NEWS
'Gone too soon' – creative community mourns Vanna Girod
Condolences poured in on Wednesday for the family of local actress and singer Vanna Girod. Girod’s body was found on Wednesday in Arnos Vale, Tobago. Girod was reported missing to the Shirvan Road Police Station on Tuesday after she failed to return to her aunt’s villa where she was staying after going for a walk around 9 am. Read more here
POLITICS
Health Ministry pursuing Pfizer vaccines for five-11-year-olds
Health Minister Terrence Deyalsingh said the ministry is in negotiations with Pfizer-BioNTech to buy its covid19 vaccine for five-11 year olds. He said a non-disclosure agreement has been signed with the company. Speaking at the ministry’s virtual media conference on Wednesday, Deyalsingh said the ministry is exploring several areas for acquiring the vaccines. Read more here
Imbert: Excess $81.6m GATE funding carried over from 2020 to 2021
The COVID-19 pandemic and requisite school closures led to an unused Government Assistance for Tertiary Education (GATE) allocation of $81.6 million in 2020. That credit was added to the $400 million allocated for 2021 which meant some $481.6 million was available for GATE funding. Both Finance Minister Colm Imbert and Vice-President of the Senate Nigel DeFreitas were forced to remind two previous speakers about the narrow ambits of the Finance (Variation of Appropriation) Bill which was debated yesterday in the Senate. Read more here
BUSINESS
Regional leaders: Caribbean must chart course on climate change
The establishment of viable, low carbon onshore economies is an important part of the conversation in the Caribbean about sustainable energy and climate change. Guyana President Dr Mohammed Irfaan Ali made this observation when he addressed the opening of the virtual Caribbean Sustainable Energy Conference 2022 on Monday. Read more here
Scotiabank T&T’s paperless project wins international award
Scotiabank T&T has won an international award for its paperless project. Scotiabank T&T was recognised by the Sustainability, Environmental Achievement and Leadership (SEAL) Awards for its innovation, and commitment to sustainable business practices. The SEAL Awards celebrate the companies and leaders globally that make measurable contributions to sustainability and develop innovative initiatives that will positively impact the environment for centuries to come. Read more here
REGIONAL
Landmark $552.9B Budget presented to House
The year 2022 is set to go down in Guyana’s history as one of the most significant periods ever, with plans in place to inject some $552.9 billion into the economy through various initiatives that would rapidly transform and modernise the nation. This sum, which constitutes the government’s fiscal plan for this year, is some 44.3 per cent larger than Budget 2021 and 36.6 per cent above total expenditure last year, according to Senior Minister in the Office of the President with responsibility for Finance, Dr. Ashni Singh, during his presentation of Budget 2022 to the National Assembly, on Wednesday. Read more here
INTERNATIONAL
Ukraine crisis: US rejects Russian demand to bar Ukraine from Nato
The US has rejected Russia's demand to bar Ukraine from Nato, amid warnings Russia might invade its neighbour. Secretary of State Antony Blinken was giving Russia a formal response to its demands to resolve the Ukraine crisis. Mr Blinken gave no concessions but said that he was offering Russia "a serious diplomatic path forward, should Russia choose it". Russia's foreign minister Sergei Lavrov said President Vladimir Putin would now assess Mr Blinken's response. While the document - delivered by the US in coordination with the Nato military alliance - does not address Russia's "main concern" about the alliance's expansion, Mr Lavrov said it "gives hope for the start of a serious conversation" on secondary questions. Read more here
27th January 2022