NEWS
CARPHA: Pfizer 5-11 formula not yet listed for emergency use
The Caribbean Public Health Agency (CARPHA) said the paediatric formulation of the Pfizer covid19 vaccine has not yet been granted emergency use listing by the World Health Organization (WHO). It said its Caribbean Regulatory System (CARPHA-CRS) had not yet recommended the paediatric formulation for use in the Caribbean for this reason. In a release, the agency said even though the WHO’s strategic group of experts (SAGE), which advises on immunisation, had recommended the use of the vaccine, in children 5-11 years of age, approval for the product in full comes from the WHO EUL prequalification team. Read more here
POLITICS
Chambers support Rowley on need to update Constitution
Business chambers have come out in support of the Prime Minister’s statement that aspects of the Constitution were no longer appropriate for TT in 2022. Amcham Trinidad and Tobago CEO Nirad Tewarie told Newsday there were elements of the Constitution which need to be updated. And for business, while some things were not necessarily constitutionally related, constitutional arrangements do have severe effects on the ease of doing business. Read more here
Hinds: Three security agencies populating gang database
Following increased gang warfare last October and November, three security agencies are populating a gang database, “acquiring associates of gangs”, identifying people of interest and seizing firearms and narcotics. But a significant percentage of murders in the situation resulted from conflicts pertaining to land, familial relationships and other domestic issues. National Security Minister Fitzgerald Hinds gave this information in the Senate yesterday replying to queries from UNC Senator Wade Mark. Read more here
BUSINESS
MPC Caribbean Clean Energy reports US$597,000 fourth-quarter earnings
MPC Caribbean Clean Energy Ltd (MPCCEL) has reported US$597,984.93 in earnings for the fourth quarter its 2021 financial year. In its unaudited financial statements for the year ending December 31, 2021, chairman Fernando Zuniga said the commercial and technical performances of the underlying assets of its investment were within the expected range. "Necessary technical measures were carried out, thereby, stabilising the production of the underlying assets." Read more here
T&T reopens to tourists
Carr countries inclusive of Trinidad and Tobago have expressed great optimism that the tourism industry will return to pre-pandemic levels. This was revealed at the Caribbean Tourism Organisation (CTO) destinations briefing last week, by the respective tourism agencies. Tourism Trinidad chief executive officer Kurtis Rudd, said Trinidad’s tourism sector has been hit hard by the Covid-19 pandemic, putting hundreds of employees on the breadline and forcing the closure of many tourism businesses, virtually changing the face of tourism. Read more here
REGIONAL
Oil and Gas sector to fuel economic diversification
Noting that the oil and gas industry has put Guyana in a unique position, President Irfaan Ali on Tuesday said that the country now has the resources to transform its economy, help its people, and make a valuable contribution to the rest of the world. Read more here
INTERNATIONAL
Ukrainians wary of Russian claims of withdrawal
As Western leaders warned of an imminent Russian attack on Ukraine, Yuri Vasylevych and his saxophone quartet played tango to a full house at the Kyiv Philharmonic. The musician is used to performing under pressure: when pro-EU protests erupted in violence in 2014, in this grand columned hall the show went on to the sound of shooting. Now Russia has massed troops on Ukraine's border, to stop it slipping from Moscow's orbit into Nato, and Yuri says he feels his country has a "gun to its head" once again. Read more here
16th February 2022