Bahamas News

ACP ministers meet in the Bahamas to address critical development of fisheries sector

Published

7 years ago

September 11, 2017

Bahamas, September 11, 2017 – Nassau – A major gathering of ministers and senior government officials from Sub-Saharan Africa, the Caribbean and the Pacific Islands will take place in the Bahamas on 18-21 September. With up to USD 5.3 billion worth of fish exports entering the international market each year from these regions, the meeting seeks to reinforce shared commitments to improve governance and boost development of fisheries and aquaculture resources.

The Prime Minister of the Bahamas, Dr. The Hon. Hubert A. Minnis is scheduled to open the two-day 5th Meeting of ACP Ministers in charge of Fisheries and Aquaculture on 20 September, preceded by the Meeting of Senior Fisheries Officials on 18-19 September.

The event is especially important for the ACP Group of States, whose 79 member states include more than 60 that export fisheries products, both from maritime and inland fisheries and from aquaculture. Of these, more than 50 countries are coastal States, most of them with important coastal fishing communities.

The meeting will allow governments to take stock of the ACP strategic plan of action for fisheries and aquaculture, share national or regional good practices, deepen partnerships and discuss priority issues for multilateral engagement.

“The fifth meeting follows on several very significant global agreements that have a bearing on the overall fisheries policy landscape. The Paris Agreement on Climate Change, the adoption of the 2030 Agenda for Sustainable Development and the Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs) and the FAO Port State Measures Agreement are key global agendas that the ACP needs to be plugged into. Fisheries policy makers in ACP countries will be able to reflect and combine their efforts to move forward on these agreements and achieve the relevant SDGs,” stated ACP Assistant Secretary-General in charge of Sustainable Economic Development and Trade Mr. Viwanou Gnassounou.

“Fisheries is an extremely important sector, contributing to food security, livelihoods, export revenues and poverty eradication. The meeting is especially timely for Small Island Developing States (SIDS) such as the Bahamas, where the sustainable development of the blue economy is essential for accelerated economic growth. But the sector faces many challenges. Ultimately, the aim is to strengthen high level, broad-based shared commitment to tackle these challenges while promoting the sustainable development and growth of ACP fisheries and aquaculture,” stated the former Permanent Secretary of the Ministry of Agriculture and Marine Resources of the Bahamas Ms. Rena Glinton.

With a focus on SDG 14 (conservation and sustainable use the oceans, seas and marine resources), the senior officials meeting will address issues such as Illegal, Unreported and Unregulated (IUU) fishing, effective fisheries management, the blue economy, aquaculture development, small scale fisheries and fisheries subsidies reforms.

The outcomes of the senior officials’ meeting will then feed into the ministerial discussions, which also features a Ministerial Roundtable on ocean governance, alongside invited development partners and key actors.

Finally, Ministers will also be presented with the “Intra-ACP Blue Growth Initiative for Fisheries and Aquaculture”, an initiative by the ACP Secretariat to improve private sector productivity and competitiveness of fisheries and aquaculture value chains in ACP countries and regions.

Parallel side events on the Fisheries Transparency Initiative (FTI) and Implications of the Recent Arbitral/Tribunal Awards for fisheries governance are also scheduled during the week.

Bahamas News

Bahamas economic growth

Published

5 days ago

May 4, 2024

Shanieka

Rashaed Esson

Staff Writer

The Bahamas’ economy is in good standing according to reports from the Bahamas National Statistical Institute which released the Quarterly Gross Domestic Product Series. They indicate that quarterly GDP trends for 2023 saw increases compared to 2022, a sign of recovery from the Covid 19 pandemic.

The most significant increase was 9.9 percent in the first quarter of 2023, and the industries responsible for the growth include Accommodations and food, construction and Arts.

Bahamas News

RBC appoints new Country Manager and Area Vice President for Turks & Caicos

Published

5 days ago

May 4, 2024

Shanieka

RBC Royal Bank (Bahamas) Limited (“RBC”) is pleased to announce the recent appointment of Kerryl-Lyn King-Henry as Country Manager and Area Vice President (“AVP”), Personal and Commercial Banking, Turks & Caicos Islands (TCI).

In her new role as Country Manager and AVP, King-Henry will take on full responsibility for the bank’s operations, strategy, and development in the TCI market, with a strong focus on solidifying partnerships with the Government, regulatory bodies, and the local community.

King-Henry brings to the role a dynamism influenced by nearly 25 years of industry experience. Prior to her new appointment, she served as AVP of Business Banking in Trinidad and Tobago. She has held progressively senior roles within both personal and commercial banking, as well as various functional units.

King-Henry holds a Master of Business Administration (MBA) degree, with a specialization in Leadership, FinTech and Big Data Analysis, in addition to a Bachelor’s Degree in Business Administration. Further enriching her professional profile, Kerryl-Lyn is a certified John C. Maxwell Coach, Trainer, Teacher, and Speaker. Her passion for leadership and development is matched by her commitment to community service, as she actively volunteers her time and leverages her professional expertise to mentor and support others. “

Kerryl-Lyn’s extensive experience and proven leadership capabilities make her the perfect choice to lead our operations in the Turks & Caicos Islands,” said Ericka Rolle, RBC’s Managing Director and Vice President, Personal Banking, The Bahamas and TCI.

“Her commitment to excellence, combined with a genuine passion for community engagement, aligns perfectly with our Bank’s purpose of helping clients thrive and communities prosper. We are excited to see the positive impact she will undoubtedly bring to her new role,” she added.

Bahamas News

Get your laugh on, March On show coming to Turks and Caicos with box office at IGA Friday and Saturday

Published

5 days ago

May 3, 2024

Shanieka

Dana Malcolm

Staff Writer

After resounding success in the Bahamas, hit play ‘March On, The Story of Us’ has been inundated with requests to take their show on the road, and the first location they’ll be hitting is Providenciales Turks and Caicos with tickets on sale this weekend from May 3 to 5.

Magnetic Media spoke to Gea Pierre, playwright, who told us the TCI was a natural first choice for the cast and crew.

“We started ‘March On’ in November 2023 and it was really an opportunity for us to tell a story, the story of the Bahamas and to encompass the nations that we have an amazing relationship with like the Turks and Caicos,” she continued “We really got a lot of people calling [for the play] from [the TCI], so much so we really had to pay attention.”

The response to ‘March On’ at home and abroad was overwhelming.

“To say it went well is an understatement, even before we opened we got calls from Canada, from all over the US with people wanting us to come and perform.”

And take the show on the road they did! Gea and her team have launched “March On: The Tour” and will be in Providenciales to perform on May 10th and 11th. It’s the first of a number of stops which include Nassau and several US locations.

A ticket booth will be set up from today, Friday May 3 in the foyer of IGA grocery store beginning at 1 p.m. Friday and then again all day on Saturday, allowing residents to purchase with cash.

Online tickets are available for purchase with credit cards. Then the full team returns on Friday, May 11 for the actual showing at 8 pm and their two showings on Saturday at 4pm and 8 pm. The venue is Brayton Hall, Providenciales under the patronage of Washington Misick, TCI Premier and First Lady Delthia Misick.

Describing the close familial relationships between the TCI and the Bahamas, for many on the crew it will be like coming home Gea told us, for others it will be a treat to visit for the first time, the places that their grandparents described.

Tickets are only $60 for general seating and $75 for VIP seating.

Gea maintained that the team wanted to keep the show as accessible to residents as possible.

As for why you should come out and see the play, other than the great price point:

“The way that people have responded to it is non stoplaughter, people have been moved to tears because there’s some emotion. It does not only lend to Bahamians. It’s a family drama, and anyone who’s ever been a part of a family is going to get something out of it, and something moving.”