CARIBBEAN ROUNDUP
Antigua
Minister of National Festivals, Daryll
Matthew has announced that Antigua
and Barbuda’s premier summer festival
has been canceled this year, as COVID-
19 continues to grip the world.
He said Cabinet
accepted his recommendation
to call off
carnival, which was
originally carded for
July 23 to Aug. 1, 2020.
Matthew said Cabinet looked at the
circumstances surrounding the worldwide
coronavirus pandemic and agreed
that the hosting of the activities at this
time would not be in the best interest
of the population in maintaining good
health, which is foremost priority of the
government.
“The festival is also expected to
be affected by the projected negative
impact the virus will have on Antigua
and Barbuda. It was therefore agreed to
cancel the celebrations and advised that
the focus should be placed on the planning
of carnival 2021, which will coincide
with the hosting of Carifesta XV
here in Antigua and Barbuda,” he said.
Matthew disclosed that the Festivals
Commission has produced an Independence
schedule for this year will be
released when there has been official
clearance that the COVID-19 pandemic
has subsided.
The Independence celebrations are
expected to be held in the next six
months, from October 24 to Nov. 2,
2020.
Antigua and Barbuda has recorded
23 cases of COVID-19, including three
deaths and three recoveries.
Barbados
There will be no Crop Over Festival
or Independence Festival of Creative
Arts (NIFCA) in Barbados this year.
The Ministry of
Creative Economy,
Culture and Sports
recently announced
that the government
had approved its recommendation to
cancel the 2020 edition of the highly
anticipated annual festivals, which
would be replaced with two initiatives.
‘This decision was made in light of
ongoing global efforts to contain and
manage the COVID-19 pandemic, as
well as government’s negative short
term projections for the local economy,
regional and international travel
and trade and weakened public confidence
in attending mass gatherings in
the current environment, and immediately
thereafter,” states a government
release.
The statement said the ministry
remains committed to its mission of
creating opportunities in the cultural
industries and, to this end, the NCF will
Caribbean L 4 ife, May 1-7, 2020
Updated daily at www.caribbeanlifenews.com
Several Caribbean festivals have been cancelled including carnival in Antigua and Barbuda and the Crop Over
Festival and the Independence Festival of Creative Arts (NIFCA) in Babados. Photo by George Alleyne
soon convene a series of stakeholder
consultations to discuss ways in which
cultural practitioners could participate
in, and benefit from, the programs
identified as replacements for the Crop
Over Festival and NIFCA.
The Ministry of Health and Wellness
said 35 persons were tested negative,
including two who were released from
isolation after two negative tests results
within a 48-hour period.
Barbados has recorded five deaths
since April 4. There are 51 persons in
isolation.
Caribbean
Caribbean countries face financing
gap that initial estimates have put at
US$2.5 billion, according to Trinidad
and Tobago Central Bank Governor, Dr.
Alvin Hilaire.
He made the revelation
while contributing
to a virtual meeting
of the Group of
24 Finance Ministers
and Central Bank Governors, which
took place parallel to the International
Monetary Fund and World Bank spring
meeting.
He said the high level of spending
required for the immediate response
to the outbreak, the strengthening of
deficient health infrastructures and the
support of businesses and individuals
has created large financing gaps for the
respective countries. Initial estimates
suggest that the collective gap for the
region could be around US$2.5 billion.
Dr. Hilaire noted that many countries
in the region are already carrying
elevated debt levels and face increased
downside risks stemming from the
threat of an above-average hurricane
season in the coming months.
The Central Bank governor said there
is great appreciation for the emergency
financing options offered by the IMF and
the World Bank, which are meant to provide
expeditious funds with limited conditions
and carry low financing cost.
The G-24 more formally known as
the Intergovernmental Group of Twenty
Four, refers to a group of developing
member countries of the International
Monetary Fund (IMF) and the World
Bank Group. The G-24 was formed in
1971 to counter-balance the influence
of large advanced economies.
Cuba
Cuba’s Director of
Research at the Center
for Genetic Engineering
and Biotechnology,
Dr. Gerardo says a
clinical trial is now being held for a vaccine
aimed at activating the immune
system to combat COVID-19.
Speaking during a television interview,
Guillen said the drug, called
CIGB2020, is undergoing trials at the
Luis Diaz Hospital in Havana with volunteer
patients suspected of being carriers
of the disease.
He said the drug is nasally and sublingually
administered to strengthen
these areas, and encouraging results
have already been observed regarding
the activation of the immune system,
which is very important to successfully
combat this disease.
Dr. Gerado added that CIGB 2020 is a
drug that is inserted, along with another
Cuban vaccine developed by Finlay
Institute, in a field of research that has
been much debated in contemporary
science, which is the development of
specific vaccines to stimulate innate
immunity, which is powered by the new
coronavirus.
Up to recently, there were close to
800 positive COVID10 cases across the
island with 22 deaths.
Guyana
ExxonMobil says production at the
Payara project, its third development
in Guyana, could be postponed due to
the delays in government approvals as
the company scales back spending elsewhere
due to the crude price crash.
Payara’s startup
had been slated for “as
early as 2023” and was
expected to eventually
produce some 220,000
barrels per day of crude, according to
Exxon’s website.
The company and its partners Hess
Corporation and China’s CNOOC have
discovered more than eight billion barrels
of recoverable oil in the country,
which has no history of production.
The Exxon-led consortium in January
produced some 56,320 bpd of crude
at Phase 1 of its Liza Project. Phase 2 of
the same venture, at the prolific Stabroek
block, is the next project expected
to bring production online.
THE NEWS FROM BACK HOME
Festivals cancelled
/www.caribbeanlifenews.com
/www.caribbeanlifenews.com
