NEWS
3rd Covax AstraZeneca tranche to be used at mass vaccination sites
The AstraZeneca vaccines received from Covax will be rolled out immediately to join the doses being dispensed from the Canadian donation. These vaccines will expire at the end of November. Health Minister Terrence Deyalsingh made the statement at Wednesday’s covid19 virtual media conference. The third tranche of 33,600 AstraZeneca covid19 vaccines allocated to Trinidad and Tobago by Covax arrived at PiarcoAirport at 6.06 am on Wednesday. Read more here
POLITICS
Ministry challenges chamber on mass closure of businesses
The Ministry of Trade and the Confederation of Regional Business Chambers are challenging each other over the true number of retail businesses that will be forced to close down because of the economic fallout of the COVID-19 pandemic. Yesterday, the ministry said it was “unrealistic” that an estimated 6,000 businesses will remain permanently closed when the retail sector is finally reopened on Monday. Co-ordinator of the confederation Jai Leladharsingh had told Guardian Media on Tuesday that based on a survey done by the orginsation, about 6,000 out of 17,000 micro, small and medium enterprises are facing economic decimation. But the ministry is questioning that number and noted that a copy of the survey had not been provided to it. Read more here
BUSINESS
National Flour Mills holds flour prices stable despite higher wheat prices
National Flour Mills’ unaudited financial statements for the quarter ending June 30 2021, released earlier this week, was a testament to what businesses are experiencing all over the world. As a result of shocks along its value chain – from the acquisition of raw materials to getting packaging, to the costs associated with selling and distributing the end product – NFM, the state supplier of flour, realised $2 million in profits. While in his chairman’s report, Nigel Romano attributed the decline in profits to many things, one of the main reasons was that US providers of the raw material – wheat – are experiencing the worst crop in 33 years. And wheat prices are rising. Read more here
REGIONAL
Guyana one step closer to addressing archaic legal infrastructure
GUYANA has moved one step closer to addressing its archaic legal infrastructure, with the swearing-in of persons to the country’s first-ever Law Reform Commission (LRC), on Wednesday. The activation of this commission through the swearing-in of the commissioners, paves the way for incremental legislative amendments to be made, in alignment with global legislative trends. A Law Reform Commission is an instrumental body in any society, as it ensures that the legal system does not remain stagnant. It keeps the law under constant revision, and makes recommendations to Parliament for the repeal, creation, consolidation and codification of the laws. Read more here
INTERNATIONAL
Taliban capture the strategic city of Ghazni, leaving Afghan capital Kabul increasingly isolated
The Taliban have captured the strategic city of Ghazni, a provincial capital on the road to Kabul, leaving the Afghan capital increasingly beleaguered and cut off from the rest of the country. Ghazni fell to the militant group on Thursday morning local time after "long and intense fighting," according to Nasir Ahmad Faqiri, head of Ghazni provincial council. He said that only one unit of the Afghan intelligence and police has not been taken by the Taliban. A Taliban spokesman tweeted Thursday that the city had been seized, including the governor's office, police headquarters and prison. CNN cannot independently verify the Taliban's claims. Read more here
12th August 2021