CARIBBEAN ROUNDUP
Antigua
Antigua and Barbuda Prime Minister,
Gaston Browne has announced that
persons who are in COVID-19 quarantine
will be mandated to wear tracking
bracelets and the devices are already on
the island and will be used as soon as
they are programed and tested.
The bracelets are equipped with temperature
and heart monitors so people
will not have to manually send
this information to the
health officials. They
are also tamper proof
and will send alerts
to officials if someone
opens, cuts the straps,
breaks or in any way damages the
device.
Antigua and Barbuda has recorded
141 cases of COVID-19, seven of which
are active. There are 72 individuals in
home quarantine while 13 are in state
quarantine.
Bahamas
Bahamas National Commission on
Marijuana (BNCM) said the United
Nations’ (UN) removal of cannabis from
its list of dangerous drugs signals the
likelihood of the global legalization of
marijuana.
BNCM chairman
Quinn McCartney
comments follow a
historic vote at the UN
Commission on Narcotic
Drugs recently to remove cannabis
resin from its list of the “world’s
most dangerous drugs.”
The commission voted 27-25, with
one abstention, to follow the World
Health Organization’s recommendation
to remove cannabis and cannabis resin
from Schedule IV of the 196 Convention
on Narcotic Drugs, where it was listed
with heroin and several other opioids.
McCartney said the vote was consistent
with the commission’s views to prioritize
medicinal marijuana.
He said the commission supports the
view that “our law should be amended
to facilitate easy access to medicinal
cannabis products for use in The Bahamas.”
The BNCM chairman noted that
countries to the south and north of The
Bahamas are moving towards legalization
and that will have to be taken into
consideration as the country rethinks
its position on a number of things.
Barbados
Barbados Medicinal Cannabis Licensing
Authority (BCLA) is moving ahead
with plans to develop a medicinal cannabis
industry.
This was revealed by BCLA chief executive
officer Dr. Shantal Munro-Knight
said despite some setbacks attributed to
the COVID-19 pandemic, interest in the
Updated daily at www.caribbeanlifenews.com
Antigua and Barbuda Prime Minister, Gaston Browne. Photo by George Alleyne
lucrative industry remains extremely
high among prospective investors, who
will be able to submit
applications and proposals
Caribbean Life, D 4 ECEMBER 18-24, 2020
as early as next
month.
She said great interest
is being shown by
international investors, but stressed
that locals should not be discouraged
by the perceived high costs associated
with the sector.
According to CEO, in some cases the
cost of licenses is five times cheaper
than those in other Caribbean countries
and the BCLA has been working to
reduce infrastructural costs and procedural
inefficiencies that have made life
very difficult for locals in other cannabis
growing Caribbean countries.
Munro-Knight said Canadian investors,
in particular, are expressing the
strongest interest in the industry that
is said to be still in high demand across
the globe for its usefulness in the treatment
of numerous mental and physical
health conditions.
Caribbean
The Caribbean Private Sector Organization
(CPSO) and the Caribbean
Community (CARICOM) have signed a
Memorandum of Understanding (MoU),
which establishes the legal framework
for cooperation and collaboration
between the private sector and the
Community, as mandated
by the CARICOM
heads of government.
Gervase Warner,
CPSO chairman, vice
president and CEO of
Massy Group and CARICOM Ambassador,
Irwin La Rocque, signed the MoU.
The CPSO was officially conferred
the status of an Associate Institution
of CARICOM on Oct. 29, at the 41st
Regular Meeting of the Conference of
Heads of Government of the Caribbean
Community.
Warner said the MoU represents an
important element of the more structured
engagement envisaged between
the Caribbean Community and the private
sector and outlines the areas of cooperation
towards the full implementation
of the CARICOM Single Market and
Economy (CSME). He said recognizing
the private sector is well-placed to contribute
positively to the CSME regimes
of free movement of goods, services,
labor and capital.
Grenada
The Grenada government is moving
to increase the fines for any breach of
the quarantine regulations aimed at
curbing the spread of the coronavirus
(COVID-19) pandemic.
The government, which controls all
15 seats in the legislative chamber,
will amend the 1947 Quarantine Act
to increase the penalty for individuals
who breach the quarantine regulations
which is currently
EC$10,000 to
EC$25,000 and one
year in jail.
To date, five people,
including two American nationals have
been charged under the existing legislation.
The magistrate who dealt with the
matter ordered fines ranging between
EC$3,000 and EC$5,000.
There are now 44 active cases with
39 of those cases related to a new cluster
at the Sandals Resort, which was
confirmed on Dec. 12.
There has been no deaths but now
there are indications of community
spread.
Guyana
Guyana has issued new emergency
coronavirus (COVID-19) guidelines for
December as other Caribbean countries
implement new measures to curb the
spread of the virus that has infected
more than 282,282 people and killed
nearly 6,000 in the region.
The government said the new meas-
Continued on Page 16
THE NEWS FROM BACK HOME
Antigua issues new covid mandates
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