St George’s – Prime Minister Dickon Mitchell named an 11-member Cabinet on Thursday, one week after his National Democratic Congress (NDC) won the general election in Grenada.
The ministers, including two women, were sworn in by Governor General Dame Cecile la Grenade, at the Kirani James Athletic Stadium in the capital before hundreds of supporters.
The new cabinet is slightly smaller than the former government of Keith Mitchell that numbered 13.
Mitchell said the composition of the Cabinet is “meant to reflect our campaign promises to the people of Grenada to begin the transformation of Grenada”.
He said he wanted to assure all citizens the new government will do its utmost to drive economic development and put Grenadians first.
“(This is) to ensure that we all hold each other collectively responsible and accountable for the trust, the faith and the confidence that you have shown in each and every one of us,” the new prime minister said.
Mitchell said he intended to start the process of transformation in an environment of industrial peace and the time for productivity was now.
“We will instruct the Ministry of Finance to repay to the teachers of Petite Martinique, Carriacou, and Grenada the salaries that were docked unjustly from them and that those payments should be made as early as the end of July 2022,” he said.
“Our government is not at war, nor should it be at war with the public servants and the workers who work for the government.
“We accept we will have disagreements, we accept we will have differences in our viewpoints, but we are committed to ensuring at all times that we treat our workers with respect and with dignity.”
Mitchell said he already signalled to the senior public servants the need to put “our house in order” and that the new government will seek to address the “varying discrepancies” with regards to the employment status of public workers.
In his address, Mitchell also announced that his administration will be recalling all diplomats and honorary counsels.
New Grenada Cabinet:
Dickon Thomas Mitchell – Prime Minister and Minister of Finance, National Security, Home Affairs and Public Administration, Information and Disaster Management.
Claudette Joseph – Attorney General and Minister of Legal Affairs, Labour and Consumer Affairs
Joseph Andall – Minister of Foreign Affairs, Trade and Export Development
Teven Andrews – Minister of Carriacou, Petite Martinique and Local Government
Dennis Cornwall – Minister of Infrastructure and Physical Development, Civil Aviation and Transportation
Kerryne Zennelle James – Minister of Climate Resilience, Environment and Renewable Energy.
Phillip Alfred Telesford – Minister of Social and Community Development, Housing and Gender Affairs
Andy Williams – Minister of Mobilisation, Implementation and Transformation
Lennox John Andrews – Minister of Economic Development, Agriculture, Planning, Blue Economy, Creative Economy, Tourism and ICT
Senator David Evlyn Andrews – Minister of Education, Youth and Sports Affairs
Gayton Jonathan LaCrette – Minister of Health, Wellness and Religious Affairs
Junior Ministers:
Senator Gloria Ann Thomas – Minister of State in the Ministry of Social Affairs, Housing and Gender Affairs
Ron Livingston Redhead- Minister of State in the Ministry of Education, Youth Affairs and Sports
Senator Adrian Augustine Thomas – Minister of State in the Ministry of Agriculture, Fisheries and Cooperatives.
(CMC)
