NEWS
Supermarket Association head: Lifting SoE can bring relief
Supermarket Association president Rajiv Diptee said the lifting of the state of emergency (SoE) on Wednesday gives businesses some time to plan their operations and can bring them some relief heading into Christmas. At a news conference at the Diplomatic Centre, St Ann's on Saturday, the Prime Minister said the House of Representatives will sit on Wednesday to revoke the SoE. On Sunday, Diptee said, "The lifting of the SoE ahead of the month-end period gives us a little wiggle room to plan operations for the upcoming Christmas period." Read more here
Caricom chair pushes for legal action on climate funding
Prime Minister of Antigua and Barbuda and Caricom chairman Gaston Browne has urged Caribbean leaders including Prime Minister Dr Keith Rowley to let go of the fear of repercussions and pursue a legal path to climate change funding. Browne made the call during the final show of COP26 - Now or Never on CNC3 on Friday night. His government has formed a commission on climate change based on international law seeking to introduce a legal pathway to complement the voluntary efforts of large polluting countries to become legally responsible for their emissions. Tuvalu, an independent island in the South Pacific, was one of the early signees but the Antigua prime minister called for support closer to home. “We do not believe we can depend exclusively on their random acts of charity whenever our countries suffer the adverse effects of climate. They must be made to pay,” he said of high polluting nations. Read more here
POLITICS
Health experts say PM’s move to end SoE mistimed
Since Prime Minister Dr Keith Rowley signalled the intention on Saturday to end the State of Emergency (SoE), concerns have been expressed over the decision to do so amidst a current spike in cases. Public health diplomat and epidemiologist with over 30 years experience, Dr Farley Cleghorn, shares a similar sentiment that the lifting of the State of Emergency may have been mistimed. Asked during an interview with Guardian Media about concerns that the move was mistimed, Cleghorn said: “I couldn’t disagree with that.” Read more here
BUSINESS
TTNGL profits jump 347%
Trinidad and Tobago NGL Limited (TTNGL) yesterday reported after-tax profit of $134.1 million for the nine months ended 30 September 2021, which was 347 per cent higher than for the same period in 2020. That represents earnings per share of TT$0.87 at TTNGL for the period January 1 to September 30, 2021, compared with $0.19 for the first nine months of 2020. In a news release yesterday, TTNGL, which is listed on the Trinidad and Tobago Stock Exchange, said its much improved performance was driven by the activities and solid financial results of its underlying asset, Phoenix Park Gas Processors Ltd (PPGPL). Read more here
REGIONAL
US$75M secured for solar farms, to supply eight grids
As part of its mission to implement a comprehensive energy mix, the Government of Guyana has already secured US$75 million in funding to establish solar farms in eight grids. This, according to the updated and expanded Low Carbon Development Strategy (LCDS), is being done with the intention of producing some 27.8 megawatts-peak (MWp) of solar power to the Demerara-Berbice Interconnected System (DBIS). The farms are expected to be up and running by 2023, paving the way for solar-generated power to replace 30 per cent of the electricity being supplied to areas along the Essequibo coast, Linden, Bartica, Lethem, Mabaruma, Mahdia, Leguan and Wakenaam. Read more here
INTERNATIONAL
Danny Fenster: US journalist freed from Myanmar jail
US journalist Danny Fenster has been released from prison in Myanmar after he was sentenced to 11 years in jail by a military court three days ago. His employer, English-language news site Frontier Myanmar, said he was on a flight out of Myanmar. Maj-Gen Zaw Min Tun, a spokesman for the military, which took power in a coup in February, confirmed to the BBC that Fenster could leave the country. Fenster was detained in May as he was about to fly back to the US. He is one of dozens of journalists, and thousands of people overall, to be held since the coup. Fenster, who was Frontier's managing editor, had been convicted of breaching immigration law, unlawful association and encouraging dissent against the military. Read more here
15th November 2021