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St Helena started the 16 Days of Activism against Gender-Based Violence with a ‘White Walk’ on Saturday 25 November, White Ribbon Day.
Leading the parade was Detective Sergeant Andre Bak, accompanied by His Excellency Governor Phillips and Mrs Phillips, Chief Minister Julie Thomas, Minister Mark Brooks, Elected Members, Health and Social Care Portfolio Director Tracy Poole-Nandy, Chief of Police David Price, SHG employees and the wider community.
Generous donations of £80.00 and £24.56 for white ribbons were made, which helped to support the campaign. These donations will be deposited into the Women Issues St Helena (WISH) charity account and banked for use with future campaigns.
The White Ribbon Working Group extend their thanks and appreciation to everyone who supported the White Ribbon Campaign 2023. Approximately 1,000 white ribbons were distributed and worn to show support and 52 people signed the promise to ‘Stand Up and Speak Out’ against domestic abuse.
Councillor Robert Midwinter returned to the island on Tuesday 28 November, after participating in a Commonwealth Parliamentary Association (CPA) workshop on Strengthening Parliamentary Action to Address Gender-Based Violence and Modern Slavery in Supply Chains. This workshop, a joint initiative between the CPA UK, the Parliament of Kenya, and the Kenya Women’s Parliamentary Association (KEWOPA), was held in Nairobi, Kenya. It attracted approximately 50 Parliamentarians from 12 jurisdictions across the Commonwealth. Regional areas represented included Africa, Asia Pacific, the Americas, the Caribbean, Europe (including the UK Parliament) and UK Overseas Territories.
Councillor Midwinter is the Chair of Select Committee 1 (SC1), and the function of the Select Committees is statutory. Their primary function is to objectively scrutinise decisions, policies and activities of the St Helena Government. In particular SC1 is responsible for the review and scrutiny of the Health and Social Care portfolio, and Councillor Midwinter was therefore keen to work with peers from across the Commonwealth to understand how issues relating to gender-based violence are addressed in other jurisdictions, in order to better enable sensitive scrutiny of legislation, policy and practices relating to Social Care Services in St Helena.
In referring to the workshop upon his return, Councillor Midwinter said:
“I wish to place on record my own gratitude for the very warm welcome that I received during my recent visit. In particular, I wish to thank the staff of the Parliament of Kenya, and Kenya Women’s Parliamentary Association or KEWOPA, and also the Commonwealth Parliamentary Association UK, for hosting a very enlightening and rewarding workshop. I am extremely grateful and feel very privileged to have been invited to attend and represent the St Helena Legislative Council at this important Parliamentary gathering, which preceded White Ribbon Day and the subsequent 16 days of activism and awareness raising towards addressing Gender-based Violence, leading up to International Human Rights day on 10 December.”
“Whilst I will not pre-empt my formal report, I would note that the issues of Gender-based Violence, particularly towards women and young girls, and also Modern Day Slavery in Supply Chains are most certainly relevant to our small jurisdiction, and I fully intend on following up on a number of the commitments that I personally made during the workshop. As the Chair of Select Committee 1, I found the interactive session on sensitive scrutiny of particular interest.”
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#StHelena #ChangeTheStory #SpeakUpandSpeakOutAgainstDomesticAbuse
Two representatives from the UK Foreign, Commonwealth and Development Office (FCDO) arrived in St Helena on Tuesday 5 December 2023 to take part in Financial Aid Mission (FAM) discussions for the 2024-25 financial year. Currently on Island are Adam Pile, the Deputy Director of FCDO’s Overseas Territories and Polar Directorate, and Ben Stern, Head of the FCDO’s St Helena and Tristan da Cunha Team. They will be supported whilst here by the on-Island Governor’s Office team and SHG officials.
The FAM takes place annually, and provides an opportunity to review the delivery and effectiveness of the FCDO’s Financial Aid Programme in St Helena. Whilst on Island the team will meet with a wide range of stakeholders, including ministers, elected members, government officials, members of the private sector and wider stakeholders.
Financial Aid is integrated into SHG’s budget to support essential public services and capital investment. £33.06 million recurrent support was provided to St Helena in the 2023-24 financial year, in addition to the capital funding for ongoing programmes (including the £30m Economic Development Investment Programme).
The visit this year has three key aims:
- To collect key information on the existing programme (and previous Financial Aid programmes)
- To review progress on the key reforms and priority areas already agreed between SHG and FCDO
- To work collaboratively towards a new budget settlement for 2024-25
The delegation have a full schedule of events planned and, alongside locally elected and appointed officials, will be hosting a press conference with local media on Friday 8 December between 15:00 and 15:30.
#StHelena #OverseasDevelopmentAssistance #FinancialAid
The St Helena Government (SHG) is pleased to announce the official name of the recently discovered seamount as “Young Seamount.” This geological feature was mapped in St Helena’s waters by the Royal Research Vessel Discovery last year. The name was chosen to honour the late Captain Rodney Young, the first St Helenian captain of the RMS St Helena.
The name was submitted by Sharon Wade of Cleughs Plain, who was the winner of the seamount naming competition which took place from 29 August to 4 September 2023. In her submission to the committee she said: “He possibly navigated the area of the new seamount many times without even knowing it was there. Fitting, that we should remember Rodney with a name that will forever be seen on charts, maps etc. in the shipping world.” We would also like to thank all those who submitted names, and participated in the competition.
The name was made official by the International Hydrographic Organization, through its Sub-committee on Undersea Feature Names (SCUFN). This organisation aims to ensure the World’s Oceans are safely navigable, charted and surveyed. They set the standards in providing uniformity in nautical charts and documents while also protecting the marine environment.
During the same expedition, another seamount was discovered off the coast of Ascension Island, which has been named ‘Burns Seamount’ as a tribute to a former Administrator of Tristan da Cunha and Ascension, and Head of the Governor’s Office in St Helena, Sean Burns.
For more information about this second discovery, please refer to Ascension Island Government’s press release via www.ascension.gov.ac/burns-seamount-tribute-to-former-administrator.
#smallislandBIGFUTURE #NametheNewSeamountCompetition #StHelena
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In response to the increasing concerns of the presence of plant pathogens affecting endemic trees within the Peaks National Park and the potential for these to spread, since April 2023 access to some areas of the Peaks National Park has been prohibited. This prohibition was initially put in place until the end of December 2023, to allow time to assess the impact of the pathogens on the park and for a review on the basis of relevant information and evidence to take place.
Since the discovery of the pathogens over a year ago, the Environment, Natural Resources and Planning (ENRP) Portfolio has been working with the St Helena Research Institute, Centre for Centre for Agriculture and Biosciences International (CABI) and the Birmingham Institute for Forest Research (BIFor). This work has primarily taken place under the Darwin Plus ‘Managing the pathogens affecting St Helena’s biodiversity and food security’ project. It has sought to identify the pathogens present, confirm that these pathogens are causing the tree deaths within the Peaks National Park and monitor their spread. All of this information is necessary to help make an informed decision on access arrangements within the Peaks National Park.
Whilst much work has been underway since the start of the year, scientific sampling and analysis is time consuming. Inoculation experiments and genetic analysis on our endemics to assess resistance to the pathogens is still to be completed.
This means we are still a few months off from having sufficient information to make an informed decision on future access arrangements. From discussions ENRP held with the CABI team that were here last month, it is now expected that key information following the will be available for consideration by March 2024.
In light of this pending information and the potential level of threat posed by the pathogens, we consider that we must continue to apply a precautionary principle in our approach. Therefore the decision has now been made to keep the current prohibitions on access in place. This means that all sites currently closed will remain so, including the Scotland Nursery site which was closed last month. The only exceptions to this will be some minor adjustments to the Wrangham’s and Halley’s Mount sites, for which a boundary review is being undertaken so that the areas closed will align with the boundary of the Peaks National Park. Once the boundary review is completed, new Environmental Protection Notices (EPNs) will be issued and the public will be informed when this happens.
The process currently in place for limited authorised access will remain in place. This allows those persons who need to access closed sites for essential work to apply to the Chief Environmental Officer for permissions to do so.
A further evidence-based review of access arrangements will be undertaken in March 2024 which will inform the need, or not, for tailored access arrangements beyond that date.
Chief Environmental Officer, Isabel Peters said:
“We appreciate that many members of the public are patiently awaiting the re-opening of the Peaks National Park and we extend our thanks to everyone who has observed the EPN’s and respected the closures up to now. Your support has been very much appreciated and is vital to protecting the park. The decision to keep the areas closed for a further three months was carefully considered, and was taken for the long term health of our precious biodiversity. We look forward to your continued support in helping us to safeguard our endemic plants, animals and their habitats.”
Note to Editor
The Chief Environmental Officer Isabel Peters, will be off island until 19 December. In her absence, Environmental Risk Manager Mike Durnford will be the point of contact in the interim and can be contacted by telephone on 24724 or via email through mike.durnford@sainthelena.gov.sh.
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Today, St Helena Government and Wavysail are delighted to announce that St Helena Island has become an official partner of the Wavysail Open Oceans Fund.
This will enable two fully funded places on Wavysail Ocean Sailing Adventures to be made available to ‘Saints’, or people closely connected to the Island, over the next few months.
St Helena is deeply connected to its ocean, and to its ocean-based heritage, including sailing. Wavysail has been frequenting St Helena for a number of years, and this new partnership encourages inclusive yachting specifically for St Helena’s community.
The Wavysail Open Oceans Fund provides fully funded grants to people who would otherwise not have the means, or the confidence, to join an ocean adventure. The aim is to make sailing more inclusive, and to encourage anyone with an adventurous spirit to experience the magic of the wild, open ocean.
The first recipient of the St Helena Open Oceans Fund will join Wavysail’s January expedition, departing Jamestown on 11 February 2024. In the days before departure, they will get to meet the skipper and other crew members, and prepare for the trip ahead.
The recipient will then sail with Wavysail, as a regular member of the crew, under the care of Skipper Dave (Wavy) Immelman and first mate Heather Deary, both of whom are highly experienced sailors. This is a major ocean trip, so while some previous sailing experience would certainly be helpful, there are no minimum requirements in terms of previous sailing experience. Wavysail will advise of all kit to pack and provide all safety equipment needed.
The voyage will route west, deep into the South Atlantic, before turning south towards Tristan da Cunha, then finally looping back towards Cape Town with arrival in Cape Town by 28 February 2024. A truly epic voyage.
The recipient’s time on the yacht will be fully funded under the St Helena Open Oceans Fund. Also included is the option to stay for up to three nights in accommodation arranged and funded by Wavysail. The only costs to the recipient are getting to the departure point (Jamestown), getting back home from Cape Town, and any meals or expenses off of the boat. For this first January grant, if (and only if) the recipient is at the time resident in St Helena Island, the recipient’s Airlink flight home from Johannesburg to St Helena will also be funded.
You can nominate yourself, or somebody else who you feel would benefit from the experience. Nominations are open until 20 December 2023, and Wavysail will inform the successful recipient before 02 January 2023.
Apply for the St Helena Open Oceans Grant through https://bit.ly/3N83r66.
The grant is open to persons currently living on the island, as well as those who are part of St Helena’s diaspora. You must be 18 years old or over by the time of departure. You will be asked to note the applicant’s relationship to St Helena within the application form.
On the announcement of the partnership Andrew Cowen, co-founder of Wavysail, commented:
“We have been regular visitors to St Helena Island since we started Wavysail Ocean Sailing Adventures in 2019, and our yacht Aurora will be a familiar sight to many islanders. We have always loved the island, and already work closely with many local businesses as well as the St Helena Government. Therefore, this partnership is very special to us too – it is our way of giving something back to the community that has made us so welcome.”
More information about the Open Oceans Fund, including the full terms and conditions, can be found online at www.wavysail.com/OpenOceans. Alternatively you can contact Wavysail directly by email through info@wavysail.com.
SHG
01 December 2023
On Saturday 25 November 2023, Minister for Health and Social Care Martin Henry returned to St Helena following two weeks overseas.
During that time Minister Henry attended the Joint Ministerial Council (JMC) in London, met with health officials in the UK, and travelled to Gibraltar to meet with government and health officials there, a trip facilitated by UK Health Security Agency (UKHSA) and Professor Ian Cummings, Health Ambassador to the Overseas Territories (OTs).
The JMC is the highest forum for political dialogue and consultation between the UK and the OTs, and takes place annually in London. This year the St Helena delegation included the Chief Minister Julie Thomas and Minister Henry. This allowed Minister Henry to liaise with delegations from the other OTs, and to undertake a number of other meetings with key health officials and colleagues in the UK. This included meetings with the UKHSA, which provides support to the OTs, and with UK officials currently leading on leveraging digital health approaches to improve health outcomes. The UKHSA also facilitated meetings with leading diabetes specialists, noting that this is one of the most significant public health challenges facing the Island, with approximately one in three people in St Helena either having diabetes or pre-diabetes.
Minister Henry travelled to Gibraltar on Saturday 18 November to build links between the two Overseas Territories, to gain an understanding of how the healthcare operates in Gibraltar, and to exchange knowledge on approaches and best practices.
Whilst on his trip, Minister Henry was taken on a tour of Saint Bernard’s Hospital where he was shown the Dialysis Unit, Intensive Care Unit, Maternity (Neo Natal Unit), Accident and Emergency Unit (A&E), Primary Care Centre and Children’s Health Centre. Minister Henry’s trip also included a visit to Ocean Views, a Mental Health facility, as well as the Elderly Residential Services care homes, Mount Alvernia and Hillside.
Reflecting on his trip to the UK, Minister Martin Henry said:
“During the last two weeks I have had an incredibly busy schedule, but am pleased to have been able to participate in so many informative discussions and build so many great connections with sector leaders. These will be crucial in further improving our health offering to the people of St Helena. These discussions ranged from other OT elected leaders, to key health officials and a Public Health Director. I also spent an entire day with Dr Hatim Abdulhussein, National Clinical Lead in Artificial Intelligence (AI) and Digital Medical Workforce NHS England, looking at how we can use Digital innovation to help fill the gaps with operating a limited Health service, which was highly enlightening.”
I am now working with the team in UKHSA to link the professionals I have met in both the UK and Gibraltar with our teams here on Island so that we can further investigate some of the work streams from these initial meetings. This will include some exciting work around personal health monitoring, activities and diet support utilising approved app-based solutions.
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Minister Martin Henry with Professor Jonathan Valabhji – Nation Clinical Lead of Multiple Long-Term Conditions at NHS England (left), Sarah Payne Riches and Ian Walker (UKHSA Support to St Helena and the OT’s)
#StHelena #JMC2023 #Gibraltar #Health&SocialCare
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The Health and Social Care (H&SC) Portfolio encourage the public to familiarise themselves with the most appropriate way to contact a medical professional for non-emergency medical issues.
Recently there has been a number of instances where members of the public have contacted staff at home, stopped them in the street, or sent confidential medical information via email to staff to ask them for advice. This is not appropriate, can have an impact on staff, and may result in people receiving incorrect advice or jeopardise the confidentiality of their medical information.
If you wish to make a booking for an appointment to see a GP, book a follow up appointment, or book an appointment with one of the specialist clinics (including the dietician and gynaecology), please contact the appointment line by telephone on 22321.
For out of hours advice or for non-urgent cases, please contact the main General Enquiries line at any time on 22500.
The Community Mental Health Team is based at St John’s Villa, Jamestown Hospital and can be contacted by telephone on 22593 between 8.30am and 4pm, Monday to Friday. There is also an on call system for urgent mental health cases out of hours. For this, please contact the General Hospital on 22500.
Community Nurses can arrange home visits for various reasons for patients (dressings, blood tests etc.). Some examples of people who are eligible are patients who are unable to leave their home, are disabled or are receiving palliative care. All requests for home visits are assessed by the team, who can be contacted by telephone on 25189.
Both routine dental appointments and out of hours dental emergencies should telephone 22500.
The public are reminded to call 999 in the case of medical emergencies.
In order to ensure that patients receive the highest quality care possible, everyone is encouraged to follow the contact procedures detailed above.
#StHelena #Health #KnowWhoToCall
St Helena Government (SHG) launched an open procurement exercise for the “design and build” of a New Prison on 2 October 2023 via SHG’s e-procurement portal, In-tend. The closing date for tenders is 22 December 2023.
The Economic Development Investment Programme (EDIP) team has invited potential bidders, via the In-tend portal, to a virtual workshop to discuss this proposal and offer an opportunity for a question and answer session regarding this project.
The virtual workshop will be held via a Microsoft Teams link on Thursday 7 December 2023 at 14:00 GMT. It is scheduled to last for one hour.
The new prison build is going to be a significant project, and will provide opportunities for collaboration between local and international firms.
The EDIP team therefore invites local firms who may be interested in engaging with participating international firms to attend the workshop. This can be done in person at the Essex House conference room or through the virtual meeting link.
For further information please contact Alfreda Yon or Richard Wotton at Essex House by telephone on 22270.
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During the week commencing Monday 6 November, St Helena schools celebrated Parliament Week. As the Children’s Champion, Councillor Rosie Bargo took this opportunity to lead a program to educate young people about how the St Helena Legislative Council and new Ministerial system operate. This aimed to inspire their interest in legislative proceedings, politics and democracy given the impact on these on all of our lives, whilst encouraging them to engage with St Helena Legislative Council.
Each school visit began with a brief educational video featuring the St Helena Legislative Council and Ministerial system. This was followed by a debate on topics such as anti-social behaviour, energy generation, and what the future might hold for St Helena’s young people. Other general themes like shipping and the cost of living were also discussed. At the end of each session, schools received a UK Parliament Activity Pack courtesy of the Governor’s Office.
Councillors Andrew Turner, Robert Midwinter, Dr Corinda Essex and Karl Thrower participated in these visits. Other Elected Members and Ministers had hoped to attend but were unable to due to other commitments or overseas business.
The Legislative Council would like to thank teachers and students for their engagement during these sessions.
Councillor Rosie Bargo, Children’s Champion, commented:
“It was enlightening to see that children displayed such a keen interest in learning about how Parliament works here on St Helena and even in the UK. Their knowledge of all chosen topics impressed me greatly, along with their questions and concerns regarding current issues faced by our community. I am very proud that we have upcoming bright politicians who will shape the future of St Helenian politics. I encourage everyone interested in joining Youth Parliament to register your name today. We need you now more than ever before – let’s start working towards building tomorrow’s leaders today!”
Whilst a Youth Parliament was formed many years ago, it has since disbanded. Councillor Bargo is in the process of re-establishing a Youth Parliament on St Helena and encourages any young persons aged between 11 and 21, who are interested in joining the Youth Parliament, to register. More information on the Youth Parliament proposals will be made available shortly.
For more information or registration details contact Children’s Champion, Rosie Bargo, by telephone on 22590 / 23663 / 66221 or via email through councillor.rbargo@helanta.co.sh.
#StHelena #ParliamentWeek #YouthParliament
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The public are advised that with effect from today, Tuesday 28 November 2023, the Immigration Office, located at the Customs Building in Jamestown, will be closed for business on Tuesdays until mid-week flights conclude at the end of February 2024. This is to allow immigration staff to process departures and arrivals at the airport.
The Immigration Section apologises for any inconvenience this may cause and thank the public in advance for their understanding.
SHG
28 November 2023