28 November 2019
St Helena Government’s Corporate Policy and Planning Unit has released St Helena’s Sustainable Economic Development Plan (SEDP) mid-year report for 2019-20.
The headlines include:
- A Letter of Intent was signed in July 2019 to deliver superfast broadband to St Helena. Work has begun within SHG to develop plans for the Cable Landing Station in Rupert’s Valley. A visioning exercise was also undertaken with the public in July 2019 which led to the development of a ‘needs and delighters paper’ that outlines public expectations on the realisation of St Helena’s Digital Strategy
- The Investment Prospectus was endorsed and launched in October 2019 with an event in St Helena and London. This includes information on starting up and expanding a business: http://www.investinsthelena.com/project-details/investment/
- The St Helena Research Institute Launched in November 2019 with events on-Island and in London. The launch included a competition for researchers willing to develop an academic paper evaluating the impacts of achieving St Helena’s Digital Strategy
- The Ship Registry Policy was updated in October 2019 to broaden eligibility for yachts and pleasure vessels to be registered with the Red Ensign on St Helena: https://www.sainthelena.gov.sh/public-services/registry/
- The Labour Market Strategy was consulted upon and is due to be endorsed in December 2019
- 2,407 Tourist visitors arrived between October 2018 and September 2019, compared to 2,316 during the same period the previous year 2017-18 and 973 in the same period in 2016-17
- The Minimum Income Standard was updated to reflect inflationary increases in prices, and the Basic Island Pension and Income Related Benefit increased as a result. The basic level of IRB for a single person increased from £70 per week to £71.50 in October 2019. The Minimum Wage increased by 8p in April 2019. Both changes ensured that those with the lowest incomes were protected against price increases
- A site for a new ‘marine lab’ has been identified in Jamestown and funding has been secured. Planning permission has been granted
- Work on the Tourist Office to help towards improving the look of the building in Jamestown and include wheelchair access has now been completed
- Spending on St Helena’s Economic Development Investment Programme (EDIP) has been agreed so far for the micro-projects budget, rock fall protection, IT investment and consultancy support
- SHG’s Waste Management Service (WMS) has implemented aluminium drink cans recycling onsite at Horse Point Landfill Site with the intention of exporting this valuable waste stream. Plastics recycling is now being undertaken by SHAPE.
The full mid-year report can be found on the Public Information, Reports and Policies page of the SHG website: https://www.sainthelena.gov.sh/government/public-information/.
Notes to Editors
St Helena’s SEDP 2018-2028 was endorsed by Executive Council in May 2018. In order to ensure that the SEDP continues to be effective, six-monthly reviews of the actions were planned alongside yearly updates of the indicator data.
The SEDP vision is to achieve development which is economically, environmentally and socially sustainable and the actions outlined within the SEDP intend to address barriers to achievement.
#StHelena #SEDP #EconomicDevelopment
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SHG
28 November 2019