CARICOM cherishes Haiti’s membership – Secretary-General on its 213th Independence Anniversary.
CARICOM Secretary-General Ambassador Irwin LaRocque has congratulated Haiti on its 213th anniversary as an Independent nation, saying the country’s liberation was a catalyst for independence for other countries in Latin America and later, of the Caribbean.
Haiti gained its independence on 1 January 1804 after a hard fought anti-slavery and anti-colonial battle against the French colonisers. It became a member of the Caribbean Community (CARICOM) on 1 July 2002.
The Caribbean Community cherishes Haiti’s membership, the Secretary-General said in his congratulatory message to the country’s Provisional H.E. Jocelerme Privert.
New Year Message 2017 From His Excellency the Governor-General The Most Hon. Sir Patrick Allen.
My fellow Jamaicans:
Happy New Year! 2017 is the year when our country celebrates 55 years of nationhood.
We stand today at a place, when the challenges and sacrifices of the recent years, have given us the confidence to achieve the goals of our national development plan. Believing We ‘Can’ Achieve
We have every reason to believe, that the promise of the future cannot be undone by the difficulties of the present, because we are a resilient, creative and proud people, who have shown the world that we can do great things. I believe that at the heart of our success lies the willingness to confront the social and attitudinal shortcomings, which stand in the way of more rapid progress than we have seen. But we need to:
focus our efforts on cultivating and strengthening a kinder, gentler society which reflects the best of our traditions
to constantly show consideration for others, especially the most vulnerable
to value discipline ahead of personal ease and convenience, and
to understand that we must work hard for what we need.
Focus on Building Stronger Relationships
In the year ahead, we will no doubt still be affected by the tensions and uncertainties in the wider community of nations.
But our primary focus must be to address within our homes, communities and institutions, those issues which give us the greatest chance of improving our quality of life in this Jamaican space which we are privileged to own.
We acknowledge the roles of our leaders in institutions, in business and in local and national government, and we have a responsibility to support them.
We can do this best by ensuring that:
there is free, frank and respectful communication in both directions
we must listen to each other, and
be guided by what is best for our nation as a whole and for the future generation of Jamaicans.
Lady Allen joins me in wishing for you all a peaceful, productive and prosperous New Year.
May God bless us all and bless Jamaica, land and people we love.
New year’s message from the Chairman of the Caribbean Community (CARICOM) His Excellency David Granger, President of The Co-operative Republic of Guyana.
I extend to all best wishes for a bright, prosperous and productive New Year as we enter 2017, the Forty-Fourth Year of our Community.
This year marks the mid-point of our Five-Year Strategic Plan for the period 2015-2019, a foundational element in the Community’s Reform Process. That process is geared towards ensuring that our people feel the impact of the integration movement in their daily lives. Integration is not merely about systems and institutions. It is mostly about people.
It is in the interest of developing our people that we are taking steps to ensure that they are fully equipped to address the requirements of the 21st Century economy and society. Our Commission on Human Resource Development is developing a Regional Education and Human Resource Strategy with special attention to ICT in Education and Human Resource Development.
Convinced as we are that the CARICOM Single Market and Economy (CSME) is the vehicle through which we can achieve the growth and development, timely assessments will serve to ensure that we maximise its benefits for our citizens. Notwithstanding the substantial progress that has been made, Heads of Government will review its operations and identify ways to improve its delivery.
Our nations are well endowed with the requirements for pursuing a Green Economy including sources of renewable energy and forests that harbor a significant amount of carbon. As noted by the Rio+20 United Nations Conference on Sustainable Development, “the green economy can be seen as a lens for focusing on and seizing opportunities to advance economic and environmental goals simultaneously”.
The effects of climate change continue to bedevil our countries as exemplified by Hurricane Matthew. The need to conserve and protect our environment, therefore, becomes even more pressing. Such actions will also give us the opportunity to leverage the abundant forests and wetlands as well as the marine resources with which our Region is blessed and utilize them creatively to launch new pathways to social and economic development. This can be accomplished while ensuring that we help in the global commitment to limit the rise in global temperature to below 1.5 degrees.
The people of this Region have also made a considerable contribution to the global community in the sphere of culture. Later this year, our premier cultural exposition, the Caribbean Festival of the Arts (CARIFESTA), will be held in Barbados. The 13th edition of this grand festival, bringing together the peoples of CARICOM as well as the wider Caribbean, will take place under the theme ‘Asserting our Culture: Celebrating Ourselves.’ We certainly look forward to widespread participation to make the event a tremendous success.
The safety and security of our people and the Region is of paramount importance. As we move forward with implementing a regional Crime and Security Strategy, we will be building on the platform already established by concluding legal agreements with respect to Arrest Warrants and Asset Forfeiture, for example.
As Guyana assumes the Chair of CARICOM, I would like to thank the Honourable Roosevelt Skerrit, the Prime Minister of Dominica for his able leadership of the Community for the past six months. As I receive this baton, I will continue to guide our Community in the path of sustainable development which serves the interest of all its people.
2017 holds great promise for us to advance our integration process which can only be possible through the involvement and participation of all. Let us resolve to play our part in strengthening our Caribbean Community and to making regional unity a living, breathing experience.
Let that be one of our main resolutions as we celebrate the incoming year with family and friends and strive to make it a happy and prosperous 2017.
Once again a Happy New Year to all.
Christmas Message 2016 by Governor General of Barbados, H.E Sir Elliott Belgrave GCMG, KA
Fellow Barbadians at home and overseas, residents and visitors to our shores, it is a pleasure for me to address you at this time, as Christians around the World celebrate the birth of Christ, who we believe was born on 25th December thousands of years ago.
The story surrounding the birth of the infant Jesus in a manger in Bethlehem is well known. Jesus was born into a humble and devout family. Mary and Joseph accepted the word of the Arch Angel Gabriel that the child in Mary’s womb was the Son of God, and they raised him with love and care bringing up their son as all good parents do.
It was only when Jesus became a man and began to preach the gospel that the people began to come out in their numbers to see and hear him, and to marvel at his works. He performed several miracles. At this time we celebrate his birth and the selflessness and devotion of his parents who nurtured him to adulthood from the most inauspicious of beginnings.
Christmas is traditionally a time to make merry, rejoice, reflect on the events of the first Christmas and contemplate the New Year with a view to anticipating what the future holds for us. This year has not been without its challenges for many families in Barbados, especially those in Northern Parishes who experience great difficulties in getting water.
Serious efforts have been made by the Water Authority to relieve the problems with varying degrees of success. We experienced a severe drought in the country which has affected livestock and poultry adversely. The dry spell was happily broken when the Tropical Storm Mathew passed some distance away from the island. The rains came and brought much relief to Barbadians.
Just before independence there was another more serious deluge, heavier than anything we have seen for many a year – many homes and businesses were flooded. Thankfully no lives were lost. I hope that as we celebrate Christmas those who suffered most at this time have been able to recover from this unexpected setback, so they can enjoy the season in some comfort.
Events like these test our resilience and our ability to help each other and ourselves. Our emergency services and caring professions, deserve our especial gratitude for all that they do at times like this, to help people get back on their feet. Many charitable organisations and businesses also offer assistance in times of national crisis.
I am happy to state that there are signs that our economy, which was under pressure for some time now is beginning to improve. The forecast is that it will grow this year. Like last year our Tourism Industry continues to do well. It is my hope that conditions will improve further as the building industry picks up.
This year Barbados celebrates its Golden Jubilee of Independence. These celebrations climaxed on the 30th November. Many Barbadians from overseas and visitors were in Barbados at the time. A wonderful time was had by all. I was pleased to see the pride all Barbadians took in our achievements over the last five decades and I hope that together we can redouble our efforts to ensure that the next fifty years build on the legacy.
We were happy to host Prince Henry of Wales who was in Barbados for the celebrations to represent Her Majesty the Queen, who sent a message of congratulations to the Government and people of Barbados. Although the torrential downpours affected the schedule of events, all were successfully concluded. We should express our thanks to the organizing committee and their support staff for the hard work and organization which underpinned all the varied and imaginative events held throughout the year.
Who can forget the celebration of our seven Prime Ministers, the Reveal or the human chain link around the island? We were especially fortunate to be joined by the President of Guyana and ministers from other CARICOM countries such as the Bahamas who travelled to celebrate with us.
We in the Caribbean have strong bonds of culture, people and common heritage and through the turbulent times ahead, we must learn to pull together for the common good. We remember at this time countries like Haiti, who seem sometimes to suffer more than their fair share of natural and man-made disasters. We continue to assist our sister nations in the region in times of difficulty as readily as we celebrate with them their achievements.
The year was again very busy at Government House, as I resumed my visits to the primary schools, where I met principals, teachers and students. I hope the children enjoyed these visits as much as I have. I have now visited all the primary schools and I hope that our young children learn to aim high and work hard to achieve their dreams.
My visits to the homes of centenarians in Barbados have continued unabated, and it is always wonderful to hear their life stories as each has lived through momentous times in our island’s history. The young and the old have much to teach us in their enthusiasm, resilience and zest for life.
At the invitation of Her Majesty the Queen, my wife and I attended Her Majesty’s 90thBirthday Thanksgiving Service at St. Paul’s Cathedral, London in June. We had a wonderful time. All the Governors-General from the Commonwealth countries were invited. Several of them attended. This provided me with an opportunity to meet many of them for the first time.
Internationally, 2016 has seen profound and sometimes surprising changes, which will affect us here in Barbados and in the region. Many may be worried as to what economic and political effects these will have on the region. Our politicians and public servants will devote a considerable amount of time in seeking to anticipate and prepare for the effects of these changes.
We as private citizens need to pay attention to what is happening around us, and remember that what we have in common is greater than what divides us. Our multicultural and multiracial societies can remain a beacon in troubled times of how societies can live in harmony.
The independent nations of the Caribbean will have to monitor these proceedings carefully, and seek to devise strategies which are fashioned to represent the interests of the people of the Caribbean remembering that we derive strength from unity.
Barbadians enjoyed the Olympic Games which were held this year in Brazil. We fielded a good team whose members gave of their best although they did not win any medals. We congratulate our sister CARICOM countries on their successes. I wish to place on record my deep appreciation to our athletes for their gallant efforts. I think that Miss Akela Jones stood out and has a great future ahead of her.
Now that the celebrations for our 50th Anniversary of Independence are behind us, my wife and I are looking forward with great anticipation to Christmas, when our daughter Susan and the children will be with us. As we seek to celebrate the birth of Christ, we should also rededicate ourselves to the virtues of family life, humility, faith and love. The message of peace and good will towards all people is a universal one, which is shared by all peoples wherever they may live and whatever may be their circumstances.
I regard it as a high honour and great privilege to be the Governor-General of our great country at this momentous and historic period in its development. I have endeavored always to seek to render service of the highest order. I shall be eternally grateful for the opportunity to serve my country at this level. I wish to thank all my fellow Barbadians for the loyalty and support shown to me and my family during my tenure as Governor-General.
It is my hope that this Christmas season will bring greater peace, less violence and less crime. That it will bring happiness, prosperity and good health to Barbadians, residents and visitors alike.
Fellow Barbadians at home and overseas, residents and visitors, on behalf of my wife and family, and on my own behalf, I extend to you very best wishes for Christmas and the New Year. May Almighty God continue to guide us. May He continue to shower His blessings upon Barbados and its people now and always. To download of copy of the Governor General’s 2016 Christmas message, you may click here.
Statement by the OECS Director General on the passing of Sir K. Dwight Venner.
The Organisation of Eastern Caribbean States (OECS) mourns the passing of a great son of the Caribbean, Sir K. Dwight Venner.
Sir Dwight was the longest serving Governor of the Eastern Caribbean Central Bank (ECCB) which, under his distinguished stewardship, was recognised as a world-class institution.
OECS Director General, Dr. Didacus Jules, reflected on Sir Dwight’s dedicated service and invaluable contributions to the region.
“His was one of the loudest and most articulate voices speaking out for regional integration; his passion for the region was an affirming flame that provided light even in the darkest moments.”
“Even as we mourn his passing, we celebrate the narrative of his life and accomplishments,” Dr. Jules said.
The Commission extends its deepest sympathy to his wife, Lady Lynda, and his entire family.
A rural school in Jamaica, built 80 years ago, will receive its first upgrade thanks to a grant of USD430,113 from the Caribbean Development Bank through its Basic Needs Trust Fund (BNTF). Ground was broken on December 20, to begin rehabilitation work on the Browns Hall Primary School in St. Catherine.
Browns Hall Primary was constructed in 1936, and because there have been no significant upgrades since its construction, the facility has been rendered unsuitable to deliver quality education due to the age and configurations of the existing buildings.
The school currently has a population of 310 students and 13 teachers.
The sub-project is estimated to cost a total of USD 452,750, to which the Government of Jamaica will contribute USD22,637. It will improve the quality of the existing infrastructure and provide additional facilities, thereby creating additional space and improved security.
Works will include:
Rehabilitation of the three existing classroom blocks to facilitate 12 classrooms
Rehabilitation of the administrative area to house the principal’s office, staff room, guidance counselling room, sick bay and washroom facilities;
Construction of a new block containing a kitchen, washroom, and tuck shop;
Installation of 304 m of new perimeter fencing;
Construction of a new multi-purpose court; and
Construction of driveway and parking area.
The Jamaica Social Investment Fund (JSIF) is the BNTF’s partner organization in Jamaica and is the implementing agency on the sub-project. It will be funded under the seventh cycle of BNTF, which focuses on three key sectors: education and human resources development, basic community access and drainage improvement, and water and sanitation systems enhancement.
BRIDGETOWN, Barbados, 16 December 2016 (CRFM)— There is still a long way to go but experts meeting here Thursday expressed optimism that slow but steady progress was being made toward introducing region-wide laws, rules and regulations intended to make Caribbean fish and seafood not only ready for world trade but safe for Caribbean tables.
The experts, drawn from fisheries, legal affairs, food health and safety and standards agencies across ten countries in the Caribbean Forum of ACP States (CARIFORUM), ended two days of deliberations on model legislation, protocols and guidelines for health and food safety related to fisheries and aquaculture.
“Still a long way to go but making progress,” said Executive Director of the Caribbean Regional Fisheries Mechanism (CRFM) Milton Haughton at the workshop at the Accra Beach Hotel.
Haughton said that following the workshop the draft model legislation is to be reviewed, and followed by another round of consultations held with stakeholders and a legal team before it can be finalised and submitted to regional policy-makers for consideration.
While not offering a timeline for the implementation of the legislation he stressed that improved standards and systems for sanitary and phytosanitary standards (SPS) in fisheries are critical to the region socially and economically.
“We will reap good economic benefits when we have stronger systems that will assure, just not the safety but the quality of the products that we want to export. We will be able to access markets, international markets that we are not now able to access ,” Haughton said.
The CRFM said the region’s export trade in fish and seafood trade earns about 315 million US dollars annually – a business that could boom or bust depending on how the region meets the global challenge of SPS standards.
British legal expert Chris Hedley, the project’s lead consultant, said the greatest challenge in drafting the legislation was making it nimble enough to adapt to rules and regulations which are frequently changing in the European Union.
Hedley cautioned that the United Kingdom following Brexit may soon be introducing its own standards as well.
“It is about trying to identify what things change all the time and try to make sure there is a flexible methodology as it were for updating those and making sure we make it as user friendly as possible for the government trying to implement these rules,” Hedley said.
After final consultation and approval by the Belize-based CRFM, the region’s fisheries agency, the model laws and policies will then be recommended to CARICOM’s Council for Trade Economic Development (COTED), the regional bloc’s forum of trade ministers, as well as other CARICOM bodies.
The model fisheries and aquaculture SPS legislation would have to be enacted in each exporting nation. During the 18-month-old project, the model legislation has been developed in consultation with policymakers, fisherfolk, processors and other industry players.
Experts said the countdown is on towards the end of voluntary compliance with EU food safety standards, considered among the toughest in the world. Failure to meet EU standards would block CARIFORUM countries from tapping into niche markets overseas and boosting foreign exchange earnings, they stressed.
Investigations by the consultants on the project have exposed large gaps in legally binding protocols managing food safety throughout the region.
The experts found barriers to trade of fish and fisheries products due to inadequate SPS standards; minimal legislative standards for aquaculture; concern about food security and decreasing use of local, fresh seafood – the solution for which improved SPS support is an essential component, the CRFM said.
The two-day meeting was the high point of a European Union-funded project to help CARIFORUM countries introduce laws, regulations and a governance system to guarantee safe seafood for export to EU markets and beyond.
The project, which is being carried out by the Belize-based CRFM and supported by the Inter-American Institute for Cooperation in Agriculture (IICA), aims to ramp up food safety standards to enable CARIFORUM fish exporters to take up trading opportunities under the EU Economic Partnership Agreement (EPA). The project is financed under the EU’s 10th European Development Fund (EDF) Sanitary and Phytosanitary Measures Project.
ANTIGUA & BARBUDA: The Department of Social Policy, Research and Planning, within the Ministry of Social Transformation and Human Resource Development is organizing this UNICEF Slogan Competition and Logo Competition to involve all of the nation’s youths, from Kindergarten to Grade 12.
The competitions are being co-ordinated under the UNICEF-funded Integrated Social Protection Systems Project and will focus on the selection of slogans and logos to highlight Social Protection, Investment in Children and an End to Poverty.
The Slogan and Logo Competitions will provide an opportunity to get the youths further involved in our country’s development by creating slogans and logos that will inform the public about Social Protection Resources in our community and any recourse which may be available to those who are poor and vulnerable so that there will be an end to hunger and lack of security for all in our communities.”
Update on UNICEF Logo & Slogan Competition:
Department of social policy, planning and research gets new slogan, logo as competition winners are announced.
“Helping the child, the youth and the elderly: Social services for everybody” is the winning slogan for the Department of Social Policy, Planning and Research’s recent slogan and logo competition.
Raevani Baptiste, a student from the Clare Hall Secondary School, submitted the winning entry and won an Ipad Air as his main prize. He was among 63 participants in the competition.
The adjudicators from the National Social Protection Commission believe the winning slogan highlighted the major points of social protection. The slogan will be used on all correspondence for a UNICEF-funded project aimed at repealing the Poor Relief Act of 1961 and introducing a National Social Protection legislation that would highlight a more streamlined process to accessing social protection programmes.
Cajonee Thomas, from the Villa Primary School, was the first place primary school winner. He received a Samsung Galaxy tablet. Two other students from Villa Primary, Amiah Hazelwood and Sade Francis, copped second and third places respectively and each received a Lenovo tablet. The school also received a trophy for having the most entries, which amounted to 62.
No winner was announced for the logo competition as the entries did not meet the criteria however the 13 participants were each presented with a gift.
Meanwhile, a raffle was also held and Yvonne Hill, Kelvin Jones and Joann Carr-King were the first, second and third place winners respectively.
Hill won a cellphone, Jones received a gift basket from Gourmet Basket and Carr-King was presented with a 150 dollar gift certificate from Everyday Ready Service Station on Independence Drive. Update source: https://antiguachronicle.net
The new Permanent Representative of Saint Lucia to the Organization of American States (OAS), Anton E. Edmunds, today presented his credentials to the Secretary General of the OAS, Luis Almagro, in a ceremony at the headquarters of the Organization in Washington DC.
During his speech, Ambassador Edmunds highlighted the issues of democracy and sustainable development as key for the region, as well as the unique role the OAS is meant to play. “We must continue to be an Organization representative of all of the peoples in our hemisphere, it is critical. It is what our legitimacy is based upon. And ultimately it is within this framework that Saint Lucia wishes to continue to play a proactive and a forward-leaning role in terms of the Organization and the work that the organization does.”
In welcoming the representative of Saint Lucia, the Secretary General highlighted his experience in the public and private sector as well as his connections to the business and diplomatic community in Washington and in the region. “I have no doubt you will apply your expertise and connections in support of the work of the OAS and in helping the Organization to address the challenges facing its member states,” he said.
