Get Ahead
This Summer!
Caribbean L 16 ife, March 11-17, 2022
CARIBBEAN ROUNDUP
Board said a negative PCR COVID-19
results taken from a test 72 hours before
travel, passengers 12 and over, is now the
only requirement to enter.
Jamaica’s Minister of Tourism,
Edmund Bartlett said removing these
processes is a key step in relaxing the
country’s travel protocols, especially
with the reduced threat the virus poses
globally.
He is confident that this move will
encourage more tourists to visit the
island.
SURINAME
Suriname’s Minister of Finance,
Armand Achaibersing is expecting a
positive result when the International
Monetary Fund (IMF) releases its first
periodic review of the implementation
of the Suriname economic recovery
plan in the coming weeks.
If the Dutch-speaking Caribbean
Community (CARICOM) country gets
a positive review, it would result in the
country receiving the
second tranche of the
monetary aid package
in a few weeks.
In December last
year, the IMF said it had approved
a 36-month arrangement under the
Extended Fund Facility (EFF) for Suriname
to assist with the home-grown
economic plan.
The Washington-based financial
institution said the country will immediately
receive US$55.1 million under
the US$688 million approved.
Achaibersing told reporters that the
IMF would announce the outcome of
the evaluation at a news conference
and that on the issue of rescheduling of
the debts with international creditors,
that the negotiations have not yet been
completed.
TRINIDAD
A European Union
(EU) team recently visited
Trinidad and Tobago
for talks on how the
country can participate
in a massive 300 billion euro assistance
program for developing countries
The EU’s Managing Director for the
Americas, Brian Flynn and his team
held talks with government ministers,
as well as representatives from other
social sectors.
The discussions focused on avenues
for assistance and co-operation in a
range of areas, including environmental
protection and biodiversity, climate
change, renewable energy, digital
transformation, trade agriculture,
crime and security.
The EU visit is part of an effort to
strengthen bilateral relations between
the UE and Trinidad and Tobago.
— Compiled by Azad Ali
Continued from Page 4
Irwin LaRocque to be given
Caribbean’s highest award
By Azad Ali
Former Caribbean Community
(CARICOM) Secretary General, Irwin
LaRocque is to be awarded The Order of
the Caribbean Community (OCC).
The communique issued following
the recent CARICOM Inter-Sessional
Summit in San Pedro, Belize, said the
Dominican-born LaRocque, who served
as served as secretary general from
2011 to 2021, is being honored for “his
services to the Community.”
The Order of the Caribbean Community
is an award given to “Caribbean
nationals whose legacy in the economic
and cultural metamorphoses of Caribbean
society is phenomenal.”
The award was initiated at the English
Conference of Heads of State and
Governments of CARICOM in 1987 and
was first bestowed in 1992.
LaRocque, the seventh CARICOM
secretary general, began his service
at the Guyana-based CARICOM Secretariat
in September 2005, when he
assumed the position of assistant secretary
general Trade and Economic Integration,
providing strategic leadership
for the continuing implementation and
further development of the CARICOM
Single Market and Economy (CSME).
Former CARICOM Secretary General
Irwin LaRocque. caricom.org
Queens College is offering in-person and online
classes over four sessions:
Session 1: June 6–30
Session 2: July 5–28
Session 3: July 5–August 15
Session 4: June 6–August 15
Take advantage of:
■ Flexible class schedules, with both in-person and
online classes
■ Hundreds of undergraduate and graduate courses
■ Even some hybrid courses, which combine in-person
and online models
■ Virtual and in-person library resources and
technical support
■ Access to campus facilities, including our fitness center
■ Affordable tuition
■ Summer Pell available for qualifying students
Registration open now!
Students from all colleges welcome.
admissions@qc.cuny.edu
www.qc.cuny.edu/summer
/caricom.org
/summer
link
/summer
link
