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We Gatherin’ 2025 Celebrations Commence On January 1

Barbadians in the diaspora are encouraged to Come ’Long Home for the food, the rich cultural heritage, liming with friends and family, and rekindling the community spirit across Barbados as Government prepares to host We Gatherin’ 2025.

Senior Minister and Minister of Foreign Affairs and Foreign Trade, Kerrie Symmonds, will lead the coordination and oversight of the activities; Minister of Tourism and International Transport, Ian Gooding-Edghill, and Minister in the Prime Minister’s Office with responsibility for Culture, Senator Dr. Shantal Munro-Knight, will provide overall strategic direction for the celebrations. A secretariat has been created and is being led by Senator John King.

Billed as an event to inspire national pride in all Barbadians and to stimulate economic growth by way of investments and other inputs, the year-long celebrations offer Barbadians an opportunity to get involved in investment opportunities and to highlight the icons, heritage, social activities, and cuisine synonymous with each parish.

It is expected that We Gatherin’ would promote philanthropy and fuel environmental sustainability as Government seeks to achieve the United Nations Sustainable Goals 2030 agenda.

The event is being seen as extra special as the island will celebrate its fourth year as a Parliamentary Republic and commemorate the 400th anniversary of the British landing in 1625. Barbados will also host CARIFESTA later in the year.

Activities will begin in St. Lucy under the broad theme of ‘Faith’ and attendees are encouraged to wear jade to all celebrations. The activities will then move to St. Peter in February with ‘Heritage’ as the theme and lime green as the preferred colour.

During March, events in St. Thomas will centre around the theme ‘Nature’ and cardinal will be the chosen colour. For St. Joseph, the theme for April is ‘Adventure’, and the colour of choice is sky blue.

In May, ‘Community’ will be the centre of attention for residents living in St John when the celebrations roll into the parish under a blaze of yellow. It will be the turn of St. George in June when the activities will be held under the theme ‘The Land’ and red will be the colour of choice for patrons.

Barbados’ rich story of sugar will come into sharp focus in July, as residents of St. Philip pay homage to its history bedecked in purple as the colour chosen for that month.

St. Andrew, St. James, Christ Church, and St. Michael will hold their celebrations during August, September, October, and November, respectively. They will be held under the themes ‘The Arts’, ‘Cricket’, ‘The Sea’, ‘Food and Feting’. The parish colours are forest green, electric blue, orange, and white, respectively.

We Gatherin’ 2025 will culminate in nationwide celebrations from November 30 to December 31, utilising all parish colours.

Government launched the first We Gatherin’ celebrations on January 1, 2020, which ended prematurely in March, due to the COVID-19 pandemic.

Parish	Month	Theme	Colour
St. Lucy	January	Faith	Jade
St. Peter	February	Heritage	Lime Green
St. Thomas	March	Nature	Cardinal
St. Joseph	April	Adventure	Sky Blue
St. John	May	Community	Yellow
St. George	June	The Land	Red
St. Philip	July	Sugar	Purple
St. Andrew	August	The Arts	Forest Green
St. James	September	Cricket	Electric Blue
Christ Church	October	The Sea	Orange
St. Michael	November	Food & Feting	White
All Parishes	December	Family & Friends	All Colours

Local

EBC Officers Conducting Verification Of Addresses Exercise

The public is advised that Registering Officers from the Electoral and Boundaries Commission (EBC) are in the field conducting a verification exercise to confirm the address of each registrant. This activity is in accordance with the Representation of the People Act Cap 12, Section 12.

EBC Registering Officers will be wearing the department’s branded T-shirts with the official ID prominently displayed as they visit residents in districts across the island.

Householders are encouraged to cooperate with the Registering Officers and secure their pets or animals during the visit. (PR/GIS)

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Police Service Tips For A Safe Bank Holiday Weekend

As persons prepare to attend various events over this extended weekend, Crime Prevention Officer with The Barbados Police Service, Inspector Roger Babb, is encouraging them to “stay in control” as they enjoy themselves.

Inspector Babb reminds members of the public that drinking alcohol impairs their ability to make good decisions, and drinking and driving may result in accidents that can be fatal.

The Crime Prevention Officer shared these useful tips:

Do not feel pressured to drink alcohol; it is okay to say no.
Do not drink and drive, always have a sober designated driver.
If you drink, do so in moderation and never leave your drink unattended.
Do not let anyone bring a drink for you.
To avoid having your drinks spiked, buy your own drinks, and watch the bartender make or open them.
If you think your drink was tampered with, let someone know and seek medical attention.
Be cautious with strangers and do not accept drinks from them.
Be aware of your surroundings.
Never mix alcohol with other drugs.
PR/GIS

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SANDALS BARBADOS RECEIVES (CARPHA) AWARD

Sandals Barbados is the proud recipient of the Caribbean Public Health Agency (CARPHA) Healthier Safer Tourism (HST) award.

The presentation was made recently at the Ministry of Health and Wellness office located in the Frank Walcott Building, St. Michael, Barbados.

Accepting the award for the Luxury Included Resort was General Manager Bruno Couesnon.

In his brief remarks Couesnon thanked every one of the team members who contributed to the resort’s recent accolade.

“It’s always nice to win awards; but it takes a team effort to achieve the results for which we are being recognized, today. The health and safety of our guests and team members are important to us and it is great to be selected and celebrated by CARPHA for doing our part and succeeding,” said Couesnon.

Executive Director of CARPHA Dr. Lisa Indar commended the hotel for achieving this internationally recognized award and praised its commitment to health and safety procedures.

“The 2019 Covid pandemic led to global shut down of tourism but it also demonstrated the resilience of the Caribbean by being able to bounce back. Part of that bouncing back was to be able to create a healthier and safer tourism experience and the reason you are here today is by being part of the tourism health programme and implementing proactive measures,” said Dr. Indar.

Some of the benefits of this award include being regionally and internationally recognized for healthier safer tourism endorsed by the Caribbean Tourism Organization (CTO); the Caribbean Hotel & Tourism Association (CHTA) and the World Travel & Tourism Council (WTTC).

The award is the only traveler’s health award where compliance is assessed – it is measurable and verifiable, ensuring the safety of the tourist facility, staff and guests. It also gives a comparative, marketing advantage and gives value to the quality of service.(PR)

CAPTION: Sandals Barbados General Manager General Manager Bruno Couesnon (L) accepting the CARPHA award from Chief Medical Officer, Dr. Kenneth George