‘We are doing very well' despite all the global challenges- Premier Wheatley
“We are doing very well as a territory despite all of the global challenges and pressures that we face,” the Premier said on Talking Points on ZBVI 780 AM on Monday, July 20, 2026. He added: “I think the greatest challenge we have is belief in ourselves, and a lot of times, you know, we are, I would say, unaware of the blessing that it is to live in the Virgin Islands versus living in a lot of other places in the world. We certainly take that for granted.”
Tourism numbers soaring
Premier Wheatley stated that the Virgin Islands’ current tourism numbers underscore the territory’s recovery, stating that visitor arrivals reached roughly 800,000 to 850,000 over the past six months, figures he described as “almost equivalent” to the total arrivals the territory recorded in 2019, before the pandemic.
“The Virgin Islands is a great place to be able to live, a great place to be able to do business, a great place to visit,” he said. “While we have challenges, just like any other country in the world, we just have to be cognizant of the fact that we're not doing as badly as some may have you think, and the challenge for us is unity.”
VI can reach its true potential through unity- Premier
Despite the positive indicators, the Premier identified unity as the territory’s main challenge and appealed for unity across the Virgin Islands’ diverse population, calling on leaders and public figures to promote togetherness rather than division.
“We have people who come from many different places in the world, different backgrounds, different religions, different races, but we all must be united by a common love for the Virgin Islands. We need persons and public figures and persons who have a platform to promote unity more than division.”
The Premier cited countries such as the United States and the United Kingdom, where deep divisions exist, arguing that this has hindered national progress.
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16 Responses to “‘We are doing very well' despite all the global challenges- Premier Wheatley ”
We are unified in knowing once you are gone things will get better.
We can stop only thinking only of Independence and how to get hold of money (to distribute to buddies) through the SECRET airport project.
Be sure the people are unified.