State Secretary Alexandra van Huffelen arriving at the Government Administration Building in The Bottom on Wednesday morning.
SABA--Dutch State Secretary of Kingdom Relations and Digitisation Alexandra van Huffelen said at the end of her working visit to Saba on Wednesday, April 19, that it was a “very good visit” with meetings about the challenges Saba people face, and to discuss priorities and plans.
The first meeting of Van Huffelen and her delegation was with the new Executive Council. “We talked a lot about the priorities, the things that we want to solve together. We talked about poverty, healthcare, the problems that people on the island are facing, such as banking issues, housing, the very high prices for food. On all these issues we want to work together,” she said.
Van Huffelen said that the public entity Saba and the Dutch government together would be drafting a “very concrete plan of action” to enable the new Executive Council to work as effectively as possible, together with The Hague, and to solve pressing issues the Saba people are facing.
The new Executive Council with State Secretary Van Huffelen. From left: Commissioner Bruce Zagers, Van Huffelen, Island Governor Jonathan Johnson and Commissioner Eviton Heyliger.
With the new Island Council, Van Huffelen discussed subjects such as poverty, new legislation that will govern the relations between the Dutch government and Saba, the cost of living, the cost of doing business and reducing these costs.
As the state secretary responsible for digitisation, Van Huffelen had a round-table meeting with entrepreneurs and other stakeholders to talk about digitisation, how it affects daily life and about doing business, also with government.
“That was a real good meeting too. We talked how we can make sure that the Internet is fast and accessible to everyone, which is a prerequisite before you start working on digitisation. We also talked about the importance of education in working on digitisation, not only for children, but also for older people. We talked about the digital way in which you can work with government.”
The new Island Council with State Secretary Van Huffelen. From left: Island Council Members Saskia Matthew and Rolando Wilson; Van Huffelen; Island Council members Elsa Peterson and Vito Charles.
Digitisation is a “big process” to which Van Huffelen said she is committed. “The digital transition is here; we see it all around us. There are three things that I find important. The first one is that people can actually participate in the digital world. Also, I want people to trust the digital world, and thirdly, that people have control over their own data. To achieve that it is important that we come with a concrete plan of action, one that will also work here.”
She paid a house visit on Thursday afternoon to childcare worker Verionica Smith, who lives in one of the social housing homes in St. John’s with her four children. Van Huffelen, who has visited people at home in the past, said she found it “crucial” to talk with persons to hear their stories and concerns.
“It is worrisome that there are people with a full-time job who cannot live off their income, because the cost of living is so high and their income is not high enough,” she said. That is why the Dutch government keeps working on raising people’s income and reducing the cost of, for example, electricity, Internet and day care, Van Huffelen said.
State Secretary Van Huffelen (left) presented social housing tenant Verionica Smith (right) with a fruit basket.
The Dutch government plans to introduce a social minimum, the minimum amount that people need to sustain themselves. An advice on the height of the social minimum will come from an independent committee headed by former Bonaire Island Governor Glenn Thodé.
Van Huffelen also had a meeting with micro-financing organisation Qredits and some of its Saba clients, and met notary Marcia Bouterse.
Van Huffelen and her delegation left for St. Eustatius on Wednesday evening on the Makana ferry.
