Caribbean RoundUp

Antigua and Barbuda Prime Minister Gaston Browne says he shares the concerns of his Grenadian counterpart, Dickon Mitchell, who has said his administration is prepared to lease an aircraft if Caribbean  governments are unable to sort out the regional transportation sector by year-end.

Caribbean travel has been thrown into chaos following the collapse of the Antigua-based regional airline LIAT (1974) Ltd with the region traveling population disgruntled at the inability of moving around as freely as they as they used to during LIAT’s operations.

In an interview aired on WPG10 recently in Grenada, Mitchell said the regional airline sector needs “urgent fixing” and there needs to be more decisive movement on the issue before the year-end.

“If by October, November, we don’t have an arrangement… then it means if Grenada has to go and lease the planes so that we can fly between Grenada, and Barbados and Trinidad and Tobago, we will have to do so” Browne said.

“We are currently negotiation with a leaser,” he said, noting also that efforts are being made to take LIAT brand nationally.

He said there is an initiative with a Chinese group in which they are about to incorporate a new international entity, LIAT International, and they are prepared to do international flights, probably China, Frankfurt (Germany), Antigua and also do some charters with other South American destinations where LIAT does not operate.

The BVI Christian Council (BVICC) has been granted permission to appeal a recent judgment concerning a same-sex couple.

The judgment was made by Justice Adrian Jack, presiding over in the High Court over the matter.

The appeal made by the BVICC, was granted by Justice Gerard Farara following the council’s recent and urgent’ application to appeal the matter.

Earlier this month Attorney General Dawm Smith had requested an adjournment that was listed for two days, stating among other things that her chamber had difficulty in obtaining institutions from its client, the BVI government

The court case concerns the validity of the marriage between Kinisha Forbes and Kirsten Lettsom and any prohibition against same sex marriage in the BVI is contrary to the constitution of the Virgin Islands.

The couple entered a civil partnership in 2011 in the UK and was later issued a marriage certificate once the UK’s same-sex couples law came into effect.

Both the Christian Council and the government are interested parties in the case.

Premier Dr. Matalio Wheatley suggested that no judge or external government should be allowed to make a decision on the BVI’s law and same-sex marriage.

The International Air Transport Association (IATA) has warned Caribbean destinations that they are “running the risk of pricing themselves out of the global travel and tourism market where passengers have more choice than ever before.”

IATA Vice President for the Americas, Peter Cerda told the Caribbean Aviation Day Conference in Georgetown, Cayman islands, that the region “needs to remain an attractive tourist destination”, adding that often it is real difficult to see the correlation between Aviation fees and service provide.

“Global passenger air traffic has reached 74.6 percent of pre-prices levels,” Cerda told the event, which is being held under the theme “Recover, Reconnect, Revive”

Cerda said that in some Caribbean destinations, if passengers are not arriving during “regular” local business hours, airlines are being charged significantly overtime fees for each passenger to be proceed by immigration and customs.

He said that the taxes and fees added to airline tickets sustainable increase to the cost of air travel  to and from the region.

The Guyana government is seeking to establish an oil refinery in Region Six, East Berbice-Corentyne, which is one of the 10 regions covering the whole of the east of the country.

President Irfaan Ali said that his administration has already invited expressions of interest from stakeholders.

“We are about to launch a new ad for request for proposals and that request for proposals is for a new 30,000- barrel (per day) refinery for national security to be built in Guyana, here in Region Six,  he said adding that the government will be receiving those submissions within two months from those who are interested in investing in the refinery.

Ali said such a development will create enormous opportunities in the area of transport and logistics, services and the construction and rental industry that will bring tremendous benefit to the people of the region.

Ali said the government is working on a aggressive program not only to construct a new Berbice Highway, and is currently evaluating the need for a new Berbice River Bridge that will not hinder the development of the Berbice River.

The United States and Canada have sent armoured vehicles and other supplies to Haiti last week to help police fight a powerful gang amid a pending request from the Haitian government for the immediate deployment of foreign troops.

A U.S. State Department statement said the equipment was bought by Haiti government, but it did not provide further details on the supplies flown on military aircraft to the capital of Port-au-Prince.

“The equipment will assist (Haitian National Police) in their fight against criminal actors who are fomenting violence and disrupting the flow of critically-needed humanitarian assistance, hindering efforts to halt the spread of cholera,” the State Department said.

The equipment arrived more than a month after one of Haiti’s most powerful gangs surrounded a fuel terminal and demanded the resignation of Prime Minister Ariel Henry.

Demonstrators also blocked roads in major cities to protest a sharp rise in fuel prices after Henry announced in September that his administration could no longer afford to subsidize fuel.

Since then gas stations have closed, hospitals have cut back on services and banks and grocery stores open on a limited basis as fuel, water and other supplies dwindle across Haiti.

Jamaica has  signed a US$800 million with the International Financial Corporation (IFC) to develop the North Coast Highway Project.

A government statement said the signing was done during the International Monetary Fund-World Bank annual meeting that ended in Washington, DC last week.

The Financial Advisory Services Agreement (FASA), which was singed by Minister of Finance and Public Service, Dr. Nigel Clarke, and the IFT managing director, Makhtar Diot, details permission granted to advisor by their client for the purpose of creating a legal consulting arrangement.

The FASA is further to the memorandum of understanding ((MoU) signed between the government and the IFC in April, in relation to the same project.

The minister said that the Jamaican government is pleased to enter into this definitive agreement with the IFC that will advise on the structuring and execution of the transaction.

A government statement said that these services include detailed technical, legal, financial, environmental and social studies, designing the bidding process and implementing a competitive tender that results in a bankable project for investors that meets meets clear public sector goals.

Prime Minister Dr. Ralph Gonsalves says approximately 23,000 barrels of oil will arrive in St. Vincent and the Grenadines by the end of this month under Venezuela’s Petro Caribo agreement.

Gonsslves a news conference the logistics regarding the importation of the oil is is still being worked with St. Vincent Electricity Services (VINLEC) regarding storage capacity.

“Assuming everything goes to plan… sometime before the end of this month, we should be seeing the first shipment of the diesel back with the resumption of the PetroCaribe agreement,”Gonsalves said.

In April, Prime Minister Dr. Ralph Gonsalves said Caracas has agreed to cancel St. Vincent and the Grenadines debt under the PetroCaribe oil initiative with Latin America and Caribbean countries. He said, as a result, this could result in the national debt declining by nine percent.

He said Kingstown and Caracas are tallying the precise size of the debt and that “it may be up to US$70 million, meaning EC$189 million.

Gonzalez said Venezuela will half the debt of the other member countries of the Organization of the Eastern Caribbean States (OECS) that are members of the PetroCaribe, which will now be reset to offer fuel at 35 percent discount to participating countries.