Mahogany CoConut Blog

One Caribbean Nation. The COVID-19 continues to disrupt normal life throughout the Caribbean Region. Citizens are rapidly adjusting to a new lifestyle and are, following government ordered restrictions of movement. While this will play havoc with their laid-back lifestyle, the readily available international media presence in their living rooms and handheld devices, continue to cement the gravity of the situation. Regional leadership is functioning at a high level of urgency and dynamism and it is driving the region’s peoples to a more serious understanding of the crisis. Leaders are aware and have accepted that the COVID-19, will ruin their economies and have now abandoned previously held policies of keeping their borders opened. People before economies is the mantra. Rihanna The Mahogany Coconut Group salutes super star Rihanna for reaching out and donating   needed resources to her fellow citizens in Barbados. We also note her similar acts to the state of New ...

One Caribbean Nation. Alicia Bárcena Ibarra Submitted by Alicia Bárcena Ibarra – Executive Secretary of ECLAC (United Nations’ Economic Commission for Latin America and the Caribbean) Everything seems to be one gigantic mistake. We console ourselves by saying that everything has happened as it should not have happened. But it is we who are mistaken, not history. We must learn to look reality in the face; if necessary, we must invent new words and new ideas for these new realities that are challenging us. Thinking is the first obligation of the intelligentsia, and in certain cases it is the only one. It is true that history recounts the devastating impact of past pandemics, but none of them broke out in such a populated world (with more than 7.7 billion people) or such an interconnected one, and with a planet that is ailing environmentally. This is the biggest human and health crisis we have ever faced. That assertion must serve as our guiding principle if we are to approach...

One Caribbean Nation. Caribbean islands impose rules; cases on rise St Vincent and the Grenadines  The Bahamas  Cayman Islands  The country confirmed its first imported case of the virus on Wednesday, March 11. The affected person is in self-isolation after returning from the United Kingdom. Measures to limit the spread include ordering the suspension for certain formal ports of entry while the hours of operation at other ports will be expanded in some instances. People entering the country with a travel history which includes Iran, China, South Korea and Italy are now to to be quarantined for 14 days upon entry. Turks and Caicos While there are zero confirmed cases, as of tomorrow there will be closure of airports and sea ports St Lucia From tomorrow to April 5, Prime Minister Allen Chastanet announced there will be a partial scale down of all non-essential economic and social activities. There are four confirmed cases of coronavirus in Nassau ...

One Caribbean Nation. While we remain steadfastly committed in support of the gallant efforts of regional governments in combatting the COVID-19, we are also aware, that the economies of the various countries may never be the same. The question surfacing among progressive voices is whether it is possible to finally rid ourselves of the plantation economy, while we seek to remodel our fiscal approach after the COVID-19 era. It is widely believed that the effects of this malady, will impact for at least another five or ten years. The COVID -19 has taught us that the best of plans can be disrupted     by totally unforeseen and unexpected events. As our elders used to drive in our heads: “Trouble don’t set up like rain”. While we certainly do not expect the remnants of the plantation economy to simply disappear; we believe that any restructuring of our economies, must involve a decreased dependency on tourism and food imports, if our economies are to ever become sust...

Flags of Caribbean Countries COVID-19 One Caribbean Nation.   The countries of the Caribbean are being thrown into widespread crisis because of the Coronavirus Disease (COVID-19). Already consumers are in what is generally called “hurricane mode”, as they rush to purchase and stock up on items. It seems that the Caribbean can never “get a break” and as we grapple with increase crime; environmental issues along with persistent economic stagnation, we are always aware that positive or negative “outside developments”, can affect us accordingly. Many decades ago, the late Dr. Eric Williams, Prime Minister, of Trinidad and Tobago, lamented that we are usually thrown into economic whirlpools by events outside of our immediate control. He opined that until we can counter such developments with regional policies and programs, we would remain vulnerable. We have already seen the oil crisis of the 80s almost wreck all the economies of the region. In more recent times we have ...

One Caribbean Nation. The Guyana Flag Once more we witness the tragedy of Guyana rather than the expected triumph from the exciting and promising news of its economic revival as a result of oil discoveries and a growing eco-tourism product. We seem to be going rapidly from triumph to tragedy because the ugly and destructive forces of racial division have once more surfaced in its electoral process. This tragedy has now become pronounced. We would be lying if we posit that we did not expect such a development. Historically, the East Indian population and the Afro population, have always supported one of the two major parties. And while in recent years, a state of normalcy seemed highly possible, we have consistently been informed of dangerous underlying racial tension. Thousands of Guyanese had abandoned their beloved country as economic prospects plunged and the hope of racial unity rapidly faded. Many in the Diaspora had vouched to “never return”. However, with the economi...

One Caribbean Nation. Today March 8 th , 2020 is international Women’s Day. We can expect the political speechifying as our women in all areas of national life are highlighted. All the accolades bestowed on our Caribbean women have been earned and we know, in many cases, they are long overdue. We therefore join in celebrating all women globally but as expected highlight our magnificent women, who have carried the flag for our societies.  Any serious analysis of our history, in whatever sphere, will come to the undeniable conclusion that our women represent the biggest portion of unsung heroes. Today, we have women leading countries at both the Executive and political level. The days of political leaders being all male are now happily behind us. There was a time, when women were mainly found in the kitchen of our political parties and the women’s arms of political parties were essentially of the cake sale variety. In many ways, many women, were to be seen but not hea...

One Caribbean Nation.   Current chair of the CARICOM, Barbados Prime Minister, Mia Mottley , has called for a regional approach to crime. Mottley was addressing other Caribbean leaders at the Thirty First Inter Sessional Meeting of the Conference of Heads, held in Barbados February 18-19 2020. Once more our penchant for closing the stable door after the horse has bolted, took center stage at the august gathering. While we do not want to negate the efforts by Mottley to breathe new life into the Caribbean community, we would be quite failing in our duty if we refuse to offer serious comment on this issue. The increase in violent crime in the region is correctly, in some instances, connected to the dangerous drug trade and the equally dangerous , violent nature of the industry. Unfortunately, when the obvious increase in drug use and the breeding of gangs reared their ugly heads in the late 70s, we did not expect them to reach such threatening heights. Individual countries i...