St. Benedict’s receive steel pans a drum set

THE ACTIONS of the United States of America (USA) on countries like Venezuela, continue to impact initiatives in St Vincent and the Grenadines (SVG), among them, the Pan Against Crime Initiative.

However, despite the Pan Against Crime initiative losing its main funder- Petrocaribe- the government said it is continuing to push the 16-year-old crime fighting programme that has help to spur a rebirth in the pan culture in SVG.

On Friday, October 17, 2025, at the St Benedict’s Day Nursery and Children’s Home in Georgetown, Prime Minister Dr. Ralph Gonsalves, who was on hand to hand over steel pans and a drum set to the institution, said the pans are expensive and Petrocaribe does not have a lot of money these days, particularly since the US has placed sanctions on Venezuela, and the trade in oil has slowed significantly.

Dr. Gonsalves said that he has told the permanent secretary in the Ministry of National Security, Louanne Thomas, to make sure that the Pan Against Crime initiative continues to be funded by the government itself and that is being done through money from the Budget.

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