News
Are we leveraging the power of local social media to bring about real change?
#TurksandCaicos, November 16, 2021 – One of the greatest strengths of any country is the right to freedom of expression, with the ability to exercise those rights without fear or retaliation. Although, this right could become a casualty of war if we fail to protect it or by denying its power.
Local social media in the Turks and Caicos Islands and around the world has been a driving force for change.
Albeit, in some countries, government is monitoring every move, every speech, every broadcast, every publication and every utterance. We are fortunate to live in a country where censorship is not a battle we have to fight.
However, with that freedom of speech and privilege, it comes with a huge responsibility, because what was meant for good could easily be misused and abused. On a regular basis, we are exposed to hateful speeches, derogatory comments and propaganda, be it by individuals or special interest groups with their own hidden agenda.
What’s disconcerting is when we use this freedom as a means to criticize and disrespect people rather than their actions. The old adage of “Sticks and stones may break my bones, but words will never hurt me”, is so far from the truth. Social media is a great sounding board, but we ought to be careful not to argue with useless words or comments that have little or no value.
In order to comprehend and advance the critical issues that are in dire need of attention in our country, we should not only focus on the headlines, but also take the time to weed through the noise on social media to get to the substance. Sitting down in front of the television set to get your updates from the 5 o’clock news, is no longer the primary medium that grabs our attention. Its social media and television is now secondary.
According to consumer technology association, more people own a mobile device than a toothbrush. With such easy access to social media, in essence, it’s like having a captive audience. However, if it’s not used for the good of society, social media will always remain a divisive topic in the public sector.
In recent years, local social media has emerged as a very effective platform for reaching TCI citizens in meaningful and engaging ways. From promoting the agenda of local politicians, to holding them accountable for their actions or lack thereof. The results of the most recent election in the TCI, is a testament to the power of local social media.
Many local Facebook users and commentators have seized on the opportunity for their voices to be heard. With high
focus on issues such as police accountability, illegal immigration, government inaction or social injustice.
When posting a comment or article in print or on social media, we should be reminded to ask ourselves the following questions; is it factual, is it enabling and empowering others to action for the betterment of the people or society in general? Or is it stoking division?
If it’s not offering solutions to our gripes, we need to change our narrative. What we need is more voices of reasoning, activism and problem solvers not just criticism. Furthermore, we have to find creative ways to get our message across without being disrespectful or demeaning with a greater focus on diplomacy.
Facebook and WhatsApp are very popular platforms which could be used by our local communities to focus on areas of common interest. Likewise, it should also be used to acknowledge our differences while finding a unified voice and ways to manage them.
In order to accomplish this, as concerned citizens, we have to first identify what are the greatest demands. Only then can we begin to work together against a common enemy rather than fighting amongst ourselves.
We may have differences, but the goal should not be to eliminate them, but to find more common ground that we can all work with and build on shared interest. We should also be very cognizant of whose narrative we are following or gravitating toward. At some point, our passion for a cause needs to go beyond the number of Facebook likes.
Although we are only a small developing country, we no longer live in a bubble and are now on the world stage. With that being said, certain comments or remarks are all things that should be given careful thought, as it could adversely impact our delicate tourism sector and the nation as a whole.
There are a number of ongoing struggles that I believe should garner greater media attention. Issues such as certain communities that are being marginalized, better housing affordability, increase in minimum wage, food and gas pricing regulations, crime and punishment and the like.
What I have learned over the years, if you want to get something done and it’s a cause that we truly believe in, then it’s worth fighting for. It cannot be a one off post or discussion.
The long and short of this article is, we should not be afraid to call a spade a spade, but let’s try to do it with more diplomacy.
Let’s capitalize on this momentum and use these popular platforms to build our people up, not tear them down and with less focus on trivial matters.
Let’s continue to put the pressure on decision makers by being methodical and relentless in our approach, and champion efforts to bring about real change.
I believe this will inspire our listeners and audience to a point that will move them to action.
Ed Forbes,
Concerned citizen of Grand Turk
Bahamas News
Sister Province/Island Relationship Agreement Signed between Grand Bahama Island and Hunan Province
By LLONELLA GILBERT
Bahamas Information Services
NASSAU, The Bahamas — A significant milestone was made in the development of bilateral relations between the Governments of The Bahamas and the People’s Republic of China by the signing of the Sister Province/Island Relationship Agreement between Grand Bahama Island and Hunan Province.
The signing took place at the Ministry of Foreign Affairs on Tuesday, April 23, 2024. The Hon. Ginger Moxey, Minister for Grand Bahama; the Hon. Dr. Michael Darville, Minister of Health and Wellness; Kingsley Smith, Parliamentary Secretary in the Ministry for Grand Bahama and Joel Lewis, Permanent Secretary in the Ministry for Grand Bahama represented The Bahamas at the signing.
His Excellency Mao Weiming, Governor of Hunan Provincial People’s Government; Qu Hai, Secretary General of Hunan Provincial People’s Government; Cui Wei, Charge d’Affaires, Embassy of the People’s Republic of China; and Yang Peiran, Interpreter represented the People’s Republic of China.
Minister Moxey explained that in February 2022, she and the former Chinese Ambassador to The Bahamas, Her Excellency Dai Qingli began discussion on the establishment of a province-island relationship between Hunan Province and Grand Bahama Island because of their “immense synergy”.
“Hunan has a vibrant creative industry and its capital city, Changsha is known as the entertainment capital of China, whilst Grand Bahama is poised to become the home of entertainment in ‘Our Bluepoint for Change’.”
She said Hunan Province boasts 11 industrial sectors and Grand Bahama is the industrial capital of The Bahamas. Further, innovation driven development has been a new driving force for Hunan, while Grand Bahama is poised to become the home of innovation for The Bahamas.
Minister Moxey said she is confident that an exchange of knowledge, ideas and culture will happen between the residents of Hunan Province and Grand Bahama.
“There is potential for robust trade in various sectors, opportunities for tourism promotion and intercultural appreciation, exchanges to support performing arts programs on our island, foster growth within the Orange Economy, and tap into China’s innovation, technology and vast expertise.”
She said that the formal signing aligns with the mission of Sister Cities International, which is to promote peace through mutual respect, understanding and cooperation, one community at a time.
The Minister said, “Through collaborative programs and initiatives, this connection will support the government’s vision to diversity Grand Bahama’s economy to become the Home of Maritime and Logistics, Home of Events and Entertainment and Home of Innovation.”
She noted that in addition to signing the agreement, she looks forward to Grand Bahama residents benefitting from the signing of the Cooperation Memorandum of Understanding between Central South University and University of The Bahamas (UB), which will expand educational and technical cooperation between the two universities. The northern campus of UB is located in Grand Bahama.
His Excellency Mao Weiming said although geographically far apart, China and The Bahamas are friends with mutual respect and understanding as well as sincerity.
He explained that 27 years ago, both countries established diplomatic relations and China and The Bahamas have deepened their cooperation, strengthened their friendship and carried out many activities in the field of economy, trade and people-to-people exchange.
His Excellency recalled that in August 2022, he and Prime Minister and the Minister of Finance the Hon. Philip Davis had a video conference where they both reached a consensus to cooperate in order to usher a new chapter in the relationship between Hunan and The Bahamas.
“Today, we are here to sign a sister-to-sister relationship between Hunan and Grand Bahama. It is [a] concrete move to implement
our consensus reached before and also to embark on a new journey of friendly exchanges.”
He added, “By establishing the relationship of sister cities, I believe the two sides will develop further in terms of economic and trade cooperation, people to people exchange, as well as friendship, and we will embrace new opportunities and deliver concrete benefits for the two peoples.”
He explained that Hunan, which is the home town of Chairman Mao, the founder of the People’s Republic of China, has developed very advanced industries of manufacturing, agriculture, education, culture as well as tourism.
His Excellency said he believes that Hunan and Grand Bahama enjoy very broad room for cooperation.
He said, “More efforts should be made to conduct cooperation in the fields of agriculture, tourism, culture, education and the film industry so as to realize a connectivity between our two sides in terms of logistics and the platform cooperation; so as to deliver concrete benefits for the people and to make our due contribution to the bilateral relationship between China and The Bahamas.”
PHOTO CAPTION
A significant milestone was made in the development of bilateral relations between the Governments of The Bahamas and the People’s Republic of China by the signing of the Sister Province/Island Relationship Agreement between Grand Bahama Island and Hunan Province. The signing took place at the Ministry of Foreign Affairs on Tuesday, April 23, 2024. Shown from left: Qu Hai, Secretary General of Hunan Provincial People’s Government; Cui Wei, Charge d’Affaires, Embassy of the People’s Republic of China; Yang Peiran, Interpreter H.E. Mao Weiming, Governor of Hunan Provincial People’s Government; the Hon. Ginger Moxey, Minister for Grand Bahama; the Hon. Dr. Michael Darville, Minister of Health and Wellness; Kingsley Smith, Parliamentary Secretary in the Ministry for Grand Bahama and Joel Lewis, Permanent Secretary in the Ministry for Grand Bahama.
(BIS Photos/Anthon Thompson)
Nassau, Bahamas: The Nassau Cruise Port has donated $1.95 million towards projects that will assist the Ministry of Agriculture and Marine Resources in its aim to increase food security for The Bahamas.
The donation officially occurred at the Ministry’s offices recently, where Minister of Agriculture and Marine Resources Hon. Jomo Campbell, Minister of Labour Hon. Pia Glover-Rolle, Permanent Secretary Neil Campbell and Nassau Cruise Port CEO Mike Maura listened to a number of presentations including one for a poultry programme for schools, a chicken broiler production programme, the redevelopment of the Blue Hill Road Farmers Market and an Authentic Bahamian Cultural Concept Store,
Mr. Maura said he was impressed by the presentations.
“I had the privilege to listen to the presentations and review presentations that touched on food security and the need for us to be self-sufficient, which as a Bahamian I support completely. At the Nassau Cruise Port, we get excited about the prospects of offering more authentic food to the millions of visitors that we have each year,” he said.
“And then, in addition to that, we had presentations around the further development of our artisans, which is so important to us as well. The guests visiting our shores are looking for something that really touches The Bahamas and can’t be found somewhere else. The Nassau Cruise Port has made a pledge to BAIC and its affiliates. We will be supporting the projects that were presented and we can’t wait to get started.”
Minister Glover-Rolle, who is also the Member of Parliament for Golden Gates, hailed Nassau Cruise Port as a “great community partner.”
“Thank you for the opportunity to not only present but agreeing to participate. Our Minister of Agriculture has a goal of reducing food imports by 25 percent by the year 2025 and our project in the Golden Gates Community speaks to that,” she said.
“We have a number of backyard farmers, farmers and fishers in our community in Golden Gates. Being able to use the Blue Hill Road Farmers Market, which is going to be dubbed the ‘Fish Fry of the South,’ as a hub for food security but also a hub where artisans and handicraft persons can come and sell their wares is wonderful. So, we are happy that you have agreed to partner with us and we look forward to a partnership and we hope to welcome some of your visitors when this amazing renovation is done.”
Minister Campbell also lauded the Nassau Cruise Port for its efforts.
“I would like to say thank you to the presenters for the presentations that are several steps in the right direction for our country, to Mr. Maura and his board at the Nassau Cruise Port and I would like to say thanks to God for this partnership and bringing us all together as we move forward, upward, together in building a better, brighter, future for The Bahamas,” he said.
Caribbean News
Agriculture Ministry Providing Two Water Trucks to Serve St. Elizabeth and St. Catherine
#Kingston, Jamaica, April 24, 2024 – The Ministry of Agriculture, Fisheries and Mining is to unveil two more water trucks this week, which will be used to service communities in St. Elizabeth and St. Catherine.
Portfolio Minister, Hon. Floyd Green, made the disclosure during Wednesday’s (April 24) post-Cabinet press briefing at Jamaica House.
He also informed that of the $90 million earmarked to support farmers being impacted by the current drought, the Ministry will be
providing additional support for storage and drip-irrigation systems.
“So, we have targeted about 600 water tanks and about 400 12-millimetre drip irrigation hoses, and that distribution has already started. Additionally, we have earmarked about $8 million to really help with our livestock farmers,” Mr. Green said.
“We know the difficulty that you’re facing now in this time; [it’s] very hard to get the right nutritional support for your animals. As such, we will be providing some hay, and we will [also] provide some trucking of water to you. Again, our livestock farmers, if you are in need, please contact the Rural Agricultural Development Authority (RADA) and let us see how we can help in these times,” he further stated.
Mr. Green also encouraged farmers to download the RADA App, so that the Agency can “help guide you, not only in relation to what is happening on the rainfall side, but also in relation to your integrated pest management”.
“We do see some increases of certain types of pests during this time, and it’s important that our farmers are paying attention to that. It’s also important that you’re taking drought management seriously [by undertaking] soil mulching, looking at planting drought-tolerant crops, timely harvesting, implementing land husbandry treatments and contour ditches,” he stated.
Contact: Latonya Linton
Release: JIS
Photo Caption: Minister of Agriculture, Fisheries and Mining, Hon. Floyd Green, speaking during Wednesday’s (April 24) post-Cabinet press briefing at Jamaica House.
Donald De La Haye Photo
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