This Friday October 29th marks the 40th anniversary of the establishment of diplomatic relations between the Bolivarian Republic of Venezuela and Saint Vincent and the Grenadines (SVG); both nations have been historically and culturally united for centuries, however, it was not until October 29th, 1981 that this relationship was consolidated with the exchange of style notes between the two governments.
The Ministry of People’s Power for Foreign Affairs of the Bolivarian Republic of Venezuela on its official twitter account, said: "Today we celebrate 40 years of diplomatic relations with Sister Saint Vincent and the Grenadines. We take this opportunity to be thankful for all the support given to Venezuela and reiterate our commitment to continue the friendship and cooperation that our countries have maintained".
On the occasion of this 40th anniversary, the head of the Venezuelan diplomatic mission in Saint Vincent and the Grenadines, Francisco Pérez Santana, stressed the impulse and strengthening of this relationship given by Commander Hugo Chávez Frías and continued by President Nicolás Maduro together with the Prime Minister of Saint Vincent and the Grenadines, Ralph Gonsalves: "Our peoples have a long and deep relationship of friendship that has been strengthened since the arrival of the Bolivarian Revolution and with Prime Minister Ralph Gonsalves; starting from the principles of Bolivarian diplomacy of peace".
Pérez Santana reported that "on this important occasion we have decided to express our friendship in the cultural area to celebrate these 40 years… we are making a joint musical production between Venezuelan and Vincentian artistes; we have been producing music videos with the participation of Vincentian and Venezuelan artistes: the violinist Darron Andrews, the dance company "La Gracia", the saxophonist Oswald Williams, Alí Alejandro Primera, the Orquesta Típica Nacional de Venezuela, among others".
Pérez informed that all the audiovisual material produced in the context of the anniversary of diplomatic relations will be available on the embassy’s various social networks:
Twitter: @EmbaVEStVincent
Instagram:@embavestvincent
Facebook: Embassy Vzla San Vicente
It is worth noting that, as part of the friendly relationship between the two peoples, solidarity actions have been promoted and have been materialised in different projects, among which the following stand out:
The construction of Argyle International Airport in St. Vincent and the Grenadines, which was created with reimbursable financing of USD 30 million from the Bolivarian Republic of Venezuela through the ALBA Bank. Currently, this construction is one of the most important and transcendental projects for the people of Saint Vincent and the Grenadines, as it allow the connection of the country with other continental latitudes.
Miracle Mission in the framework of the Petrocaribe Regional Integration Agreement, 345 operations were carried out between 2015 and 2017, by the Venezuelan medical brigade of Miracle Mission in Saint Vincent and the Grenadines. Between February 9th and 14th, 2020, the first phase of the mission was carried out; during this work week of visual diagnosis, the medical team attended to a total of 855 patients from the communities of Kingstown, Georgetown, Buccament, Mesopotamia, Chateaubelair and the Grenadine island of Bequia.
Vincy Fresh is a project implemented through ALBA TCP. A company that manufactures hot sauces under the trade name Winfresh.
Hugo Chávez Fuel Storage and Distribution Plant, which was inaugurated on April 7th, 2015, operating only the Diesel system. On October 27th, 2017, 100% of the adaptations and improvements were completed for the operation of the Gasoline and Liquefied Petroleum Gas (LPG) systems, the fundamental milestone being the first dispatch of a 40-foot ISO LPG tank equivalent to 250 barrels. The plant has a storage capacity of 20,000 barrels of diesel, 10,000 barrels of gasoline, 2,000 barrels of Jet A1 and 2,000 barrels of LPG.
Construction of 50 petro-houses as part of a pilot technology transfer scheme and support to the government of Saint Vincent and the Grenadines to ensure decent housing for poor inhabitants.
Donation of 7,000 canaimitas to primary school students who took advantage of the opportunity to strengthen their training process in the various areas of knowledge established in the Caribbean country’s curriculum.
The Venezuelan Institute of Culture and Cooperation (IVCC) Hugo Chávez Frías in which various programmes and projects have been developed that are materialised in the organisation and implementation of a set of recreational aesthetic workshops defined from the IVCC Curricular Transformation Project (2018-2021) for Spanish courses carried out by the Academic Coordination, such as: Cuatro, singing, music, cooking, poetry and literature workshops, Venezuelan film festivals, didactic training workshops for the teaching of Spanish, articulated work with schools in SVG to promote the learning of the Spanish language. There have also been photographic exhibitions, conferences in different cultural spaces in SVG, painting exhibitions, among others.
It is necessary to highlight that this brotherhood between Venezuela and Saint Vincent and the Grenadines has been solidified in the most difficult times such as the arrival of the pandemic and the volcanic eruptions of last April; moments in which Venezuela was the first country in the world to make itself available to the Government and the people of Saint Vincent and the Grenadines to help during the emergency; thus, Saint Vincent and the Grenadines as an active member of ALBA TCP is part of the group of countries that received non-reimbursable funding of US$ 1.000,000 and concessional funding of US$1,000,000 for access to medical supplies in response to the Covid-19 pandemic.
In turn, in the context of the explosion of the "La Soufriere" volcano, ALBA-TCP carried out a maritime bridge with the Venezuelan Navy Ship "AB Goajira T-63" to mobilise 20,000 tons of supplies for the people of Saint Vincent and the Grenadines, as well as transporting donations from Saint Lucia and the Republic of Cuba, from the island of Saint Lucia to Saint Vincent and the Grenadines.
A total of fifteen (15) experts from the civil protection team of the Simón Bolívar International Task Force, trained in search and rescue, pre-hospital emergency, risk assessment, logistical organisation and communications technicians, were mobilised on the Venezuelan vessel.
Among the aid sent by the Bolivarian Republic of Venezuela were supplies such as drinking water, canned goods, sheets, blankets, mattresses, and hammocks, among others. In addition, there were two multipurpose Civil Protection vehicles with communications equipment, with the aim of providing ground support during the emergency period.
Both peoples and governments have maintained a relationship based on respect and solidarity, and this anniversary reaffirms the commitment to maintain and continue strengthening historical and diplomatic relations in defence of peace and the integration of the peoples of Latin America and the Caribbean.
The Bolivarian Government will continue to promote and deepen the projects developed between both nations, we are indigenous brothers and sisters, African brothers and sisters, we are the Greater Caribbean.