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Saint-Martin.
Carnival to take place
The announcement of the cancellation of Carnival 2025 generated some very strong reactions on Saint-Martin. It was hard to imagine that such an important event would not take place. Fortunately, the situation has since returned to normal. In a joint press release, the Collectivité and the Carnival Committee announced that "following a meeting between representatives of both parties, the Carnival Committee has decided to cancel the event.union between representatives of both parties on Saturday December 7, a constructive agreement has been reached to ensure the future of Carnaval de Saint-Martin". In line with the advice given by the Collectivité's Culture Commission at its meeting on November 13, a subsidy of 200,000 euros was finally voted by the Executive Council on Thursday December 12. Both parties stressed "the importance of Carnival as a cultural, social and economic pillar" and agreed on "the need to treat Carnival as a priority in order to avoid last-minute preparations and maintain a high level of organization".
Grenada.
Emmalin Pierre, first woman to head the New National Party
Grenada's main opposition party, the New National Party (NNP), elected Emmalin Pierre as its new leader last Sunday (December 15). Formerly in charge of the party's public relations, she is the first woman to take the reins since its creation in 1980. Since 1989, the party had been led by Keith Mitchell, who declared after the election: "The time for democracy, decency and honesty has come. Tonight is the beginning of it all. "
Haiti.
Arson ravages Port-au-Prince hospital
This time, armed gangs have attacked a health facility. In this case, the Bernard Mevs hospital, one of the largest in the capital, Port-au-Prince. On the night of Monday December 16 to Tuesday December 17, members of the now all-too-famous gang coalition known as "Viv ansanm" (Living Together) stormed the site before setting it alight with Molotov cocktails. According to a police source quoted by Agence France Presse, the fire caused no casualties, but destroyed the four operating theatres, the laboratory, the two scanners and the administration offices. "It's an entire symbol that has gone up in smoke", lamented the same source, underlining that the impact of this attack on the capital's medical supply will be considerable. This private establishment is known for having some of the most advanced medical imaging technology in the country. It plays a key role in Haiti's medical sector. An act that follows the massacre of over 180 people in a sector of the Cité Soleil district in early December, orchestrated by a gang leader convinced that a spell had been cast on him by the inhabitants.
Saba.
Support for food security
On Saturday December 14, the public entity Saba organized its annual World Food Day event. It was an opportunity to celebrate food security and local agriculture, as reported by Saba News. In particular, the event highlighted how Saba has balanced traditional farming and animal husbandry with modern practices such as hydroponics to improve local food production. As part of the NEPP (Nature and Environment Policy Plan) funded food security project, various seeds and plants such as coriander, tomatoes and eggplants were distributed to farmers, to encourage backyard farming. Raised beds were also made available at subsidized rates. In collaboration with World Food Day, the reforestation team, also funded by NEPP, distributed 126 trees, including mango, guava and avocado. "By adopting both innovative and traditional agricultural practices, Saba continues on its path towards food security and self-sufficiency, fostering a resilient future for the island," assures Saba News.
Cuba.
Towards a resumption of dialogue with the United States?
Shortly after taking office as President of the United States in January 2017, Donald Trump chose to break off the historic rapprochement begun in 2014 by Barack Obama between his country and Cuba. On the occasion of the tenth anniversary of the announcement of the resumption of diplomatic exchanges between Washington and Havana, Cuba's Deputy Foreign Minister, Carlos Fernandez de Cossio, told a press conferencerence relayed by Agence France Presse that "it is not Cuba that will propose or take the initiative to suspend existing dialogues, to suspend existing cooperation, not even discreet exchanges on certain sensitive issues". During his first term in office, Donald Trump severely tightened economic sanctions against the island of Cuba. "We will be attentive to the attitude of the new government," insisted Carlos Fernandez de Cossio. "But Cuba's disposition will remain the same as it has been for the past sixty-four years," he asserted. We are ready to develop a serious and respectful relationship with the United States, and of course to protect the sovereign interests of both countries. "
Dominican Republic.
Seven decisions in the fight against illicit trade
On Tuesday December 17, President Luis Abinader chaired a round table on the theme of illicit trade. Luis Abinader underlined the "significant progress" made by the Dominican Republic in 2024 in the fight against illicit trade. In fact, as Dominican Today points out, the country obtained seven convictions, reinforcing its commitment to law enforcement, the protection of legal trade and the preservation of public health. Six of the convictions involved the seizure of over 75 million items of merchandise. These operations have enabled the country to emerge from the intellectual property watch list drawn up in the United States' 301 report. In addition, the country has created an Illicit Trade Directorate and launched an Illicit Trade Dashboard to promote transparency. The meeting chaired by Luis Abinader also featured contributions from industry associations, including those representing alcohol, tobacco, medicines and hydrocarbons. The Round Table on Illicit Trade was created in response to the adulterated alcohol crisis of 2020.
Trinidad and Tobago.
Minister of Education dies in house fire
Lisa Morris-Julian, Member of Parliament for Trinidad and Minister of Education, died alongside two of her children, a girl and a boy, in an early morning fire on Sunday December 16 in Arima. The fire consumed the family home on Farfan Street. Lisa Morris-Julian's husband and their three other children managed to escape the blaze, according to reports in the Trinidad Express, relayed by Caribbean National Weekly. Government officials, including Prime Minister Keith Rowley, attended the scene. The circumstances of the fire have not yet been determined. The Minister of Education was a former professor of English literature, communications and drama. She was also known as an amateur playwright. Her work had been praised and recognized by the Cropper Foundation for her creations as an emerging Caribbean writer. Her political career began in 2013. After serving as a municipal councillor and then as mayor in 2016 of the commune of Arima, she was elected in 2020 to the House of Representatives and appointed minister in the Ministry of Education.
Jamaica.
Tax on tips to be abolished
The tax on tips imposed on workers in the tourism sector is soon to be abolished. This measure is part of the Jamaican government's plan to reform labor market provisions in the tourism sector. To this end, a plan to abolish taxes on tips and ensure that 100% of tips go directly to workers in the hospitality sector is to be put in place, explained Tourism Minister Edmund Bartlett in the columns of the Observer. "The reform will include the professionalization of the sector through training, certification and classification of workers, with remuneration linked to their skill levels and qualifications," thus declared the Minister before adding: "This approach reflects the public sector's merit-based classification system, ensuring fairness and opportunities for skilled workers to progress to the most senior positions within the sector. "And Edmund Bartlett insists: "Tipping was instituted as a service charge exclusively for workers, and must be paid to workers. If this were the case, wage levels in the industry, certainly, the worker's take-home pay would easily be double what it is. "The Minister's announcement follows several months of protest action by tourism workers, including strikes in several hotels across the country.
Guadeloupe.
Operation seduction on German, Swiss and Austrian tour operators
According to an article published on the La 1ère website on Tuesday December 17, the Comité du tourisme des îles de Guadeloupe is setting out to conquer the German, Swiss and Austrian markets. "Tour operators from these German-speaking countries came to discover the archipelago's natural, heritage and cultural assets", it says. A seduction and promotion operation that focused on a market deemed "very buoyant" by industry professionals: German-speaking countries. "Fifteen travel agents from Germany, Austria and Switzerland were invited to discover the local islands and their wealth of heritage, biodiversity and culture", writes La 1ère. "Beyond the great satisfaction of the professionals who were welcomed to Guadeloupe, business opportunities are already emerging for the beginning of the year.Maïté Marie-Antoinette, Director of Tourism Market Development at the CTIG. We're talking about new destinations for their customers. Some have already confirmed that we'll be online, on their site, as early as January. "La 1ère adds that Guadeloupe's tourism players are expected to go in the opposite direction and take part in specialized trade fairs in Germany, such as the ITB Berlin, Europe's biggest meeting place for the sector.
Martinique.
Only 21% of companies file their accounts
Sébastien Carpentier, President of the Fort-de-France Mixed Commercial Court, spoke at length on RCI about the general context in Martinique, and in particular the filing of company annual accounts. While the main focus was on large groups (such as Groupe Bernard Hayot), it turns out that, to date, barely 21% of companies file their accounts in Martinique, compared with the national average of 85%. "It's been a few years now, since the arrival of the private registry at the end of 2019, that initial reminder letters have been sent without any real success.s, since we're at 21% for filing accounts in the territory, and in fact, in the Antilles-Guyane zone, it's not much better," explains the president of the Fort-de-France mixed commercial court to RCI. In French Guiana, we're at around 24% or 23%. On the other hand, the situation in Guadeloupe is a little worse, since the latest figures I had were around 20% for Pointe-à-Pitre and 14% for Basse-Terre, including Saint-Martin and Saint-Barthélemy. That's not much. "We're talking about 15,000 to 20,000 companies that don't file their accounts," he adds. "Through injunctions and daily penalties, the court succeeded in forcing between 40 and 50% of companies in Martinique to file their accounts.
