Cricketer captains India-Guyana Chamber
April 23, 2023
Following the launch of American, British and Canadian Chambers of Commerce, an India-Guyana Chamber of Commerce has been formed, with Guyanese businessman and retired international cricketer Ramnaresh Sarwan as its chair. Businessman and retired cricketer, Steven Jacobs will serve as Vice Chairman of the business group.
The new business chamber will strengthen and cement ties between the corporate community in Guyana and India and work along with the two governments in the areas of business development and support. The formation of the new Chamber of Commerce coincides with the ongoing visit to Guyana by the Indian Minister of External Affairs, Dr Subrahmanyam Jaishankar.
During a dinner to celebrate his visit, President Irfaan Ali called Guyana’s relationship with India “strong and respectful”.
Both countries share similar values and the time is right to enhance cooperation at the government-to-government level and with the private sectors of both countries.
President Ali and Vice President Bharrat Jagdeo made separate official visits to India recently. The two countries have been developing closer ties, as Guyana benefits from India’s expertise in a number of development areas related to the oil and gas sector.
Guyanese Captain and crew bringing MV MA Lisha to Guyana
April 4, 2023
The MV MA Lisha loaded on the deack of MV Sun Rise
The MV MA Lisha is scheduled to arrive in Guyana by this weekend, after setting sail from Kolkata to Chennai, and then making its way through the Atlantic Ocean to Trinidad, on April 2nd, 2023.
On April 3rd 2023 the vessel was offloaded from the MV Sun Rise at the Port of Chaguaramas, as it prepares to sail to Guyana.
Onboard the vessel to guide it home to Guyana is a 14-member Guyanese crew led by Captain Courtney McDonald, veteran Guyanese Captain and Director of Maritime Safety at the Maritime Administration Department. The Guyanese Crew is complemented by three crew members from Garden Reach Shipbuilders and Engineers Limited, and two technicians from MACORP.
Hon. Bishop Juan Edghill, Minister of Public Works, has expressed his delight in the impending arrival, reiterating Government’s pursuit of transforming and improving the country’s transport infrastructure, especially for the hinterland regions.
“This new North-West bound ferry which has the capacity to accommodate up to 276 passengers, along with 18 crew members, can also carry 14 sedan-type vehicles and two trucks. It is ideal for this route and we are especially happy to bear witness to the improvements that this will bring to the lives of residents, who will now be able to travel more freely, frequently, and comfortably.”
“The economic gains for local businesses are also expected to be many, as persons shipping produce in and out of region one will now have access to a cold and cool room storage, thereby reducing spoilage. The vessel can also accommodate up to 250 tonnes of cargo,” Minister Edghill has stated.
The MV MA Lisha has a front loading/ offloading ramp which can accommodate easy loading and discharging of cargo at ports she will call on. The vessel also has side boarding capacity. A total of 19 Navigational, Mechanical and Auxiliary Staff of the Transport and Harbours Department were trained in India during 2022 and earlier this year, to operate the new ferry vessel.
Jamaica
KINGSTON, Apr. 16, CMC
The US Geological Survey recorded an earthquake of magnitude of 4.6
with the epicentre located offshore about 43 kilometres east of the capital Kingston. Residents as far west as the parish of St. Elizabeth reported the tremor. The quake also affected Haiti, the United States Minor Outlying Islands and Cuba. There were no reports of damage or injuries.
Geothermal energy
2023, 04/11
An OECS study group visited the geothermal site in Dominica.
Grenada, St. Vincent and the Grenadines, and St. Kitts and Nevis are expected to benefit from a three-day study tour of Dominica’s geothermal energy project as part of efforts to foster regional cooperation and collaboration within the Organisation of Eastern Caribbean States (OECS) on geothermal energy.
St. Lucia-based OECS Commission said that the study tour was organised by the OECS Geothermal Energy Capacity Building for Utilisation, Investment and Local Development (OECS-GEOBUILD) Programme, in collaboration with the Dominica Geothermal Development Company Limited (DGDC).
It said that the tour is in keeping with the mandate of GEOBUILD to provide specialised advisory support, analyses and capacity building for geothermal energy development based on critical needs to advance relevant project initiatives in beneficiary countries.
According to the OECS Commission, the objectives of the study tour were to obtain a practical understanding of delivering a drilling programme in the Eastern Caribbean, including preparation activities, civil works requirements, public awareness and information, and safety and environmental safeguards as well as identify lessons learned by the Dominica drilling team for the implementation of the geothermal exploration and drilling phase.
It said beneficiary member states of the study tour include Grenada, St. Vincent and the Grenadines, and St. Kitts-Nevis and that the three-day event allowed for a visit to Laudat, where the current geothermal development activities are ongoing in Dominica.
The Commission said that a detailed presentation was made on the Roseau Valley Geothermal Development Project, which was followed by a tour to the sites of three production wells, and the drilling site for a Reinjection Well.
Participants had the opportunity to observe the preparation for the Flow Test of one of the Production Wells RV-P2, which was drilled in 2022, with a total drilling depth of 1378 meters. On the final day of the Study Tour, they further engaged key members of the DGDC team for discussions on the outcomes of the exploration and drilling programme in Dominica..
The Commission said that GEOBUILD is designed to respond to the needs of participating OECS member states for advancing geothermal energy development. The project will facilitate collaboration on geothermal energy not only with the beneficiary countries but also with other regional countries interested in exploring geothermal resources.
“The interventions have been designed to address the gaps and requests identified and presented by the key geothermal actors at various consultations at the regional level. The project is consistent with the overall aim of the OECS to promote cooperation among the member states at the regional and international levels.”
GEOBUILD is funded by the Barbados-based Caribbean Development Bank (CDB) with a grant of US$3.1 Million with support from the Inter-American Development Bank (IDB) and the European Union Caribbean Investment Facility.
The project will also coordinate and support improved use of existing geothermal capacity in the region and GEOBUILD will directly benefit the five eligible OECS member states:
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- Dominica,
- Grenada,
- St. Kitts-Nevis,
- St. Lucia, and
- St. Vincent and the Grenadines
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IMF – Dominica: Staff Concluding Statement of the 2023 Article IV Mission
April 3, 2023
Washington, DC:
A Concluding Statement describes the preliminary findings of IMF staff at the end of an official staff visit (or ‘mission’), in most cases to a member country. Missions are undertaken as part of regular (usually annual) consultations under Article IV of the IMF’s Articles of Agreement, in the context of a request to use IMF resources (borrow from the IMF), as part of discussions of staff monitored programs, or as part of other staff monitoring of economic developments.
The authorities have consented to the publication of this statement. The views expressed in this statement are those of the IMF staff and do not necessarily represent the views of the IMF’s Executive Board. Based on the preliminary findings of this mission, staff will prepare a report that, subject to management approval, will be presented to the IMF Executive Board for discussion and decision.
An International Monetary Fund (IMF) staff team, led by Ms. Joana Pereira, visited Roseau and held discussions on the 2023 Article IV consultation with Dominica’s authorities during March 20–31. At the end of the consultation, the mission issued the following statement, which summarizes its main conclusions and recommendations.
1. The Dominican economy is expanding strongly but faces headwinds from global inflationary shocks. Severely affected by the pandemic, real GDP growth is estimated to have reached 6.9 percent in 2021 and 5.7 percent in 2022, driven by construction of climate-resilient infrastructure, a rebound in tourism since the full lifting of COVID-related restrictions in April 2022, and a substantial rise in agricultural output. Global commodity price pressures aggravated by Russia’s war in Ukraine, notably oil and food, in tandem with high shipping costs, pushed inflation up to an estimated 7.5 percent in 2022, despite mitigating price policies – fuel subsidies, custom fees waivers, and VAT cuts for electricity. The current account deficit, which has fallen substantially since hurricane Maria and COVID shocks, remained elevated at 28 percent of GDP in 2022 on account of unfavorable terms of trade, large imports of investment goods, and incomplete recovery in tourism receipts.
2. High Citizenship-by-Investment (CBI) revenue has supported public investment and crisis response measures, but fiscal space remains tight. Despite record high CBI inflows, nearing 30 percent of GDP, the primary balance deteriorated to -6.2 percent in FY21/22. The construction of resilient infrastructure – roads, housing, hospitals, and shelters – and a new airport kept public investment at high levels, while economic measures implemented in response to the pandemic and the cost-of-living crisis heightened current expenditures and weakened tax revenue. Public debt declined somewhat, to 107 percent of GDP, but stays above regional peers and constrains fiscal space going forward.
3. The financial sector enjoys ample liquidity and improving capital buffers, yet credit to the private sector is subdued. Given abundant liquidity, deposit and lending rates remain low and have fallen in some sectors, despite tighter global financing conditions and exit of non-indigenous banks in recent years. Banks have strengthened provisions in line with ECCB requirements and remain well capitalized, while the implementation of credit unions’ recapitalization plans is progressing. Meanwhile, credit to the private sector has underperformed relative to GDP growth, while bank exposure to the public sector grew since the pandemic.
4. The economic outlook is positive, predicated on a full recovery in tourism in the near term, implementation of public investment plans, and prudent fiscal management. Growth is expected to stay above 4.5 percent in 2023-24, as tourism returns to pre-COVID levels, and the construction of the new international airport and geothermal power plant take hold. Inflation is projected to recede to 6.3 percent in 2023 and to continue falling afterwards along with international trends. The current account deficit is expected to gradually narrow over the medium term with the increase of tourism exports, on the back of expanded hotel and air transport capacity, the normalization of commodity prices, and a steady decline in investment goods’ imports. Public debt is set to decline in coming years, albeit slowly, supported by a gradual consolidation of public finances.
5. However, downside risks remain, stemming from global economic uncertainty, climate change, and volatility of CBI revenue. External risks from geopolitical tensions or tighter global financial conditions cloud the outlook for trade, commodity prices and global demand, with significant spillovers to the Dominican economy. An intensification of natural disasters due to climate change could lead to large output and capital losses, hindering fiscal sustainability and financial stability. Shortfalls in CBI inflows could hamper implementation of infrastructure investment plans, climate resilience, economic activity, and the fiscal position. Disruptions in corresponding banking relationships (CBR) could raise barriers to trade.
6. To safeguard room for climate resilience investments and ensure compliance with the regional debt target, fiscal consolidation efforts should redouble. A consolidation path in line with the national fiscal rule – raising the primary balance to 2 percent of GDP by 2026 – is necessary to reach the 60 percent public debt target by 2035. The plan should be underpinned by a sizeable improvement of non-CBI fiscal balances, while protecting investment and other priority programs. Stronger fiscal consolidation would facilitate external rebalancing and reduce the exposure of the financial system to the public sector.
7. More ambitious reforms will be necessary to underpin the growth friendly fiscal consolidation . Mobilizing tax revenue by streamlining tax incentives, reviewing PIT allowances, and strengthening tax administration and compliance risk management is a priority. As international fuel prices moderate, the reduction of VAT on electricity should be phased out, and motor vehicle licenses revised up to compensate revenue losses from the foregone highway levy. On the spending side, it remains critical to reduce the wage bill through civil service reform, while pension spending could lessen further through an increase in the minimum (early retirement) pensionable age. Given limited fiscal space, efforts should continue to rationalize inefficient spending as well as prioritizing the government’s medium-term public investment plan (PSIP) towards growth-enhancing projects – such as transition to geothermal energy and new airport. In addition, a revision of water and sewerage tariffs will strengthen the financial position of the publicly owned water company, reducing contingent liabilities. Given high exposure to climate change, allocating a higher share of CBI revenue, including all unexpected windfalls, to disaster insurance and debt amortization would bolster financial resilience and strengthen debt sustainability.
8. Meanwhile, it is essential to strengthen social protection systems. While conventional income-based targeting is hampered by widespread informality and capacity constraints, the government could pursue avenues for proxy-targeting, tailoring social assistance to vulnerable households in a systematized way. This would enable the streamlining of untargeted programs and deploying exceptional support swiftly and cost- effectively in the face of large shocks. As a first step, completing the ongoing population census, which would form the basis for a comprehensive social registry, is paramount.
9. Addressing longstanding constraints to financial intermediation is needed to prudently bolster credit to the private sector. The upcoming ECCU regional credit bureau and the already operating Eastern Caribbean Partial Credit Guarantee scheme can facilitate credit access by streamlining lending processes and addressing collateral constraints for small businesses. Ongoing initiatives to support small business development and financial management will further facilitate MSMEs’ access to credit. Efforts to modernize the national insolvency law remain essential to facilitate resolution of NPLs, which remain elevated, thereby encouraging prudent risk-taking.
10. Modernizing supervisory frameworks is crucial to preserve financial stability. Efforts are needed to bolster the resources and capacity of the national supervisor considering its large mandate, which expanded further with the adoption of the Virtual Assets Business Act in mid-2022. Modernizing supervisory regulations and granting statutory independence from the Ministry of Finance would further improve its effectiveness and support risk-based supervision. To foster financial resilience to climate change, supervisory frameworks should account for related risks. Meanwhile, it remains critical to continue to pursue the needed capitalization of systemic credit unions.
11. Continued efforts to modernize the economy and strengthen economic resilience are necessary, including through policies that foster diversification and inclusiveness. The transition to geothermal energy will reduce carbon emissions, lessen external vulnerabilities, and increase economic competitiveness over medium term through lower energy costs. The new international airport will significantly boost connectivity with large markets and should be accompanied by efforts to enhance regional connectivity. Initiatives to support the agricultural sector are welcome and should be furthered to broaden the export base and explore synergies with the growing tourism sector. Digitalization and professional training will enable inclusive development and further increase productivity.
12. Advancing institutional reforms can help mitigate risks and support economic policymaking. Continued progress in strengthening AML/CFT legislation and procedures, in line with the recommendations of the upcoming CFAFT mutual evaluation report, will protect the integrity of CBI programs and the stability of CBRs. The publication of timely high-quality statistics is essential to inform policy decisions and monitor compliance with the fiscal rules. The implementation of the national fiscal rule necessitates an enhancement of public financial management processes, including for medium-term budgeting, fiscal reporting, treasury operations, and public investment management.
The IMF team is grateful to the authorities and other local stakeholders for their warm hospitality, collaboration, and constructive dialog.
UWI
25 April
UWI principal Rose-Marie Belle Antoine addressed WIGUT protestors at the UWI St Augustine
UWI Trinidad dons can now begin salary negotiations as the UWI administration confirmed receipt of a remit from Chief Personnel Officer Dr Daryl Dindial. President of the West Indies Group of University Teachers (WIGUT) Dr Indira Rampersad says it is a victory for the union and had it not been for its industrial action, they may have still been waiting. All actions have now ended after months of protest by WIGUT saying the time had long passed to get a remit.
Members refused to sign and submit final exam papers to the examination section, to upload students’ coursework grades and only indicating whether they failed or passed, to have office hours and responses to students and facilitators outside the classroom and to hold remedial classes.
Dindial and principal Prof Rose-Marie Belle Antoine said discussions were ongoing. UWI said it “received communication from the Ministry of Education to commence salary negotiations, – the remit for bargaining units of the UWI. The campus thanks the minister and her team, the CPO and inter-ministerial committee. In particular, it records its appreciation for the honouring of the timeline given six weeks ago.”
Receipt of the remit was communicated to WIGUT, so “it is expected that industrial action will cease as the parties go into negotiations. In particular, it is expected that WIGUT will honour its commitment to submit all outstanding exam papers once the remit is received.”
Belle-Antoine thanked WIGUT for complying.
“We do not anticipate any further disruption of the hosting of the semester’s examinations. Notwithstanding the above, due to our statutory requirements for notices in relation to examinations, the campus had already complied on Friday night and issued notices of changed schedules to 31 examinations for which papers were outstanding. These new dates will stand. The papers now being received will be processed with the same integrity and care that is the norm for the holding of UWI examinations.”
Belle Antoine hopes for a productive and speedy outcome with respect to bargaining and thanked UWI staff for their patience and understanding.
Rampersad said Belle Antoine notified WIGUT of the remit on Sunday, which brought much-needed relief to the union’s members. Not only is there a sense of relief, there is “a sense of victory. I don’t think, had it not been for our continued action and our persistence it would have gone on, because remember, the CPO had it since May 2021 and we weren’t getting anything concrete.”
While WIGUT does not yet have details of the remit, Rampersad said she is hoping that talks can begin as soon as possible.
“When they’re ready, they will release it…It’s something you don’t really want to do via the internet and via e-mail or WhatsApp. You tend to want to meet the executives face-to-face…if it’s something reasonable, we negotiate, we work with it…If it’s something totally unacceptable, we reject outright, it goes back to the CPO and we come back with something better to them.”
WIGUT has called off all protest action as “we want to negotiate in good faith with the employer, which is the UWI. We are all very, very pleased. I think it’s a WIGUT victory. It’s because of the persistence, commitment and diligence of our members that I think we obtained it.”
If not for this, she said, “it would have continued to drag on because no one was paying attention.”
Acting Students’ Guild president Kyle Bisnath said the guild is pleased but hopes that in the future, “these matters should be treated with a sense of urgency by the stakeholders involved, as to circumvent any escalation that poses the potential to impact student life and development. We continue to support our members and keep a keen eye on exams as they progress and we are satisfied that all students will sit exams this season as expected.”
University principal Prof Rose-Marie Belle Antoine said the UWI cannot make the Chief Personnel Officer move faster in offering the long-awaited remit to members of the West Indies Group of University Teachers (WIGUT).
“Short of kidnapping him (the CPO) and saying to him with a gun to his head, I don’t think there’s anything much more that UWI can do. We have submitted all the documentation, my registrar has been back and forth, they asked for extra and we gave them that and this, which is all part of the normal give-and-take I’m assuming. I can’t say what is happening behind those scenes but I can tell you for our part, if you can say what else you want me to do I will do it, unless it’s unlawful, in which case I won’t. I really can’t tell you what else can be done other than continuous moral suasion.”
WIGUT president Dr Indira Rampersad said the six-week deadline given by the CPO to the principal would expire on Sunday and with one working day left in the week, she was not hopeful that it would be received. Further action was planned as members could not continue living on 2014 salaries.
Belle Antoine said the protesters had a right to a timely remit according to the spirit and letter of the laws governing industrial relations.
“I remain hopeful, I trust it’s that they’re deliberating seriously the requests and the comprehensive proposals we’ve made, so I’m giving them the benefit of the doubt that they are looking at it seriously. As we have pointed out, UWI is generally the first, if not the first, to get a remit when we have negotiations, and it has been an extraordinary delay, which is concerning, so I continue to hope and do what I can to get the remit. Normally we don’t have to have industrial action over the remit, it’s usually the content of the remit.”
She appreciated that the union had assured her that examination papers were ready and would be released when the remit was received.
“As an academic it takes a lot of preparation to write an exam paper so I am pleased that they have prepared and reviewed, so there will be no further delay, the minute we get the remit they will be released. I did ask that you send the papers, those of you who haven’t, we know how that went but it was my duty to ask.”
Rampersad said while holding back exams was not the ultimate goal, the union was using it as a bargaining tool, as in the UK. She said it was worrying as exams are supposed to begin next week.
“Principal, you expressed a concern about the exams but the deputy principal said at the academic board that the contingency plans are in place, also your registrars are sending out communiques about examiners and pulling papers from past papers, which the students have total access to, so that’s untenable. We would advise you to keep your senior management members in place, in train, and let them follow regulations. The only people who can determine duration, time, etc, of the exam are the first examiners, and the first and second examiners made a decision yesterday that we are going to hold off until the end of the month, and regroup in May, if the remit is not received.”
Belle Antoine said the examination period ends on May 15, so if some exams had to be rescheduled there was room to manoeuvre in terms of timetabling.
“We have some leeway for papers that are not in. We have the majority of papers in and I asked for the rest and some more have come in. It’s not that they’re giving up their right to demand the remit, but that it’s one of the actions they can take. I would also ask students to pay attention in case one of your exams might be rescheduled during the exam period.
“I think the students are frustrated, it’s not just them that are frustrated, the staff are frustrated, management is frustrated because we feel powerless to help our staff and our students.”
The UWI Guild of Students said in a discussion with the union on April 4, light was shed on the unfortunate circumstances lecturers face and endure due to not getting their remit.
“Therefore, while we do not condone any actions that pose the potential to adversely affect our members, we continue to ask that the parties responsible for mitigating and navigating this human resource issue do so with urgency with all circumstances considered.”
UWI Trinidad chocolate factory
2023, 04/25
Minister of Trade and Industry Paula Gopee-Scoon and UWI Principal Professor Rose-Marie Belle Antoine laid the foundation brick for the UWI Chocolate Factory. in the presence of UWI Cocoa Research Centre Director Professor Pathmanathan Umaharan, European Union Ambassador Peter Cavendish and Chinese Embassy Economic and Commercial Officer Zhou Lichun.
With a century of agriculture research at Imperial College of Tropical Agriculture and a historic enviable reputation for the world’s finest cocoa beans, Trinidad is preparing for a long overdue booming chocolate industry.
The University of the West Indies with its Cocoa Research Centre (CRC) hosted a foundation laying ceremony for the UWI Chocolate Factory at University Field Station, Mount Hope.
CRC director Professor Pathmanathan Umaharan said the chocolate factory has been in the works for the past decade. The factory is being built to materialise CRC research, the world’s oldest cocoa research institution and custodian to the world’s largest collection of cocoa (over 2,000 varieties).
“While we have a global reputation for the cocoa quality that we have, we need to build a reputation for our chocolate brands and other value-added products. This is one of the few agricultural industries that give us a comparative advantage in the global market and an opportunity to earn foreign exchange in a sustainable way.”
The chocolate factory will be a part of its International Fine Cocoa Innovation Centre, which will house a museum of cocoa plants, a cocoa tourism centre, a restaurant, labs and a ‘chocolate academy’ that will host interactive short courses in chocolate making.
Cocoa beans currently exported only captured 7.8 per cent of the total value chain, which CRC hopes to expand, along with creating employment opportunities and aiding development of the neglected rural sector. 100 acres of farmland connected to the Factory will be a beacon in rejuvenating abandoned cocoa farms locally and regionally.
Belatedly, after paltry annual budgets, Trade and Industry Minister Paula Gopee-Scoon said the Government identified agriculture and agri-processing as key non-energy sectors in sustaining socio-economic growth.
“There has already been an expansion in the export of raw and roasted cocoa beans, cocoa powder, chocolate in blocks, slabs, bars and cocoa butter from $125.3 million to $156.5 million from 2021-2022. So the growth is there.”
EU Ambassador to T&T Peter Cavendish said that the EU firmly believes in the quality of local cocoa beans and rated it best in the world, proven through the EU’s contribution of €250 million to the CRC procurement of machinery to be used in the factory.
Construction of the chocolate factory is expected to be completed and commissioned in January 2024.
Phoenix Park Industrial Estate seeks 10 PRC tenants
2023, 04/24
Amid rising geopolitical tensions, a PRC delegation led by Chen Baiwei visited e TecK’s Phoenix Park Industrial Estate with Steve De Las, President e TecK and Stacy Adams, Vice President of Investor Services at InvesTT. 95% completed, Phoenix Park Industrial Estate is expected to host even more PRC corporate tenants, following a visit by an official delegation from the Jinan Municipal Government in Shandong Province. The Jinan Municipal Government Delegation, of 10 senior government officials, visited on April 21-23, 2023.
Investment promotion agency, InvesTT, reports that the delegation sees Trinidad and Tobago “as solid ground for trade and investment and specifically identified the tenanting of e TecK’s Phoenix Park Industrial Estate as high on their agenda for collaboration between the two countries.”
Four PRC tenants have committed to setting up operations. It is the first Caribbean project to be undertaken under the parameters of the PRC Belt and Road Initiative via a Memorandum of Understanding signed by both countries in 2018.
Adams reports, “This is the 2nd Chinese delegation visit in the month of April, the first being from the Zhejiang Province. The visits were made possible through weekly virtual collaboration with our Trinidad and Tobago Embassy in Beijing and the marketing arm of the Beijing Construction Engineering Group, as we aim to fulfil our mandate to tenant the Estate with at least 10 Chinese companies. We currently have four committed tenants from China.”
On April 21, the Delegation met with Minister of Trade and Industry, Senator Paula Gopee-Scoon, and executives from InvesTT and ExporTT.
Head of the Delegation, Chen Baiwei—who is Deputy Director-General at the Foreign Affairs Office of the Shandong Provincial People’s Government—outlined the group’s interest in promoting eTecK’s Phoenix Park Industrial Estate to encourage Chinese companies to establish operations there.
Sharing Government plans for diversification with a heavy focus on manufacturing and maritime industries, Minister Gopee-Scoon invited Chinese co-operation in agri-investment, food production, “smart agriculture” and a seed variety programme.
Ms. Baiwei indicated her openness for collaboration in the area of agri-investment, noting that Shandong Province is seen as the “basket of China”, where most of the country’s agricultural output originates.
Plans were discussed for a China-Caribbean Development Centre to provide Chinese companies with information on Caribbean trade and investment destinations, as well as the development of cultural connection programs between China and Trinidad and Tobago. An invitation was extended to visit the Ocean Decade Cooperation Centre as the Shandong Provincial Government recently unveiled their development plans and business models for modern marine industries. T&T youths were invited to participate in the Global Youth Conference in July 2023.
InvesTT and eTecK hosted the Shandong Province delegation on a tour of Phoenix Park, on April 22. The group was excited to see that the Estate is 95% completed and with one of their nationals, Summit Luggage, first in the process of setting up manufacturing equipment in a completed factory shell.
Shandong is one of China’s top manufacturing provinces and has a focus on investment cooperation in overseas projects in housing, education, construction and power generation. The delegation included senior representatives from:
● Foreign Affairs Office of the Jinan Municipal People’s Government
● Shandong Provincial Department of Culture and Tourism
● Department of Commerce of Shandong Province
● Shandong Department of Agriculture and Rural Affairs
● Bureau of Agriculture and Rural Affairs of the Jinan Municipal People’s Government
● Cooperation and Exchange Bureau of Administration of Jinan Area of China Pilot Free Trade Zone
● University of Jinan
● Shandong Hi-Speed Group Co. Ltd.
● Shandong International Economic and Technical Cooperation Group Ltd.
Caveat emptor
Sceptics fear PRC is laying a debt trap for borrowing governments in BRI. which analysts regard as a disturbing expansion of PRC power and hegemony.
https://www.cfr.org/backgrounder/chinas-massive-belt-and-road-initiative
Potential environmental, social, and corruption risks associated with BRI projects may be especially significant in Caricom where governance is weak. Risks need to be identified with safeguards to minimize potential negative effects. WBG and other Multilateral Development Banks could support implementation of high environment, social and governance standards for BRI investments.
Financing required for BRI projects may expand debt to unsustainable levels. The Center for Global Development estimated that BRI projects will increase debt to GDP ratios for BRI countries which must balance the need for projects with vulnerabilities created by high debt levels.
https://blogs.worldbank.org/trade/three-opportunities-and-three-risks-belt-and-road-initiative
Caricom crime conference
2023, 04/20
The Caricom Crime Symposium declaration acknowledges that “the multi-faceted nature of violent crime and its pervasive effects require a robust regional response.” A plan of action includes a ban on assault weapons, an overhaul of member states’ criminal justice systems to “address criminal terrorists,” strengthening of regional forensic capabilities, collaboration and the drafting of regional model legislation for greater “harmonisation and efficiency to the development and revision of national laws,” among other ambitious objectives.
Before the two-day symposium convened in Port-of-Spain, sceptical comments were widespread. Expectations were low that deliberations would yield concrete results in subsequent weeks and months, not only from opposition parties.
However, there is too much at stake for this latest attempt at a collective response to a regional challenge to fail. Now, more than ever in the 65 years of efforts to achieve full regional integration, war on crime and criminality requires strategies that genuinely embody the Caricom vision of unity.
Debate and analysis remain fruitless on the difficult path to regional integration, overshadowed by the collapse of the British West Indies Federation, followed by the Caribbean Free Trade Association (Carifta). These predecessors to the Caribbean Community (Caricom) were established in the hope for the collective will to achieve political, social and economic strength in the countries around the Caribbean Sea.
Narrow and misguided concepts of nationalism, animosity and hostility hamper regional integration . Absence of Caribbean unity left loopholes for criminal networks to exploit, leading to the full-blown regional security crisis that prompted this symposium. Caricom, approachiong its 50th anniversary, now has an opportunity to prove its mettle as the oldest surviving integration movement in the developing world and move beyond functional cooperation and foreign policy coordination to larger, more urgent goals.
The usual empty talk about resolving differences in political and legal systems must end when it is clear how these disparities and peculiarities have hindered development. Instead of harping on past failures, it is time to rally the full strength of Caricom members.
The world sees this region as a chain of separate tiny islands and a few small nations in Central and South America. To confront extra-territorial threats to Caribbean security and stability, the full capacity of these nations. covering a total area of 463,000 km² and comprising 18.93 million people, must be seen and heard.
This is particularly important as the region seeks to engage US gun manufacturers politically and legally on the newest front in the war on crime. Transnational criminals use this region as a porous route through which to transport tonnes of illicit drugs and weapons, along with people bound for lives of servitude and exploitation.
If this week’s deliberations don’t lead to the establishment of a strong Caribbean system of surveillance, enforcement and deterrence, it will be recorded as another regional exercise in futility, the last thing Caricom needs at this stage in its history.
Law Association slams ‘irresponsible’ Caricom heads on bail
MIA SPEAKS: Barbados Prime Minister Mia Mottley, right, makes a point during a roundtable discussion at the Caricom crime symposium on Monday at the Hyatt Regency in Port of Spain. 
Second from left, TT PM Dr Keith Rowley listens attentively. Photo by Ayanna Kinsale
TT Law Association (LATT) is displeased that regional leaders “ridicule” judges for their decisions to grant bail to suspects charged with murder.
It said while everyone has a responsibility in tackling crime, it is counter-productive to “wantonly castigate those sworn to protect and uphold hard-won and cherished rights in the pursuit of these solutions.”
On the opening day of a Caricom symposium on crime, regional leaders denounced bail for murder-accused as an available option.
St Vincent and the Grenadines Prime Minister Dr Ralph Gonsalves said, “How can you .. give bail to someone charged for murder? Let’s be serious! I saw the numbers from The Bahamas. Where do those judges live, Mars?”
Barbados Prime Minister Mia Mottley said this was never the case when she was a lawyer.“When I look at the stats, not just in the Bahamas, people who are causing the most trouble are charged with two, three and four murders. Something is fundamentally wrong with that. ..how are we going to deconstruct and reconstruct to meet the reality of this jurisprudential development which is undermining the rule of law in our countries?”
LATT condemned the comments, as well as others which “suggest (judges) tend to favour the clients of certain unidentified lawyers.
“The Constitution of the Republic of Trinidad and Tobago enshrines the right of a person charged with a criminal offence to be presumed innocent until proven guilty. This is not a lawyer’s pious incantation of some technicality aimed at thwarting the ends of justice. It is an integral part of the justice system itself which affords protection to all persons if they are charged with a criminal offence.”
LATT said the criminal justice system is “littered with cases” where the prosecution failed to prove its case, leading to a not-guilty verdict. …Or in which the Director of Public Prosecutions determines for one reason or the other to discontinue a charge.”
It said people charged with offences who are denied bail are at risk of being deprived of their liberty “for the increasingly long periods it takes for a case to come to trial and then to be exonerated at the conclusion of the trial process. This is why the Constitution also guarantees the right not to be denied reasonable bail without just cause.”
It explained: “The way the right is expressed implicitly involves an acceptance that bail can be denied, for just cause. Just cause is established where there is evidence that the accused may not turn up for trial if released on bail, may interfere with witnesses or may commit other offences while out on bail.” It was up to judges, “in every case to balance, on the one hand, the public interest in safety and protection from the criminal element, and on the other, the accused’s right to liberty and to not be presumed to be guilty simply because a charge is laid against him or her. It is a difficult balancing act to perform.”
LATT said judges and magistrates had this “unenviable task,” each time someone is charged with an offence where bail must be considered, of weighing the person’s right to liberty against public interest.
“It is even more irresponsible on the part of our regional leaders to sow public discord about the difficult decisions which judges and magistrates are entrusted to make and to do so without even taking the time to examine the particular facts of the cases with which they seem to have taken issue. Can it reasonably be suggested that a judge or magistrate who releases a person on bail, particularly where that person has been awaiting trial for upwards of ten years, with no prospect of a trial within a reasonable time, is a judge or magistrate who lives on Mars?”
LATT said while it understands the judiciary should be open to constructive criticism, “random and unreasoned ridicule” will only undermine confidence in the judiciary “upon whom we all depend, our regional leaders included, for the due and timely delivery of justice.”
Corruption
A tough topic for Caricom leaders, corruption permeates almost every area of society, destabilising systems to make space for criminal activities. It is one of the main enablers of human-rights infringements, bribery in state systems and a major facilitator of trafficking of people and firearms.
Yet, at the two-day symposium on Violence as a public health issue: the crime challenge where most Caricom HoGs convened to declare war on gun, and were comfortable enough to speak on every other cause of crime – including the desire of gunmen to mind high-maintenance women – very few were keen to speak on it. While some did not even mention the word, several leaders alluded to the possibility that systems may be compromised by corrupt activities. Multiple reports suggest that corruption on many levels contributes to the firearms trade on which Caricom is taking a stand.
Politicians: Corruption? Yes, We’ve heard of it
A post-symposium panel of HoGs including the TT Prime Minister (PM), Jamaican PM Andrew Holness, Caricom chairman and Bahamas PM Philip Davis and St Lucia PM Philip J Pierre was asked about corruption and how it contributes to the firearms trade. They said that while there is significant evidence to suggest that corruption has infiltrated many systems meant to secure and defend the region, much of that evidence is by word of mouth.
“Most of it is anecdotal, supported by continuous flows of evidence of actual things happening. The best way to answer that question is to say that we know of no area, or activity, governmental or private sector, where corruption is not a possibility, likelihood or widespread,” said Dr Rowley.
Rowley said one speaker addressing the level of crime said that corruption was a major contributor and it was recognised again during the media conference that it was a facilitator to the transport of illicit goods across regional borders, including illicit firearms.
“We spoke about illegal entry, and we assumed, and that assumption is still alive and well, that a lot of the illegal movement of these unwanted items which are so dangerous to us is facilitated by some element of corruption at various locations too numerous to mention – the obvious one being at borders. The others are facilitatory action where guards who are supposed to guard the guards are in fact doing the opposite, and we are in fact familiar with it. So, it is a given that for these things to flourish there has to be some level of indifference or corruption.”
St Vincent and the Grenadines PM Dr Ralph Gonsalves noted high levels of corruption in many areas, even if he didn’t say the word.
“There has been some discussion on it. But you have to do it on an evidence-based set of criteria. For instance, you will find things that deal with the law and order and justice system. There are aspects in those which, as you have said, there is, if not conclusive, sufficient anecdotal or even persuasive evidence that unsavoury things are happening that ought not to be happening.”
Gonsalves also alluded to the possibility of corruption in the judiciary, saying that it has to rend the courts from practitioners of the law.
“We are not going to address this problem (of crime and violence) very seriously unless we speak about uncomfortable things and take action regionally unless we talk about these uncomfortable matters. The criminal justice system in this region is increasingly becoming controlled by lawyers who practice criminal law. “
He said judges allowed too many lawyers to control the court system under the guise of protecting the rights of the accused, utilising delays and shortcomings in the courts as a strategic part of their defence.
Barbados PM Mia Mottley – an attorney – in a similar thread advised limiting the amount of familiarity between judges and lawyers, in her first contribution in the symposium.
“We need to start rotating judges and magistrates in the region to ensure that there is not the familiarity with counsel and other circumstances which we take for granted.”
Holness said that while there was not an in-depth examination of corruption and the way it affects crime and violence, it was addressed through a point of view that laws needed to be strengthened, in order to deal with new crimes that older laws did not perceive.
“We are dealing with things now like cybercrime, but we are also dealing with financial crimes. We are also dealing with a new type of criminal activity – the organised criminal activity whose deliberate and sole purpose is a business model designed to weaken the state to create space in which they can carry out illicit activities; and in fact that is one of the root causes of corruption so, indirectly, strengthening our legislative framework will treat with the matter of corruption and these new types of criminal activity.”
A Global Americas report on corruption indicated that in 2016, one in three people paid a bribe to access a service. Bribes alone are estimated to cost the globe at least US$2 trillion annually or two per cent of the global GDP.
In 2020 a report from the Commonwealth claimed illicit financial flows cost developing countries around the world, including Caricom nations, US$1.26 trillion per year. Commonwealth Secretary-General, Patricia Scotland said,
“Like the (covid19) pandemic which countries are fighting to control, corruption inflicts huge human and financial costs and puts in grave jeopardy the well-being of the most vulnerable. Corruption is a serious crime which undermines social and economic development in all societies.”
Jai Leladharsingh, coordinator of the Confederation of Regional Chambers called on Caricom to set up a regional task force for addressing organised crime, corruption and to engage in intelligence sharing to make the necessary dents and reductions in reducing crime on a regional level.
“This task force must work with regional governments to enhance the levels of international security assistance, including assessing satellite technology from the developed world,” he said.
In 2022 Jamaica was identified as the fifth most corrupt country in the Caribbean behind Haiti, the Dominican Republic, Guyana, and TT.
UNC chides ‘cop out’ crime symposium
UNC senator Wade Mark told media the upcoming Caricom symposium on crime is both a “cop-out” and “another brazen attempt” by the government to “buy time” to think of more excuses.
Minister of Foreign and Caricom Affairs Minister Dr Amery Browne has since said it is a step towards finding solutions to address crime on all fronts in the region.
Mark said while he wishes other Caricom leaders all the best, the Prime Minister “has abandoned his post and is literally running for cover.”
Mark said Dr Rowley is even ducking and running from the media. Last week, Rowley declined to answer questions about crime when approached after a sod-turning ceremony for a new solar energy plant in Couva.
He said, “You know I don’t encourage that.”
He was then escorted by Special Branch police to his waiting SUV and left.
“He’s afraid of reporting on crime to the people and hoping that a regional symposium will save him,” Mark said, adding that he is “blaming everyone but himself. It’s a cop-out. Rather than face the people and bring solutions to this criminality and violence plaguing us, he ducks, runs and hides behind his regional colleagues.”
Mark questioned how the symposium would lead to the protection of TT’s borders, bring more efficiency and speed to the judiciary, improve crime detection rate, equip the police with more body cameras, or provide hope and jobs to young people. University graduates have no choice but to work at gas stations and fast-food restaurants to earn money.
Asked if he sees positive action from the symposium, he said, “Any decision taken by Caricom has to come before Parliament…We wish the leaders the best. We hope they will find solutions.”
However, Rowley cannot be attempting to find solutions to TT’s problems when “He is the problem. No one is safe. Nowhere is safe – not your homes, not your businesses, not our communities, nor our streets, among other places. All are affected.”
Mark said that after the symposium, the government will keep telling the public it is waiting for Caricom to provide crime solutions but the Opposition has always been open to discuss issues over crime with the government.
‘Caricom leaders must examine several issues at crime symposium’
2023, 04/16
Independent Senator Anthony Vieira and former minister Dr Bhoendradatt Tewarie declared that, among the steps T&T needs to take to deal with the “wicked” problem of crime, is bringing the office of Director of Public Prosecution up to full strength.
Caricom leaders must also discuss several issues in their crime symposium including more cooperation between T&T’s border authorities to disrupt the gang alliances that are consolidating between Venezuela and Trinidad.
The symposium is geared to examine crime as a public health emergency.
Vieira said, “The first duty of a State is to protect its people from violence, this includes businesses and home invasions. The time for playing armchair criminologist has long passed. We’re facing real issues in real time now. In addressing the root causes of escalating crime my personal view is that it’s less a case of bad management on the part of the TTPS and the National Security Minister and more a case of our being trapped in poor existing frameworks. The systems of the 20th century haven’t evolved to meet our 21st century needs. We also have to be wary of those who offer hollow platitudes or simple solutions to complex problems. Crime in T&T isn’t just complex but ‘wicked’.”
He said ‘wicked’ was a policy and planning term which identifies a problem difficult to solve because of incomplete, contradictory and changing requirements that are often difficult to recognise.
“But there are measures I believe the Government can and should be taking.”
“This includes strong law enforcement, not just more police boots on the ground but the overall strengthening of the respective law enforcement agencies to detect, investigate and prosecute criminal activities.”
Viera also said T&T needs to bring the DPP’s Office up to full strength. “Once there’s that break in the chain, everything falls down. Full strength isn’t manning the division with new attorneys, you need a mix of newbies and experienced senior prosecutors. That may mean outsourcing people from the private sector but that gap needs to be addressed.”
Vieira favours the US system where there is a relationship between the District Attorney and US police.
“It’s a better model, especially with white collar/complex crime.”
The senator suggested more investment in education and job training: “We tend to look at these young criminals as something to come down on hard when in fact we should be looking at a potential resource. The challenge is how to reach those young people and interface with them. There should be assessment programmes to pick out people in areas in which they excel—music, dance, technology–get them off the streets for a couple of years and redirect them.”
Vieira recommended more prevention programmes among youths addressing social inequality. The plan to address crime must be comprehensive, involving collaborative effort from multiple stakeholders including civil society and law enforcement.
Dr Bhoendradatt Tewarie had questions for Caricom
Tewarie said there are several issues that must be examined by Caricom leaders.
He said at a recent UWI forum on crime, Commissioner of Police Erla Harewood-Christopher identified five important actions in a ten-point plan–precision policing, the dismantling of gangs, gun retrieval, interception of illegal trafficking in guns and drugs and dealing with indiscipline and corruption in the TTPS. For T&T, the questions that must be asked at the symposium are: (ECO answers given for each)
*Does T&T’s Government see these as priorities and how are they actively supporting the CoP? (NO)
*Why does the police take a defensive strategy of protecting the population of T&T ineffectively rather than take an aggressive strategy of taking the fight to the gangs if they really want to dismantle the gangs? (THEY ARE CORRUPT)
*Should T&T Immigration and the Coast Guard cooperate more to disrupt the gang alliances that are consolidating between Venezuela and Trinidad? (YES)
*Can crime be dealt with in T&T without a full-scale overhaul of the Justice system with all its glaring flaws, loopholes, and abundance of incompetence and ineffectiveness?” (NO)
*What does the Caricom region agree on as the top three priorities to address crime, what is the desirable level of cooperation required and how can this be achieved?
*Are there specific examples of crime prevention and crime suppression and containment strategies that have worked to reduce murders and violent crimes in any territory? (YES) Where and what? (CAPITAL PUNISHMENT, EXILE, REPATRIATION TO AU)
*Which country has the highest detection rate for murders and violent crimes? (UK)What do they do right? (RESPECT LAW AND ORDER )How can this be replicated elsewhere?
*Is there evidence of inter-island collaboration on the movement of guns and drugs? (YES) How successful is Caricom’s Impacs agency on this? Does the region need more help and support from USA, Britain, Holland, and France to effectively deal with drugs and guns transshipment?(USA Caribbean-U.S. Security Cooperation Dialogue, U.S. security assistance through the Caribbean Basin Security Initiative . UK ROYAL NAVY P[ATROL)
*What can be done notwithstanding lobbying in the USA and raising the issue internationally to curb the entry of guns into T&T? How can Customs be more alert and protect our national security? How can the Coast Guard protect our coastline better? Do we need international help? (USA, EU AND UK ARE ACTIVE IN COUNTERING ARMS TRAFFICKING)
*Is Caricom capable of protecting its own borders and if not what is the solution to this without surrendering sovereignty? (CARICOM IS INCAPABLE OF SOVEREIGNTY. THE USA SHOULD ACQUIRE THE REGION AS AN UNINCORPORATED TERRITORY, REPATRIATE FELONS TO AU HOMELANDS AND BUILD NAVAL BASES TO DETER PRC HEGEMONS)
Gun ban
Whether Caricom’s decision, this week, to ban assault weapons within the civilian population of nation states will make a meaningful dent on crime depends largely on the details of such a prohibition.
On paper, the policy announced at the end of a two-day regional symposium on crime is long overdue. For some time now it has been apparent TT is awash with guns.
Firearms feature in a large proportion of murders, so it makes sense to remove them from our streets. Currently, this country does not ban guns outright, but, like many other countries, regulates gun use.
There is a theoretical system of licensing, a system whose myriad defects have become more and more apparent in recent times. At various points there have been complaints, on the one hand, that not enough licences have been issued at a fast enough pace: that too great a bottleneck has existed.
On the other hand, precisely the reverse has been alleged: too many licences have at times been granted – in some cases multiple permits have reportedly been issued to individuals owning almost half a dozen weapons. There have been concerns about inadequate vetting, sloppy custody chains and poor record-keeping.
One gun dealer is currently wrangling with the police over the apparent disappearance of ammunition after a raid. Top cops tasked with granting licences, have wrangled over the system, with one commissioner of police coming under fire from his predecessor over the sheer volume of permits issued in recent years.
Any effort by this country to ban weapons now will have to grapple with increased calls from members of the business community for greater access to weapons. While there is no special right to bear arms in this country, the Government will also have to navigate a legislative environment in which changes may require special parliamentary majorities.
The decision of Caricom leaders to finger US authorities and their lax regulation of firearms manufacturing also raises more questions than answers. Gun ownership is, unfortunately, a political issue in the US.
Will the American population, long deeply divided over the so-called right to bear arms, suddenly be convinced about the need for greater regulation through the urgings of small Caribbean states? It is perhaps wishful thinking to expect much from a country that appears perennially unable to properly regulate gun ownership in the face of a litany of nightmarish mass shootings that continue to take place on its soil.
With current TT laws not being fully enforced, and our borders seemingly perpetually porous, it is also not yet apparent that a formal ban, which could be of great symbolic power, will be enough.
Faith values
2023, 03/30
Inspired by the experiences of the Shouter Baptist community, the freedom to worship is now embraced and celebrated in our multicultural nation as a right to be staunchly defended.
It was 27 years ago, during the administration of Basdeo Panday, that Shouter Baptist Liberation Day was finally proclaimed a public holiday, giving prominence to a religious movement that has had a significant historical and social impact on T&T.
It should not have taken half a century to get to that point. The origins of this syncretic religion, with elements of traditional West African religions and Christianity prominent in its liturgy, date back to 19th-century T&T among people of African descent.
Through strength and resilience, adherents to the faith endured and eventually prevailed through 34 years of prohibition and persecutions, including being arrested, beaten and jailed if caught practising their religion.
Forced to worship in secrecy, Shouter Baptists waged many court battles to win the right to worship. Even after prohibitions were lifted in 1951, they struggled for decades to erase negative perceptions about their faith.
Today, Shouter Baptists rightfully claim their place of prominence and pride among the various religions practised in T&T, a reflection of this society’s cosmopolitan nature.
This year, in particular, March 30 falls during a season of deep spiritual focus for members of various faiths. For followers of Islam, this is the Holy Month of Ramadhan, a period of fasting and introspection for them, as well as some Christian denominations now in the final days of Lent. Hindus recently observed Maha Shivaratri, a night of worship to Lord Shiva, and colourful celebrations of Phagwa took place across the country earlier this month.
This country’s rich and diverse religious heritage and the freedom that citizens enjoy in practising their spiritual beliefs are blessings that should never be taken for granted. These are unique characteristics that set this nation apart from many other societies worldwide.
However, this depth and range of spiritual pursuits, visible in the many places of worship across the landscape of these small twin islands, does not automatically yield moral and ethical strength in every segment of this society.
There was a sobering reminder of this fact from Prime Minister Dr Keith Rowley, when he called on T&T’s religious bodies to reinforce in the national community the importance of teaching children right from wrong so that they steer clear of a criminal path.
Dr Rowley’s comments, made during the official handover ceremony for Hayes Court, the official residence of the Anglican Bishop in Port-of-Spain, underscored the urgent need for recalibration of this society’s moral compass.
The need to instil strong moral and spiritual values is critical because the high rate of violent crimes currently being committed across this nation threatens future generations.
Not just religious leaders, but people of faith in T&T, as they embrace freedom of worship, should also understand the responsibilities that come with that right.
The responsibility to serve as exemplars, instil values, nurture, train and inspire young citizens should be key. This is something worth reflecting on today, not only for Shouter Baptists, but all right-thinking citizens who want a brighter future for T&T.
CAL expanding network
2023, 04/23
Majority state-owned Caribbean Airlines Ltd (CAL) is seeking to transform its fortunes with ambitious plans for new routes, new aircraft along with the hiring of additional staff.
In a signal of the airline’s new thrust, CAL’s American law firm, Condon & Forsyth LLP, filed an application with the US Department of Transportation “to operate to the full extent authorised by the Air Transport Agreement between the Government of the United States of America and the Government of the Republic of T&T.”
In an operational forecast annex to 58-page document, CAL makes specific reference to Puerto Rico and St Thomas in the US Virgin Islands as new the routes.
The airline projects rapid growth for these new US destinations. An operational forecast in the application projects CAL transporting 5,339 passengers to and from Puerto Rico and earning US$694,228 in revenue in 2023. But the airline expects the Puerto Rico route to quadruple in 2024 with 21,356 passengers and revenues of US$2,776,280.
CAL’s predecessor company, BWIA, serviced Puerto Rico as part of a route that started in Miami, flew to Grand Cayman and Montego Bay with continuing no-change-of-plane service to Kingston, San Juan, Puerto Rico, Antigua, St Lucia, Barbados and Port of Spain.
St Thomas would be a new destination for the national airline of T&T and it also forecast rapid growth in the US Virgin Islands. CAL projects that in 2023, it would transport 2,613 passengers to St Thomas, earning US$418,785. It expects that destination to increase by six times in 2024, with 15,678 passengers and US$2,508,480 in revenue.
The airline already flies to four other US destinations, comprising New York, Miami, Orlando and Fort Lauderdale.
According to the filing with the Department of Transportation, CAL expects to fly 328,601 passengers on the New York route in 2023, generating US$88,077,728. The New York route is forecast to expand by 10 per cent in 2024 with 361,461 passengers generating US$96,885,501. New York is CAL’s largest and most lucrative destination.
Compared to New York, CAL forecasts that it will fly some 95,702 passengers on the Miami route, generating US$20,588,414 in revenue in 2023. The airline expects Miami to increase to 105,273 passengers generating US$22,647,255 in 2024.
The airline forecasts that it will generate revenue of about US$127 million ($863 million) from the six US destinations in 2023. It expects revenue from the US to rise to US$143.71 million ($977.16 million) in 2024, an increase of 13 per cent.
CAL’s application to the US Department of Transportation requests authority to enable the airline to engage in:
* Scheduled foreign and charter air transportation of persons, property and mail from points behind Trinidad and Tobago via Trinidad and Tobago and intermediate points to any point or point in the United States and beyond;
* All-cargo service from and between the same points; and
* Any other authority permitted under Part 212 of the Department of Transportation’s rules.
The application for the foreign air carrier permit is dated April 17 and was made by the New York City office of CAL’s US law firm.
A notice in the application states: “Any person may support or oppose this application by filing an answer with the Department of Transportation and serving a copy of the answer on the applicant and all persons served with this application on or before May 8, 2023.”
The application to the US Department of Transportation states: “Despite the unprecedented impact of the COVID-19 pandemic on the world, and on the aviation industry in particular, CAL received exemption authority for the following routes:
(1) Between Port-of-Spain via the intermediate points of British Virgin Islands, Dominica, and Tortola, to San Juan;
(2) From Port-of-Spain via the intermediate point of Georgetown, Guyana, to Houston;
(3) Between Port-of-Spain and Houston, with a point beyond to Georgetown; (4) and
4) Between Port-of-Spain via Antigua, Barbados, Grenada, St Lucia and St Maarten to San Juan and beyond to Jamaica.
Apart from Puerto Rico and St Thomas, Sunday Business sources said CAL is considering resuming flights to Caracas, the capital of Venezuela, as well as adding new destinations in Martinique, Guadeloupe and St Kitts.
Asked to comment on the airline’s route expansion plans, its spokesperson, Dionne Ligoure said: “CAL currently has the most extensive route network in the region, which we intend to grow.
“At the appropriate time, the specifics of our growth plan will be shared with the media and the general public.
“Our plan to expand the airline’s route network is part of a strategic plan that has been thoroughly reviewed based on available data, trends and analysis.”
Ligoure said CAL’s expansion plans are being funded from its operating profits.
She also said there is huge demand for air transport in the region, coming out of the COVID-19 closures and the expansion of tourism in the region.
New aircraft
In last week’s filing with the US Department of Transporation, CAL also disclosed it is currently acquiring additional aircraft, “specifically four ATR-72-600 airframes, expected to be delivered in April and May, 2023.”
In February,Nordic Aviation Capital confirmed that it had executed a lease agreement with CAL to lease the airline three ATR-600s.
Annex 6 of the document filed with the US Department of Transportation indicates that CAL currently has seven ATR-72-600s, nine Boeing 737-8 Max aircraft and two 737-800s.
In April 2020, CAL CEO Garvin Medera issued a memo to employees stating that the airline would be able to fund April’s salaries, but it would need external funding to continue flying.
In May 2020, the Minister of Finance, Colm Imbert, announced that the Government had agreed to guarantee a US$65 million ($442 million) bond that was issued to keep the airline in the air. The bond, which matures in 2025, pays an interest rate of 7.307 per cent per annum. That means CAL must service the interest on the bond to the tune of US$4.74 million a year.
The CAL bailout followed the Government’s announcement that it was closing the country’s international borders, including its two international airports, to all travelers from March 22, 2020. That policy decision of the Government, which was meant to mitigate the spread of COVID-19 within T&T, meant that CAL earned virtually no revenue for months after, apart from repatriation flights.
As a result of the precipitous decline in its revenue, the company suffered an operating loss of US$109.2 million in 2020, compared to small operating profits for 2018 and 2019.
CAL’s operating losses continued into 2021, resulting in the announcement in June of that year that it was embarking on a restructuring exercise, aimed at retrenching 450 employees–about one-quarter of its staff–as part of an attempt to reduce expenditure.
The company also announced in June 2021 that it was seeking ways to reduce its aircraft fleet and scale back its route network.
In June 2020, Antigua prime minister Gaston Browne announced that LIAT would be liquidated following increased debt and the economic impact of the COVID-19 pandemic.
The major shareholders, governments of LIAT–Barbados, Antigua & Barbuda and St Vincent and Dominica were unable to agree on a formula that would result in the airline being able to survive.
CAL is owned 88.1 per cent by the Government of T&T and 11.9 per cent by the Government of Jamaica. The airline is chaired by businessman Shameer Ronnie Mohammed, and includes attorney Michael Quamina, lecturer Chris Maharaj, public servant Enid Zephyrine and the representative of the Government of Jamaica, Zachary Harding.
As Earth Day approaches, the Caribbean continues its struggle with a tidal wave of plastic, but remains hopeful
The statistics are alarming, but there are strenuous efforts to stem the tide of plastic
Written by Emma Lewis
21 April 2023
Members of Jamaica’s Greenwich Town Fisherfolk Benevolent Society were instrumental in removing waste floating on the water’s surface during The Kingston Harbour Cleanup Project’s beach cleanup on April 1, 2023.
Are we living on a plastic planet? In the Caribbean, the problem often seems overwhelming: gullies choked with plastic, tourism beauty spots littered with trash, informal garbage dumps appearing on urban sidewalks, plastic washing up on beaches, and complaints about inadequate garbage disposal and collection.
Under the surface, divers encounter their fair share of plastic, performing regular underwater cleanups, via programmes such as Curaçao’s Dive Against Debris. Marine life of all kinds is affected, including seabirds, which scientists say are suffering from plasticosis.
A blanket of plastics and other waste envelops the coastline adjacent to Shoemaker Gully, before Kingston Harbour Cleanup Project volunteers began their cleanup on Saturday, April 1, 2023.
Additionally, plastic waste is often blamed for exacerbating the effects of flooding during the rainy season, in regional territories likes Jamaica and Trinidad and Tobago, contributing to natural disasters. The current and future impact on tourism — another source of plastic waste — and other marine-related activities is almost incalculable. Recent reports have noted the escalating scale of the problem for both coastal communities and island economies.
According to the United Nations Environment Programme, about 400 million tonnes of plastic are produced globally every year, with the rate of plastic production accelerating since the 1970s. The statistics are disturbing:
Approximately 36 per cent of all plastics produced are used in packaging, including single-use plastic products for food and beverage containers, approximately 85 percent of which end up in landfills or as unregulated waste.
Additionally, some 98 percent of single-use plastic products are produced from fossil fuel, or “virgin” feedstock. The level of greenhouse gas emissions associated with the production, use and disposal of conventional fossil fuel-based plastics is forecast to grow to 19 percent of the global carbon budget by 2040.
While the statistics are alarming, strenuous efforts are being made, both globally and within the Caribbean, to stem the tide of plastic.
In March 2022, the fifth United Nations Environment Assembly in Nairobi agreed to work towards a global UN Plastics Treaty and to forge an international legally binding agreement by 2024. Some key issues remain to be resolved when negotiators meet again in Paris, France from May 29 to June 2, 2023. Environmental organisations such as Greenpeace are hoping for a strong agreement to emerge, with two priorities:
An immediate cap on virgin plastic production to 2017 levels, followed by significant, annually increasing reductions in the production and use of plastic.
An end to single-use plastics, starting with the most unnecessary and harmful.
Globally, NGOs are doing their best to raise awareness and find creative solutions. Lonely Whale, for example, partnered with fashion designer Tom Ford to award the TOM FORD Plastic Innovation Prize, targeting a specific type of plastic (traditional thin-film plastic polybags) and seeking sustainable alternatives. Winners were announced last month.
Despite the gloomy picture, it is fair to say that the Caribbean is also fighting back against plastic, and is finding that in this effort partnerships are effective.
While on a project tour, students from St. Aloysius Primary School watch attentively as the Interceptor Tender brings waste to the Kingston Harbour Cleanup Project’s Offloading Site.
One noteworthy example is the Kingston Harbour Cleanup Project (KHCP), a partnership between the high-profile global NGO Ocean Cleanup, Jamaica’s Grace Kennedy Foundation, and Clean Harbours Jamaica. The initiative has attracted many local supporters, including non-profits and the business sector. As the project to install four waste-trapping barriers — where gullies drain into the eighth largest natural harbour in the world — continues, The Ocean Cleanup applauded these efforts on Twitter:
The KHCP, which includes participation by members in four downtown communities, says it has prevented 213,980 kilograms of waste from entering the harbour between February 2022 and March 2023. CEO of the GraceKennedy Foundation, Caroline Mahfood, told Global Voices in an email:
The Harbour is undoubtedly a vital natural resource. This project is all about working together with the private and public sector, NGOs and community members, to reduce the pollution of the Harbour and create a healthier environment for the wildlife and people that depend on it. We hope that our efforts here will not only contribute to a healthier Harbour, but also pave the way for a sustainable future that benefits generations to come.
Plastic bans by some Caribbean governments on some types of plastics are already in place. A ban on single-use plastic bags, straws and polystyrene took effect in Jamaica on January 1, 2019, and the minister responsible said recently that a further ban on products containing microbeads, as well as the ubiquitous plastic food containers that have replaced styrofoam, is under consideration in the coming year. Antigua and Barbuda also have a similar plan in place, and other Caribbean nations have slowly come on board with bans. Concerns about microplastics persist, however, and the picture is incomplete.
Despite concerns that most of the world’s plastic, in the US for example, may not be fully recyclable, Caribbean countries continue to press ahead with ongoing recycling programmes, offering money for bottles handed in.
A pilot project in Trinidad and Tobago aims to recycle 20 percent of its plastic bottles by 2025. Recycling Partners of Jamaica collected 125 million bottles (six million pounds or 2.7 million kilograms) in 2022 and is greatly expanding its reach, including collection capacity, this year. The organisation has said that its depots are “overwhelmed” with bottles and that it is observing a great enthusiasm among citizens to participate.
Meanwhile, Jamaica Environment Trust continues its community-based efforts to improve waste management in general. Its 2023 Earth Day beach cleanup, which will focus on Kingston Harbour, is already oversubscribed.
While the task of reducing plastic pollution is daunting, especially for the small islands of the Caribbean, it appears that citizens are increasingly up to the challenge. As Earth Day approaches, perhaps the tide may be turning.