The farewell activity of the Vincentian students, beneficiaries of medical scholarships, granted by the Cuban State, was the framework of a warm and heartfelt tribute of remembrance to the Commander in Chief Fidel Castro, on the day of the 93rd anniversary of his birth.
The event, held at the headquarters of the Embassy of Cuba, featured the participation of St. Claire Prince, Minister of Education, National Reconciliation and Information, Cuthbert Knights, Permanent Secretary of the Ministry of Health, Wellness and the Environment and representatives of the Services Commission of the Government of Saint Vincent and the Grenadines who, together with the students, their families and the collective of the Cuban diplomatic Mission, highlighted Fidel's role in the creation of the Training Program for Third Country Doctors in Cuba, the Integral Health Program and the foundation of the Latin American School of Medical Sciences (ELAM).
Minister St. Claire Prince recalled Fidel's personal contribution to medical collaboration and praised Cuba's decisive support, during the almost 40 years of independence of Saint Vincent and the Grenadines, in the training of medical personnel and in supporting the system of health of the small east Caribbean Nation.
The Minister said that, only in medicine, Cuba has graduated more than 150 Vincentians, an impressive figure for a small island of 109,000 inhabitants. He noted that neither the threats, nor the upsurge of the blockade, nor the shortcomings linked to this criminal policy, have been able to divert Cuba from its firm will to continue helping sister nations of the third world.
Permanent Secretary Cuthbert Knight, for his part, told the students that they will have the privilege of studying in Cuba, one of the main medical powers in the world where, as Fidel dreamed, not only excellent doctors and specialists are trained, but also excellent human beings, committed to their fellow human beings, their communities and their countries.
Cuthbert Knights said that, as Fidel said, Cuba does not give what it has left over, but what it has, and he added that, therefore, they will have the privilege of sharing with the Cuban brothers the same bread and the same destiny during the process of their formation.
The Permanent Secretary stressed that the excellent relations between Cuba and Saint Vincent and the Grenadines are based on love, solidarity and commitment.
In the closing speech of the activity, the Cuban Ambassador Vilma Reyes Valdespino, said that the farewell of Vincentian students, this year, takes place on the day of the 93rd anniversary of the birth of Commander in Chief Fidel Castro and on the year of the 20th anniversary of the foundation of ELAM, which is a creation of Fidel.
The diplomat said that during its almost 20 years of existence, ELAM has trained 37,333 young people of 141 nationalities and that a good part of the 153 doctors, nurses and health technicians of Saint Vincent and the Grenadines, graduates in Cuba, studied at the ELAM.
The Chief of Mission referred to the generosity, altruism and historical vision of the Commander in Chief who conceived the ELAM as a complement to Cuban medical collaboration and as a modest contribution to the unity and integration of peoples.
The Ambassador stressed that the incorporation of nine other Vincentian students to the medical personnel training program in Cuba is a tribute to the Commander in Chief on the 93rd anniversary of his birth.
