Caribbean RoundUp

Barbados

The Barbados-based Caribbean Climate Outlook Forum (CariCOF) said North Atlantic temperatures should remain well above average, continuing to fuel unusually strong tropical cyclone activity.

In its latest Caribbean Climate Outlooks, CariCOF said that for the period October to December this year, there will be amplified heat stress through October with higher temperatures, humidity and heatwave frequency. It said that this will fuel a record-breaking Caribbean heat season.

CariCOF said that there will also be increase shower intensity during the peak of the wet season, leading to a high potential for flooding and cascading hazards.

“However, moderate to strong El Niño in the Pacific should dampen rainfall frequency in Belize and Southern Caribbean, where drought concerns arrive. Heat and drought are a growing concern in the coastal Guianas, as is flood potential through December,” CariCOF added.

Bermuda

Opposition Leader Jarion Richardson, has described the recent announcement by the Bermuda Electric Light Company Ltd. (Belco) as “a punch to the gut.”

The increased electricity rate came into effect from Oct. 1.

“Unexpected, significant increases in key household expenses during these volatile economic times shouldn’t be introduced without lengthy explanation and justification, especially given the economic and social repercussions,” Richardson said.

“The average resident is already struggling to cover basic necessities, like groceries and housing. The same applies to the cost of doing business; it’s becoming intolerable.”

But Belco President Wayne Caines said, “It is not lost on us that this most recent increase is significant.

The cost of fuel is determined by the market, and  the increase is largely driven by the cost of that fuel used to generate electricity. The fuel adjustment rates (FAR) is revenue neutral and Belco makes no extra earnings from this increase.”

He added that the regulatory authority holds Belco accountable and ensures that the costs are effectively incurred.

Belco said it is increasing the FAR from the existing rate of US16.513 cents per kilowatt hour (kWh) to US24.517 cents per kWh.

Caribbean 

Caribbean Tourism Organisation (CTO) chairman Kenneth Bryan recently cautioned regional tourism leaders of the need to do things differently if the Caribbean is to maintain its competitive edge and remain as one of the fastest growing tourism regions in the world.

Bryan said that among the adjustments required was the need to embrace technological advancements, adopt sustainable practices, recognize trends and behavioral swings, and become masters of social media.

Bryan reminded delegates that tourists do not travel because they want to fly on a plane or stay in a hotel but instead are in need of an experience.

“This means that our jobs as practitioners and stakeholders in tourism is not just to entice them through marketing and advertising to visit our shores but to inspire them to come back time and time again,” the CTO chairman said. He said that one of the most effective ways to do that is by inspiring young people, the next generation of leaders, managers, business owners and entrepreneurs, to pursue careers in tourism.

Grenada

Grenada is moving towards reviving efforts to develop its geothermal energy sector with the staging of a national public consultation to present and discuss the draft Environmental and Social Impact Assessment (ESIA) for the exploration drilling phase of the project.

The government said that the draft ESIA has been prepared by the UK-based consulting firm Mott MacDonald, and is now available for public review and comments. The government said it is seeking to maximize the use of renewable energy as part of its agenda to transform the energy sector and improve the lives of citizens on the tri-island state. “As part of that process, and with grant funding support from the Caribbean Development Bank and technical assistance from the governments of New Zealand and Japan, the Government is investigating Grenada’s geothermal energy potential, with a view to developing a power station that will supply 15 MW of baseload power to the national electricity grid,” the ministry said.

The authorities here said the geothermal development program commenced with preliminary, surface-based explorations in 2015 and the program is now in its exploration drilling phase, where slimhole geothermal wells are proposed to be drilled at two locations to confirm the existence and characteristics of a suitable geothermal source. Four possible drilling locations were identified and subsequent analysis narrowed down the two preferred sites in the St. Patrick and St. John parishes.

St. Vincent and the Grenadines

The Government of St. Vincent and the Grenadines, says “war crimes” are being committed in the ongoing Israeli-Gaza conflict and has called for an end to hostilities on both sides.

The government made the call in a statement on Friday, five days after the regional bloc, CARICOM, said “the savage nature of the attacks and counterattacks is the antithesis of civilized life and living.” On Oct. 7, Hamas militants fired rockets into Israel, killing scores of people and taking more than 100 others hostage.Since then, Israel has been bombing Gaza and economists have been monitoring the economic fallout amidst the emerging humanitarian situation. In its statement, the Ralph Gonsalves-led government said it endorses CARICOM’s statement on the current attacks and counter-attacks.

“We reiterate the foundational principles for settlement of the conflict as contained in the United Nations Security Council Resolution (UNSCR) 242, which was adopted on Nov. 22, 1967, following the Six-Day War in June 1967 between Israel, on the one hand, and Arab nations, including the Palestinians, on the other hand,” Kingstown said.

Kingstown repeated CARICOM’s expression of abhorrence at the recent attacks and counter-attacks of the combatants — the Israeli Defence Force and Hamas — and their savage nature, in Israel and Gaza.

Trinidad

Trinidad and Tobago’s Prime Minister Dr. Keith Rowley was in the witness stand in a defamation suit brought against him by Opposition MP Dr. Roodal Moonilal. In the lawsuit, which was filed three years ago, Moonilal claimed Rowley sullied his character in statements alluding to corruption by persons associated with the United National Congress (UNC) at the Eden Gardens Housing Development in Freeport. The alleged comments were made at a People’s National Movement (PNM) media reception on Jan. 8, 2020.

Rowley’s legal team, led by Douglas Mendes, SC, argued that the prime minister did not specifically identify Moonilal as a “UNC operative” but maintained that Moonilal had questions to answer in his former position as housing minister and head of the Housing Development Corporation (HDC).In opening statements before Justice Carol Gobin in the Port-of-Spain Civil Court, Larry Lalla, SC, said the ordinary reader would not have dissected Rowley’s statement and examined it in the context of how he might have intended.While two separate lawsuits have been filed by the Attorney General in relation to Eden Gardens, Moonilal has not been sued in those matters, which are still pending before the court and are sub judice.

Lalla expressed concern that Rowley and his team might attempt to use this matter for “an improper purpose,”,which could see Moonilal named as a party to the AG’s matter later on. He also sought to show that the Express Newspaper’s Editor-in-Chief, Omatie Lyder, and senior political reporter Anna Ramdass did not do diligent checks to verify that information received from Fixing T&T’s Kirk Waithe about messages between himself and Rowley were legitimate.

— Compiled by Devika Ragoonanan