Year: 2013
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T&T, Guatemala negotiate Partial Scope Agreement
PORT OF SPAIN, Trinidad – Senior government officials are in the final leg of negotiations with Guatemalan officials to sign off on a Partial Scope Agreement. The T&T delegation includes senior officials of the Ministry of Trade, Industry and Investment; the Customs and Excise Division of the Ministry of Finance and the Economy, Solicitor General Department, Ministry of Food Production,…
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WTO director: No safe place in world
PORT OF SPAIN, Trinidad – There is no safe place in the world. That was the response yesterday from Carlos Vogeler, regional director for the Americas, World Tourism Organisation (WTO) in response to questions about the double bombing at the Boston marathon and reports that 50 tourists aboard a bus were robbed in St Lucia. “I think we need to…
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‘A dark night of the soul’
KINGSTON. Jamaica – 'A dark night of the soul' is how National Security Minister Peter Bunting described what some are calling his meltdown in an unusually candid speech saying divine intervention was necessary to defeat crime in Jamaica. Thirteen was indeed an unlucky number for Bunting who has received both favour and flak following his April 13, 2013 address to…
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EDITORIAL – The PM’s Divestment Of Leadership
KINGSTON. Jamaica – Leadership is often a difficult, lonely process that is not given to being franchised out. But judging from her handling of the Richard Azan debacle, this is a concept that Prime Minister Portia Simpson Miller does not find opportune, at this time, to embrace. The PM, instead, uses her Cabinet as insulation. Maybe she didn't think deeply…
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IMF cuts growth forecast for Jamaica
KINGSTON. Jamaica – THE International Monetary Fund (IMF) lowered its 2013 growth forecast for Jamaica, with the country now projected to grow by .5 per cent, down from the one per cent estimate in October 2012. But the country's economy should strengthen in 2014, with real GDP growth of 1.2 per cent, according to the fund in its latest edition…
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Government hopes to stimulate sluggish economy through budgetary measures
ST. GEORGE’S, Grenada, CMC – Prime Minister Dr. Keith Mitchell presented his first national budget in six years outlining a series of measures he hopes would stimulate a sluggish economy even as he announced cuts in government expenditure for the next 12 months. In presenting the EC$711 million (One EC dollar = US$0.37 cents) fiscal package to Parliament on Tuesday,…
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Former premier re-arrested in Brazil
PROVIDENCIALES, Turks and Caicos, CMC – A Brazilian court has ordered the re-arrest of former Turks and Caicos Islands (TCI) premier Michael Misick. The spokesman for the Governor’s Office, Neil Smith said that the Brazilian Justice Minister issued his decision to refuse Misick's appeal against a decision not to grant him political asylum. The decision was published in the Brazilian…
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The EPA — Better late than never
KINGSTON, Jamaica – OUR commendation goes to fellow columnist Sir Ronald Sanders for his insightful and descriptive piece on the Cariforum states and the Economic Partnership Agreement (EPA) with the EU (Sunday Observer 7th April ). This agreement has been somewhat of a non-starter since its provisional acceptance on 15th October 2008, and has not yet been ratified. The reasons…
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New initiatives to spur air links development in the Caribbean
PORT OF SPAIN, Trinidad, CMC –Aviation officials from the Caribbean Community (CARICOM) and South America will meet here in May to discuss initiatives aimed at developing air links between the regions, Trinidad and Tobago’s Foreign Minister Winston Dookeran has said. Addressing the opening of the 14th annual Caribbean Conference on Sustainable Tourism Development (STC-14) here on Monday night, Dookeran, said…
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Powerful Earthquake Strikes in Iran
TEHRAN — A powerful earthquake that struck southeastern Iran was felt in several countries in Asia on Tuesday, rocking buildings in the Indian capital of New Delhi, sending panicked resident of Karachi, Pakistan, fleeing into the streets and causing tremors through Persian Gulf states. Iranian officials said they expected many deaths. The earthquake measured 7.8 on the Richter scale and…
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