The Hon. Dr. Ralph E. Gonsalves, Prime Minister and Minister of Finance of St. Vincent and the Grenadines, in conjunction with officials of the Caribbean Development Bank (CDB), officially launched the USD16 million South Leeward Highway Rehabilitation Project at an Opening Ceremony at the Sunset Shores Hotel in Villa on Monday, October 14, 2013. Under the project, 11.4 kilometres of roadway - from Kingstown to Layou - is to be upgraded. Upon completion, the upgraded roadway will feature improved line of sight for drivers, increased road widths, improved drainage and enhanced facilitation for pedestrian movement. In addition, CDB is providing a grant of USD51,000 to assist with financing a Vehicle Weight Control consultancy. A counterpart amount of USD2.5 million is being provided by the Government of St. Vincent and the Grenadines for the project. Mr. Daniel Best, Portfolio Manager, Economic Infrastructure Division, noted, "The project is expected to increase the efficiency and safety of road transportation between Kingston and Layou, through the creation of physical infrastructure which is more resilient to natural hazards. It is projected that the improvements will result in average annual savings in travel time cost of USD4.4 million." The Opening Ceremony was followed by a two-day workshop focusing on legal considerations, project implementation arrangements and issues, disbursement procedures, stakeholder issues, project monitoring and evaluation, and procurement. Officials of the CDB were joined at the launch by representatives of St. Vincent and the Grenadines' Ministry of Transport and Works including Hon. Sen. Julian Francis, Minister of Transport and Works; Mr. Hudson Nedd, Permanent Secretary; Mr. Brent Bailey, Chief Engineer and Mr. Allistair Campbell, Deputy Chief Engineer and Project Coordinator. The CDB delegation, headed by Mr. Andrew Dupigny, Division Chief, Economic Infrastructure Division (EID), included Mr. Daniel Best, Portfolio Manager, EID; Mr. Albert Gillings, Operations Officer (Civil Engineer), EID; Mr. Dave Waithe, Legal Counsel, Legal Department; Ms. Ann Marie Chandler, Operations Officer (Social Analyst), Social Sector Division; Ms. Juliet McCollin, Administrative Assistant (Claims Processing), Procurement Policy Unit and Ms. Sonia Hampden, Coordinating Secretary. CAPTION: The Hon. Dr. Ralph E. Gonsalves, Prime Minister and Minister of Finance of St. Vincent and the Grenadines (second right) was joined at the head table by (L-R) Mr. Andrew Dupigny, Division Chief, Economic Infrastructure Division, CDB; Mr. Brent Bailey, Chief Engineer, Ministry of Transport and Works; and Hon. Sen. Julian Francis, Minister of Transport and Works. CAPTION: Participants in the two-day workshop with CDB's Mr. Albert Gillings, Operations Officer (Civil Engineer), Economic Infrastructure Division (far left) and Mr. Daniel Best, Portfolio Manager, Economic Infrastructure Division (far right).