SINT MAARTEN (CAPTAIN HODGE WHARF) — On Friday, January 9, 2026, His Excellency Governor Ajamu G. Baly hosted the 2026 New Year’s Reception and delivered an address reflecting on unity, civic responsibility, and the future of Sint Maarten. Please see below for the address Governor Baly delivered.
Establish protocol;
Honorable President of Parliament; Honorable Prime Minister; Honorable President of the Collectivity of Saint Martin; Honorable Members of Parliament; Members of the High Councils of State; Honorable members of the Council of Ministers; Vice-President of the Joint Court of Justice; Commander of the Marines detachment on Sint. Maarten; Representative of the Dutch Government; Distinguished guests ladies and gentlemen;
Good evening.
On behalf of my wife Janique, our family and I Happy, safe and prosperous New Year and thank you for being here with us this evening. We truly appreciate it.
If we truly intend on making this new year happy, safe and prosperous it is going to take intentional action from all of us. We, you and I, all of us need to be the change in society that we want to see. Those from here, those born here, those born to be here and those who happen to be here for now. This also includes those on the outside looking in, whether with the hope to one day return or with the hope to see the island return to its glory as an island paradise where the people living here, not just the visitors, also experience the island as paradise.
As citizens we have rights, but we also have obligations, civic participation is not optional it is an obligation. Citizenship is participatory. We have to be involved, we have to be active members of our community. And that does not mean only pointing out what is wrong or what could be better, but also actually coming up with and being part of the solution. Criticism is good, but constructive criticism is better.
Civic participation, staying informed and engaging with government, it’s a two-way street. We need to not view St. Maarten as a separate entity, apart from ourselves. We are St. Maarten. So, if we want to see better for St. Maarten, we have to be better. All of us as individuals make up the whole that is St. Maarten. We have to be cognizant of the fact that we all are connected, and all our actions reflect on one another and has an effect on the community as a whole.
Whether one might like it or not, we all are part and parcel of this country we live in. And as much as one might criticize and say them and they, the reality is it is we and us. All of us need to take ownership of country St. Maarten. We must also be aware of our limitations. We are after all an island and can physically do only so much and go so far. This on the other hand should not discourage us in our aspirations for greatness and excellence. We need to strive for the best of what we have in us. That means bringing the best out of ourselves and our fellow citizens.
But we do not have to do this on our own, as a country we should seek the support of our allies. Part of this awareness is us acknowledging and making use of the ability and possibility to work together, not only on island with our sisters and brothers in the North, but in the region, in the kingdom and with partners where there is mutual benefit for all involved.
The imperative here is vision. There must be vision in order to take us safely into the new year and into the future. We need to ensure that the underlying policy of that vision is data driven. Acting in line with the vision is also a necessity. So to be clear, I am talking about long term strategic and intentional planning for future generations by setting long term objectives and goals. Just as the challenges and benefits we face and have respectively today, are a result of the decisions and accomplishments of those that came before us. We need to plan now so that the children and grandchildren of this nation can reap the fruits of our labour in years to come.
In closing, with the current state of our world today one can see how important it is to speak truth to power and how dangerous it is when we do not. The powers that be are jostling and jockeying for position. There is an African proverb that says, when elephants fight, it is the grass that gets hurt.
We as a small island developing state (SIDS) are the grass. As the global order positions itself for a shift, we need to position ourselves for an unpredictable future by working towards becoming more self reliant and where possible, self sufficient and wean ourselves off of the dependency of imports, first and foremost as it relates to fuel.
Making us less vulnerable to external shocks such as supply chain disruptions and high costs. The need for us to transition to renewable energy, become less dependent on fossil fuels and become energy independent, is even more urgent and pressing than before in our current geopolitical landscape. It is of the utmost importance that we take these steps sooner rather than later, for our future sustainability and prosperity.
In this day and age of technological advancements, we have no excuse not to benefit from those advancements in order to better our lives. As a SIDS nation we have always been confined by our limited capacity, space and natural resources as it pertains to the industrial revolutions of the past.
The current industrial revolution, which is the 4th, is mainly in the digital space allowing SIDS, for the first time to compete in and take advantage of the benefits the fourth industrial revolution brings with it such as interconnected systems, cloud services, digital transformation of industries and services, big data and improvements in renewable energy.
All this without negatively affecting our natural environment. Also noteworthy in this regard are the possibilities and our potential in the area of financial technology. Our status as SIDS nation does not form a limitation in the age of AI and digital advancement. Capitalizing on this opportunity in this new year could be a step in the right direction towards improving the prosperity and well-being of our people.
In this new year, we as leaders and most importantly as public servants, need to lead the way with intentional action in order to inspire and exemplify the governance and servant leadership that places the common good of the people before personal and all other interests. Then and only then can we speak of and more importantly be the change in society that we want to see. Happy, safe and prosperous New Year to you and your families God bless you and your families and God bless sweet St. Maarten land.
