Australian court overturns teenagers' climate change case against minister

The Australian government has won an appeal against a ruling that it has a duty of care to protect children from harm caused by climate change.

Last year, eight teenagers and an 87-year-old nun convinced a court that the government had a legal duty to children when assessing fossil fuel projects. The decision was hailed as a world first, but it has been successfully challenged by the environment minister.

Author offers timeless life lessons to visitors at 40th Sharjah International Book Fair

“It is okay to fail but not okay to quit,” said Chris Gardner to a packed audience at the 40th Sharjah International Book Fair (SIBF), while he laid out the blueprint for actioning a dream into reality.

Discussing his new book, Permission to Dream, with Sally Mousa, the international best-selling author, entrepreneur and award-winning film producer, said: “Failure can be your best friend. You are going to learn things from failure that you cannot from success. The key lies in not making the same mistake twice.”

Authorities rush to get aid to thousands after typhoon Noru strikes Philippines

Philippine President Ferdinand Marcos Jr conducted an aerial survey of damage brought on by typhoon Noru, which left heavy flooding across several northern provinces as authorities rushed to get aid to thousands of evacuees.

Governor Daniel Fernando declared that five rescue workers were killed in Bulacan province, while local residents were seen wading through waist-deep waters, with others stranded on rooftops.

AutoFlight delivers first electric air taxi to customer in Japan

AutoFlight has achieved a significant milestone by officially delivering its first Prosperity aircraft to a customer in Japan, marking the world’s inaugural delivery of a civilian ton-class eVTOL aircraft.

Avianca announces seven new routes as it continues rapid growth

After inaugurating 17 new routes during 2021, Colombian carrier Avianca has announced seven new routes and the reactivation of two more beginning in March. In this way, its passengers will be able to travel non-stop from Colombia and Costa Rica to destinations in the U.S., the United Kingdom and Ecuador.

Award-winning cuisine serves up Indigenous cultures

Sean Sherman, known as “the Sioux Chef” and founder of the award-winning restaurant Owamni, believes that Native cuisine — in the United States and around the world — can educate people about Indigenous history and cultures.

“I knew Japanese cuisine, North African, all sorts of European recipes,” Sherman SAID, “but I didn’t know anything about my own heritage. That set me on a path of wanting to understand and reconnect.

AWE alumna advances organic farming in Malaysia

In 2020, Irene Mositol often stayed up until the early hours of the morning to complete training for her participation in the U.S. Department of State’s Academy for Women Entrepreneurs (AWE).

Living in the rural community of Kampung Bundu Tuhan, Malaysia, Mositol lacked consistent internet service and studied when her connection was strongest.

AWE alumna boosts women’s employment in Egypt

When Lamiaa Salah told her parents she planned to leave her home in Asyut, Egypt, to pursue education and a career in Cairo, they did not want her to leave.

Salah says Egypt’s conservative society sometimes presents challenges to women who wish to find jobs, and that education and professional opportunities for women outside of Cairo may be limited.

Azets Birmingham hits century milestone with four new Corporate Finance recruits

Four new recruits into Azets’ Corporate Finance team have taken the top 10 firm’s Birmingham office to a total of 100 new hires. Lauryn Mayson joins as a one of several new graduates across the Midlands, with Zoe Hacking, Pawan Kandel and Sudip Khatri all joining as Executives.

Baha Mar celebrates its fifth anniversary

Baha Mar announced its five-year anniversary with a calendar of exciting activations. Welcoming more than one million guests since opening on April 21, 2017, Baha Mar has much cause to celebrate. Major milestones include opening three world-class oceanfront hotels, Grand Hyatt, SLS and Rosewood, the largest Casino in the Caribbean, over 45 distinct restaurants and bars, launch of the $200 million luxury waterpark Baha Bay, and creation of the industry-leading Travel with Confidence program, which aims to provide a safe and healthy environment for guests during these unprecedented times.

Bahamas government partnering with HUB350 and KNBA

The government of The Bahamas is delighted to announce a major partnership with HUB350 and the Kanata North Business Association (KNBA). This collaboration forms part of a broader vision to leverage technology and innovation to transform The Bahamas into a leading hub in tourism and climate change resilience. 

The pivotal role in brokering this transformative partnership was played by Deputy Prime Minister and Minister of Tourism, Aviation, and Investments, Chester Cooper, Minister of State, Ginger Moxey, and the Bahamas High Commission, under the leadership of High Commissioner V. Alfred Gray and First Secretary Nahaja Black. Their combined effort and strategic negotiation have resulted in an alliance that aims to enhance The Bahamas’ technological capacity and promote sustainable development. 

Bahamas Ministry of Tourism, Investments & Aviation officials express condolences on the passing of Jill Stewart

The Honourable I. Chester Cooper, Deputy Prime Minister and Minister of Tourism, Investments & Aviation, along with members of the Ministry’s Senior Executive Management Team and Bahamas family of Tourism Partners, are deeply saddened to learn of the passing on Friday past of Jill Stewart, wife of Adam Stewart, Executive Chairman of Sandals Resorts International.

Bahamas PM honoured to present people and culture to countries across the globe at Expo 2020 Dubai

During his visit to celebrate his country’s Expo 2020 Dubai National Day His Excellency Philip Davis QC, Prime Minister of the Commonwealth of The Bahamas, said he is proud to present the stunning archipelago to the rest of the world. The delegation included the Royal Bahamas Police Force Pop Band and other Bahamian artists and performers, among them, Shaback, a choir led by Office of the Prime Minister (OPM) Press Secretary Clint Watson, whose relatives also made up the delegation in other capacities.

Banff Sunshine to host Indigenous Days

The world-famous alpine resort, Banff Sunshine Village, will host its first Indigenous Days on August 27th and 28th and again on September 3rd, 4th, and 5th.

Banff National Park resides within the present-day territories of treaties 6, 7, and 8 lands, as well as the metis homeland.

Bank of Jamaica announce inflation rate decrease

The Central Bank is reporting that Jamaica’s inflation rate is decreasing. Data from the Statistical Institute of Jamaica (STATIN) shows that the rate, which peaked at 11.8 per cent in April 2022, fell to 7.8 per cent in February 2023.

Speaking during a Jamaica Information Service (JIS) ‘Think Tank’, Bank of Jamaica (BOJ) senior deputy governor, Dr Wayne Robinson, said this has resulted from the BOJ’s monetary policy actions as well as lower imported commodity prices and indicated: “We actually responded very swiftly, early and decisively to the increase… that we’ve been seeing… which was actually spurred by rising inflation globally”.

Barbados declared a Republic as ties cut with colonial past

Marking its 55th Independence Barbados celebrated as it also marked the island’s transition from a Commonwealth realm to a parliamentary Republic. And Prince Charles, the future head of the Commonwealth, was in the country to witness the changing of the guard.

Received by Dame Sandra Mason in the last hours of her role as viceroy of Queen Elizabeth, he was also welcomed by Prime Minister Mia Mottley, Foreign Minister Dr Jerome Walcott, Minister of Maritime Affairs Kirk Humphrey and other senior Government officials.

Barbados launches new virtual global insurance and risk management conference

As Barbados continues to stamp its place among the world’s global business domiciles, the island will host the inaugural Barbados Risk & Insurance Management (BRIM) global conference next month.

Bringing together local, regional and international thought leaders on insurance, risk management and global business, the virtual conference is expected to attract over 200 industry professionals for the March 24-25, 2021 event. BIBA, the Association for Global Business, is hosting the conference.

Fresh from its staging of the highly successful Global Business Week 2020 Conference, BIBA rolled out plans for BRIM 2021 during a recent media launch, with BIBA President Derrick Cummins emphasizing that Barbados is one of the top tier domiciles for captive insurance companies globally.

A captive insurer is an insurance company that is wholly owned and controlled by its insureds, and its primary purpose is to insure the risks of its owners. At the same time, its insureds benefit from the captive insurer's underwriting profits.

In his remarks at the BRIM 2021 media launch attended by officials of BIBA, the Financial Services Commission (FSC) and sponsors, Cummins said: “We have designed this conference as a must-attend event for risk, insurance, finance, investment, legal and any professionals aligned with the insurance sector, especially the captive industry.”

Among the many topics up for discussion at the conference are:

·         Risk Management Post-Pandemic

·         Emerging Markets – New Opportunities

·         New Initiatives in Captives - Covering Cyber Risk and Pandemic Risk

·         Risk Management & Climate Change

·         Managing Investment Portfolios for Captives, and Regulation in a Post-COVID World

Scheduled speakers at BRIM 2021 include:

·         Michael Serricchio, Managing Director of Americas, Marsh Captive Solutions

·         Daryl Senick, Partner and National Insurance Leader, BDO Canada

·         Elizabeth Emanuel, Technical Assistance Manager, CCRIF SPC (formerly Caribbean Catastrophe Risk Insurance Facility)

·         Professor Avinash Persaud, Chairman, Barbados Financial Services Commission (FSC)

·         Ben Arrindell, special advisor to Barbados Prime Minister Mia Mottley on international business matters, and Deputy Chairman, Cidel Bank & Trust

Carmel Haynes, Executive Director of BIBA, described the conference’s target audience as those directly and indirectly involved in the insurance industry. These include insurers, actuaries, financial services professionals, attorneys-at-law, accounting professionals, and others in a service relationship with the insurance industry.

According to Cummins, as businesses and individuals grapple with the fallout from the COVID-19 pandemic, the insurance industry worldwide is experiencing a high demand for coverage. However, on the flip side, he said insurers were facing high capital adequacy requirements, “creating the type of hard market that leaves clients little room for negotiating on premiums, and insurers little appetite for writing new policies.”

Despite this, Ricardo Knight, BIBA’s Marketing and Communications Committee Chair and Senior Vice President of Marsh Captive Solutions, said captive insurance business registrations continued to expand in Barbados.

“We are one of the Top 10 jurisdictions in the world. I don’t think we can speak to many industries in the world where Barbados is in the Top 10 of an industry which is growing during one of the harshest pandemics that the world has ever seen,” Knight stressed.

Statistics from the FSC show that Barbados has 279 captive insurance companies, the bulk of which are Canadian and American operations. Announcing their commitment to long-term sponsorship of the event, Jeanne Crawford, Senior Vice President of USA Risk Group, and Elliott Barrow, Vice President, Portfolio Manager and Investment Advisor of RBC Dominion Securities Global, said they were pleased to be diamond sponsors of BRIM 2021.

“We are excited to be involved in this and be a diamond sponsor. This is long overdue, and BIBA has our full support and commitment for 2021 and beyond,” said Crawford.

Barrow, who described the captive insurance industry as a significant part of RBC Dominion Securities Global's portfolio, remarked: “It is an industry we are very excited to be a part of, and we will commit to being diamond sponsors. This is an important development for our industry and for Barbados.”

The staging of this conference is being made possible by Diamond Sponsors: RBC Dominion Securities Global, and USA Risk Group; Platinum Sponsor: London & Capital; Gold Sponsor: Strategic Risk Solutions; Silver Sponsor: Clarity Life; and Bronze Sponsors: Invest Barbados, Sagicor Life Inc, and Summit Asset Management.

Barbados names new Minister of Tourism

Barbados will install a new minister of tourism and international transport on Wednesday. In a reorganisation of the Barbados cabinet, Prime Minister Mia Mottley announced that health and wellness minister Ian Gooding-Edghill will assume the portfolio for the island’s bread-and-butter industry, replacing Senator Lisa Cummins.

Barbados PM lauded at Nelson Mandela Annual Lecture following climate change address

Barbados Prime Minister Mia Mottley received a thundering ovation after delivering the 20th Nelson Mandela Annual Lecture in Durban, South Africa.

Her address pursued the theme “Social Bonding and Decolonization in the Context of the Climate Crisis: Perspectives from the Global South”.

Barbados set to remove Queen as head of state

Barbados has announced that it intends to remove Her Royal Highness Queen Elizabeth as its head of state and will become a republic.

Following a statement by the Caribbean island nation's government which said: "The time has come to fully leave our colonial past behind," it said that it aims to complete the process in time for the 55th anniversary of independence from Britain, in November 2021.

Prime Minister Mia Mottley further followed that by writing a speech saying that Barbadians wanted a Barbadian head of state.

The speech read: "This is the ultimate statement of confidence in who we are and what we are capable of achieving."

Buckingham Palace said that it was a matter for the government and people of Barbados.

A source at Buckingham Palace said that the idea "was not out of the blue" and "has been publicly talked about by many."

The statement was part of the Throne Speech, which outlines the government's policies and programmes ahead of the new session of parliament. While it is read out by the governor-general, it is written by the country's prime minister.

The speech also quoted a warning from Errol Barrow, Barbados's first prime minister after it gained independence, who said that the country should not "loiter on colonial premises".

His is not the only voice in Barbados that has been suggesting a move away from the monarchy. A constitutional review commission recommended republican status for Barbados in 1998.

Ms Mottley's predecessor in Freundel Stuart also argued for a "move from a monarchical system to a republican form of government in the very near future".

Barbados would not be the first former British colony in the Caribbean to become a republic after Guyana took that step in 1970, less than four years after gaining independence from Britain.

Trinidad and Tobago followed suit in 1976 and Dominica in 1978.

All three stayed within the Commonwealth, a loose association of former British colonies and current dependencies, along with some countries that have no historical ties to Britain.