Caribbean News
Commonwealth Secretary-General concludes first Pakistan visit
August 15, 2024 – The Commonwealth Secretary-General, the Rt Hon Patricia Scotland KC, and the Chairman of the Prime Minister’s Youth Programme, Rana Mashood Ahmad Khan, announced three new initiatives, designed to broaden and deepen youth participation in development and decision-making.
The three initiatives contribute to the mandates from the 2023 Commonwealth Youth Ministers Meeting and the Commonwealth Youth Ministerial Taskforce, which Pakistan currently chairs.
The first initiative, the Commonwealth Asia Youth Alliance, will have its Secretariat in Pakistan. The alliance will bring together national youth councils from eight Commonwealth Asian countries, providing them a platform to engage in international dialogues, leadership opportunities and training courses.
The second initiative, the Commonwealth Youth Parliamentarian Forum, will offer all young Commonwealth legislators opportunities to hone their leadership skills, exchange good practices with their peers and amplify their voices on pressing issues.
The third initiative, an Artificial Intelligence (AI) Centre for Youth, will offer self-paced Intel-certified training courses to young people, enabling them to gain job-ready skills in emerging technologies.
Speaking at the launch ceremony, the Commonwealth Secretary-General, who was in Pakistan for her first official visit, said:
“With more than 60 per cent of the Commonwealth’s population under the age of 30, our future undeniably rests in the hands of our young people.
“In Pakistan and across the Commonwealth, our young people are brimming with innovation and imagination.
“However, they often lack the opportunities to make meaningful contributions to the social, economic, and political development of their countries.
“We are thrilled that Pakistan, as the chair of the Commonwealth Youth Ministerial Taskforce, is facilitating new initiatives designed to inspire positive change and drive transformative progress for young people in Pakistan and across the Commonwealth.”
During her first visit, the Secretary-General met with President Asif Ali Zardari, Prime Minister Shehbaz Sharif, Deputy Prime Minister and Foreign Minister Ishaq Dar, cabinet ministers, National Assembly Speaker, Attorney General, youth leaders, Commonwealth high commissioners and other key stakeholders.
In her engagements, she reaffirmed Commonwealth solidarity with Pakistan on the second anniversary of the devastating 2022 floods.
Discussions covered Pakistan’s work on the Sustainable Development Goals as well as ways to strengthen Commonwealth relationships and broaden ongoing collaboration, especially in empowering youth, tackling climate change, promoting good governance, upholding the rule of law and leveraging AI.
Whilst in Islamabad, the Secretary-General also launched the ‘Peace at the Crease’ initiative in partnership with the Zalmi Foundation.
The initiative builds on the unique power of sport to bring young people from different backgrounds together to promote Commonwealth values, such as peace, tolerance and equality.
In addition, the Secretary-General delivered keynote addresses at the National University of Science and Technology and the Pakistan Institute of Parliamentary Services on the role of young people in climate change and social innovation.
Ahead of her departure, Secretary-General Patricia Scotland said:
“As a founding member of the Commonwealth, Pakistan has a unique and special role within our family.
“The commitment to achieving the Paris Climate Agreement goals in Pakistan was palpable, not least because the residual effects of the 2022 floods were still apparent and fresh in the minds of all. We need to act now.
“Pakistan’s fragile position underlines why the Commonwealth’s determination to secure climate justice for those so disproportionately affected is justified and why we need a Universal Vulnerability Index.”
The Secretary-General was in Pakistan from 28 July 2024 to 2 August 2024.
KINGSTON, Jamaica, October 6, 2024 – A mural symbolising the theme ‘Tourism and Peace: Out of Many, One Love’ was unveiled by the Ministry of Tourism on Peters Lane in downtown Kingston on Friday (September 27).
The mural was created by lead artist, Sheldon Blake, and assistant artist, Rohan Cargill, for Tourism Awareness Week 2024.
It depicts various Jamaican music genres and fruits, highlights craft vendors and popular tourist spots, including Devon House and Rio Grande rafting.
Tourism Minister, Hon. Edmund Bartlett, in a message read by Permanent Secretary in the Ministry, Jennifer Griffith, said the mural will be a visual representation of how tourism brings people together – breaking down barriers, healing divides and celebrating the beauty of diversity.
“It speaks to the enduring strength of Jamaica’s tourism product and our role in promoting peace, both locally and globally. Sheldon’s work reminds us that our history, culture and people are the foundation upon which our thriving tourism industry is built,” the Minister said.
Meanwhile, Ms. Griffith said preliminary figures show that since the start of the year, Jamaica has welcomed some three million stopover and cruise visitors to the island, earning approximately US$3 billion.
“So despite various challenges relating to travel advisories, Hurricane Beryl and tightness in relation to airlift, we are marginally ahead of last year’s performance and remain on track to achieve our target of securing five million visitors and US$5 billion in earnings by 2025,” she shared.
Ms. Griffiths underscored that these remarkable achievements highlight the strength and sustained recovery of the tourism sector, demonstrating once again that Jamaica remains a premier global destination.
“Tourism is not just an economic driver; it is a bridge to peace, understanding and collaboration. Jamaica’s tourism agenda remains steadfast in ensuring that our industry grows, while protecting the natural and cultural treasures that make us truly unique,” Ms. Griffith said.
For her part, Deputy Director of Kingston Creative, Janet Crick, said the mural is a beautiful addition to the more than 100 in the downtown district.
“These streets have now become a popular destination for locals and tourists alike. Spaces which persons once shied away from have now become a viable attraction and a veritable outdoor gathering, offering beautiful and vibrant depictions of our rich Jamaican history, heritage and culture. It is, therefore, most fitting that tourism, one of the country’s largest income earners, should have a mural in this space – paying tribute to the industry and to its importance to our island,” she said.
CONTACT: JUDANA MURPHY
Release: JIS
MORANT BAY, Jamaica, October 6, 2024 – Minister of Agriculture, Fisheries and Mining, Hon. Floyd Green, says that a long-term approach to dealing with coffee farm roads must be taken, to propel the nation’s coffee farmers by granting easier access to their farms.
“What I have said to the Jamaica Agricultural Commodities Regulatory Authority (JACRA) team [is that] we have to take the coffee road programme out of the Rural Agricultural Development Authority (RADA) farm road programme, because the small fixes, they help, but we
need some big fixes,” said Mr. Green, at the handover of fertilisers and herbicides to coffee farmers in the Buff Bay Valley area of Portland, recently.
He explained that for the short-term approach using resources already available, at least six roads in the coffee belt will be dealt with every year. In this financial year, this will include roads such as Wakefield to Mahoe and Bangor Ridge to Mahoe in Portland, as well as others in St. Thomas and parts of St. Andrew.
Mr. Green pointed out that he has asked JACRA to work with the National Works Agency and do a comprehensive assessment of how much money it is going to cost to fix the coffee roads once and for all.
“Because one of the things that we know, if we are able to fix access to the farms, you will produce more. And if you produce more, the country will make more money from coffee. So, the reality is that the investment in coffee will pay back for itself. So, we have to fix the infrastructure,” the Minister emphasised.
CONTACT: MICKELLA ANDERSON-GORDON
JIS REGIONAL OFFICE
MORANT BAY
Caribbean News
Turks and Caicos Islands Ranked in Top Ten Caribbean Islands in Condé Nast Traveler’s Reader’s Choice Awards
PROVIDENCIALES, TURKS AND CAICOS ISLANDS (October 3rd, 2024) –The Turks and Caicos Islands has been voted among the Top Ten Islands in the Caribbean and The Atlantic in the Condé Nast Traveler Readers’ Choice Awards 2024.
The Turks and Caicos Islands was ranked seventh in the Caribbean according to the votes.
The results of the voting were announced on October 1st, 2024.
A staggering 575,048 people voted in the annual Condé Nast Traveler Reader’s Choice Awards, rating their travel experiences across the globe to offer a comprehensive look at the places they enjoyed and recommend to others.
The Readers’ Choice Awards, with its unparalleled legacy as the travel industry’s longest-running and most prestigious accolades, remain the ultimate symbol and acknowledgment of excellence within the travel sector.
“We are honoured once again to be recognised as a top island within Conde Nast Traveler’s Readers’ Choice Awards,” said Hon. Josephine
Connolly, Minister of Tourism for the Turks and Caicos Islands. “The Turks and Caicos Islands remain a staple on this prestigious list which speaks to the quality experiences our visitors enjoy. These votes are determined by them which makes it all the more special.”
Experience Turks and Caicos congratulates our hotel partners who have also been voted among the Top Resorts in the Bahamas, Bermuda and The Atlantic:
- Sailrock – #2
- Beach Enclave – #3
- Amanyara – #3
- Ambergris Cay – #9
- Seven Stars Resort – #10
- Wymara Resort and Villas – #11
- Como Parrot Cay – #14
This honour is the latest among the accolades that the Turks and Caicos Islands has received in 2024 such as:
- TripAdvisor Best of the Best Reader’s Choice Awards: Grace Bay, #1 Beach in the Caribbean and Best of the Best for 2024, # 5 among the Top 25 Best of the Best Beaches in the world.
- USA Today 10Best Reader’s Choice Awards – Best Caribbean Beaches: #2 Bambarra Beach, #9 Grace Bay Beach
- World’s 50 Best Beaches: Grace Bay #1 in the Caribbean, #25 in the world
- World Travel Awards: Caribbean’s Leading Beach Destination, Caribbean’s Leading Romance Destination
- World MICE Awards: Caribbean’s Best Incentive Destination (Providenciales)
The 2024 Readers’ Choice Awards are published on Condé Nast Traveler’s website at https://www.cntraveler.com/story/top-islands-readers-choice-awards-2020
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