Monthly Archives: March 2021

By YOURI KEMP

Tribune Business Reporter

ykemp@tribunemedia.net

The Bahamas is trailblazing, and "setting the pace for the Caribbean" in workplace relations, by moving to the next stage in the International Labour Organisations (ILO) decent work initiative.

Robert Farquharson, chairman of the National Tripartite Council, which deals with all labour and workplace-related matters, told a Zoom meeting: The decent work country programme (DWCP) is a tool used by the ILO to regulate the relationship between the Government of The Bahamas and the ILO.

"The first decent work country programme was established here in The Bahamas in April 2009, and it set the stage for the relationship between the Government of The Bahamas and the ILO, and how the ILO helps the working people of The Bahamas.

The DWCP is what the ILO uses as the main vehicle for delivering support to countries. It promotes decent work as a key component of national development strategies, while helping to facilitate dialogue between trade unions and the Government.

Mr Farquharson added: The Bahamas has again become trailblazers in this, and we are at a point to set the pace for the rest of the Caribbean region.

The National Tripartite Council last year teamed with the Ministry of Labour for an analysis that took a comprehensive look at the world of work in The Bahamas". Mr Farquharson added: We identified a number of priorities. The four principles of decent work are creation of employment and jobs, social dialogue, social protection, and fundamental rights of work.

Peter Goudie, the National Tripartite Council's deputy chairman, said: The purpose of the country diagnostic is to provide an objective assessment of the current situation pertaining to decent work in The Bahamas.

One of the key focuses of the diagnostic was to look at the wider national development context in The Bahamas This is especially important as the DCWP aims to fit within and contribute to the national development objectives.

We first looked at jobs in the labour market, which is a key area of focus. We looked at jobs and skills. We especially looked at unemployment and, even more importantly, youth unemployment.

Mr Goudie said the analysis also looked at skills mismatches and shortages, and the ease of getting jobs. He added: These affect job creation, productivity, enterprise development, diversity of the economy, and support of sustainable economic growth.

"We also focused especially on small and medium-sized enterprises. We then looked at rights at work in social dialogue, and we have a very strong legal framework.There's a strong commitment to social dialogue, especially with the NTC, because we have roots from both the workers, the employers and government. However, there's always opportunity for further strengthening.

Read more:

Bahamas a 'trailblazer' for workplace relations - Bahamas Tribune

Dear Prime Minister Minnis,

As ecotourism operators and organizations whose businesses rely on healthy oceans and wildlife, we are concerned about the news that The Bahamas is considering offshore drilling on nearly four million acres of ocean wilderness near sensitive habitats. We respectfully urge you to ban offshore drilling, cancel existing licenses and move The Bahamas economy to one based on protecting nature instead of exploiting it. We know from BP Deep Horizon, when you drill, you spill.

The oil industry is in decline globally as renewable energy grows. This drilling would be a big risk both to the economy of the country as well as its environment. An oil spill would be disastrous for the tourism industry in the country, which is already reeling from the pandemic and generates 50 percent of the countrys GDP. Drilling would risk Bahamas extraordinary ocean wildlife, including dolphins, sea turtles and others. The Cay Sal Marine Managed Area and Andros West Side National Park are critical protected areas that would be put at risk of an accident. We stand with Sea Turtle Conservancy and Our Islands, Our Future in their effort to encourage a more sustainable and healthy Bahamas, for its residents and visitors who come to enjoy the beautiful country.

Signed:

SEE Turtles

KarmaQuest Ecotourism and Adventure Travel LLC

Altruvistas

EcoTeach

Natural Habitat Adventures

Bougainville Experience Tours

Adventure Smith

Greenspot Travel

Tourism Cares

Smart Dive Travel

Hidden Treasures Tours

Mesoamerican Ecotourism Alliance

Animal Experiences International

Purposeful Nomad

Evolved Traveler

Oceanic Society

Pelagic Dive Travel

Walking the World

Tribes Tailormade Travel

Originally posted here:

Letter to the PM: Tour operators letter on Bahamas oil exploration - EyeWitness News

NASSAU, BAHAMAS The Bahamas has the highest on-time filing rates for value-added tax (VAT) in the region, a new Inter-American Development Bank (IDB) study laying out key fiscal and financial reforms has revealed.

In the book entitled Economic Institutions for a Resilient Caribbean, it was noted that in order to build resilience against external shocks and recover from the COVID-19 pandemic, Caribbean countries must advance key fiscal and financial reforms.

The IDB study revealed that on-time filing rates across Caribbean countries vary, with The Bahamas having the highest on-time filing rate of 75 percent, while Guyana has the lowest at 43 percent.

It was noted that Jamaica has a relatively steady percentage of on-time filing across tax types of between 65 and 67 percent. Trinidad and Tobago also has a high percentage of on-time filing rates for the VAT with 73 percent. The average in the Caribbean is 60 percent.

It was noted that the IT system DataTorque has contributed to the successful implementation of VAT in The Bahamas.

The system allows users to register for a free user account for various tax types, communicate with the tax office by sending and receiving messages, manage tax accounts, submit tax filings, make payments, amend filings and request changes to taxpayer information, it was noted.

It was also noted, however, that Guyana, The Bahamas and Suriname should consider establishing a special organizational unit devoted to preparing economic studies like the ones in Barbados, Jamaica and Trinidad and Tobago.

In general, these units should include a specialized analytical team focused on tax collection trends, monitoring the hidden economy, revenue yields from audits, understanding taxpayer behavior and providing input to government budgeting processes of tax revenue forecasting and estimation, it was noted.

For these matters, strong inter-institutional coordination is needed along with the use of tools made available through digitization.

Read the original post:

Bahamas has highest on-time VAT filing rates in the region, IDB study reveals - EyeWitness News

NASSAU, BAHAMAS Prime Minister Dr Hubert Minnis underscored Bahamians of Haitian descent living in unregulated communities are entitled to Crown Land opportunities as he foreshadowed an expansion of the governments land program.

Speaking directly to that community, Minnis urged Bahamians of Haitian descent in the country not to refer to themselves as Haitian-Bahamian but simply Bahamians as they are constitutionally entitled.

The prime minister made the comments as he opened the mid-year budget debate in the House of Assembly on Monday.

He explained that the land program will not be confined to New Providence, but also on several Family Islands, including hurricane-hit Grand Bahama and Abaco.

We are already looking at land in the Murphy Town (Abaco) area to do a similar project. We also recognize that individuals in Abaco and Grand Bahama have undergone a lot more stress turmoil than us in New Providence and other Family Islands.

He continued: They were hit with Dorian and then COVID, which would have impacted them economically even more than the other Family Islands, and knowing that their employment status would have changed, its only fair that the land sold to individuals in Abaco or Grand Bahama should be even less.

The prime minister noted there were existing challenges on Abaco, referring to The Mudd shantytown community that was flattened by Dorian.

Minnis said: But I want the Bahamians to hear there are many individuals who are living in these so-called dilapidated facilities of Haitian descent within Abaco or New Providence, many are regularized, many are Bahamians and they, too, are entitled to land also.

So that they can move out of such squalor conditions in the proper facilities. So that when and if they are hit by any hurricane, they are protected.

Minnis added: The only thing I ask of them, and Im sure they are listening, the only thing I ask of them we are Bahamians. We are not Haitian-Bahamians; we are Bahamians, and therefore thats the name and the brand we will carry.

And they are entitled to land within the subdivisions created within the Bahamas, be it in Inagua, be it in New Providence or wherever. They are Bahamians under the Constitution.

Currently, Article 7 of the Constitution states that a person born in The Bahamas after independence, neither of whose parents is a citizen of The Bahamas shall be entitled, upon making application on his attaining the age of 18 years or within 12 months thereafter to be registered as a citizen of The Bahamas.

The Constitution does not prescribe what happens to these individuals before their 18th birthday, or after their 19th birthday.

Additionally, Article 9 of the Constitution states that a person born legitimately outside The Bahamas to a Bahamian mother is not automatically granted citizenship, but has a right to apply from their 18th birthday to their 21st birthday, to be registered as a citizen.

The Constitution also does not clearly state what happens before these people reach age 18 and after they reach age 21.

Last May, the Supreme Court delivered a historic ruling in separate applications for declarations over the true interpretation of Article 6 of the Constitution, which deems that every person born in The Bahamas after 9th July 1973 shall become a citizen of The Bahamas at the date of his birth if at that date either of his parents is a citizen of The Bahamas.

On May 25, Supreme Court Justice Ian Winder ruled that children born out of wedlock to foreign women and Bahamian men are entitled to citizenship at birth.

The Office of the Attorney General has appealed the ruling in the publics interest.

All five judges of the Court of Appeal will sit to hear the appeal on March 4 and March 5.

The draft Nationality, Immigration and Asylum Bill, 2018 seeks to address long-standing issues surrounding statelessness and the right to pass on citizenship.

Link:

CARRY THE BRAND: PM calls on regularized citizens to drop Haitian-Bahamian title - EyeWitness News

NASSAU, BAHAMAS The Ministry of Finance concluded an agreement with the OMNI Financial Group and the Association of Bahamas Marinas (ABM) to launch a digital payment solution for the collection of charter fees from mega yachts and other charter operators in The Bahamas.

Minister of State for Finance Kwasi Thompson said: This development is extremely significant as we have traditionally seen a lot of revenue leakage in the charter operator space.

As a government, we are strengthening our enforcement mechanisms while we are also enhancing the ease of doing business. Now, charter operators have no excuse. We have a convenient online solution for the payment of fees due to the government for their commercial operations in our waters.

The potential revenue yield from charter operations is tremendous. The Ministry of Finance estimated there is about $50 million in uncollected revenue from this boating segment and in keeping with the governments commitment to strengthen tax collection and enforcement for existing taxes, we have accelerated our digital transformation efforts to make this happen.

The public-private partnership has led to a milestone achievement in an area that has long been in need of an upgrade. The new payment solution launched by the OMNI/ABM collaborative is called SeaZPass and is the first of several digital solutions the group will provide.

Minister of Tourism Dionisio DAguilar said: The new platform with OMNI/ABM will help to increase boating traffic and economic activity at a time when the country badly needs it.

We have managed the spread of the coronavirus and our travel policies create a safe and attractive environment, so charter operators are clamoring to send business to The Bahamas.

Boats that would typically be cruising around Europe and other tourism hotspots are now parked around the East Coast, and The Bahamas is the natural best place for them to get away.

The Bahamas Port Department is responsible for the issuing of charter licenses and the collection of charter fees. The Ministry of Finance has been working with the Ministry of Transport and Local Government Port Department to implement this new system with OMNI/ABM.

Commander Berne Wright, acting port controller, said: We acknowledge the capacity for revenue increase via the online payment method, and we are committed to providing registration and licensing processes which will further the ease of doing business at the Port Department.

Permanent Secretary of the Ministry of Transport and Local Government Antoinette Thompson indicated that this online facility for the Port Department represents another objective achieved in the governments mandate to modernize and transform the delivery of services for the Bahamian people, particularly as it relates to agencies such as the Port, Road Traffic and Post Office Departments.

Peter Maury, ABM president, also commented: The ABM is proud to be able to assist the government as part of its digital transformation.

This is the start of our collaboration as we are currently working with the Ministry of Finance and relevant agencies to introduce online payment and processing for charter licenses, cruising permit and fishing licenses at a later date.

We attended a boat show in Florida last week to introduce the charter fee online portal, and the boating community was very relieved to see progress is finally being made with the governments various digital solutions.

Read more:

Govt revenue boost expected with launch of digital payment solution for charter fees - EyeWitness News

For travel writers like me, popping open a laptop to work on a Caribbean beach is a familiar occupational hazard. But amid the pandemic, having to work while youre in paradise seems like a small price to pay to escape the confines of the living rooms and home offices where weve been sequestered for the past year.

Our collective cabin fever hasnt gone unnoticed. With low virus rates, lots of empty hotel rooms, and safety protocols now firmly in place plus so many people working remotely, anyway a number of Caribbean destinations and resorts have launched programs for people who want to spend an extended period of time in the islands.

As the pandemic stretches into its second year, here are the places in the Caribbean where you can spend at least a year mixing remote work and play, blissfully distant from your own backyard.

Anguilla

Anguillas remote work program lets digital nomads, students, and families stay on-island for 90 days to one year, at a cost of $2,000 for individuals and $3,000 for families. Youll need proof of employment, a police background check, a passport and copy of your birth certificate, and proof of your relationship to any dependents tagging along.

Antigua and Barbuda

Set up shop in the twin-island nation of Antigua and Barbuda for up to two years with a Nomad Digital Residence (NDR) visa. Applicants must be currently employed or self-employed and able to work away from home with the use of mobile technology. Application fees are 1,500.00 for singles, $2,000 for couples, and $3,000 for families of three or more.

Bahamas

BEATS, or the Bahamas Extended Access Travel Stay program, allows digital nomads to alight in the islands of the Bahamas for up to a year for work and play. At the end of a long day of meetings or classes, you will be rewarded with breathtaking sunsets, a relaxing walk on the beach, or fresh conch salad to feed your soul. It doesnt get any better than that, says Dionisio DAguilar, Bahamas Minister of Tourism & Aviation. Island-hopping is encouraged, and while remote workers will need to pay a fee of $1,025 for a BEATS permit, its discounted to $525 for college students. If youre impatient to get going, Bahamas tourism officials promise a decision to approve (or deny) your application within 5 days so get packing!

Barbados

Here is the original post:

How to Live in the Caribbean for a Year - Caribbean Journal

Balancing the survival of the tourism industry and ensuring the safety and livelihood of citizens during the pandemic has been a difficult task for the Caribbean. Especially since the sentiment We live where you vacation has become a controversial one.

As of Feb. 22, there have been 514,640 coronavirus cases in the Caribbean, Loop News reports.

In the most recent February report, the Center for Disease and Control and Prevention (CDC) stated that, Travel can increase your chance of spreading and getting COVID-19. Postponing travel and staying home is the best way to protect yourself and others from COVID-19.

Caribbean leaders have struggled to balance tourism and the pandemic, and people in the tourism industry have faced difficulty at work between keeping safe and catering to guests.

Should tourists come? What locals think about foreign travelers right now

Lina Lorne, a 22-year-old Barbadian who works at Sandy Lane Resort as a receptionist, is a part-time student at the University of the West Indies. She said if she had to travel, she would avoid high risk countries.

If youre coming from a high-risk country and you decide to go on a trip to anywhere, I think that is a bit selfish of you to do that, Lorne said.

When Lorne has to remind tourists to put on their masks, many give excuses as to why they cant wear one.

I had a gentleman come to me one time, he was saying that hes asthmatic and he cant wear his mask because hes asthmatic, Lorne said.

Im like, you cant be for real? Because I know people that are asthmatic that have to wear their masks. So what is going to happen when you have to go back to the U.K.? When you have to go through immigration and the airport, youll have to wear a mask, Lorne continued.

In December 2020, American tourist Skylar Mack was sentenced to four months in jail in the Cayman Islands for breaching her 14-day quarantine to watch her boyfriend Vanjae Ramgeet, a professional jet skier compete, according to People.

Dr. Gilbert Morris, a Bahamian economist and advisor to the former Minister of Foreign Affairs of The Bahamas, senior economic advisor to the former Minister of Finance of the Turks and Caicos Islands and professor at George Mason University, believes the pandemic will exist for a long time, and that its important to normalize how laws are being applied now.

Although tourists contribute heavily to the economy, Morris does not think they should receive relaxed punishments if they break the law. Moss agreed.

I feel as if everyone should be held to the same standards because at the end of the day, the law is the law, Moss said.

Tik Tok star Noah Beck, received heavy backlash from fans after vacationing in the Bahamas during the Christmas and New Years holidays.

In response to the backlash. Beck said, It is what it is, and, I think, especially the business were in, its, like, you need some time to kind of disconnect for a little. It was just a little trip to get away, Insider reported.

When asked about his views on tourists feeling that they are deserving of taking vacations during the pandemic Moss said, I feel as if it is a very ignorant view on the situation. Because you have survived to this point [does not] mean you should start living life recklessly.

Jamaican Marjorie Allen, a part-time lecturer in the hospitality and tourism management program at the University of Technology, said traveling is therapeutic for some during these abnormal times.

I think people are trying to find some sort of normal, something comfortable. If things allow, why not? I think Im also sympathetic. I do understand the need for people to get away from their situation sometimes, Allen said.

According to Allen, if they have the money and are willing to adhere to the protocols, it can be acceptable for them to vacation in the Caribbean.

Im not upset with anybody who wants to come, as long as they dont cause any outbreaks, she said.

Lamont Moss, an 18-year-old Bahamian attending the University of the Bahamas doesnt think its selfish to travel during the pandemic, as long as you test negative for the virus.

At that point, youre traveling at your own risk, Moss said.

While Moss has no plans to take a vacation this year, he does intend to to travel to a university abroad in August.

Keeping Caribbean economies afloat during decline in tourists

As borders began to reopen in mid-summer of 2020, many Caribbean citizens were wary of what the outcome would be when tourists began traveling to their countries. This created, if not increased, anti-tourism sentiments among some Caribbean people.

Initially, a lot of Jamaicans were very upset with the reopening of the borders, too soon we thought because all of these people are coming in, Allen said.

The majority of Jamaicas tourists are from the U.S., Canada and the U.K. But according to Allen, there are not a lot of tourists entering the country during the pandemic.

Those countries are struggling with the pandemic as well, she said. There are either people who arent working, people who have lost family members and people who are sick.

With record-breaking low numbers of people traveling to the Caribbean, many people on social media have called for their governments to invest in other industries in order to keep their economies afloat.

Morris believes the current model of tourism in the Caribbean is a terrible model, and has only survived during the pandemic because money has been pumped into it.

Our economic model does not allow us to choose rolling out vaccines over reviving the tourist market, said Morris. Failing to reposition the tourist market for an entire year meant high unemployment, loss of 80% of national income, higher deficits and increasing debts.

When people argue to end the tourism industry, Morris believes they really mean to diversify it, which he said would bring about a lot of progress.

Rather than opting to create new industries, Morris said the Caribbean should invest in working towards operating at full efficiency within their tourism sectors.

Tourism is a business model based on demands from abroad. The Bahamas, for instance, has some of the worlds most unique landscape, Morris said. We didnt create that, but it generates a demand. So why would we abandon that demand to invent something that makes us competitive?

In Barbados, although agriculture isnt big, they are trying to push it more. Lorne said she is certain there are other industries they could invest in, but lack of resources poses a problem.

We should really update our society in the tourism industry and make a lot of things more digital, Lorne said.

According to Moss, he believes that there are other industries that the Bahamas could possibly look into, but is unsure which ones would be best.

I think every Caribbean island in existence at some point has considered another form of earning foreign exchange Trinidad is really good at it because they dont need tourists, they have oil, Allen said.

Lorne said it isnt a case where countries havent looked to find other industries. But, the Caribbean has made a lot of money from tourism using their natural resources.

Perhaps in our [Jamaica] case we can do more agriculture, we certainly have the landmasseven within the Caribbean we could be a source of supply. So definitely farming and agriculture, we have a lot of land just sitting there not doing anything, Lorne said.

As for the future of the Caribbeans economy, Morris said vaccines wont have a large enough impact to reopen the economy until about 2022.

He wants governments in the region to heed his and others advice, which is to create reforms and make governments less centralized, digitized and more transparent while developing options. Options such as the Sovereign Wealth Funds to improve citizens equity.

Caribbean governments including and especially the Bahamas did not use 2020 to reposition themselves. They are facing economic triage, which means they are likely to impose economic austerity measures, and raise taxes on their jobless citizens for their errors, said Morris.

In March 2020, Morris suggested to Caribbean governments that they send Caribbean organic chemists and biochemists to labs around the world to assist in the vaccine development or conduct antiviral drug research.

The idea was that as a small nation, getting involved early was a way of overcoming the disadvantage of small nations having to beg once vaccines were developed. The Bahamas, Jamaica and Barbados didnt do that and as such, we are at the mercy of the larger nations, said Morris.

Caribbean countries currently under the jurisdiction of the U.S., France, the U.K. and the Netherlands have already begun vaccinating their citizens. Some include the Cayman Islands, U.S. Virgin Islands, Aruba, Bermuda, Montserrat, Guadeloupe and Martinique, according to the Miami Herald.

Other islands, such as Jamaica and The Bahamas, have just recently gotten approval for their first rounds of vaccines. Barbados has been granted vaccines from India and each of those countries will begin vaccinating citizens by the end of February.

Read more:

The troubles of tourism in the COVID-19 era Caribbean - The Suffolk Journal

NASSAU, BAHAMAS The National Insurance Board (NIB) is collaborating with the Department of Immigration to produce a card that will be issued at birth and indicate a persons nationality, Minister of Public Service and National Insurance Brensil Rolle told Parliament today.

Rolle, the Garden Hills MP, while making his contribution in Parliament to the mid-year budget debate, stated: What we would like to do is issue a card from birth so that we could follow you from the time you are born in The Bahamas using one identification number and one card.

Rolle noted that the NIB card has widespread usage in the country.

What we propose to do is have a card for anyone born in The Bahamas, he said.

They will get a card with a unique number. What the card will say is that you are born in The Bahamas. If you are Bahamian, your status will be Bahamian.

If at the time of your birth we cannot determine whether you are a Bahamian or not, we will just indicate that your status is unknown.

Collaboration is ongoing with the Department of Immigration. We will not do and cannot do anything that usurps the power and authority of the Department of Immigration.

Rolle stressed that NIB will not get into determining who is a Bahamian after St Annes MP Brent Symonette who formerly had responsibility for the Department of Immigration cautioned about making pronouncements on a persons status.

Continue reading here:

CARDED AT BIRTH: NIB and Immigration Dept working on national ID card - EyeWitness News