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Dengue making a Caribbean comeback says PAHO; Two million cases, 723 deaths since January

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#Providenciales, August 19, 2019 – Turks and Caicos – After two years of dramatically reduced number of reports, the mosquito-borne sickness, Dengue Fever is resurging in the Caribbean and Latin America according to the Pan American Health Organisation.

Over the weekend, PAHO shared that while the cases being recorded are not nearing the 2015-2016 figures, they are higher and the disease is killing people.

“Since the beginning of the year, more than 2 million individuals in the region have contracted the mosquito-borne disease and 723 have already died from it, PAHO said. While it attributes the high number of cases to the climate, environmental management and the mosquito’s capacity to adapt, children’s vulnerability may be due to their lack of immunity, PAHO said.

Even more frightening is that the most affected population group are children under the age of 15 years old and the best way to treat Dengue, is not to get it at all.  There remains no cure for the fever.

“The region is experiencing a new epidemic cycle of dengue, with a notable increase in cases. The climate, environmental management and the mosquito’s capacity to adapt may have caused the situation to increase in complexity,” said Dr Marcos Espinal, director of PAHO’s Department of Communicable Diseases and Environmental Determinants of Health.

The information takes health agencies, households and residents back to basics.

“The most effective way to combat it is to eliminate its breeding sites in order to prevent the mosquito from reproducing because without mosquitoes there would be no transmission of dengue.”

At the start of August, the TCI Department of Environmental Health issued a notice.

“Due to the recent rainfall throughout the Turks and Caicos Islands the Environmental Health Department (EHD) hereby advises residents, home owners, apartment owners and businesses to remove all debris and refuse/garbage from their premises and dispose at the public landfill/solid waste disposal sites on your respective Island. The removal of the debris & refuse/garbage from your premises will reduce mosquito breeding and prevention of mosquito borne and other vector borne diseases such as Dengue fever.”

It was also explained, while there is no specific treatment for dengue, timely detection, access to medical care and proper management of the symptoms can reduce complications and the disease’s progression. The virus that causes dengue has four different serotypes, known as DEN-1, DEN-2, DEN-3 and DEN-4.

Serotype 2 or DEN-2 is the deadliest.

The 10 countries most affected by dengue, in terms of new cases per 100,000 inhabitants, are Nicaragua, Brazil, Honduras, Belize, Colombia, El Salvador, Paraguay, Guatemala, Mexico and Venezuela. Honduras and Nicaragua have already declared national-level epidemiological alerts this year to expedite the response, PAHO said.

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New Tilapia Hatchery Slated for Completion Later This Year

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#Kingston, Jamaica, March 27, 2024 – The new tilapia hatchery under construction in Twickenham Park, St. Catherine, is slated for completion towards the end of 2024.

The 12,000 sq. ft. facility, being built at a cost of approximately $574 million, is intended to address the major issue of shortages in good-quality seed stock for fish farmers islandwide.

Manager for the Promoting Community-based Climate Resilience in the Fisheries Sector Project, Selena Ledgister, says the hatchery’s establishment is critical for securing a sustainable fisheries sector.

“Construction is on in earnest and we are looking before the year is out – which would be by around September or October – to complete the building part of it. The Project will be supporting the purchase and installation of the recirculating aquaculture system. This system will provide over five million advanced fries (young fish) per year, using the recirculating aquaculture system,” she told JIS News.

The bio-secure climate-resilient modular hatchery, being developed in partnership with the Jamaica Social Investment Fund (JSIF), will feature a solar standby generator, plumbing system, rehabilitated guard host and administrative building.

Mrs. Ledgister said the hatchery, to be built and operated under environmentally friendly conditions, will impact the lives of fish farmers islandwide.

“I believe we have over 120 aquaculture farmers, and that number is growing; so, this will benefit the industry significantly. The hatchery is also expected to cushion the demand for fish. Fish farmers will also get the supply of advanced fries to restock their ponds. This is a significant impact that the Climate Resilience Project, as well as JSIF, will be creating for the Jamaican fish farmers,” she said.

 

Contact: Twila Wheelan

Release: JIS

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Trust Fund for Poor Children Born On or After August 6, 2022

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#Kingston, Jamaica, March 27, 2024 – Children born on or after the 60th anniversary of Jamaica’s Independence, who are wards of the State or beneficiaries of the Programme of Advancement Through Health and Education (PATH), will be eligible for the Jamaica 60 HOPE (Hope, Opportunity, Prosperity and Empowerment) For Children Trust Fund.

Jamaica celebrated its Diamond Jubilee on August 6, 2022.

In his contribution to the 2024/25 Budget Debate in the House of Representatives on March 21, Prime Minister, the Most. Hon. Andrew Holness, said the purpose of the Fund is to help to close the wealth gap and address the issue of intergenerational poverty by creating a trust account specifically catered to vulnerable children.

“The HOPE for Children Trust Fund will provide each eligible child with a long-term savings account funded through annual contributions from the Government. Parents, guardians or other donors will also be able to make deposits into the account for the future benefit of any specific child,” Mr. Holness said.

The accumulated funds, including interest, will be accessible on or after the child’s 18th birthday, for specific purposes such as education, purchase of a home or commercial property or investment in a business.

“The central idea behind the programme is to provide children with a lump sum to start them in life upon attaining adulthood. Our initial target is a lump sum of between $600,000 and $800,000, to be available on the 18th birthday of any eligible child,” Mr. Holness said.

He noted that the Government will also explore alternatives to establish and manage the Fund, adding that it could form part of the National Insurance Fund or be administered by private insurance companies.

“This is, I believe, a ground-breaking initiative to truly grapple with inequality in the society. From a historical perspective, there are many households who have no endowment in Jamaica, meaning that they can’t look towards anything bequeathed to them from their family. There is no asset being passed down to them from generation. The only way that they are able to create any wealth is through their labour, through the dint of their effort – literally pulling themselves up by their bootstraps,” Mr. Holness said.

The Prime Minister emphasised that as the economy grows, the Government has a responsibility to take instrumental and decisive steps to break the cycle of intergenerational poverty and correct structural inequalities.

“The intention here is great, the amount may be considered small, but it is the first step in the right direction to truly create a more equitable society,” Mr. Holness said.

 

Contact: Judana Murphy

Release: JIS

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Port Royal Museum to Open in May

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#Kingston, Jamaica, March 26, 2024 – The long-awaited Port Royal Museum is expected to be opened in May of this year, with the first exhibit set to be unveiled at the event.

Construction of the two-storey facility, which will be the first fit-for-purpose museum erected in Jamaica, was done at a cost of $788 million with funding from the Port Authority of Jamaica (PAJ).

Major work on the building was completed in December 2023, with finishing touches and furnishings left to be done.

Director of the National Museum Jamaica (NMJ), Dr. Jonathan Greenland, told JIS News in an interview that the new museum will replace the older and much smaller facility at Fort Charles.

“It didn’t touch all the subject areas… so we lobbied for the Port Authority to collaborate with us and develop a museum in Port Royal, and so they’ve actually constructed a huge building with restaurant facilities, lots of parking, multifunctional space and meeting rooms, shops and everything that a modern museum should have,” he said.

The museum will also be fully accessible to members of the disabled community with wheelchair ramps and an elevator.

Dr. Greenland added that the location of the museum is also of notable significance to the history of the sunken city.

“Right on the spot where the museum is going to be, there was a rebellion of the enslaved workers from the dockyard. The leader of the rebellion or uprising was a skilled bricklayer and when you look at the walls around the whole area where the dockyard used to be, he was probably involved in building that,” he said.

He further pointed out that the museum will present a new opportunity for the NMJ to attract even more visitors and facilitate cultural tourism.

“We’re very excited…. and you know Port Royal is a very interesting place and the history is fascinating. We always had loads of visitors from all around the world without doing any marketing whatsoever, and this is going to be a whole different level of merchandising, marketing and tourism. This is fascinating history and it’s going to be quite dramatic,” Dr. Greenland told JIS News.

 

Contact : Jermi-Lee Nelson

Release : JIS

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