CARIBBEAN ROUNDUP
Antigua
The Antigua and Barbuda government
is offering to help Barbados with
the recent surge in COVID-19 cases.
Prime Minister Gaston Browne has
assured the Mia Mottley’s administration
that he will not be prohibiting travel
to and from Barbados as the nation
grapples with a sudden rise in the
number of COVID-19 cases, despite all
the diligence and careful protocols that
have been implemented
by her government
to ensure that the
virus does not spread
in the community.
He said the situation
in Barbados will be brought under
control and new measures will be implemented
to stop a recurrence as “your
health authorities and law enforcement
agencies have acted swiftly to address
the problem.”
In his letter to Mottley, the Antigua
and Barbuda prime minister said,
“while our border authorities will continue
rigid adherence to our protocols
for entry into Antigua and Barbuda we
will not be prohibiting travel to and
from Barbados.”
Browne letter comes in the aftermath
of concerns expressed in November by
his Minister of Foreign Affairs, Everly
Paul Greene, when the Mottley government
placed Antigua and Barbuda on a
list of countries deemed medium risk
for COVID-19.
Greene then said the position taken
by Barbados was unacceptable based on
his country’s COVID-19 figures.
Bahamas
The Bahamas Ministry of Education
is being urged to repeat the 2020 education
year based on the
results of last year’s
national examination
results.
In a recent statement,
the president of the Bahamas
Union of Teachers (BUT), Belinda Wilson
made the recommendation and
pointed to the exam results that saw
a decline in 2020 when compared to
2019.
She is recommending that the Ministry
of Education stop, review, cancel,
pause, and consider students having an
opportunity to repeat the 2020 school
year and that the social program practices
cease forthwith.
Wilson said the educational system
had failed the children of The Bahamas
over and over.
The head of the union stated that
the results from the local examinations
were not surprising.
Cayman Islands
Cayman Islands Premier, Alden
McLaughlin has announced that the
Caribbean L 4 ife, January 15-21, 2021
Updated daily at www.caribbeanlifenews.com
Venezuela’s Foreign Minister Jorge Arreaza, center, shares a light moment with Antigua and Barbuda’s Foreign Minister Everly Paul
Chet Greene, left, as they listen to remarks at the start of a plenary session of the General Assembly of the Organization of American
States (OAS), Tuesday, June 5, 2018, in Washington. Associated Press/Jacquelyn Martin, File
British Overseas territory will be reopening
its borders in March.
The premier, in his New Year’s message,
said that with the expected arrival
of coronavirus vaccines next week, the
country’s most vulnerable will be protected
and based on this, the borders
can reopen in the coming months.
He said by March the health authorities
would have successfully vaccinated
a large number of the population,
including all of those at most risk and if
that target can be achieved the borders
should be able to open
once again.
The premier, however,
stated that all
visitors must be vaccinated
and provide a
negative COVID-19 test or they will be
required to be quarantined.
McLaughlin noted that availability
of vaccines is the safest way to open
up the country and the economy more
broadly.
He said the first shipment of vaccines
will arrive in early January and the government
will then roll out the country’s
national vaccination plan.
The first batch of Pfizer/BioNTech
vaccines is scheduled to arrive aboard
a British Airways flight this week and
according to Governor Martyn Roper,
there will be enough doses to inoculate
5,000 people.
McLaughlin, Roper and Chief Medical
Officer, Dr. John Lee will be among
those taking the vaccination to initiate
the roll-out of the campaign.
Haiti
The United States Agency for International
Development (USAID), is helping
Haitian pupils return to be better
prepared to learn for the 2020-2021 academic
year through the distribution of
books and essential sanitary supplies.
USAID has partnered
with the United
Nations Office
for Project Services
(UNOPS) to distribute,
French and Creole
reading, learning and teaching materials
to first and second-grade pupils and
teachers in 600 schools throughout
Haiti.
According to USAID, the initiative
will help keep pupils learning in a
safe environment while preventing the
spreads of Covid-19.
USAID has also partnered with the
Caris Foundation and UNICEF to distribute
hand-washing stations, buckets,
soap, chlorine and Covid-19 awareness
pamphlets to 300 schools in five departments.
St. Lucia
Prime Minister Allen Chastanet says
he will be among the first persons in St
Lucia to take the coronavirus (Covid-
19) vaccine as he moves to quell fears
among the population regarding the
safety of the vaccine that is likely to
become available in 2021.
United States and European regulations
have approved the vaccines being
developed for the virus that has killed
at least five St Lucians
and infected more
than 330 people.
Chastanet told
reporters that while
persons who did not
have to travel may have the option
of not taking the vaccine, there are
going to be some companies that would
require individuals to take a vaccine
because the threat of being closed down
at any point is disruptive business.
The prime minister said he is satisfied
that despite the fact that the vaccine
is being expedited, there’s a lot of
investigation taking place.
St. Vincent
Health officials in St. Vincent and
the Grenadines are considering fitting
electronic bracelets on person who will
be placed in quarantine to recover from
the Covid-19 virus.
This was revealed by Prime Minister
Dr. Ralph Gonsalves
who was speaking on
state-owned NBC radio
last week-end.
He said health officials
were in discussions
with the police to see whether the
Continued on Page 18
THE NEWS FROM BACK HOME
Antigua offers Barbados covid help
/www.caribbeanlifenews.com
/www.caribbeanlifenews.com
