TTMA IN THE NEWS
Local groups mobilising relief for SVG
The Supermarket Association (SATT) has offered assistance to St Vincent and the Grenadines (SVG) as people there evacuate in the wake of the eruption of the La Soufriere volcano. Its president Rajiv Diptee said SATT stands ready to assist with humanitarian efforts where supplies and food are concerned, as well as raising funds for immediate disaster relief efforts. Read more here
NEWS
Covid19 shuts down UTT Tamana campus for the week
Confirmation of a second covid19 case at the University of Trinidad and Tobago (UTT) Tamana campus has shut down the facility for this coming week. The EBI facility was initially closed last Thursday for sanitising after a case was identified there. EBI staff were asked to stay away for 24 hours and the facility was scheduled to reopen on Friday April 9. Read more here
SATT, Sewa TT partner to aid ravaged island
The Supermarket Association of T&T (SATT) has partnered with NGO Sewa International TT (Sewa TT) to provide a safe and efficient method for citizens to provide relief supplies to citizens of St Vincent and the Grenadines (SVG) affected by the eruption of the La Soufriere Volcano. Both organisations revealed the plan during a press conference at Super Quality Supermarket in Trincity yesterday. Sewa TT president Revan Teelucksingh explained that under the initiative citizens are being asked to contribute to his organisation’s plan to ship 2,000 sealed buckets containing supplies to St Vincent in the next two weeks. Read more here
POLITICS
Lee to Robinson-Regis: Show me your covid19 results and I'll show you mine
Opposition member David Lee, on Sunday, sought to clear the air on his covid19 status in response to concerns about his appearance in Parliament while displaying flu-like symptoms two months ago. Lee in a UNC press conference at the office of the Leader of the Opposition in Port of Spain said he would not hesitate to provide his negative results but he hoped government ministers would have no trouble showing their own results when the Opposition returns to parliament on Wednesday. Read more here
Imbert dismisses economist warning of IMF
Finance Minister Colm Imbert has dismissed information in yesterday’s Guardian on the International Monetary Fund. He claimed it was misleading. The article stated that although the International Monetary Fund (IMF) projected economic growth of 2.1 per cent for T&T this year, economist Dr Roger Hosein has warned that the economy is in dire straits. Hosein said while he had great respect for the IMF’s projections, he believes the agency is being “overly optimistic” about T&T’s economic outlook. Read more here
BUSINESS
Making an investment in you
You’ve worked so hard to land a job and earn an income; long hours, sleepless nights, missed events or opportunities and not to mention the years of studying. Read more here
REGIONAL
Over 3,000 in Region Two vaccinated against COVID-19
Hundreds of persons suffering from chronic illnesses in the Pomeroon-Supenaam region on Sunday turned up at the Anna Regina Mandir Compound to receive their Sputnik-V vaccine. The massive vaccination drive was organised by the Ministry of Health in collaboration with the Guyana Hindu Dharmic Sabha and other inter-faith organisations. Administering the vaccines were midwife Diane Sandy and Community Health Worker, Lashana Peters. The vaccination drive commenced at 09:00 hours and concluded at around 15:00 hours. Read more here
Elderly appeal for home vaccination visits
Viola Scott and her husband, Stanley, have been married for more than 60 years. The couple, who live in Sunning Hill, St Thomas, have weathered many storms together, including hurricanes, floods, and recessions. No stranger to disaster, the 80-year-old woman is confident that both she and her ailing husband will also endure the COVID-19 pandemic. Mrs Scott is hopeful that mobile vaccination teams will be despatched to conduct home visits so that she could avoid the risk of taking Stanley, seven years her senior, out to receive his jabs. Read more here
INTERNATIONAL
Chinese Covid-19 vaccine efficacy is 'not high,' top health official admits
The efficacy of Chinese Covid-19 vaccines is "not high" and authorities are weighing options to bolster protection -- including mixing different shots, China's top disease control official has said. "The protection rates of existing vaccines are not high," Gao Fu, director of the Chinese Center for Disease Control and Prevention, told a conference in the southwestern city of Chengdu on Saturday. He listed two options to solve the problem: one is to increase the number of doses, or adjust the dosage or interval between shots; the other is to mix vaccines developed from different technologies. Read more here
Iran vows revenge for 'Israeli' attack on Natanz nuclear site
The Iranian foreign minister has said his country will "take revenge" for an attack on an underground nuclear site, for which it has blamed Israel. Iranian officials said the Natanz uranium enrichment plant was the target of "nuclear terrorism" on Sunday, after initially reporting a power failure. New advanced centrifuges to enrich uranium had just been activated there. Israel has not commented, but public radio cited intelligence sources as saying it was a Mossad cyber operation. Read more here
12th April 2021