The Caribbean Community (CARICOM) Chairman, the Hon. Basdeo Panday, Prime Minister of Trinidad and Tobago will on Wednesday December 29, 1999 officially hand over 15 houses to the people of Montserrat. This comprises the first phase of the CARICOM Village being built by the Caribbean Community for the residents of the volcano-stricken Community Member State.

The Hon. David Brandt, Chief Minister of Montserrat will receive the houses, which are located at Lookout on the North of the island, on behalf of the people of Montserrat.

The idea for a CARICOM Village originated at the XVIII Meeting of the Conference of Heads of Government of CARICOM at Montego Bay, Jamaica in 1997. At that meeting the Heads of Government decided that the Community had a fraternal duty to help the people of Montserrat to address their acute housing shortage consequent on the widespread devastation caused by the eruptions of Langs Soufriere volcano.

Each Member State made pledges in cash for the establishment of the CARICOM Village of 25 housing units to help provide accommodation for those residents who opted to remain in Montserrat in the face of the eruptions.

In August 1997, the Rt Hon Percival Patterson, Prime Minister of Jamaica, then Chairman of CARICOM, turned the sod to begin the project. Actual construction began in June of the following year after certain alterations were made to the original design of the pre-fabricated houses sourced in Cuba.

The Langs Soufriere volcano, which commenced a series of eruptions in July 1995, accounted for more than 20 lives and massive destruction of property, including the Montserrat capital, Plymouth. With the southern and central areas being declared unsafe for living, most of the island's residents have since evacuated to the north where housing and other facilities are now being put in place to accommodate the population.

CARICOM Secretary-General Mr Edwin Carrington, who is accompanying Prime Minister Panday to Montserrat, said on Tuesday that this project truly epitomises the Community spirit. He also praised the contribution of Cuba in the establishment of the Village.

He was also appreciative of the contribution of the Caribbean Disaster Emergency Relief Agency (CDERA), which was assigned the responsibility to coordinate the effort to ensure that the project came to fruition, and the Caribbean Development Bank (CDB) which assisted in providing financing for the project.

The hand over ceremony for the houses, which were completed in October, will take place at 2 p.m on Wednesday December 29, and will be witnessed also by a representative of the Government of Barbados and by Mr Jeremy Collymore, Executive Co-ordinator of CDERA.

Wednesday's ceremony follows a similar visit made last year by the Prime Minister of Antigua and Barbuda, the Hon. Lester Bird and the Secretary-General to help bring Christmas cheer to the residents of Montserrat. The Chairman and the Secretary-General will meet with the Governor of Montserrat, His Excellency Anthony Abbott, shortly after their arrival, following which they will also meet with Chief Minister Brandt.

The Prime Minister returns to Trinidad and Tobago on Wednesday evening.