From July 2 to 4, 2025, Permanent Secretary Dr. Charmaine Hippolyte Emmanuel participated in a series of key engagements with Martinique-based donor organisations. The meeting brought together key humanitarian partners and saw visits to the newly opened ICIN department within the CHUM Hospital and a stopover at EPHAD - the institution for the treatment of older persons, grouping Residential and Home Help Care. Visits were also made to the Executives of the Rotary and Lions Clubs; key organizations that have for years lent tangible support in beefing up Saint Lucia's social protection outreach.

Over the past two years, Martinique-based Rotary and Lions Clubs, in collaboration with the Saint Lucia Consulate General in Martinique, have facilitated substantial donations of prescription eyewear, medical supplies, and other critical humanitarian goods to Saint Lucians via the Ministry of Equity.

According to Saint Lucia's Consulate General in Martinique, Allison Joseph, "We acknowledge that Martinique and Saint Lucia share cultural, historical, and increasingly evolving linkages in addition to their geographic proximity. Meaningful cooperation continues to be based on our common ideals of social justice, equity, and sustainable development."

Permanent Secretary Dr. Hippolyte Emmanuel noted that the discussions were fruitful and marked by a strong spirit of cooperation: “Many important key issues of cooperation were discussed, and great progress was made in charting a path forward. The intention is to move toward a formal cooperative framework that ensures more timely, coordinated assistance, particularly during national emergencies.”

With the 2025 Atlantic Hurricane Season now underway, the Ministry has deemed it both timely and essential to proactively engage regional partners in building a responsive support mechanism for Saint Lucia’s most vulnerable communities.