Despite this large figure, Infrastructure Minister Hon. Stephenson King has outlined many of the Ministry’s plans for 2024, stating that the government is committed to erasing infrastructural deficits.

First on the Ministry’s list of concerns is the total completion of the Millennium Highway. King says the Ministry has noticed some progress on the highway as compared to last year.

“For the Millennium Highway, the CDB was there recently and they had what we call a mission supervision visit in which they have done the assessments on the way the Millennium Highway is moving on. They have expressed some level of satisfaction that there seems to be progress. The biggest concern really on the Millennium Highway is a cordial relationship among the consultant, the project office, and the contractor,” the Minister says.

The Highway, which is intended to adjoin the new Japanese-donated Cul De Sac Bridge, has been the cause of great concern for commuters and minibus operators.

The Minister adds that the government will take an “aggressive” approach to road rehabilitation in Saint Lucia. He says the Ministry will first focus on the roads in the Castries City Centre and will expand outwards.

“The year of infrastructure will commence soon in terms of the attack on roads throughout Saint Lucia. I think one of the first roads we will see attention being placed on will be some of the side streets. Chaussee Road, Jeremy Street, Bridge Street, and then the other streets, internal streets will also be looked at during the Year of Infrastructure. So we have a very aggressive programme,” he said.

Additionally, the Ministry will be beefing up its staff capacity to streamline its operations.

“The department is soon to augment its capacity within the department and we are beefing up that aspect of the infrastructure or rather the architecture of the ministry. We are to recruit a few more engineers which we are preparing for at this time and this year I'm hoping once we have good weather, the resources have already been identified and we have commenced the preparation for that.”

The Minister has faced criticism recently for the condition of the nation’s roads. King slaps back by outlining the preparations the Ministry is taking to adequately adjust the country’s ageing infrastructure.

“We are admitting that there are deficits in our infrastructure. We have an ageing infrastructure. We are saying we need to erase that deficit. It's not just to say we're going to build new roads, put down new pipes and do this, etc. It comes with other underpinning systems.”