Housing for the Poor?
The government has unveiled an ambitious new housing scheme which it says will provide affordable land and shelter for poor St Lucians.
The Marigot Estates Project is expected to provide two and three bedroom homes for 116 Saint Lucians.
Authorities have been keen to point out that the development is targeted towards low income Saint Lucians.
But who will be the biggest beneficiaries of this new initiative?
The vast majority of Saint Lucians fall well within the "low income" bracket; from the young woman at the Syrian store in Castries earning $300 fortnightly to the office worker making roughly $1600 a month for a major company.
With the high cost of living and the rising prices of consumer goods, those incomes are barely enough for the ordinary man to make it through to the next paycheck or even save.
Therefore the questions must be asked; how man of these people really can afford the new "low cost" homes which range in price from $140 thousand to $250 thousand? How man will have the ten thousand dollars deposit required to secure the homes from the authorities in the first instance?
When we discuss low income Saint Lucians, more emphasis should be placed on the single mother with five children, working hard all week and still not having enough to provide a decent meal for herself and her family.
Better yet, we need to find ways to lift our people out of such situations, such as raising the minimum wage or demanding better pay for workers.
It should be noted, however, that the Marigot Estates Project has been welcomed by many people and in all fairness it does have it benefits.
But if we are truely committed about lifting Saint Lucians out of poverty and providing them with greater opportunities in life, we need more practical initiatives to help the nation's deprived and less fortunate.
The Marigot Estates Project is expected to provide two and three bedroom homes for 116 Saint Lucians.
Authorities have been keen to point out that the development is targeted towards low income Saint Lucians.
But who will be the biggest beneficiaries of this new initiative?
The vast majority of Saint Lucians fall well within the "low income" bracket; from the young woman at the Syrian store in Castries earning $300 fortnightly to the office worker making roughly $1600 a month for a major company.
With the high cost of living and the rising prices of consumer goods, those incomes are barely enough for the ordinary man to make it through to the next paycheck or even save.
Therefore the questions must be asked; how man of these people really can afford the new "low cost" homes which range in price from $140 thousand to $250 thousand? How man will have the ten thousand dollars deposit required to secure the homes from the authorities in the first instance?
When we discuss low income Saint Lucians, more emphasis should be placed on the single mother with five children, working hard all week and still not having enough to provide a decent meal for herself and her family.
Better yet, we need to find ways to lift our people out of such situations, such as raising the minimum wage or demanding better pay for workers.
It should be noted, however, that the Marigot Estates Project has been welcomed by many people and in all fairness it does have it benefits.
But if we are truely committed about lifting Saint Lucians out of poverty and providing them with greater opportunities in life, we need more practical initiatives to help the nation's deprived and less fortunate.
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