TORONTO, September 30 - Increasing airline travel between Canada and Grenada, and a lifting of the Canadian visa restriction on Grenadians, are among areas of priority in the National Democratic Congress administration's attempts at strengthening and enhancing relations with Canada.
Prime Minister Tillman Thomas and Foreign Minister Peter David have both commended Canada for its development assistance to Grenada over many years. They said the Canadians were forced to impose the visa restriction on Grenadians over concerns that many non-Grenadians, of "questionable character,'' were able to buy Grenadian passports under the economic citizenship program of the ousted New National Party regime.
"It would appear that some persons who bought passports were questionable characters. So we are trying to identify and to recover some of these passport,'' Prime Minister Thomas told reporters in Toronto.
Mr. Thomas and Foreign Minister David met with journalists at a news conference during a weekend visit that was highlighted by a gala hosted by the NDC's Toronto Support Group.
The Prime Minister and Foreign Minister also met representatives of various Grenadian associations in Toronto, attended a service and reception in their honour at a packed Toronto church hall, and engaged in business meetings with private sector officials.
Asked by a reporter about Grenada-Canada relations, Prime Minister Thomas responded: "We have always had excellent relations with Canada. Canada has contributed substantially to agriculture and education in Grenada. Some of the biggest public schools in Grenada were built by Canada.''
Nationals of most of the countries of the Organisation of Eastern Caribbean States do not need a visa to travel to Canada. Grenadains enjoyed the same status until the visa rule was implemented in 2001.
The NDC government is trying to get the Canadians to remove the visa requirement.
Mr. David, who visited New York before coming to Toronto, said he met with Canada's Deputy Foreign Affairs Minister at the United Nations and discussed the visa issue.
"He listened with interest and indicated that certain action will have to be taken on our side,'' Mr. David said. "And hopefully once we take that action, we would be able to move on with the discussion as ton how Canada treats us with respect to the visa issue.''
Mr. David, who is also the Minister of Tourism, said he wants to make greater use of the Canadian market in boosting the tourist sector of the Grenada economy. However, one of the obstacles to be overcome will be airline travel to Grenada.
"We still do not have sufficient airlift into Grenada,'' Mr. David lamented. "I think it would be easy to market Grenada in Canada if we have the airlift problem solved.''
The minister said he is exploring ways of finding a solution to the airline travel woes between Canada and Grenada.
"We are not satisfied that we are maximizing in the Canadian market,'' he said. "Therefore, we will be seeking to have discussions with Canadian operators to see how we can enhance that.''
NEW YORK, September 25 - Today on behalf of the Alliance of Small Island States (AOSIS), Grenada’s Foreign Minister, the Honourable Mr. Peter David, jointly announced with the Foreign Ministry of Greece the formation of a new fund pioneered by Grenada to help island states around the world cope with the impacts of climate change.
The Greek deputy Foreign Minister, Dr. Yanni Valinakis remarked that Greece was sensitive to the needs of the island states that are facing the impacts of climate change.
As a donor country within the European Union, Greece was prepared to make this important tangible contribution to the island states in this regard. To this end, Greece is coming on board as the cornerstone charter partner to this fund with a contribution of four million Euros over the next four years.
In his response, Minister David, remarked that as a country with over a thousand islands, Greece shared much in common with other island states and that this kinsmanship was manifested by Greece’s commitment to help island states with such a practical fund.
He pointed out that recent Caribbean Hurricanes provided additional evidence of the human and economic impacts of climate change. Further, he added that with the global financial crisis, the Greek funds were very timely and greatly appreciated by AOSIS.
Note to Editor:
The Global Islands Green Finance Facility is a financing mechanism being established by the island states under the aegis of AOSIS. It is to be managed by the World Bank and, over time, staffed by financial professionals from the island states.
This fund will be unusual because it is the recipient countries (rather than the donor countries) who will design the rules of the fund in accordance with their specific needs.
In addition to the four million euros from Greece, Grenada recently announced jointly with Iceland the provision of a further 4.5 million USD by Iceland for the member states of AOSIS. The Green Finance facility will have access to these funds from Iceland.
Monday September 29, 2008, St. George’s; Two Public Health Nurses (PHN), attached to the Ministry of Health in Grenada, have been sent on a two week assignment to the Turks and Caicos Islands to render public health assistance to the Government and People of that country, following its devastation by Hurricane Ike earlier this month.
Nurses Olive Courtney and Diana Stanisclaus left Grenada on Sunday September 28th for the Grand Turk as part of an initiative organized by the Pan American Health Organization (PAHO).
Chief Nursing Officer (CNO), in the Ministry of Health, Ms. Nester Edwards says the Ministry heeded the call to render such assistance by offering two nurses for the two week mission.
She said missions like these should not be turned down, since it is the norm for persons, countries and organizations to come together to assist each other in times of disaster.
Edwards added that during the two week assignment, the two Grenadian nurses will undertake several public health initiatives including disease surveillance, maternal and child health issues and other issues relating to public health on a larger scale.
Nurse Courtney who is attached to the St. George’s Health District has over ten years experience as a public health nurse while Stanisclaus, who is attached to the St. John’s/St. Mark’s Health District has just over five years in that field.
The two Grenadian nurses will join a number of public health nurses, from across the region as part of this special assignment.
On September 6th, 2008 category four hurricane Ike, slammed into the Grand Turks and Caicos islands causing more than 80 per cent of damage to the island’s housing stock in the South.
The US economy is mired in a slowdown, Wall Street allegedly needs a bailout and stocks are on a roller coaster that is mostly headed down. What’s less clear is how all of this turmoil is impacting the media industry and your personal economy.
A simple question was posed on one of my mailing lists over the weekend: Are you seeing a change in the business climate?
The group had interesting answers.
KINGSTON, Jamaica, May 5 - Usain Bolt has blown open the race for 100m gold in this summer's Olympics by recording a time of 9.76sec, the second fastest in history. Bolt's achievement is all the more remarkable given that he is better known as a 200m runner and had been expected to focus on that distance before the Games in Beijing.
"I will sit down with my coach to decide what we will do," the 6ft 3in Jamaican said after the race here on Saturday. "Everything had been geared towards the 200m. I wanted to run the 100m at this meeting and I was looking at 9.85."
Bolt may now decide to run both distances and, whatever his Olympic plans, Tyson Gay is likely to be among his main rivals. "It was amazing," said the American 100m and 200m world champion. "Words cannot describe it. His performance changes the whole picture of our event." Gay had opted to run only in the 200m at the Jamaica International meeting. Running for the first time this season, he won in 20.00sec.
When Gay completed the sprint double at last summer's World Championships in Osaka Bolt, who will celebrate his 22nd birthday during the Beijing Games, was second in the 200m. Losing out on gold has been one of the motivations that drove him to produce a run that only his fellow countryman, Asafa Powell who was missing from here with a chest injury, has bettered. Powell set the world record time of 9.74 in Rieti in September last year and Bolt would not rule out the chance he could match that. "You never know," he said, "you never know."
It was fitting that Bolt smashed his previous 100m best of 10.03 at Jamaica's National Stadium, 10 minutes from his home. It was on the same track six years ago that this Kingston-born sprinter won 200m gold and two relay silvers at the World Junior Championships. His progress has been edging towards this type of run but the biggest surprise is that it came in the 100m as last summer he broke the 36-year-old national 200m record held by Don Quarrie. As the watching Quarrie said: "It was a super, super run. He might want to change his Olympic plans now."
Bolt may even have allowed himself a rare celebration before sitting down to consider his options. "I have been working really hard this winter. I did not want to finish behind Tyson after last year," he said. "I used to party three times a month but now it is maybe five times a year. I stay away from that. I now play video games quite a lot."
The race was billed as a clash between Bolt and Wallace Spearmon, who finished third in the 200m in Osaka, but the American never had a chance to latch on to the Jamaican's start. Bolt won ahead of Darvis Patton, of the US, who was second in 10.08 with Antigua's Daniel Bailey third in 10.12. Spearmon was fifth in 10.13 with Kim Collins, the 2003 world champion from St Kitts and Nevis, sixth in 10.19.
Bolt's time is the first occasion that any sprinter has run 9.76. Powell took the world record to 9.74 from 9.77 and Gay is aware of the power of the new kid on the senior blocks. "If he is going to run the 100m [in Beijing], it is going to be very exciting," said Gay, whose quickest time for the distance is 9.84. "He is probably considered one of the best athletes ever now."
Sanya Richards, the American who will pose the biggest threat to Britain's world champion Christine Ohuruogu in Beijing, won the 400m in 50.60sec.
