibited?

This below prohibition applies only to products (i) originating from, (ii) produced in, or (iii) repackaged in South Africa.

The following imports are prohibited until further notice:

The prohibition comes into effect for imports by sea for all arrivals after voyage V261702 of the MV Karoline (scheduled for 10 March 2026), and for imports by air for all arrivals after 10 March 2026.

The ban does not include tinned meats which are normally treated and sterilised, and UHT (boxed ) milk.

In addition to the prohibition on imports, additional biosecurity measures will be put in place pre-border for passengers travelling to the island and at our seaport and the airport to reduce the risk to St Helena.  At the airport, measures will be implemented to reduce the risk from small meat and dairy product imports as well as passengers’ clothing and footwear that might be contaminated from visits to locations with animals through farm or safari excursions. This will include examination and cleaning of used clothing and footwear as may be necessary.

It is not known how long this ban and implementation of additional biosecurity measures will continue, however, the Environment, Natural Resources and Planning Portfolio (ENRP) will monitor the situation and make further announcements as changing news becomes available.

To protect the island, ENRP have been working with the island’s importers to discuss their food orders from South Africa and proposals for a prohibition to reduce the risk of the disease reaching the island.

Inevitably, the ban on the above imports and additional biosecurity measures will result in some inconvenience to importers and the general public. The community is thanked in advance for their cooperation in helping to protect our island.

If you require further information please contact:

Alternatively, all officers can be contacted on telephone 24724.

Further information will be provided.

Note to Editors

FMD is a highly contagious, acute viral disease of cloven hooved animals (including pigs, cattle, sheep and goats) characterised by formation of vesicles and erosions in the mouth, nose, feet and teats. The virus is present in all secretions and excretions from infected animals.  Although FMD carries a low animal death rate for these animals the economic impact on the productivity of recovered animals, especially cattle, is severe, which is why the disease is treated so seriously.

Although humans can get FMD, it is rare and mild and depends on the strain. Humans can carry the virus for two to three days.

#StHelena #FootandMouthDisease

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An Extraordinary Meeting of Executive Council (ExCo) was held on 06 March 2026.

The agenda for the meeting was as follows:

CLOSED AGENDA

  1. Declaration of Interest
  2. Business Support Scheme – Airport Closure February 2026 (ExCo Memo 07/2026)
  3. Prohibiting the Importation of live Cloven-Hoofed Animals, Germplasm, Meat and Meat Products and Dairy Products from Cloven-Hoofed Animals Originating from South Africa to Reduce the Risk of Foot and Mouth Disease reaching St Helena (ExCo Memo 08/2026)

NB Items marked (*) are commercially sensitive and depending on the subject matter, might not be referred to in the top lines.

The following items were considered:

1. Declaration of Interest

    The Chief Minister declared her interest in item 3. as her husband owns a farming business, and, together with his business partner, he is an importer for a wholesale and retail business.

    Minister Thrower was nominated to advise the Governor on item 3.

    2. Business Support Scheme – Airport Closure February 2026 (ExCo Memo 07/2026)

      Executive Council considered and approved the Business Support Scheme for businesses directly affected by the exceptional circumstances caused by the Airport Major Incident of February 2026, which recognises the immediate and significant impacts it has had on businesses reliant on visitor access and associated economic activity.

      The scheme will provide support for businesses directly affected by the airport closure in the form of an interest-free loan and/or SHG pre-purchase of services, subject to eligibility and assessment.

      3. Prohibiting the Importation of live Cloven-Hoofed Animals, Germplasm, Meat and Meat Products and Dairy Products from Cloven-Hoofed Animals Originating from South Africa to Reduce the Risk of Foot and Mouth Disease reaching St Helena (ExCo Memo 08/2026)

      Executive Council approved the prohibition on the importation and landing of live animals and their germplasm, meat and meat products and non-UHT dairy products originating in South Africa from cloven-hoofed animals and will be implemented in line with the prohibition recommended below.

      The Customs (Export and Import Control) Regulations, 1988 be amended through revision of its First Schedule to make provision for the prohibited imports.

      This prohibition will come into force with effect from Saturday 7 March 2026 and applies to—

      (a) imports by sea, arrivals after voyage V261702 of MV Karoline (scheduled for 10 March 2026);

      (b) imports by air, arrivals after 10 March 2026.

      Guidance will be provided to all officials involved in managing the prohibition at all ports of entry.

      It has been reported that sand is being illegally removed from Sandy Bay Beach. Some of this sand has been dumped and abandoned on the roadside between the beach and the Sandy Bay Baptist Chapel, creating a serious hazard for drivers.

      Why this matters

      Please be aware that removing sand can be considered “unauthorised development” under the Land Planning and Development Control Ordinance (2013). This is a serious offense that can lead to fines, imprisonment, or both.

      We kindly ask the public to leave the sand on the beach where it belongs, for the protection of our wildlife and the safety of our drivers.

      Sandy Bay Beach Road

      SHG is aware that people travelling to, from or via the Middle East will be concerned about the ongoing conflict. The situation is changing rapidly. In the first instance you should access the FCDO travel advice website at: https://www.gov.uk/foreign-travel-advice for up-to-date information. Stay in close contact with your airline, if you have travel planned, as schedules and routes may change at short notice.

      The wider impact on St Helena will depend on the duration and nature of the conflict and is currently hard to predict. However, we can assure those on island that we secured our next fuel shipment prior to the conflict starting and before an increase in world oil prices. This shipment is due in late March and will fully replenish our supplies.

      Due to an outbreak of Foot and Mouth Disease in South Africa, which is being treated as a national emergency there, we must restrict the importation of cloven-hoofed animals and animal products. This applies where the product originates from, is produced in, or is repackaged in South Africa. There are some exceptions, such as fully cooked items, tinned meats and UHT milk (subject to conditions). Changes will apply to air imports from 10 March and after the March arrival of the MV Karoline for sea freight.  A separate press release will provide more details.

      Please DO NOT change your buying behaviour as a result of these issues. This adversely affects the supply chain and presents a risk to the most vulnerable in society, who may rely on buying food and fuel in small quantities, when they need it, rather than being able to buy in bulk. Please consider others, as well as yourselves.

      As always, the remoteness which makes our island so unique also presents challenges. These are nothing new and we will continue to work collaboratively to see them through. SHG will keep you updated about any significant changes.

      #StHelena #WorldEvents

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      The public are reminded that the playground sites at Longwood Green and Half Tree Hollow remain active construction areas as part of the ongoing Economic Development Investment Programme (EDIP) Playgrounds Project. Security fencing has been erected around  these areas, and the public are asked to stay outside of these fenced zones and strictly adhere to all site signage. 

      This reminder is necessary as some motorists have been driving through the playground area at Longwood Green, which is not only dangerous but could also result in damage to the equipment and facilities currently being installed.

      These new playground facilities have been made possible through significant planning and investment under the EDIP, and the continued support and cooperation of the community is appreciated as the project progresses towards competition.

      SHG

      06 March 2026