The Peace Corps has been in the Eastern Caribbean since 1961
The Peace Corps has been in the Eastern Caribbean since 1961 when St. Lucia became one of three pilot posts for the Peace Corps worldwide. To date, nearly 3,000 Peace Corps Volunteers (PCV) have served in the Eastern Caribbean. The contributions of Volunteers in the areas of education, agriculture, health, and conununity development have provided strong and consistent technical support to the nations of the Eastern Caribbean for 39 years.
Currently there are 100 Volunteers serving the island nations of Antigua, Dominica, Grenada, St. Lucia, and St. Vincent. The regional office for Peace Corps in the Eastern Caribbean is on St. Lucia, with each of the other island nations home to a smaller administrative office.
Project Overview
Peace Corps Volunteers in the Eastern Caribbean today concentrate their efforts primarily in education and health. Each island nation has its own development needs and priorities which results in program specifics being different from island to island.
Peace Corps' involvement in education throughout the region is aimed at addressing the educational and self-esteem needs of out-of-school youth. Together with various NGO, community, and host country government partners, Peace Corps addresses the needs of those students left out of traditional secondary schools. The approach includes business and vocational education, life skills training, counseling, and human development. Other areas of emphasis within the education field include work with disabled children and youth, and special education and remediation needs.
Rural health education is the area of concentration for Peace Corps' current health program. Volunteers work in conjunction with the local Ministry of Health to help combat diet and sanitation related illnesses. Volunteers have also been active with local Red Cross offices in planning and executing first aid education programs.
Volunteer Profile (January 2000)
Of the 100 Volunteers currently in service, 69% are women and 13% are over the age
of 50. Island breakdowns are as follows: Antigua, 7 PCVs; Dominica, 25; Grenada, 14; St. Lucia, 29; and St. Vincent, 25.
Staff Profile (January 2000)
Peace Corps employs 18 full-time staff persons throughout the region, and four parttime. There are only two American staff located at Peace Corps regional office in St. Lucia: Earl Phillips, Country Director and Lane Bunkers, Deputy Director. Other senior staff include: Norma Laborde, Administrative Officer; Freda Clarke and Rose Roberts, Medical Officers; Jacintha Lee, Associate Director for St, Lucia; Cuthbert James, Associate Director for St. Vincent and Grenada; and Patrick Henderson, Associate Director for Dominica and Antigua.
Links to Peace Corps/Washington Information:
Peace Corps Volunteers in Inter-America and the Caribbean
