CARIBBEAN ROUNDUP
Barbados
Barbados government has said it
was considering having ocean energy
technology operational on the island
as part of the Barbados National Energy
Policy target of 100 percent renewable
energy by 2030. The Ministry of
Energy, Small Business and Entrepreneurship
said it has conducted
an Ocean Energy Consultancy, from
January 2020 to March this year, to
explore the feasibility
of pursuing alternative
energy sources
and to select the right
mix for the country
ahead of the Governments
2030 target. The consultants,
ITP Energized, supported by local and
international experts in ocean energy,
examined fixed offshore wind, floating
offshore wind thermal energy conversion
projects around the island from
a technical, environmental and logistical
perspective.The statement said
the consultant paid special attention
to the island’s national parks, marine
protected areas, turtle nesting sites,
coral reef buffer zones, and the exclusion
zone before selecting possible
locations.
Guyana
Guyana recently announced the
country’s latest oil discovery within
the Stabroek Block offshore Guyana.
Minister of Natural Resources, Vickram
Bharat said the 19th offshore oil
discovery at the Uarau-2 well will add
to the previously announced gross discovered
recoverable resource estimate
for the block, which is estimated to be
more than nine billion-oil equivalent
barrels. He said the new development
in Guyana increases
the potential to as
many as 10 floating
production storage
and offloading vessels
with an increase of the estimated
recoverable resource given by operator,
Esso Exploration and Production
Guyana Ltd. (EEPGL). He said the
government of Guyana welcomes the
Uaru-2 discovery and remains committed
to the sustainable development
of Guyana’s oil and gas resources to
ensure that the benefit from the sector
transform all traditional productive
sectors to enhance the lives of all
Guyanese. The US oil magnate also
announced that the discovery “will
add to the previously announced gross
discovered recoverable resource estimate
for the block and that drilling
at Uaru-2 encountered approximately
120 feet of high-quality oil-bearing
reservoirs including newly identified
intervals below the original Uaru-1
discovery.”
Caribbean L 4 ife, MAY 14-20, 2021
Updated daily at www.caribbeanlifenews.com
A man driving a motorcycle transporting children breaks through a barricade set up by medical students demanding the release of
a professor who was kidnapped last week, in Port-au-Prince, Haiti, Friday, April 30, 2021. Catholic offi cials rejoiced on Friday after
kidnappers in Haiti released nine people, including fi ve priests and two nuns. Associated Press/Joseph Odelyn, fi le
Jamaica
Jamaica’s Minister of Health and
Wellness, Dr. Christopher Tufton
said that while the
Covid-19 numbers
and positivity rate are
trending downwards,
nationals should continue
adhering to
the infection prevention and control
measures in order to avoid a third
wave of the virus. He said Jamaica
has, so far, experienced two surges
of Covid-19 and that “the consequences
of the surge we are currently
going through have been far more
severe than the first one we went
through last year.” “What we saw as
a consequence were higher numbers
of hospitalizations, high numbers of
deaths,” he said. Figures release last
week by health authorities show that
the island recorded eight more Covid
deaths, pushing the tally to 778. They
said that those who succumbed to the
virus ranged from 42 to 96 years old
and included five women.The authorities
said there were 164 new cases,
pushing the total to 45,5578 with
23,409 being active. Of the new cases,
89 were women. Tufton said that
in the peak week of the first surge,
Jamaica recorded 1,154 cases compared
to 4,082 in the peak week of the
second surge.
Haiti
The Society of Priests of St. Jacques
last week said the remaining Catholic
clergy who were kidnapped last month
have been released. Last week, the unidentified
kidnappers released three of
the religious people they abducted and
recently, a spokesman
for the Conference of
Bishops of Haiti had
said then. Fr. Loudger
Mailer said said
three of the priests were released but
that the two French nationals, Fr.
Michel Briand, 67, and 80-year-old Sr.
Agnes Bordeau, as well as four Haitian
nationals including two priests, are
still being held hostage. Media reports
said members of the criminal gang
“400mawozo” abducted seven, including
two nuns, while they were going
to an installation ceremony of a priest
at the Immaculate Church of Galette
Chambon on April 11. The Society of
Priests of Saint Jacques said a total of
10 persons had been abducted, including
three non-clergy nationals. The
kidnappers had asked for US$1 million
ransom but there is no indication if
any was paid.
Suriname
The International
Monetary Fund (IMF)
says it has reached an
agreement with Suriname
on a US$600
million three-year program under the
Extended Fund Facility (EFF).
The IMF said the program aims to
lay the foundation for a strong, resilient
and inclusive economic recovery
through protecting the poor, lowering
inflation, restoring debt sustainability
Continued on Page 20
THE NEWS FROM BACK HOME
Kidnappings in Haiti
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