News
Building TCI’s capacity in global standards for coral reef monitoring
#TurksandCaicos, March 11, 2022 – Coral reefs are vibrant ecosystems that face a very uncertain future under current climate predictions. The Global Coral Reef Monitoring Network’s report, Status of the Coral Reefs of the World: 2020, highlights an alarming decline in coral cover globally. Coral bleaching and disease have led to mass coral mortality events, and this is only predicted to worsen with the increasing effects of climate change and associated ocean acidification. Declining coral cover results in a devastating loss of both biodiversity and the high value services provided by reefs such as storm surge protection, food security and tourism.
To combat this urgent threat, The Joint Nature Conservation Committee (JNCC) has developed a programme of work to support environmental resilience in the United Kingdom Overseas Territories (UKOTs) under the UK Government’s Conflict Sustainability and Security Fund (CSSF). As part of this programme, JNCC is working with the six Caribbean UK Overseas Territories (UKOTs), namely Anguilla, Bermuda, the British Virgin Islands (BVI), the Cayman Islands, Montserrat, and the Turks and Caicos Islands (TCI), to implement priority elements from their coral reef action plans to support coral reef conservation and restoration. The project covers four overarching themes
of reef conversation: coral reef monitoring, outreach and education, reduction of pressures, and coral disease management.
A training workshop held at the Department of Environment and Coastal Resources (DECR), between 7th and 11th March, in conjunction with the Turks and Caicos Islands Government (TCIG) focuses on training 10 environmental professionals from governmental and private sectors in the Global Coral Reef Monitoring Network methods for surveying coral reefs (www.gcrmn.net).
Dr. Stuart Wynne of C3 International Ltd, a marine ecologist with over 15 years global experience, including several years working in Anguilla as the Deputy Director of Fisheries Management, is leading the group in three days of theoretical training on identification and monitoring of fish, corals, algae and other ocean critters. Transferral of knowledge between experienced surveyors from DECR and those new to both the theory and practice will build national capacity for monitoring the status of our coral reefs. Scuba diving surveys, facilitated by Aqua TCI, will aid participants in applying their new knowledge into practice, collecting ‘real time’ data and discussing its analysis and application in management decision-making.
The long-term vision is to increase the size and capability of the national coral reef monitoring team in collecting and analysing scientific data to inform local management actions; a prerequisite for the conservation of TCI’s incredible marine biodiversity in the face of increasing threats from human and climate-induced changes. Furthermore, TCI will be increasing its contribution of vital data to international publications on Caribbean and global coral reef health.
TCIG knew from April that fuel factor could surge almost 80%; Minister says $500 cost-of-living payment was part of Government’s response
PROVIDENCIALES — The Turks and Caicos Government knew months before July’s shocking electricity bills that consumers faced a potentially massive increase in the fuel factor.
Minister of Information Technology and Energy E. Jay Saunders revealed Friday that Pelican Energy warned his Ministry in April that generation fuel costs were projected to rise from $3.09 per gallon in May to $4.79 in June and July.
That translated into a projected fuel factor jump from about 17.5 cents to 31 cents per kilowatt-hour — an increase of almost 80%.
Saunders said he personally advised Cabinet of the projected increase and presented options for cushioning the impact.
He characterised Government’s $500 cost-of-living payment as its “initial response” to rising fuel costs, before a separate fuel-factor subsidy was approved.
Cabinet records show Government agreed on June 24 to provide funding to mitigate the fuel-factor impact, with the relief programme approved July 8.
Eligible residential customers — those averaging less than $1,500 monthly over the previous three bills — are capped at 22 cents per kWh from July through October.
Pelican confirmed Friday that Government’s contribution was already applied to July bills, meaning the bills now triggering widespread public outrage would have been even higher without the subsidy.
Saunders did not disclose the programme’s total cost.
His admission that Government knew since April, however, raises another question amid the backlash: why were consumers not directly warned by Government about the scale of the approaching increase?
NASSAU, Bahamas — More Bahamians are accessing HIV and sexually transmitted infection-related healthcare through National Health Insurance, a trend the NHI Authority says should be viewed positively.
NHIA stressed in an August 6 statement that its 2025 figures measure healthcare utilisation, not newly diagnosed infections. They include beneficiaries screened, treated, monitored or receiving follow-up care, including people diagnosed previously.
“Increased utilisation of these services should be viewed as a positive development,” NHIA said.
The Authority pointed to “greater enrolment and use of NHI, improved access to screening and testing, continued treatment and monitoring of existing conditions, and increased willingness to seek medical care.”
The development comes amid a mixed three-year HIV picture. New diagnoses rose from 130 in 2023 to 156 in 2024, before declining to 142 in 2025.
NHIA said increased utilisation demonstrates that more beneficiaries are accessing needed healthcare and actively managing their health, reinforcing the importance of screening, early diagnosis and continued treatment.
WASHINGTON, D.C. — The Americas has recorded 47,459 confirmed measles cases and 44 deaths in 2026, the region’s highest case count in 22 years, prompting the Pan American Health Organization (PAHO) to urge stronger vaccination, surveillance and rapid outbreak response.
As of July 18, cases were already more than triple the 15,011 recorded during all of 2025. Guatemala, Mexico, the United States and Peru
account for 95% of confirmed cases. Guatemala leads with 30,371 cases and 26 deaths, followed by Mexico with 12,255 cases and 17 deaths.
PAHO classifies the regional public health risk as very high, citing active outbreaks, immunity gaps, international travel and populations with inadequate vaccination coverage.
The organization says prevention starts with vaccination. Countries are being urged to achieve and maintain at least 95% coverage with two doses of measles-containing vaccine, particularly protecting children and under-vaccinated communities.
Measles spreads through the air when an infected person breathes, coughs or sneezes. Symptoms can include fever, cough, runny nose, red eyes and a rash.
PAHO is urging health authorities to detect suspected cases early and respond rapidly to stop transmission. Unvaccinated and under-vaccinated people, young children and communities with limited healthcare access face increased risk of severe illness and death.
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