Prime Minister Leads Tour of Southern Industrial Estates

Contact: Julita Peter

Friday, May 19, 2000- Prime Minister Honourable Dr. Kenny Anthony has completed a round of visits to industrial estates in the south. The tour was organized by the National Development Corporation (NDC) to acquaint the Prime Minister and NDC officials to the general operations of the various factory shells and the issues confronting investors and workers. Dr. Anthony has described the tour as extremely enlightening and rewarding.

"Their (the workers) main concerns were the level of wages. Many thought that the wages were very, very low. Then too we’ve had a very unhappy situation at Fenwal where some two to four weeks ago some seventy workers had to be retrenched because the firm was required to be far more competitive. However there are still about three hundred and eighty workers there and the workers are still coping from the adjustment and many of them spoke frankly and openly about that experience and the present situation, so it’s been useful contact," said Dr. Anthony.

The Prime Minister also took the opportunity to hear the concerns of investors, most of which were about the physical conditions of the factory shells. "It is clear that NDC has to put in more resources into improving the physical infrastructure of the buildings. I am concerned about the appearance of the buildings I have seen - not good. And I am not talking of just the physical appearance of the buildings, but also the surroundings. We have got to do better than this," he said.

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