GEORGETOWN, Guyana, CMC – The Guyana government Wednesday announced that it had granted the Jamaica-based airline, Fly Jamaica Airways, the green light to operate two routes out of the Cheddi Jagan International Airport. Government spokesman Dr Roger Luncheon told a news conference that Cabinet gave the approval on Tuesday and that the airline would service the Guyana - New York route and the Georgetown -Toronto routes.
PORT OF SPAIN, Trinidad, CMC – Health Minister Dr. Fuad Khan, says there will be increased checks for travellers to and from Venezuela where the Swine Flu virus has killed 17 people and infected nearly 300 in recent months. He said while the virus has not reached Trinidad and Tobago, there will be heightened security at airports and other entry points for anyone exhibiting the flu-like symptoms. "We are susceptible because we are close to Venezuela and they have had a lot of cases in Venezuela. We have put our surveillance methods on fast forward."
ST. GEORGE’S, Grenada, CMC - Eastern Caribbean countries were Tuesday urged to work towards making their societies more inclusive for children with all types of disabilities. UNICEF Representative for the Eastern Caribbean Area Khin-Sandi Lwin issued the challenge to countries to intensify efforts to fully include children with all forms of disabilities as the UNICEF Eastern Caribbean Area Office released the State of the World’s Children 2013 Report and a companion sub regional supplement which focussed on children with disabilities.
KINGSTON, Jamaica, CMC – Health authorities are investigating whether or not the death of a seven-month-old baby is linked to an increase in cases of gastroenteritis in Jamaica. The baby died at the Bustamante Hospital for Children prompting the Ministry of Health to determine whether the quality of water being used by residents and consumed by the infant had been contaminated. Health Minister Dr. Fenton Ferguson said that up to the end of April, there was a 52 per cent increase in the number of gastroenteritis cases this year compared to the corresponding period last year.
PORT OF SPAIN, Trinidad - While the dollar value of the country’s food import bill has risen steadily since 2008, the actual amount of food imported in terms of weight and quantity has consistently decreased since 2010. In response to a question in the Senate on Tuesday, Trade Minister Vasant Bharath said the food import bill for 2008 was $4.2 billion; for 2009, $3.8 billion; 2010, billion; and 2011, $4.7 billion.
ST. JOHN’S, Antigua - The formula being used to establish the thriving agriculture programme at the Princess Margaret Secondary School (PMS), is to be used as a module for other schools across the region. That’s the word from head of the school’s Agricultural Science Department Craig Cole, who announced yesterday that a policy document is now being drafted for submission to the Food and Agricultural Organisation (FAO). The document will act as a guide for other territories to develop Good Agricultural Practices (GAPS) within the school system.
KINGSTON, Jamaica - PEOPLE who know Professor James Cavallaro are not surprised that he's a candidate for the Inter-American Commission on Human Rights (IACHR).
After all, Cavallaro, an American, has spent all of his adult life as a human rights advocate — from his days as a 21-year-old college graduate working with refugees at the US/Mexico border, to challenging abuses by the cruel Pinochet Government in Chile, to his active defence of rights issues in other countries in Central and South America that have made him one of the most sought-after experts in his field.
GEORGETOWN, Guyana, CMC – The Guyana government Wednesday said it will ask Argentina for information regarding claims that Iran has been setting up terrorist cells in several Caribbean and South American countries including Guyana, Suriname and Trinidad and Tobago. Government spokesman Dr. Roger Luncheon told a news conference that The Donald Ramotar administration was very much interested in the information that was made public last week regarding the terrorist cells. “I expect that not only Guyana.
ST. JOHN’S, Antigua, CMC – The Organisation of Eastern Caribbean States (OECS) is expressing “great concern” at the decision of the United States to continue placing Cuba on a list of “State Sponsors of Terrorism”. The leaders of Antigua and Barbuda, Dominica, Grenada, St. Lucia, St. Vincent and the Grenadines, St. Kitts-Nevis, Montserrat, Anguilla and the British Virgin Islands, who have just ended a summit here, said they were of the “view that was no justification for this action and reiterated their solidarity with Cuba”.
PORT OF SPAIN, Trinidad, CMC – The Bankers’ Association of Trinidad and Tobago (BATT) has dismissed international media reports that Trinidad and Tobago is a known money laundering haven where anyone can stash millions of dollars and transfer funds to offshore accounts without being arrested. “These statements are unfortunate and misguided,” said the BATT, which represents all the commercial banks operating here.