News
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New technology speeding progress on bird flu vaccine
CHICAGO, (Reuters) – Even as U.S. officials this week awaited the arrival of a sample of the new bird flu virus from China – typically the first step in making a flu vaccine – government-backed researchers had already begun testing a “seed” strain of the virus made from the genetic code posted on the Internet. This new, faster approach is…
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Brazil’s Rousseff to make rare state visit to U.S.
SAO PAULO, (Reuters) – President Dilma Rousseff will make the first formal state visit by a Brazilian leader to the United States in nearly two decades, a diplomatic breakthrough for an emerging power that has clashed with Washington but is hungry for closer ties and recognition of its growing prestige. The trip will occur later this year, likely in October,…
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More changes in Haiti’s young, inexperienced government
(Miami Herald) – The musical chairs in Haiti's government continued Friday as the prime minister's office announced after midnight replacements for two cabinet posts left vacant by resignations within days of one another. Trade and Commerce Minister Wilson Laleau will now head the ministry of economy and finance, replacing Marie Carmelle Jean-Marie. A highly respected economist, Jean-Marie abruptly resigned Wednesday…
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Low graduation rate for research degrees
PORT OF SPAIN, Trinidad and Tobago, Guardian – While the University of the West Indies, St Augustine, has recorded significant increases in enrolment, the graduation rate for research degrees continues to be disappointing. Making the comment yesterday was Errol Simms, dean of the Faculty of Social Sciences, at the opening of yesterday’s conference on Understanding the Caribbean through the Lens…
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TCI capital, Grand Turk, clamours for Sandals/Beaches hotel, Most wanted brand
KINGSTON, Jamaica, Gleaner – GRAND Turk, the capital of the Turks and Caicos Islands (TCI), is the latest city to invite Gordon 'Butch' Stewart to establish his Sandals/Beaches resorts there in hopes of stimulating tourism growth. The call was made by the president of the Providenciales Chamber of Commerce, Tina Fenimore, who was the first to establish a hotel on…
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Venezuela election to test Chavez’s socialist legacy
CARACAS, (Reuters) – The late Hugo Chavez’s self-declared socialist revolution will be put to the test at a presidential election on Sunday that pits his chosen successor against a younger rival promising change in the nation he polarized. Most opinion polls give his protege, acting President Nicolas Maduro, a strong lead over opposition challenger Henrique Capriles thanks to Chavez’s endorsement…
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‘Son of Chávez’
GEORGETOWN, Guyana, Stabroek News – Hugo Chávez may be dead but chavismo is very much alive in the highly charged Venezuelan election campaign, due to come to a head on Sunday. As has been widely reported, the interim president and Mr Chávez’s anointed successor, Nicolás Maduro, a 50-year-old former bus driver and trade unionist, has been campaigning on the promise…
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Hypertension scare
WASHINGTON, DC, USA (CMC) —The Pan-American Health Organisation (PAHO) says that at least one in three adults in the Americas, including the Caribbean, has high blood pressure or hypertension. PAHO, an arm of the United Nations’ World Health Organisation (WHO), said on Wednesday that hypertension is the number-one risk factor for cardiovascular disease and death throughout the world. Hypertension is…
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Lewin hailed as cultural visionary
KINGSTON, Jamaica, Observer – JAMAICANS continued paying tribute yesterday to cultural icon Dr Olive Lewin who died in the University Hospital of the West Indies Wednesday night. Lewin, founder of the Jamaican Folk Singers, was ailing for some years. She was 85. Yesterday, Prime Minister Portia Simpson Miller expressed profound sadness at Lewin's passing and described her as a cultural…
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Devaluation Provides Growth Opportunities
KINGSTON, Jamaica, Gleaner – Despite the loss in value of the Jamaican currency relative to the United States dollar, two academics and a businessman have suggested that it provides opportunities to spur economic growth. “If the Jamaican currency is becoming cheaper, then it presents a great opportunity for firms to increase their exports, asserted Dr. Denzil Williams, deputy executive director…
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