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Mega concert in honour of Caricom

Barbados has earmarked Monday, July 31, as the day dedicated to celebrating Caribbean unity with the CARICOM 50th Anniversary Concert!

Like many of our neighbouring countries, the Government is staging the concert which will showcase the best in Bajan and Caribbean talent featuring a mixture of different genres of music, spoken word pieces, dance and comedy.

From 6 p.m., the National Botanical Gardens will be a hive of cultural activity. The evening will start with performances from this year’s Crop Over Folk Concert featuring the National Folk Choir.

Minister in the Prime Minister’s Office, Culture, Senator Dr. Shantal Munro-Knight spoke about the significance of the day as she appealed to Barbados to come and be a part of the celebrations.

-© #AlwynKirkPhotos – http://www.fb.com/AlwynKirkPhotos

“We want to invite Barbadians to come out because this is really a moment to celebrate, but it is also a moment as well for us to showcase our own cultural heritage. You will see the Israel Lovell Foundation. We will have a number of cultural acts, Neesha Woods will be there, dance groups will be there.

“We will be telling the story of CARICOM, chronologising through a number of educational clips to make sure that we tell the story and give full ventilation to the moment of the 50^th anniversary. It is a family event,” the minister said during a press briefing on the event.

The concert’s line-up includes: Destra from Trinidad and Tobago, Kevyn Little from St. Vincent and the Grenadines; V’ghn from Grenada, Timeka Marshall from Guyana and more! All on the Bajan stage with Neesha Woods, the Haynesville Youth Group, the Israel Lovell Foundation, Wendy Alleyne, Reniece Bonnett, Sunrokk, Kweku Jelani, Edwin Yearwood & krosfyah, Peter Ram, Blood, TC, Natahlee, Ishiaka McNeil, Lil Rick, Cultural Ambassadors Caribbean Soca Queen Alison Hinds, Stedson RPB Wiltshire, Anthony Gabby Carter and many more! Along with the comedy of Mac Fingall and Damion Melville.

CARICOM is the oldest surviving integration movement in the developing world. It is a grouping of 25 countries: 15 Member States and five associate members.

The regional group has played a vital role in fostering economic development, social progress, cultural exchange and movement of people among member states; creating an indelible impact on the lives of millions of people across the Caribbean.

On July 3, St Kitts and Nevis held the CARICOM Experience Food Fair and Entertainment Night which featured a representative from each CARICOM member state performing during a cultural presentation. On July 4, Trinidad and Tobago held a CARICOM 50^th Anniversary Concert. On August 1, St Vincent will stage the CARICOM 50th Anniversary Celebration at Victoria Park where there will be cultural performances and an arts and craft exhibition. (PR)

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CIBC Caribbean team cleans Drill Hall Beach

A team of about 50 volunteers from CIBC Caribbean and their families joined hundreds around the world on Saturday 21^st September for the start of the International Coastal Clean-up – the world’s largest annual volunteer effort created to tackle and clean up increasing levels of trash and debris which are impacting our delicate marine environment.

Armed with gloves and lots of energy, the team assembled on the Drill Hall Beach, St. Michael from as early as 6.30a.m., and with the help of the crew from the Caribbean Youth Environment Network (CYEN) they started the task of collecting trash left by people who use the popular beach.

*Jacquelyn Boyce (right) marks off the items brought in by her team as they collect the debris*

The Barbados International Coastal Clean-up (BICC) is an annual nationwide volunteer beach cleanup event which is coordinated by Barbados’ Caribbean Youth Environment Network (CYEN), a non-profit organization. This year the cleanup for Barbados will take place every Saturday until the end of October in an attempt to tackle and prevent the damage being done to our local marine environment by trash and debris on our beautiful beaches.

*The CIBC Caribbean team armed with the gloves and bags just before setting off on their clean-up mission*

On Saturday, all materials collected were carefully catalogued and recorded as the CYEN team uses this information to report into the international network to which they belong, about the items found on beaches across the region.

Within a two-hour window, the CIBC Caribbean team had collected 108.39 kgs of garbage which included food wrappers and containers, plastic beverage bottles, clothing, pieces of glass, cups, plates, grocery bags, micro plastics and bottle caps. They also removed pieces of wood and a discarded office chair with wheels. The group also moved the fallen dry palm tree fronds to a large pile for further removal.

*Sean Bostic and Krystle Maynard (right holding card) present the sponsorship card to Shannon Weekes and Jabari Jones of the CYEN*

“The cleanup at Drill Hall Beach highlights the ongoing commitment of Barbadians to safeguarding our coastal environment. As we work together to remove harmful debris, we not only protect our marine ecosystems but also strengthen our communities. Each piece of litter removed is a step toward a healthier, more sustainable future for Barbados, and we are proud to have CIBC contributing to this vital cause year after year. This effort is a reminder that protecting our beaches is not just an annual event but a shared responsibility for all of us,” stated National Coordinator for the CYEN in Barbados Shannon Weekes.

The bank also took the opportunity to present the CYEN with a donation towards their work in keeping the beaches clean by organising the clean-up exercises this year. The super-size credit card was presented by Krystle Maynard from the Treasury Department and Sean Bostic Senior Manager, Business Analysis, Performance & Analytics.

This is the third year that the bank has participated in the beach cleanup. Other beaches they have tackled include Sam Lord’s Castle Beach, St. Philip and Pirate’s Cove Beach in Bridgetown. (PR)

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VENEZUELANS TO VOTE SUNDAY JULY 28

Venezuela’s opposition candidate, Edmundo Gonzalez, says he trusts the country’s military to ensure respect for the result of Sunday’s presidential election. Speaking during a press conference on Friday, Mr. Gonzalez declared that the Opposition, is going to win because millions of Venezuelans want change.

Opposition leader Maria Corina Machado, has attracted significant support, even from former supporters of the ruling socialist party.

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Mr Deejay first on stage at Finals

First-timer to the competition Mr Deejay will be start the competition when the Courtesy Garage Pic O De Crop Finals comes of next Friday, August 2 at the National Botanical Gardens at 8 p.m.

This is the first time in the history of the competition that a visually-impaired contestant has made it to the Finals. The Courtesy Garage Pic O De Crop Finals Draw was held Wednesday, July 24 at Courtesy’s Wildey showroom. There were no switches.

Reigning Monarch iWeb will perform at No. 15. I-Web was unable to attend the draw. However, his manager Brian Corbin was present and pulled on his behalf. TC pulled for Tae who came later while Merle Niles pulled for Biggie Irie who was present. The other finalists were present as well as tent managers, relatives andwell-wishers.

National Cultural Foundation Chief Executive Officer Carol Robers announced that the Finals will be streamed to Barbadians free of cost as a gift for the 50^th anniversary of Crop Over. Courtesy Garage’s Regional Product Manager Samuel Gaston reaffirmed the company’s commitment to the festival.

*NCF CEO Carol Roberts (left) (EDIT) Courtesy Garage’s Regional Product Manager Samuel Gaston and Acting General Manager Andrez Greene.*

The draw took place in the Courtesy Garage showroom where the 2024 Nissan E Power X-Trail was on show. This year the winner of the Courtesy Garage Pic O De Crop Competition has the option of driving away a brand new Nissan vehicle valued at $136 000 or take $100 000 in cash. Second place gets $40 000;

third place $20 000 and fourth place takes home $15 000. 5^th place gets $10 000;