President of the Saint Lucian Senate, Alvina Reynolds, has highlighted the sturdy ancestral connections between Nigeria and Saint Lucia.
Reynolds cited information from a British census carried out on the island in 1815, revealing that many Saint Lucians hint their origins to Nigeria.
She made this recognized whereas welcoming President Bola Tinubu to a joint session of Saint Lucia’s bicameral parliament on Monday.
A press release on the joint session issued by the presidential spokesperson, Mr Bayo Onanuga, was made out there to newsmen on Monday in Abuja.
“Of the 16,282 enslaved folks in Saint Lucia that 12 months, 3,488 had been born in Africa.”
”Of those, 34 per cent had been from Nigeria, 11 per cent from Nigeria-Cameroon, and 22 per cent from the Congo.”
”The remaining 12,794 had been born in Saint Lucia, with most of their forefathers coming from Sene-Gambia and Nigeria,” she mentioned.
She described President Tinubu’s go to as historic for each the Parliament and the folks of Saint Lucia.
In keeping with Reynolds, the transatlantic slave commerce, spanning over 350 years, solid enduring cultural ties between Africa and the Caribbean.
Reynolds known as the go to “a mission to reunite us with our homeland and for our folks to work collectively.”
The Senate President additionally paid tribute to Sir Darnley Alexander, a Saint Lucian who served as Nigeria’s Chief Justice from 1975 to 1979.
“This mission, Your Excellency, continues with Catholic monks from Nigeria who’ve answered the decision and are available to Saint Lucia to serve, one in every of whom is our particular visitor this morning—Father Festus.”
“Your deal with to this Parliament at the moment couldn’t have occurred at a extra auspicious time, for at the moment is World Parliament Day—an event to mirror on the important position of Parliament and the service we offer as representatives to our folks.”
In response to Tinubu’s speech, Prime Minister Philip Pierre described the state go to as a second of “freedom and celebration”.
Pierre acknowledged deep ancestral and emotional ties with West Africa, calling Saint Lucia “a small fragment of Africa”.
“Our folks have been separated, however nothing has ever been capable of separate us spiritually and culturally from West Africa, the place a few of our ancestors got here from and for whom our hearts regularly yearn.”
“We’re African individuals who have made everlasting houses for ourselves on this aspect of the Atlantic, on the hills and valleys of the plantations on which we had been enslaved.
”However, we have now constructed these houses, Mr President, not for ourselves however within the service of all humanity, particularly Africa, in whose route we regularly watch, wait, hope and pray for our future redemption,” he mentioned.
Pierre humorously famous that Saint Lucia’s inhabitants is smaller than Eti-Osa Native Authorities in Lagos.
Nonetheless, the prime minister affirmed the island’s satisfaction as a sovereign nation “deeply related to the world, Nigeria, and West Africa”.
He additionally acknowledged the Nigerian neighborhood’s contributions in healthcare, faith, delicacies, tourism, and social improvement.
“We warmly welcome each Nigerian hand of assist and embrace with gratitude their contributions to Saint Lucia’s cultural, social, and financial improvement.”
”We’re the richer for it,” he mentioned.
Reflecting on Africa-Caribbean relations, Pierre welcomed progress because the first Africa-CARICOM Summit in 2021 and anticipated the following summit in Addis Ababa.
He listed potential cooperation areas, together with tourism, air journey, artistic industries, fintech, sports activities, renewable power, and medical providers.
Pierre famous that whereas Saint Lucia receives over a million vacationers yearly, few come from Nigeria as a consequence of restricted air connectivity.
He proposed partnerships in sports activities, particularly soccer and cricket, and urged Nigerian fintech and healthcare professionals to discover Saint Lucia’s increasing sectors.
The joint session was attended by diplomats, dignitaries, and prime leaders from throughout the Organisation of Jap Caribbean States (OECS).
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