Regional countries urged to make full use of alternative or renewable energy in economic growth
The seventh Annual Caribbean Sustainable Energy Forum 2021 began here on Monday against the backdrop that sustainable development for the region whether utilising alternative or renewable energy must now be at the forefront of the process of transformation of Caribbean economies.
The forum is part of Caribbean Community (CARICOM) Energy Month is being observed under the theme “From Dependence to Resilience: Fuelling Our Recovery with Sustainable Energy”.
Delivering the feature address at the event, Barbados’ Energy, Small Business and Entrepreneurship Minister, Kerrie Symmonds, said this transformation would only occur through a revolution of the region’s energy sector.
‘Our small open and vulnerable economies are particularly sensitive to the disequilibrium caused by the impact of rising global temperatures. This coupled with our geographic disposition of being exposed to sudden and disastrous…shocks including natural disasters places us all on the front line in the fight against climate change.”
Symmonds said equally significant perhaps is the fact that the region is also vulnerable “to the wavering international financial commitments for the mitigation and adaptation strategies which the world must adopt”
He said these strategies are necessary for the region’s protection and “for the very way of life to which we have become accustomed”
He said at the recent United Nations Climate Change Conference (COP 26) held in Glasgow, the Barbados prime Minister Mia Mottley, was given a platform to speak on behalf of small countries and those most vulnerable to the effects of the climate crisis.
Symmonds said Mottley, who was originally scheduled to deliver the feature address at the opening ceremony here, was able to highlight some of the major issues affecting small island developing states (SIDS).
He told the energy conference here of Barbados’ plans to further develop its energy sector bearing in mind the effects on climate change and noted that the failure of the international community to provide financing for mitigation and adaptation will be measures in countries like Barbados and other regional countries “in terms of life and in terms of livelihoods.
Symmonds said he wanted to impress upon delegates attending the Energy Forum the timeliness of this initiative, recalling that at the last gathering in Belize in 2018 “the conversation at the time focussed on a need for not only clean energy but also turned on good governance and on sound regulations.
“Barbados shortly thereafter in 2019 committed to a full transformation of our energy sector by the year 2030. We acknowledged at that time that regulations and good government would be critical. But in that same year climate finance internationally available declined by a sum of 25 per cent.
“So though we continue to speak of sustainable energy with great conviction…we say so knowing full well that our existence, in fact our very survival requires nothing less than draconian do or die approaches in order to achieve this target”.
Symmonds said the Caribbean Community (CARICOM) energy programme has been leading “from the front with their continuous and unstinting effort to carter specifically to the betterment of all the countries that it represents.
“We are guided as a region by the principles of the CARICOM Energy policy which was developed to coordinate, expedite the increased use of renewable energy and energy deficiency,” he said, adding that this promotes among other things a coordinated approach to exploring and establishing an institutional framework for leveraging financial mechanisms for the development of viable energy sources.
But Symmonds said that the region must also be cognisant that of the commitments in the Caribbean Sustainable Energy Roadmap and Strategy which proposes a set of aggregated regional targets for electrify generation from renewable energy sources in the amount of 47 per cent by the year 2027.
“We must therefore urge that each member state now explore and exploit the available renewable options unique to each of our own countries. I will be the first to acknowledge that it has been difficult in the recent times to align the needs of the many so as to achieve the objectives of the CARICOM Energy Policy with respect to the leveraging of financing”.
The Barbados minister said it is in this regard he believes that concerted approaches, such as the high level meeting on energy finance between CARICOM and its international development partners, which sought to bring together the region as a lobbying body and present a portfolio of priority initiatives, programmes projects and activities all on the basis of a CARICOM wide proposal can do much to raise international awareness of the needs of the region.
“This approach, led by CARICOM, saw the region compiling a proposal of US$25 million for technical assistance in order to address existing barriers to the uptake of renewable energy and then investment package of US$5.1 billion for regional level and entry level investments intended to explore and exploit cost effective indigenous sources of renewable energy options and to diversify our fuel supply matrix, improve the efficiency in which energy is produced, delivered and consumed and to modernise our electricity grids and other energy infrastructure”.
But Symmonds said the region must also remember that ‘while there is a plethora of project plans currently existing in this region there is a large disconnect between the sustainable energy projects being conceptualised and the volume of untapped capital which is available”.
Source-CMC
U.S COVID-19 Entry Requirement: RESIDENTS TO SHOW PROOF OF VACCINATION E-CERTIFICATE PRIOR TO ENTRY
The Ministry of Tourism wishes to update the travelling public of the CDC guideline of Acceptable Proof of COVID-19 Vaccination. In accordance with the guideline, all residents must show proof of Vaccination E-Certificate prior to entry, either in print or on digital display for verification. Failure to present E-Certificate will result in denial of boarding etchings.
The QR code on the E-Vaccination Certificate contains information confirming your credentials was generated from an immunization record in an official database and is protected from tampering. These credentials include date of birth, vaccination dates and type of vaccine administered. Thus, If your vaccination card does not have your date of birth or other identifying besides your name you may be barred from boarding.
The Ministry of Tourism advises all residents to apply to the Ministry of Health, well in advance of travel, to permit receipt of your E-Certificate. Residents can contact the Ministry of Health via email vaccineid@gov.tc or call the COVID-19 hotline (232-9444 or 333-0911) to check on the status of their certificate, update their contact details or speak to a support person.
This is in conjunction to the United States entry requirement that took effect on November 8th, 2021. Which the U.S policy states that all non-US citizens who are non-immigrant (not a U.S. citizen, U.S. national, lawful permanent resident, or traveling to the United States on an immigrant visa), over the age of 18 must show proof of being fully vaccinated for COVID-19 prior to entry; this is in addition to the testing requirement currently in place - which requires travellers to produce a negative COVID-19 test result within three days of travel.
The public is encouraged to take every measure to be protected against COVID-19 and to adhere to the recommendations by the Ministry of Health. The Ministry of Health continues to provide and administer COVID-19 vaccinations to eligible persons, those who are eligible are strongly encouraged to consider being vaccinated.
There are limited exceptions to the entry requirements, travellers are encouraged to visit the CDC website where full details and further information regarding entry requirements can be found:
https://www.cdc.gov/coronavirus/2019-ncov/travelers/proof-of-vaccination.html#vaccine-proof
https://www.cdc.gov/coronavirus/2019-ncov/travelers/testing-international-air-travelers.html
TCI’s 1st-ever certificate of analysis following post-marketing surveillance.
The Pharmacy Unit, Ministry of Health and Human Services (MoHHS) is pleased to report that it is in receipt of the TCI’s 1st-ever certificate of analysis following testing and analysis of medicines utilized within the country. This significant milestone is a result of the partnership formed with the Medicines Quality Control and Surveillance Department (MQCSD) of the Caribbean Public Health Agency (CARPHA) as a part of their risk-based Post-Market Surveillance (PMS) Programme for medicines. The medicine that was tested and analyzed met the required quality standard.
A Certificate of Analysis is a legal document that certifies the quality of a medicine and/or its ingredients known as excipients. The certificate demonstrates that the batch/sample tested meets all the required quality control standards which confirms product quality and safety.
The Pharmacy Unit views this development as a very significant step in strengthening the systems and capacities required to improve the effective monitoring of drug/patient safety. The Unit is committed to ensuring the utilization of good quality, effective, and safe medicines within the TCI. The TCI’s involvement in the PMS Programme will strengthen and continue to support the effectiveness of its medicines regulatory system by:
Providing data and information that will better inform the government on the appropriate and effective regulatory actions and strategies to implement (that will improve the availability of safe and essential good quality medicines), and
Identifying in a timely manner, possible substandard and falsified products/medicines on the TCI market.
The MoHHS notes that it is essential to improve fair access to safe quality medicines which are hallmarks of effective disease management/treatment and will continue to actively monitor and regulate all medicines used within the TCI. The MoHHS is committed to patient safety and anticipates that this will positively impact the health and wellbeing of all TCI residents.
In light of this initiative, the MoHHS is also encouraging persons to report any adverse events - suffered from the use of medicines - via the MoHHS' Adverse Drug Reaction Form found at https://gov.tc/docs/ADR.pdf. Consequently, suspected substandard and or falsified medicines can be flagged for testing and analysis.
BERMUDA Government to press on with cannabis production plan
The Bermuda government says it will press ahead with stalled plans to license cannabis production on the island.
Premier David Burt, who has returned home from an official trip to London, said his administration had “no intention” of tailoring its laws licensing cannabis production to fit with the United Kingdom’s conventions allowing the drug for medicinal use only.
Burt in a statement on Sunday night, said legislation for legal cannabis in Bermuda is set to go before legislators in the current session of parliament.
The statement came after the Premier’s return from the Joint Ministerial Council in London between the UK government and elected heads of Britain’s Overseas Territories
A question mark hung over the cannabis legislation, passed by the House of Assembly but turned back by the Senate in the last parliamentary session, as to whether it would receive the royal assent from Governor Rena Lalgie.
The government, which holds a commanding 24-seat majority in the House, conceded in February that Bermuda’s plans for legalised cannabis went beyond the limits of international conventions on the drug, which Britain upholds.
The legislation does not conform to the UK international obligations under the Single Convention on Narcotics Drugs of 1961.
Burt’s remarks followed his meeting with Amanda Milling, the Minister of State for the Overseas Territories.
“It was critical to make it clear that there is no intention by the government of Bermuda to amend the current legislation to conform to the 60-year-old convention that allows cannabis supply for medicinal purposes only.
“Many countries, such as Canada, that allow regulated supply of cannabis for non-medicinal purposes, are signatories to that convention.
“The overall intent of the legislation is clear, and it enjoys the support of the Bermuda electorate, which was confirmed at the last general election,” Burt said, adding “the government is undeterred in advancing the bill through the legislature again this year.”
Burt said that once the legislation was passed in the House, the government’s “expectation” was for permission to be granted by the Foreign Secretary for the Governor’s assent to the legislation.
“Through the Home Office, Bermuda and the UK government have agreed to accelerate discussions at the official level to ensure that the will of the Bermudian electorate as expressed through their democratically elected representatives is respected.”
Burt has previously stated that failure to give assent to the cannabis legislation would “destroy the relationship that we have” with the UK.
The sweeping reforms under the Cannabis Licensing Act would legalise the drug recreationally and create a regulated business framework for its sale and use.
Source-CMC
3-DAY PUBLIC FORECAST
GENERAL SITUATION: A PERSISTENT PRE-FRONTAL TROUGH LINGERING ACROSS THE AREA, COUPLED WITH DEEP TROPICAL MOISTURE, WILL CONTINUE TO TRIGGER BOUTS OF ACTIVE WEATHER AND FRESH WINDS OVER PORTIONS OF THE NORTHWEST BAHAMAS. MEANWHILE, HIGH PRESSURE WILL CONTINUE TO DOMINATE ELSEWHERE THROUGH TONIGHT.
SPECIAL WARNINGS: BOATERS IN THE EXTREME NORTHWEST BAHAMAS SHOULD REMAIN VIGILANT DUE TO THE RISK OF POSSIBLE WATERSPOUT ACTIVITY. BEACHGOERS SHOULD REFRAIN FROM ENTERING WATERS ALONG NORTHERN EXPOSED SHORELINES DUE TO SWELLS, HIGH SEAS AND ROUGH SURF. DRIVERS AND PEDESTRIANS IN THE EXTREME NORTHWEST BAHAMAS SHOULD TAKE SPECIAL CARE WHILE TRAVELLING ALONG COASTAL ROADS, ESPECIALLY THE FISHING HOLE ROAD IN GRAND BAHAMA.
AREA: FOR THE EXTREME NORTHWEST BAHAMAS:
WEATHER: CLOUDY TO OVERCAST AND WINDY WITH WIDELY SCATTERED SHOWERS AND ISOLATED THUNDERSTORMS THROUGH TONIGHT. SHOWERS MAY BE LOCALLY HEAVY AND THUNDERSTORMS, STRONG TO SEVERE AT TIMES.
ADVISORY: A SMALL CRAFT ADVISORY IS IN EFFECT. EXPECT GUSTY WINDS AND HIGHER SEAS IN OR NEAR HEAVY SHOWERS AND THUNDERSTORMS.
WINDS: NORTHEAST TO EAST AT 20 TO 25 KNOTS BUT GUSTY AT TIMES.
SEAS: 4 TO 6 FEET NEARSHORE, BUILDING 7 TO 10 FEET OVER OPEN WATERS IN MODERATE NORTHERLY SWELLS.
AREA: FOR THE REMAINDER OF THE NORTHWEST, CENTRAL AND SOUTHEAST BAHAMAS:
WEATHER: VARIABLY CLOUDY, VERY WARM AND A BIT BREEZY WITH WIDELY SCATTERED SHOWERS AND THE CHANCE OF ISOLATED THUNDERSTORMS THROUGH TONIGHT.
WINDS: EASTERLY AT 15 KNOTS BUT GUSTY AT TIMES.
SEAS: 3 TO 5 FEET BUT HIGHER IN GUSTS.
SATURDAY’S HIGH TEMPERATURE: 84°F / 29°C
OVERNIGHT LOW TEMPERATURE: 70°F / 21°C
SUNRISE: 6:30 AM
SUNSET: 5:19 PM
MOONSET: 7:32 AM
MOONRISE: 6:20 PM
HIGH TIDE: 8:07 AM
LOW TIDE: 2:36 PM
HIGH TIDE: 8:22 PM
LOW TIDE: 2:22 AM SUN
EXTENDED FORECAST (FOR THE NEXT TWO DAYS): THE PREFRONTAL TROUGH WILL CONTINUE TO LINGER OVER THE NORTHWEST BAHAMAS THROUGH SUNDAY, BEFORE
LIFTING NORTHWARD AHEAD OF ANOTHER COLD FRONT, ANTICIPATED TO MOVE OFF THE NORTHEAST COAST OF FLORIDA ON MONDAY.
FORECAST FOR SUNDAY
WEATHER: CLOUDY, WARM AND BREEZY WITH WIDELY SCATTERED SHOWERS AND ISOLATED THUNDERSTORMS IN THE NORTHWEST BAHAMAS. PARTLY CLOUDY WITH
ISOLATED SHOWERS AND THE CHANCE OF AN ISOLATED THUNDERSTORM OVER THE CENTRAL AND SOUTHEAST BAHAMAS.
WINDS: EASTERLY AT 15 TO 20 KNOTS IN THE NORTHWEST BAHAMAS AND 10 TO 15 KNOTS IN THE CENTRAL AND SOUTHEAST BAHAMAS.
SEAS: 5 TO 8 FEET IN NORTHEASTERLY SWELLS IN THE NORTHWEST BAHAMAS... 3 TO 5 FEET IN NORTHEASTERLY SWELLS ELSEWHERE.
FORECAST FOR MONDAY
WEATHER: VARIABLY CLOUDY WITH WIDELY SCATTERED SHOWERS AND ISOLATED THUNDERSTORMS. BECOMING BREEZY BY MIDDAY IN THE EXTREME NORTHWEST
BAHAMAS.
WINDS: SOUTHEAST TO SOUTH AT 10 KNOTS OR LESS BECOMING WEST TO NORTHWEST AT 15 TO 20 KNOTS IN THE EXTREME NORTHWEST BAHAMAS BY MIDDAY. EAST TO SOUTHEAST AT 10 TO 15 KNOTS, OCCASIONALLY LIGHT AND VARIABLE IN THE CENTRAL AND SOUTHEAST BAHAMAS.
SEAS: 1 TO 3 FEET NEARSHORE BUT UP TO 5 FEET IN EASTERLY SWELLS ALONG ATLANTIC EXPOSED SHORELINES... 2 TO 4 FEET IN THE CENTRAL AND SOUTHEAST BAHAMAS.
TROPICAL WEATHER OUTLOOK: THE TROPICS ARE QUIET AND TROPICAL CYCLONE FORMATION IS NOT EXPECTED DURING THE NEXT FIVE (5) DAYS.
Cardi B teases what to expect when she hosts the AMAs this Sunday
Cardi B is gearing up for Sunday night's American Music Awards and, to hype up her fans, she teased what to expect when she takes the stage as this year's new host.
She tells ABC Audio her goal for the night is to make sure everyone has "a good time."
"I don't really care much about being inspirational," she remarked, even though this is the first time she's ever hosted an awards show. Instead, she wants to bring the "good vibes" because "I like to party!"
"I want to wake people up," Cardi exclaimed, while clapping her hands before promising, "I'm giving you Belcalis," which is her birth name.
Cardi didn't appear all that nervous about the upcoming gig, either, but she did admit there are a few scenarios she wants to avoid. "I just don't want to make a joke and it's, like, crickets," she said. "I don't wanna stutter or say something mean or wrong, you know?"
Several big performances will rock the AMA stage and, when asked which acts she's most excited to see, Cardi shared a laundry list of names, "I wanna see Silk Sonic. I wanna see BTS. I wanna see Megan [Thee Stallion]. I wanna see Chloe [Bailey]. I wanna see my friend, Bad Bunny.... I wanna see everybody!"
The "Up" rapper remained tight-lipped about what else we can expect from Sunday night's show and only teased, "You gotta be tuned in to see!"
The 2021 AMAs air Sunday, November 21 at 8 p.m. ET/PT on ABC.
Source-ABC
The Bahamas lifts travel ban on Haiti and Cuba
The Government of the Bahamas says it has now resumed flights to Haiti and Cuba, thereby lifting the travel ban imposed on both Caribbean nations.
The announcement was made on Friday by the Prime Minister’s Press Secretary, Clint Watson who said the airline Bahamasair, had resumed its flights to Haiti .
“There will be two flights per week, Bahamasair: One to Cap Haitien, which was yesterday, and the other to Port-au-Prince, which will be on Saturday.
There will be four flights to Cuba each week.
The original ban on Haiti in February was explained as a decision to block travelers for three weeks as Haiti celebrated carnival.
At the time, few countries in the region had begun vaccination campaigns.
Prior to the ban, The Bahamas had regular, direct flights to Haiti.
The Bahamas received its first tranche of vaccines in early March, along with many countries in the region.
Haiti was left behind in the global and regional campaign effort.
Haiti did not begin its vaccination campaign until July.
The nation, which has been faced with increasing political and economic strife, has yet to vaccinate more than one percent of its population.
Watson, who was speaking during the weekly press conference, noted that the Bahamas has fully vaccinated over 40 percent of its population in comparison, less than two percent of Haiti’s population has been vaccinated.
Watson also made reference to Jamaica, St. Lucia and St. Vincent and the Grenadines where – according to figures released in October – the vaccination rates are below 20 percent.
Source- CMC
Dominican Republic moves towards deepening ties with Central America
The government of the Dominican Republic has announced plans to deepen its integration with countries in Central America.
The process is the result of two meetings of President Luis Abinader with his counterparts of the Central American region, specifically Costa Rica and Panama, to work together and take advantage of the post-Covid opportunities since investments of US$3 to US$4.5 trillion are expected to be changing the manufacturing base.
Currently, the Dominican Republic is the sixth-largest trading partner of the United States and, together with Panama and Costa Rica, will become the third, with 20 million inhabitants between the three and whose block will only be surpassed by Brazil and Mexico.
The third meeting between the three presidents of the Central American region and the DR will be in the Dominican Republic next December.
On Thursday, Panama’s Minister of Foreign Affairs, Erika Mouynes, said that Panama, the Dominican Republic, and Costa Rica had signed a tripartite integration agreement to promote democratic institutions and economic growth.
As part of the alliance for democratic institutionality, the presidents of Costa Rica, DR, and Panama met at the UN Assembly on September 27 this year in New York, where they agreed on a regional proposal to relaunch the commercial, demographic and cultural ties of their countries and the region.
A second meeting was held in Panama last October 20, where they declared their intention to deepen this alliance not only in the area of trade, to attract investment, but also in the political sphere, “concerned about the unprecedented and growing migratory flows in the three countries.
Source-CMC
Tesla drivers are outraged due to them being locked out of the cars.
Dozens of owners posted on social media about seeing an error message on the mobile app that was preventing them from connecting to their vehicles.
Tesla chief executive Elon Musk personally responded to one complaint from a driver in South Korea, saying on Twitter: "Checking."
Mr Musk later said the app was coming back online.
The Tesla app is used as a key by drivers to unlock and start their cars.
Owners posted a multitude of complaints online about not being able to use their vehicles.
"I'm stuck an hour away from home because I normally use my phone to start [my] car," one owner tweeted.
About 500 users reported an error on the app at around 16:40 ET (21:40 GMT) on Friday, according to the outage tracking site DownDetector. Five hours later, there were just over 60 reports of an error.
"Apologies, we will take measures to ensure this doesn't happen again," Mr Musk tweeted.
The app is not the only way to access the cars though, Stuart Masson, editor of The Car Expert website, told the BBC.
"There will be a secondary mechanism to get in or out of the car beyond the app, the difficulty will come for drivers if they are not carrying it," he said.
"Technology makes things convenient, but relies on a server working 100% of the time. It's the same as leaving the house without my credit cards, expecting to pay for things with my smartphone. If we are reliant on one mechanism all the time, we can be caught out."
Professor David Bailey from the Birmingham Business School has written extensively on the automotive industry. He also drives a Tesla and experienced the outage on Friday.
"To some extent, Tesla is a bit of a victim of its own success," he told the BBC. "It encourages its customers to use the cutting edge technology it creates and sometimes that will go wrong.
"Although of course you can use a key to open the car too, the natural instinct of many Tesla drivers, who are buying one of the most high tech models in the market, is to rely on the technology."
Source - BBC
West Indies chase strong finish to mixed year
West Indies will hope to end the year the same manner in which they started, when they take on Sri Lanka in the first Test of the two-match series at Galle International Stadium here Sunday.
The Caribbean side pulled off a stunning 2-0 series win away to Bangladesh last February but results since then have been mixed. They have only three wins in eight Tests this year, losing three and drawing two.
The drawn Tests came on Sri Lanka’s tour of the Caribbean last March and with only a single win since then, captain Kraigg Brathwaite said making a strong start to the series would be critical, especially where the batting was concerned.
“You have to get 20 wickets to win a game, and you know our bowling unit has really been leading this team for the last couple months,” Brathwaite told reporters on Saturday.
“I think what is key is to have a good start. I think for the top order it is going to be crucial getting those big partnerships early, and runs on the board are key especially in the subcontinent.
“So I think a good first innings total is key for us as a team for us to obviously put pressure on the opponents.”
West Indies hold unflattering memories of their last tour here five years ago when they lost both Tests heavily in less than five days.
They went down by 72 runs in the first Test at Colombo before tea on the final day, after the fourth day was completely lost to rain, and were then flogged by an innings and six runs with a session left on the penultimate day of the second Test.
Spin proved their undoing then, accounting for the bulk of the wickets to fall as West Indies passed 250 just once.
Though acknowledging pacers still had a role to play, Brathwaite conceded spinners would perhaps be the biggest threat, especially based on pitch conditions.
“The pitch looks spin-friendly [and is] obviously quite dry. I’m not saying the pacers won’t get wickets but the spinners know their role and the guys are looking forward to the challenge,” Brathwaite explained.
“You can’t premeditate that the pitch will spin. It looks quite dry, but I think it is important as a bowling unit we don’t think too far ahead. I think the key for us and what we discussed is that once we build the pressure with dot balls, those dot balls will bring the wickets.
“The spinners are excited for the challenge. It won’t be easy. Obviously, Sri Lanka they are at home and obviously their batsmen play spin well so you know it’s going to be a challenge. But the guys are really looking forward to it.
“And the [spinners] are looking forward to leading. If it is a [spinning pitch], the guys are looking forward to leading the attack,” he added.
West Indies have included three specialist spinners in their touring squad – left-arm spinners Veeerasammy Permaul and Jomel Warrican, along with off-spinner Rahkeem Cornwall.
Also included is off-spinner Roston Chase while Brathwaite also bowls occasional off-spin.
The match bowls off at 10 am (12:30 am Eastern Caribbean time).
SQUADS:
SRI LANKA – Dimuth Karunaratne (captain), Oshada Fernando, Angelo Mathews, Dinesh Chandimal, Dhananjaya de Silva, Pathum Nissanka, Charith Asalanka, Minod Bhanuka, Kamil Mishara, Roshane Silva, Ramesh Mendis, Chamika Karunaratne, Praveen Jayawickrema, Lasith Embuldeniya, Lakshan Sandakan, Suminda Lakshan, Suranga Lakmal, Vishwa Fernando, Dushmantha Chameera, Lahiru Kumara, Asitha Fernando, Chamika Gunasekera.
WEST INDIES – Kraigg Brathwaite (captain), Jermaine Blackwood, Nkrumah Bonner, Roston Chase, Rahkeem Cornwall, Joshua Da Silva, Shannon Gabriel, Jason Holder, Shai Hope, Kyle Mayers, Veerasammy Permaul, Kemar Roach, Jayden Seales, Jeremy Solozano, Jomel Warrican.