2023 was one of the best years for job creation in Saint Lucia in 16 years. Under the stewardship of Prime Minister Hon. Philip J. Pierre, last year’s hiring surge significantly reduced the unemployment rate to a record low of 14% nationally!
The quarterly unemployment rate in 2023 consistently improved when compared to 2022.
Quarterly Unemployment Trends 2023 | Quarterly Unemployment Trends 2022 |
Q1: 16%
|
Q1: 16%
|
Q2: 13%
|
Q2: 18%
|
Q3: 13%
|
Q3: 18%
|
Q4: 13.6%
|
Q4: 14.3%
|
Prime Minister Pierre’s leadership has inspired confidence in the local economy. His policies stimulate economic activity and connect ordinary Saint Lucians with new job opportunities.
Saint Lucia has seen consecutive declines in the unemployment rate every year since Prime Minister Pierre came into Office in July 2021.
- 9% 2021 ï‚· Â Â Â Â Â Â Â Â Â Â Â 16.5% 2022
- 14% 2023
Under his leadership, the government was able to finalize numerous foreign investment projects – building on the economic momentum from 2022.
Some of the development projects include:
- Global Ports Holdings Cruise Port Development
- Marriott Hotel
- Dreams & Zoetry
- Sandals La Toc (Expansion/Upgrade)
- Hyatt Hotel
- Cabot Residences
- Secrets Resort and Spa Saint Lucia
- Cas-en-Bas Beach Resort
As these development projects broke ground and got underway, more Saint Lucians gained employment in 2023.
Small businesses are vital for our economic development, and the government, under the Prime Minister’s leadership, is investing heavily in the local Micro, Small and Medium Enterprise (MSME) sector.
The Youth Economy Agency and MSME Loan-Grant Facility are breaking down barriers for our youth and local entrepreneurs by connecting them with resources, training, soft loans, and grants to fund their ideas and fuel their aspirations.
Local businesses are also benefitting from the encouraging economic comeback post-Covid. The Saint Lucia Chamber of Commerce, Industry and Agriculture has confirmed that its members hired more workers and reported increased profitability in 2023.
The Prime Minister leads a Cabinet of Ministers and heads a government that will continue implementing the right mix of economic policies to attract foreign investment, stimulate wealth creation and encourage economic growth in the local economy to drive unemployment down into single digits.
Rest assured, Saint Lucia, the job is not done.
SOURCE: Office of the Prime Minister
Who wrote this? Is this really coming from the office of the PM or the office of the SLP Political Leader…..just wondering as it is laced with campaigning jargon and very poorly written. Highly unprofessional.
in what reality?
Demonized Cabot for political expediency. Now y’all claiming credit for Cabot as part of job creation.
Politicians are the scourge of the earth!
@Straight. I’m in agreement with you as this missive should have been carefully vetted and then presented. Notwithstanding, the message is clear that St. Lucia is in good hands. Yeah, yeah. The UWP and it’s surrogates will come out and cry “liars”. But that is expected. But facts are facts and they can’t kick against the pricks.
Very good going Mr. Prime minister.
It’s crazy how they justify spending so much money bettering foreign companies to bring in tourist instead of using that money to create more opportunities here for the locals.. How about using that money to put things in place so that when the come here they actually have something to do.. For example A boardwalk with food and games, skating rink, some form of water park.. There’s endless ideas but the one they came up with was to blast the money on improving resorts like they not already resorts… The tourist will come one way or another give them something to do besides drink rum..
Many are asking who can show us any good ?
My heart is not proud,a country cannot be born in a day,O LORD ; I do not Concern myself with great matter or things too wonderful for all ,
But I stilled and quiet my soul ; like a weaned child with its mother, like a weaned child is my soul within me,
O St Lucians 🇱🇨 put your hope in the LORD,both now and forever more !!!!!!
All these “jobs” are private sector initiatives…not one from the public sector. Also, all but one are from the tourism industry…thats what we do with our skillset, just serve and work for hoteliers. Listen, set things in place so that ordinary st lucians can really start lucrative businesses. Skating ring was mentioned….yall know how many people this might pull and the amount of financial benefits? Look at Castries, looks very old. Hardly any upgrades to infrastructure. No place there to even have a decent business lunch….instead, all roads lead to 1000 miles away at hotel Pegasus. And to hear our leaders boast after coming from there! Our roads…poor and very tiny. Yall marked the road near S&S north and called it a roundabout! Sigh. We Saint Lucians are sick and tired of our city looking this way. Forget about tradition and move forward. The sad thing is that each succeeding Govt does nothing about it!!! Tourists come to hotels, we live here…so give up something to give back to country. We need more to do and not just rum and fete. Come on…we need new minds because the old ones do not plan on any development whatsoever. And dont come to say yall will do yall will do if elected, we are sick of that!!! Do now gassa….now!!! Yall jus stopping each other projects wen yall come in power and is we the people dat suffering. Sorry, i just had to use some Saint Lucian dialect here.
Bring out the salt shaker 🧂! Very good if only true, everything they say must be taken with a grain of sodium 🧂
It look like they don’t count the “boys on the block”. I see the blocks getting bigger by the day. Way to fudge the numbers.
What they did not say was that the statistics were for the extreme North of the Island. Can you imagine a few jobs were created in the North of the island while jobs were being lost everywhere else especially in the south of the island and you are saying there was a decrease in unemployment. Anyway, I agree with them. Keep on fooling them.
You can definitely remove all doubts. Please upload the unemployment figures for the past six months or the last six consecutive reports. Let the people see for themselves. It is almost impossible to believe this government when He-liar is a member in cabinet. This will twist everything he can place his eyes on.
The only job we can get as young people in the south is to work as a security for 3 EC dollars an hour working 12 to 18 hour shifts
2021 shows 9%
2022 shows 16.5%
2023 shows 14%
Unless there is a mistake with the 2021 figure then there was only one year of decrease. All countries experienced a decrease in unemployment after recovering from the pandemic so what have you done that is so special ?
I stand corrected, 2021 unemployment was 19% so yes 14% is the lowest since 2008 and I will applaud this but don’t celebrate too much yet. If the rate decreases for 2024 and 2025 I will personally say you did a good job on that front. Let’s also hope youth employment is a big part of this because it’s one of the drivers of crime.
By these numbers, it suggests everything is fine and dandy in the ecomony…jobs, jobs, jobs…but as the ordinary man or woman on the Street knows, this is hardly the case. I personally don’t buy this impressive figures because the issue with Saint Lucia is that the job market is very limited and too saturated in a few industries….it’s not like the developed countries where they have high earning jobs….jobs in technology, finance, science etc etc hence why the developed countries are advanced as they are….in Saint Lucia we don’t have this high end jobs, far less the educated class of citizens to fill in those high end jobs….so the question is where are all those jobs coming from? If building a hotel offers builders a temporary job till the hotel is finished, then what after that?…why is it that only the private sector are the ones providing jobs according to this editorial…. Pierre must realise that the private sector is a for profit sector benefiting the private investor… Pierre must focus on building public sector jobs and by doing so, increasing the jobs pool….our economy is not diversified enough..it’s too dependent on tourism…develop public sector jobs while improving on the ones we already have… Why can’t Saint Lucia be a leader in the Caribbean in fintech or science and technology? It’s time to develop these sectors….we can offer high end medical surgical procedures for our citizens and for citizens of caricom….it’s obvious that successive governments just sit on their laurels decade after decade and have not done anything to move Saint Lucia forward. Sir John Compton had a vision to make Castries waterfront what it is but since this development and his passing, no other government has done anything significant in terms of development. Saint Lucian is punching way below it’s potential and it is as a result of backward thinking governments from both sides.
How laughable that every administration talk about decline in unemployment. This is all politics and favor at the polls .
Does these figures include the 1000’s of people employed during STEP for the 2 week period in the last quarter, I’m asking because the 2008 figures that Kenny presented included STEP workers. I say bravo to you if this is actually the case but I don’t see evidence of it on the ground. I see more beggars and persons going to politicians for handouts these days than I have ever seen in my 55+ years living in St Lucia. The only positive thing I have seen is that quite a few women who are unemployed are now trying to come up with some product to sell and that will contribute to a decline in unemployment. On the other hand the vast majority of young men drop out of school and seat on the block or follow their boss like a pack of dogs. Just asking is that considered employment, if so then maybe the figures are correct because these bosses have no less than 50 bodyguards.
Who is George the 5th. In this Year for Infrastructure please remove these mini bus loading zone from our streets. Be more creative and creat jobs for the people, build a mini bus terminal in the garden (George The 5th Park) Our only central location That can accommodate all the busses in one place. This colonial land mark is non progressive in the country.
I am a UWP, but reality is reality. All the negative comments listed above are done by UWPS who do not want St. Lucia to go forward. There is no record Allen and cousin Guy did anything favorable to St. Lucia. Give Jack his jackass Pierre is a better leader.
Where is my comment? What is wrong with it?
“Ungodly People and Sinful 😈 nature”!
Shall we expect good ?
“Pure People”!
When our heart is pure and true before God,he is Sure of making things right !
To the Ungodly People, the time is coming, Deutéronome is confiming,
because of familliar with woe and suffering, you will eat the fruit of your wombs, the flesh of the sons and daughters the LORD your God has given you….
@johncepal
Check you email statistiques,sometimes it does be blank..