The Labour Spokesman: May 1st 2020

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14 REGIONAL NEWSCCRIF to Provide up toUS$150,000 in Scholarshipsfor Academic Year 2020/21to Caribbean NationalsCall for Applications Now Open!Tuesday, April 28, 2020 — Grand Cayman, Cayman Islands – The CaribbeanCatastrophe Risk Financing Facility (CCRIF SPC) invites applications forscholarships for 2020/21 to support students pursuing Masters level degreeprogrammes in areas such as disaster risk management (DRM), natural resourcesmanagement, climate change, civil with environmental engineering, actuarial science,and meteorology, among others.These scholarships are tenable at universities in the Caribbean, USA, UK andCanada and can be for either online or face-to-face programmes.CCRIF will provide at least eight scholarships for postgraduate students. Theseare broken downas follows:1 extra-regional scholarship of up to US$40,000 for students accepted into auniversity in the United Kingdom, United States or Canada6 Caribbean scholarships of US$11,000 each for students accepted into theUniversity of the West Indies; University of Technology, Jamaica; NorthernCaribbean University in Jamaica; University of Guyana; or University of SurinameThe Labour Spokesman FRIDAY, MAY 01ST, 2020Special scholarship/s totalling US$11,000 for students enrolled in a new coursedeveloped by CCRIF and to be offered through UWI titled Fundamentals of DisasterRisk Financing (with emphasis on CCRIF Parametric Insurance Policies) forAdvancing the Development of Small Island Developing States (SIDS), adaptedfrom CCRIF’s training programme, “Understanding Disaster Risk Financing,CCRIF Parametric Policies and the Relationship with Fiscal and Economic Policy”,and which will be offered for the first time through UWI Open Campus starting inacademic year 2020/21The deadline for applications for the 2020 CCRIF ScholarshipProgramme is June 15, 2020.Please visit the CCRIF website at: http://www.ccrif.org/content/scholarship to apply.Additionally, at the undergraduate level CCRIF will continue to provide throughthe University of the West Indies (UWI) four undergraduate scholarships per yearvalued at US$8,000 each (US$4,000 per year for the second and final year) forstudents registered at one of the UWI campuses and pursuing select degrees relatedto DRM, civil engineering, geography, environmental management etc. Forinformation on the CCRIF-UWI undergraduate scholarships, visit: http://www.ccrif.org/content/programmes/ccrif-uwi-scholarship. Applications for thesescholarships are administered directly by the UWI.All citizens of CARICOM or CCRIF Caribbean member countries areeligible for these scholarships.Since the launch of its scholarship programme CCRIF has awarded 77scholarships to Caribbean nationals totalling US$1.13 million to completeundergraduate or postgraduate programmes at the University of the West Indiesand universities in the USA and the UK.These scholarships are provided as part of CCRIF’s Technical Assistance (TA)Programme which was launched in 2010. The TA programme provides scholarshipsand internships, small grants to NGOs and CBOs, and supports programmesimplemented in partnership with regional organizations to enhance DRM and climatechange adaptation.CCRIF is committed to doing its part in building a cadre of persons who caneffectively provide support for comprehensive disaster risk management and climatechange adaptation in the region.While we all face uncertainties in the face of the current COVID-19 crisis,CCRIF anticipates that universities will be able to offer their programmes in August/September 2020 and the CCRIF team will work with scholarship candidates andthe universities to enable these young Caribbean nationals to achieve their academicand professional goals.Opinion PiecePandemic fosters newappreciation for those who feedthe worldTom Vilsack, CEO of the USDairy Association and formerSecretary of Agriculture of theUnited States.The COVID-19 pandemichas dramatically changed ourdaily lives and shifted globalperspectives on what isimportant. Around the world,people are applauding the amazing work and dedication of thehealth professionals on the front lines of this health care crisis.But as a society, we’ve also taken notice of the essential workquietly performed by the men and women who keep the worldrunning on a daily basis: factory workers keeping the manufacturingline moving, grocery clerks stocking shelves, and the farmers andranchers who work tirelessly to feed the world.There has been no other time in recent memory where thecritical role farmers and food manufacturers play has been asprominent. For the majority of Americans, we have lost ourcollective connection to agriculture and many of us take for grantedthe incredible effort it requires to grow our food or care for a herdof animals, produce a finished food product, move that product tomarket and all of the steps in between. Even in the midst of aglobal pandemic, our food and agriculture producers are workingto overcome incredible supply chain stressors to ensure that wehave access to the food we need.I have had the immense privilege of working in agriculture andwitnessing firsthand the remarkable resiliency of our farmers andthe innovation displayed by food producers, especially in recentyears.At the U.S. Dairy Export Council (USDEC), we have neverlost sight of the significance of the food and agricultural industryin meeting our nation’s nutritional needs and driving the Americaneconomy. The food and agricultural industry employs 43 millionpeople or 28 percent of the entire American workforce, eitherdirectly or indirectly. The economic benefits generated by theseindustries powers 20 percent of the largest economy in the world.To keep needed food products moving to markets around theworld, USDEC has continually worked to cultivate partnershipswith groups like the Inter-American Institute for Cooperation onAgriculture (IICA). Through these partnerships, we promote theadoption of policies that drive agriculture forward, encouragesustainable practices, improve animal health and welfare, andensure that science-based regulations prevail over unjustified tradebarriers. During the COVID-19 pandemic, our partnership anddeep coordination with IICA has strengthened our ability torespond nimbly to the new challenges presented by this crisis.Dairy is a critical component of the global diet, fulfilling keynutritional needs. And dairy farmers and processors do more thanfeed the world; they also fuel sustainable economic development.The global dairy industry employs approximately 240 million peoplewho care for more than 360 million dairy cows across more than130 million dairy farms. In the United States alone, dairy createsthree million jobs with an economic impact greater than $650 billion,according to a study conducted by International Dairy FoodAssociation.Together, we will continue our work so we don’t have to relyon the next global crisis to demonstrate the importance of ourheroes in the food and agriculture supply chain who work day-inand day-out to move essential food supplies to people and marketswho need it most.*Note: The article by Tom Vilsack was prepared for the IICA Blog“Cultivating Tomorrow’s Agriculture Today” .
The Labour Spokesman FRIDAY, MAY 01ST, 2020 LABOUR NEWS15ILO: As job lossesescalate, nearlyhalf of globalworkforce at riskof losinglivelihoodsGENEVA (ILO News) – The continued sharpdecline in working hours globally due to the COVID-19 outbreak means that 1.6 billion workers in theinformal economy – that is nearly half of the globalworkforce – stand in immediate danger of having theirlivelihoods destroyed, warns the International LabourOrganization.According to the ILO Monitor third edition:COVID-19 and the world of work, the drop in workinghours in the current (second) quarter of 2020 isexpected to be significantly worse than previouslyestimated.Compared to pre-crisis levels (Q4 2019), a 10.5per cent deterioration is now expected, equivalent to305 million full-time jobs (assuming a 48-hour workingweek). The previous estimate was for a 6.7 per centdrop, equivalent to 195 million full-time workers. Thisis due to the prolongation and extension of lockdownmeasures.Regionally, the situation has worsened for all majorregional groups. Estimates suggest a 12.4 per cent lossBus Drivers Can PutOut No-MaskIndividualsBy: Spokesman NewsroomBASSETERRE, St.Kitts (Friday 1st May 2020)-Bus driversin St.Kitts-Nevis have the right to put out passengers not wearingmasks regarding safety measures in place to tackle the coronaviruspandemic.Superintendent Cromwell Henry publicized the green light forsuch in speaking at the National Emergency Operations Center(NEOC) COVID-19 Daily Briefing held on Wednesday 29th April2020 following a concern raised by a bus driver.He informed that passengers found not wearing are will beliable for such and not the bus driver.“Each person is liable for their actions …and so the personwho breaches the regulation is the person responsible. So theregulation requires that every person to wear a mask so if thepolice finds you without a mask, you are the one who will be liableof working hours in Q2 for the Americas (comparedto pre-crisis levels) and 11.8 per cent for Europe andCentral Asia. The estimates for the rest of the regionalgroups follow closely and are all above 9.5 per cent.Informal economy impactAs a result of the economic crisis created by thepandemic, almost 1.6 billion informal economy workers(representing the most vulnerable in the labour market),out of a worldwide total of two billion and a globalworkforce of 3.3 billion, have suffered massivedamage to their capacity to earn a living. This is dueto lockdown measures and/or because they work inthe hardest-hit sectors.The first month of the crisis is estimated to haveresulted in a drop of 60 per cent in the income ofinformal workers globally. This translates into a dropof 81 per cent in Africa and the Americas, 21.6 percent in Asia and the Pacific, and 70 per cent in Europeand Central Asia.Without alternative income sources, these workersand their families will have no means to survive.Enterprises at riskThe proportion of workers living in countries underrecommended or required workplace closures hasdecreased from 81 to 68 per cent over the last twoweeks. The decline from the previous estimate of 81per cent in the second edition of the monitor (publishedApril 7) is primarily a result of changes in China;elsewhere workplace closure measures haveincreased.Worldwide, more than 436 million enterprises facehigh risks of serious disruption. These enterprises areoperating in the hardest-hit economic sectors, includingsome 232 million in wholesale and retail, 111 million inA glimpse inside a passenger bus on Thursday 30th April 2020showing the bus driver and passengers wearing masks (Spokesmannot the bus driver. We only askthat the bus driver assists inmanufacturing, 51 million in accommodation and foodservices, and 42 million in real estate and other businessactivities.Urgent policy measures neededThe ILO calls for urgent, targeted and flexiblemeasures to support workers and businesses,particularly smaller enterprises, those in the informaleconomy and others who are vulnerable.“For millions of workers, no income means no food,no security and no future. [...] As the pandemic andthe jobs crisis evolve, the need to protect the mostvulnerable becomes even more urgent.”Guy Ryder, ILO Director-GeneralMeasures for economic reactivation should followa job-rich approach, backed by stronger employmentpolicies and institutions, better-resourced andcomprehensive social protection systems. Internationalco-ordination on stimulus packages and debt reliefmeasures will also be critical to making recoveryeffective and sustainable. International labourstandards, which already enjoy tripartite consensus,can provide a framework.“As the pandemic and the jobs crisis evolve, theneed to protect the most vulnerable becomes even moreurgent,” said ILO Director-General Guy Ryder. “Formillions of workers, no income means no food, nosecurity and no future. Millions of businesses aroundthe world are barely breathing. They have no savingsor access to credit. These are the real faces of theworld of work. If we don’t help them now, they willsimply perish.”For interviews contact: newsroom@ilo.org.enforcing the regulation byasking these passengers to putLatest Murder…Suspect ChargedSunday 26th April 2020.Resident Pathologist Dr.Adrian Nunez performed anautopsy on Mills’ body onSaturday 25th April andconcluded that death was as aresult of severe brain injury dueto a gunshot wound to thehead.According to a policereport, on the day in question-Wednesday 22nd April 2020sometime after 9:00PM- Mills(cont’d from page 13)was at home whenthe assailant went tothe house, startedfiring gunshots andfled the scene.The woundedyoung man wastransported viaambulance to theJoseph N FranceGeneral Hospital butsuccumbed to hisinjuries.on their masks before theycome in but once they get in aremove the mask and they arecaught by the police, they areresponsible and not the driver.”Superintendent Cromwelladded: “The bus driver, he canstop the vehicle if he finds thatpersons are removing themasks once they begin to drive.He can stop the vehicle and askthem to alight or he can drivethem to the nearest policestation and ask the police tohave the, removed from thevehicle. So again, you can putthe passenger off the bus if theyinsists on not wearing themasks.”Deceased: Clement ‘Papa’ Mills
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The Labour Spokesman: May 1st 2020

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