The National Workers Union (NWU) wishes to express its appreciation to and admiration for the St. Lucia Mortgage Finance Company Limited (SMFC) on its 47th year of operation. During that period, the SMFC has successfully executed its intended mandate of providing affordable land and housing projects for Saint Lucians, in Ravine Chabot, Independence City, La Pansee, Sans Souci, Reduit Park, Reduit Orchard and Massade to mention a few. It was just unfortunate that banana farmers, who made a significant contribution to Saint Lucia’s development by bringing in significant income, were not singled out to access SMFC’s offerings.
Given the hostile economic environment, the NWU is convinced that the role of the SMFC must be intensified. As Saint Lucia continues to depend heavily on tourism, we cannot ignore the contribution made by hotel and tourism services workers, currently over 12,000 heads. Government should move swiftly to get funding from the National Insurance Corporation at a reasonable interest repayment rate for the SMFC. These funds should fuel SMFC to continue its mandate to enable Saint Lucians, especially workers in hotel and tourism sectors to access affordable land and housing through development projects.
