Davis Cup return for Spain star against Germany
World number one Rafael Nadal will play his first match since January's Australian Open on Friday in Spain's Davis Cup quarter-final.
Nadal, 30, will face Germany's Philipp Kohlschreiber in Valencia on the Spaniard's favoured clay surface.
The 16-time Grand Slam winner has been sidelined since retiring with a hip problem against Marin Cilic in his Melbourne quarter-final.
David Ferrer plays world number four Alexander Zverev, in the other rubber.
Nadal, who has won his last 22 Davis Cup singles matches, will then take on Zverev in the first match of the reverse singles on Sunday.
He has not lost a Davis Cup singles match since a debut defeat by Jiri Novak of the Czech Republic in 2004.
Despite his spell on the sidelines, Nadal reclaimed the top ranking after Roger Federer's surprise loss to world number 175 Thanasi Kokkinakis at the recent Miami Open.
Source-BBC
Bollywood superstar jailed for poaching
An Indian court has sentenced Bollywood superstar Salman Khan to five years in jail for poaching rare antelope back in 1998.
The court in Jodhpur also fined him 10,000 rupees ($154; £109) for the crime. He has since been taken to jail.
Khan killed the two blackbucks, a protected species, in the western state of Rajasthan while shooting a film.
Four other actors who starred with him in the movie and were also charged with the offence have been acquitted.
Khan, 52, can appeal against the verdict in a higher court.
Correspondents say he will have to spend at least a few days in prison.
This is the fourth case filed against the actor in connection with poaching animals during the filming of the 1998 movie Hum Saath Saath Hain.
In 2006, a trial court convicted the actor in two cases of poaching and sentenced him separately to one year and five years in prison. The Rajasthan high court suspended the sentences the following year, and eventually quashed both convictions in 2016.
The state government has appealed against that order in the Supreme Court.
Khan was then acquitted of a third case in 2017, which was for possessing unlicensed weapons used to poach the wildlife in 1998.
The original poaching complaint against him was filed by the local Bishnoi community, who revere and worship the blackbuck.
Source-BBC
PAHO calls for breaking down barriers that keep one in three people in the Americas from accessing health
On the eve of World Health Day, the Director of the Pan American Health Organization (PAHO), Carissa F. Etienne, and former president of Chile Michelle Bachelet today called for collective actions to ensure that all people, everywhere have access to the health services they need.
In the Americas region, one third of the population faces obstacles to accessing health. "Health is a right, and as such we must overcome barriers to have access to care," said Etienne, noting that out-of-pocket payments that many people must make to obtain health services "constitutes the main barrier and pushes families towards poverty."
Other barriers are geographic or institutional in nature, including stigma and discrimination in health services. "It is not enough to have hospitals and health centers, these institutions must have the right combination of human resources, infrastructure and equipment, medicines and other health technologies, to avoid long waiting times and offer quality care," Etienne said.
Universal health, the theme of World Health Day 2018, implies that all people and communities have access, without discrimination, to quality health services without having to expose themselves to financial difficulties. Under the slogan "Universal Health: Everyone, Everywhere," the campaign calls on representatives of governments, academia and civil society to stimulate dialogue on policies that can help achieve health for all by 2030.
"We need a massive regional movement and listen to all voices" to move towards universal health, Etienne said. Last year, PAHO created the High Level Commission on "Universal Health in the 21st Century: 40 Years of Alma-Ata," led by Michelle Bachelet.
To achieve universal health, "we have to build national consensus, because the challenges are of such magnitude that they require the commitment and effort of all," said Bachelet.
Forty years after the Declaration of Alma-Ata—which promoted the values of the right to health, equity and solidarity—the region of the Americas continues to be one of the most inequitable in the world.
Bachelet noted that there have been important advances since Alma-Ata, but that there are still major gaps between and within the countries. "At the same time that we see health centers with quality we could not have imagined in the past, there are still women and children who continue to die from totally avoidable causes," she said, adding that "inequality is the great enemy in Latin America and the Caribbean."
Bachelet said that PAHO's regional strategy for universal health along with the Sustainable Development Goals (SDG) and the sustainable health agenda for the Americas infuse new life into the path toward "health for all" outlined at Alma-Ata. She urged greater emphasis on health promotion and disease prevention, reducing segmentation and fragmentation in health services, safeguarding the working conditions of health personnel, including new technologies and innovation, and for building health financing systems that promote solidarity.
"In this matter there are neither miracles nor shortcuts, what there is a long road of collective work that leads to more justice for all," said Bachelet.
CLOSURE OF THE TREASURY AND SUB-TREASURIES
The public is hereby advised that in order to facilitate a general staff meeting on Wednesday April 4, 2018 the Treasury, Grand Turk will be closed at 10 a.m. All Sub-Treasuries (Providenciales, North Caicos and South Caicos) will be closed for the day.
Normal operations will resume on Thursday the 5th April.
We apologise for any inconvenience which this closure may cause and thank you for your understanding.
PUBLIC FORECAST FOR TODAY AND THE WEEKEND
GENERAL SITUATION: AN AREA OF HIGH PRESSURE WILL DOMINATE THE WEATHER THROUGH THE WEEKEND WITH DRY CONDITIONS PREVAILING.
SPECIAL WARNINGS: MARINERS AND BEACHGOERS SHOULD REMAIN ALERT FOR THE MODERATE RISK OF RIP CURRENTS MAINLY ALONG NORTHERN AND EASTERN SHORELINES IN THE SOUTHEAST BAHAMAS.
TURKS & CAICOS
WEATHER: VARIABLE CLOUDINESS AND BREEZY WITH FEW ISOLATED SHOWERS BECOMING PARTLY CLOUDY AND COOL TONIGHT WITH FEW RESIDUAL SHOWERS.
ADVISORY: SMALL CRAFT SHOULD EXERCISE CAUTION.
WINDS: NORTHEAST TO EAST AT 15 TO 20 KNOTS
SEAS: 4 TO 6 FEET
DAYTIME HIGH TEMPERATURE 75 °F 24 °C
OVERNITE LOW TEMPERATURE 58 °F 14 °C
SUNRISE: 7:18 AM
SUNSET: 7:17 PM
MOONRISE: 6:51 AM
MOONSET: 6:42 PM
HIGH TIDE: 6:58 AM & 7:17 PM
LOW TIDE: 1:17 PM & 1:28 AM SAT
EXTENDED FORECAST
FORECAST FOR SATURDAY
WEATHER: MOSTLY SUNNY AND MILD.
WINDS: SOUTHEASTERLY AT 10 KNOTS OR LESS IN THE NORTHWEST BAHAMAS, NORTHEAST TO EAST AT 10 TO 15 KNOTS IN THE CENTRAL BAHAMAS AND NORTHEAST TO EAST AT 15 TO 20 KNOTS IN THE SOUTHEAST BAHAMAS.
SEAS:1 TO 3 FEET IN THE NORTHWEST BAHAMAS, 2 TO 4 FEET IN THE CENTRAL BAHAMAS AND 4 TO 6 FEET IN THE SOUTHEAST BAHAMAS.
NATIONAL AIDS PROGRAMME MANAGERS, CIVIL SOCIETY LEADERS AND DEVELOPMENT PARTNERS COMMIT TO SUPPORT COUNTRY OWNERSHIP FOR HIV RESPONSE SUSTAINABILITY
The Pan-Caribbean Partnership against HIV and AIDS (PANCAP), the mechanism that provides a structured and unified approach to the Caribbean's response to the HIV epidemic, concluded the Sixth Meeting of National AIDS Programme (NAP) Managers and Key Partners in the Republic of Trinidad and Tobago on Wednesday, 14 March 2018. The meeting came two years ahead of the 2020 deadline for reaching the 90-90-90 targets—90% of people living with HIV diagnosed, 90% of diagnosed people on treatment and 90% of those on treatment virally suppressed.
The forum opened on Monday March 12 with a Feature Address by the Honourable Terrence Deyalsingh, Minister of Health, Republic of Trinidad and Tobago. Minister Deyalsingh noted that in light of reduced technical and financial support from international partners, the region must collectively mobilize domestic resources especially for the support of prevention and the elimination of HIV-related stigma and discrimination among key and vulnerable populations.
These sentiments were echoed by the participants including National AIDS Programme (NAP) Managers, Chief Medical Officers, Permanent Secretaries, development, and implementing partners, including civil society organizations that work with people living with HIV and key population groups and youth.
In closing remarks, Dr. Nikkiah Forbes, Director, National HIV/AIDS and Infectious Diseases Programme at the Bahamas Ministry of Health, proposed integration of HIV care into other healthcare services in order to assure sustainability of the HIV response. She highlighted that participants recognized integration as one potential solution for improving the accessibility of health services and suggested that it could help countries meet the demand for increased HIV-related treatment, care and support services in the context of scaling up to "Treat All". ("Treat All" involves offering treatment to all people diagnosed with HIV regardless of CD4 count.)
"Caribbean countries are diverse and integration will need to be tailored for each country context," stated Dr Forbes, "HIV should never have been completely separated from the health agenda and synergies need to be fostered with sexual reproductive health services".
She further stated that integration requires healthcare worker training on "Treat All" as well as the meaningful and sustained involvement of Civil Society Organizations (CSOs). For example, there should be leadership and inclusion of People Living with HIV (PLHIV) and key populations on the prevention, treatment and care needs of their communities. Dr. Forbes noted that there should be a focus on quality of care, with steps taken to ensure that members of key populations can access sexual and reproductive health services including HIV and AIDS prevention.
She posited that to achieve integration the region should conduct south-to-south collaborations and draw on regional expertise for training healthcare workers on the front-line response.
Dr Forbes emphasized the integral role of civil society organizations, "CSOs we have not forgotten you", she stated. "You must be placed and supported in the planning and implementation process which only strengthens the argument for the need for social contracting and crystalizing this in policy. This is how we will sustain the regional response".
She concluded with an urgent plea for heightened government involvement in funding the HIV response. She advocated that governments need to own the HIV response and in owning it, they need to make the investments needed to reach the prevention, testing and treatment targets that will set the region on course to end AIDS by 2030.
"I make a respectful but urgent plea to our governments to commit to, as well as finance, their National and Regional AIDS response", stated Dr Forbes. "Without an urgent strategy to sustain the response we risk leaving many vulnerable groups behind and undoing the gains we have made in reducing HIV transmission".
Motion Picture Academy president accused of sexual harassment
If change has to come from the top, then Hollywood may be in trouble.
Variety reports that John Bailey, the 75-year-old president of the Academy of Motion Picture Arts and Sciences, has been accused of sexual harassment and the Academy is now investigating three different claims against him.
Last October, the Academy expelled Harvey Weinstein for alleged sexual misconduct and in December, it established new rules stating that members can be ejected for harassment, abuse or discrimination. Earlier this month, the Academy, which hands out the Oscars, replaced Casey Affleck as a presenter on the awards telecast because he settled two sexual harassment lawsuits in 2010.
In a statement to ABC, the Academy said, "[We] treat any complaints confidentially to protect all parties. The Membership Committee reviews all complaints brought against Academy members according to our Standards of Conduct process, and after completing reviews, reports to the Board of Governors. We will not comment further on such matters until the full review is completed."
Bailey is a former cinematographer who worked on movies like The Big Chill and Groundhog Day. He was elected president this past August. Variety reports that when he succeeded outgoing president Cheryl Boone Isaacs, there were concerns that as a 75-year-old white man, Bailey wasn't the best choice to lead the Academy at a time when it was trying to diversify its membership.
When asked about that by Variety last year, he said, "What you just said is bulls***. I was born a white man, and I can’t help it that I’m 75 years old. Is this some sort of limiting factor?”
Source-ABC
BEACHES BLOWN AWAY BY CHESHIRE HALL
The Provo Premier League continues and Beaches TCI suffered against Cheshire Hall 3 to 1 on Saturday 10th March 2018.
Coach Swaby's steady Cheshire Hall team took on Johnny Suckrajh's Beaches team, languishing without a win and it was Cheshire Hall who came out on top through their in form young striker Jeanlis Job.
Job has had injury issues over the last couple of years and had been playing in goal, but has been healing nicely and was able to back up the frontline this season.
After just two minutes, he threaded his way through the Beaches defence and managed to surprise the keeper to make it 0-1.
Ten minutes later, saw him producing another superb overhead kick from a cross from the left, which was followed by a deft chip over the keeper 34 minutes into the game.
Beaches huffed and puffed but didn't have the firepower up front to cause too many problems to the Cheshire Hall keeper. Steve Kendrew told RTC Sports that Beaches seemed to lack some structure and organisation this season so far, and a lot of work needs to be done.
Kendrew further added that Cheshire Hall are an improving side, and the likely later kick-offs, as the evenings get longer will help them in future games.
There were strong performances in the Cheshire Hall team this week, including Wilwood Telfort, Ganel Joseph and the dependable Jackson Joseph but the star of the show has to be Jeanlis Job.
Games will continue at the TCIFA field on Saturday’s at 4pm.
Restoration of Water Services – Salt Cay, TCI
The Ministry of Infrastructure, Housing and Planning in collaboration with the Water Undertaking Unit within the Department of Public Works would like to advise the residents of Salt Cay as well as the general public of the following measures aimed at restoring water services on Salt Cay:
- Effective Friday 16th March, 2018, a chartered vessel will deliver water supplies to Salt Cay as a temporary measure
- A technician will be on the ground as of Tuesday 20th March, 2018 to repair the Reverse Osmosis unit. When these works are completed and the plant is back online, it is expected that the unit will begin with the immediate water production for distribution to the general public
- A team from the Public Works Department will also conduct a damage assessment of the storage facilities with the view to begin repair works
- Funding for these works have been requested and we are now awaiting final approval
We do apologize for all that has happened and ask for your continued patience, as we work through this very serious matter.
OVER 150 TRAINED IN STRATEGIC BUDGET REFORM (March 5-16, 2018)
The Ministry of Finance, Trade and Investment in collaboration with the IMF's Caribbean Regional Technical Assistance Centre (CARTAC), conducted training for over 150 policy makers and program managers across Government and Statutory Bodies between March 5 -16, 2018.
Since the 2015-16 financial year, the Turks & Caicos Islands Government (TCIG) with the assistance of CARTAC implemented a number of changes to the way the annual budget is prepared. These changes which fall under the heading of 'strategic budget reform', have been designed to strengthen fiscal discipline so that the Government's finances are sustainable in the long term. The changes were implemented to ensure that budget spending decisions are more consistent with national policy priorities so as to achieve the best possible value for money from available resources.
The strategic budgeting approach has been built around two key components –
(i) the introduction of a rolling three-year budget and forward estimates that establish 'hard' annual and medium term budget ceilings for each ministry; and
(ii) the presentation of budget estimates in a program budget format which will set out the objectives, key strategies and performance indicators for each budget program.
Like most developing countries the Public Financial Management (PFM) framework in the TCI is evaluated using international standards that are developed by agencies such as Public Expenditure Financial Accountability (PEFA). These standards were recently revised to place greater emphasis on measurement of performances, including developing programmes performance indicators by gender.
During the two weeks of training, program managers were brought together in workshops to strengthen and improve program structures, program performance information and develop monitoring regimes that they may use to monitor and evaluate program performance.
The Ministry of Finance, Trade and Investment hopes that participants will utilize the information obtained in the training sessions to enhance their annual budget submissions.
The annual budget, is expected to be tabled in the House of Assembly in the upcoming weeks.