PHILIPSBURG:--- The full Council of Ministers held a frank and constructive meeting with the representatives of the Executive Board and Management of the Sint Maarten Hospitality & Trade Association (SHTA) on Thursday, March 1, 2018. The meeting was requested by SHTA to express their interest and support in achieving the goals set by government post-hurricane Irma to revive the economy and rebuild Sint Maarten. The meeting request was in line with SHTA’s statement “making Sint Maarten a great place to live, will make it a great place to visit.” The Council acknowledged the importance of the meeting’s request and a meeting was established.
Many topics were discussed, among which the budget of Government for the year 2018 – 2019, solutions to increase Government’s revenues, strategies towards assisting the private sector in the area of policies, soft loans provision, taxes and other means to foster economic growth. Both parties were pleased with the outcome of the meeting and agreed to follow up meetings with each individual minister to continue discussions on how to collaborate concretely. It was also agreed to have the draft of the National Recovery Plan discussed in a follow-up meeting with SHTA before this plan is finalized. The meeting concluded with a presentation of the SHTA to the Council of ministers with their 2018 Events calendar.
