By Rashaed Esson

Staff Writer

#TheBahamas, March 27, 2023 – Trinidad and Tobago’s Soca Warriors dominated the Bahamas at home, at the Thomas Robinson Stadium in Nassau, for the 2022/2023 Concacaf Nations League on Friday, with a 3-0 victory.

The Soca Warriors struck their first blow within the first 5 minutes of the game, with Kareem Moses making the first shot in the top left corner of the net giving T&T one to the Bahamas’ zero (1-0).

Soon after, in about 26 minutes, they made another shot giving them 2-0 away from home; the scorer Joevin Jones. By the 34^th minute mark, the winning goal was made by Ryan Telfer, T&T now at three.

Neither team scored any additional goals as the match progressed despite attempts made by various players.

Trinidad’s win gives them 12 points through five matches.  Next match for the Soca Warriors is against  Nicaragua; that clash is set for Monday March 27 (at home in Tobago at the Dwight Yorke Stadium), in a tussle of winner-take-all on the final match day.  The victor takes home a promotion to League A and a spot in the 2023 Concacaf Gold Cup.

Angus Eve, T&T’s head coach expressed that the job is only half done, keeping aware that more challenges are coming their way, one of which is the nearing match against Nicaragua who is one point ahead of the Warriors.

Meanwhile, The Bahamas will journey to Saint Vincent and the Grenadines with hopes of emerging victorious there.

#TheBahamas, March 27, 2023 – Prime Minister Davis and Minister Hanna-Martin visited the S.C. McPherson Junior High School to meet with students and educators today, and acknowledge the successful progress made in getting the kids back to school.

As a byproduct of the Covid-19 pandemic, just a year ago, a staggering percentage of students were absent. Since then, it has been a major priority of the Prime Minister to reduce the absenteeism rate and return every child to the classroom.

The Find Every Child Programme spans multiple ministries, a collaboration championed by educators determined to help these students see the hope and opportunity within school walls. S.C. McPherson is just one of the many success stories across the country – last year the school had 365 students who missed more than 50 percent of the school year and this year there are less than a handful of students in that same situation.

The Prime Minister recognizes the leadership and passion of Minister Hanna-Martin, the teachers, the administration, and community members who are involved in the Find Every Child initiative. He also is incredibly proud of the students for their perseverance and wants each one to know he believes in them.

Dana Malcolm 

Staff Writer 

March 24, 2023 – Without immediate and widespread efforts at curbing salt intake, 7 million lives will be lost by 2030 according to the World Health Organization.  The warning follows the first-ever Global Report on Sodium Intake Reduction, which revealed that the world would not meet its sodium intake reduction target of 30 percent by 2025 on its current path.

With only 5% of WHO Member States protected by mandatory and comprehensive sodium reduction policies, the rest of the world must immediately implement ‘highly cost-effective sodium reduction policies to protect against some of the most common non-communicable diseases.

No Caribbean country was mentioned in the group of nine countries with comprehensive salt laws, but Barbados is currently set to make effective stringent regulations to govern food consumption and food quality. 

Tedros Ghebreyesus, the WHO Director-General said: 

“Most countries are yet to adopt any mandatory sodium reduction policies, leaving their people at risk of heart attack, stroke, and other health problems. The WHO calls on all countries to implement the ‘Best Buys’ for sodium reduction, and on manufacturers to implement the WHO benchmarks for sodium content in food.” 

North America and the Caribbean have the highest child diabetes statistics in the world, with the second highest prevalence in adults as well. In Turks and Caicos in particular, over 300 hundred residents have failing kidneys, a number described as ‘alarming’ by experts. Kidney disease is fueled in most cases by diabetes and hypertension. 

The WHO is then advising Governments to do four things:

• Reformulating foods to contain less salt, and setting targets for the amount of sodium in foods and meals. 
• Establishing public food procurement policies to limit salt or sodium-rich foods in public institutions such as hospitals, schools, workplaces, and nursing homes.
• Front-of-package labelling that helps consumers select products lower in sodium.
• Behaviour change communication and mass media campaigns to reduce salt/sodium consumption.

With these measures in place, the salt reduction target can still be achieved, according to the WHO.