Vitamin D Deficiency Epidemic Among Blacks Says New Book
January 19, 2012
CaribPR Wire, Brooklyn, New York, January 19, 2012. Chronic vitamin D deficiency is a silent epidemic that is taking the lives of countless blacks worldwide. Correcting the Vitamin D Deficiency Epidemic: Strategies to Fight Diseases and Prolong Life for Black People (ISBN 978-0-912444-49-9), is the first book to comprehensively address the under-examined issue of critical vitamin D deficiency among blacks, a major contributor to the health disparities present in Black communities.
The author, Mrs. Emily Allison-Francis, is a nutritionist, librarian, and educator.
Vitamin D deficiency is prevalent among dark-skinned people because high concentrations of melanin in dark skin block the production of vitamin D from the sun, the most natural and abundant source of vitamin D. More than 90 percent of Blacks have critically low vitamin D levels and Blacks also suffer disproportionate illness and mortality rates from major chronic diseases associated with vitamin D deficiency.
Correcting the Vitamin D Deficiency Epidemic: Strategies to Fight Diseases and Prolong Life for Black People explores the connection between vitamin D deficiency and the high illness and mortality rates among Blacks. It also provides practical steps that dark-skinned people worldwide can take to improve their vitamin D status as well as useful, natural health strategies to help prevent and fight chronic diseases. Leading scientists in the field of vitamin D research have commented on the book including:
• Dr. Cedric Garland, professor at the School of Medicine, University of California San Diego, who urges “all society, and concerned people of all ethnicities to act upon” the information provided in the book.
• Dr. William B. Grant, director of The Sunlight, Nutrition and Health Research Center, who advises that the book “should be required reading for every black family in the United States; white and brown Americans could learn much from it as well.”
• Dr. Bruce Hollis, director of pediatric nutritional sciences at the Medical University of South Carolina, who implores “patients and physicians [to] heed [the book's] advice.”
• And Dr. Vin Tangpricha, associate professor of medicine at Emory University School of Medicine, who notes: “This book covers the link between vitamin D deficiency, vitamin D status in African Americans and the diseases associated with vitamin D deficiency.”
Copies of the book may be purchased from amazon.com and outlets posted at the website below.
Contact www.healthieryounutrition.com, info@healthieryounutrition.com or 718.916.8974 for more information.
Irwine G. Clare Elected To Serve on Jamaica Diaspora Advisory Board
January 16, 2012
News Americas, NEW YORK, NY, Tues. Jan. 17, 2012: The Diaspora U.S. North East Advisory Board has announced the election of Irwine G. Clare, Sr. to serve in the capacity of Advisory Board Member. He will replace Patrick Beckford who will remain as N.E. Board Chairman until the regional conference to be held later this year.
Clare will assume office on Jan 24th 2012 at the first Advisory Board Meeting since Conference 2011.
Clare is the first N.E. Advisory Board Member elected in the USA, prior to that both of his predecessors were elected at conferences held in Jamaica. As Advisory Board member, Clare will serve as the voice of the N.E. Diaspora Community and its newly created 501© (3) organization, US NE Jam Diaspora Organization.
“Irwine is well known in the entire U.S. N.E. community through his advocacy and charitable work most notably with Team Jamaica Bickle (TJB). He is a great replacement for me,” said Beckford. “We are great friends and work well together. As partners for the Diaspora we will be collaborating and uniting our efforts on behalf of the Diaspora and by extension Jamaica.”
Beckford pointed out that the by-laws have been completed and that the new 501© (3) status provides for autonomy from government control and direction.
As head of the Caribbean Immigrant Services (CIS) since 1995, Clare has had a ‘bird’s eye view’ of issues at the heart of to the Diaspora. He has served as in advocacy, policymaking, public service, and media. He was the Senior Partnership Specialist and Team Leader for Brooklyn and the Caribbean Community for the 2010 Census. His leadership service and experience include roles of president of the Jamaica Progressive League; vice president of the National Association of Jamaican & Supportive Organizations (NAJASO); and Board member of the Union of Jamaican Alumni Associations (UJAA). His civic service reflects membership in the Association of Caribbean Elected Officials & Community Leaders, the National Association for the Advancement of Colored People (NAACP) and several immigration policy groups.
As CEO and Founder of Team Jamaica Bickle, he has for the 17 plus years of the organization’s existence, helped to strengthen the connection between Jamaica’s citizens in the homeland and Diaspora.
“Team Jamaica Bickle allows us especially in the N.E. U.S. to operate from a position of care for our young people who travel to the Penn Relays as Ambassadors for our nation,” said Clare.
“The network of care we want to institute between our beloved homeland and Diaspora resides in those kinds of efforts, strengthened only by the creation of opportunities which drive excellence and achievement for all Jamaicans. The Diaspora Advisory Board is a great engine to fulfill that mandate. And one which I am happy to be a part of.”
Fashion Icon Donna Karan, Explores Investment Opportunities in Haiti’s Heartland
January 16, 2012
PORT-AU-PRINCE, Haiti, Jan. 16, 2012 /PRNewswire/ — Internationally-acclaimed fashion designer Donna Karan accompanied Haitian Minister of the Interior, Thierry Mayard-Paul, as he visited the cities of Jeremiah and Jacmel during his “listening campaign.”
The visits, a continuation of the Minister’s tour of Haiti’s heartland, are aimed at advancing the government’s goals for building a sustainable economy through investments that support decentralization and drive job creation across all sectors, and throughout all the communities of Haiti.
Minister Mayard Paul and Ms. Karan met with Jacmel’s Tourism Minister Ms. Stephanie B. Villedrouin and visited several hotels and tourist sites damaged by the January 2010 earthquake, including the Hotel Florita, the Jacmelienne Hotel and other severely damaged structures along the coast of the Southeast.
According to the Minister, these structures hold investment opportunities for the region. “Prior to the earthquake, Jacmel was one of Haiti’s wealthiest cities, with considerable tourist assets,” said Mayard-Paul. “With its favorable location, it holds great potential for development and job creation for this region.”
In visiting the city of Jeremiah, Mayard-Paul solicited the needs of residents, and vowed to deliver on their requests for jobs through the ongoing efforts of the Martelly government to make Haiti a country favorable to business for national and international investors. To that end, the Minister of the Interior escorted Ms. Karan to an exhibition of local art and handicrafts on Jeremiah’s city square. In viewing the work of Haitian painters, sculptors and craft persons, Ms. Karan reiterated her passion for Haiti as a nation where “each person is creative” and promised to assist Haitian artisans in promoting their works. “Creativity can be manifested into jobs,” Ms. Karan said, an ardent supporter of Haiti through her company Urban Zen. “The craftwork of Haiti is a model for job creation and education in Haiti. The best investment in Haiti is in her people. Their desire to work says much about their spirit, soul and pride.”
Mayard-Paul also visited Jeremiah’s police station, addressing requests for the redevelopment of the premises, and reassuring authorities that the government is working towards long-term, sustainable solutions. “President Martelly and his administration are implementing every measure to achieve concrete and positive changes,” said Mayard-Paul. “Collaboration and cooperation aimed at attracting local and international investment projects will help us achieve our vision for creating sustainable development for Haiti.”
EduK Group Announces Executive Appointments Focused on Managing Growth of Puerto Rico Operations
January 16, 2012
GUAYNABO, Puerto Rico, Jan. 16, 2012 /PRNewswire/ — Chief Executive Officer Wallace Pond, Ph.D., today announced new roles for executives on the senior leadership team of the EduK Group, the largest provider of private, postsecondary career education in Puerto Rico.
Guillermo Nigaglioni, who previously held the position of President and CEO of Instituto de Banca y Comercio (IBC), will retain the title of CEO and welcomes Jose A. Cordova as the new President of IBC. Nigaglioni will also now hold the office of President and CEO of Puerto Rico Operations.
The appointment of Cordova will allow Nigaglioni the opportunity to focus his attention toward more strategic planning and development for EduK Group’s three institutions on the island – Instituto de Banca y Comercio (IBC), National University College (NUC) and Ponce Paramedical College (POPAC), which collectively represent 31 locations across Puerto Rico.
Cordova, as the newly appointed President, will be responsible for IBC’s services, operations and business performance. Cordova joined EduK Group eight years ago, most recently serving as Senior Vice President for Finance and Chief Administrative Officer. Cordova, a member of the EduK senior leadership team, will report to Nigaglioni.
In announcing the new senior management roles, Dr. Pond stated: “As EduK expands its portfolio and adds more programs to serve the needs of students nationally, the growth of our institutions and current programs in Puerto Rico remains a top priority. Through the leadership and commitment of Guillermo and Jose, we are well positioned to meet our current and future service and growth objectives.”
About EduK Group
EduK Group, one of the leading private education companies offering career-oriented programs, is uniquely focused on Spanish and English postsecondary education. EduK Group institutions offer certificates, associates, bachelor’s and master’s degrees at its campus locations and online in such fields as healthcare, business, information technology, education, culinary arts, cosmetology, drafting and industrial trades. EduK Group’s institutions include Instituto de Banca y Comercio (IBC), National University College (NUC), National University College-Online (NUCO) and Ponce Paramedical College (POPAC) in Puerto Rico and Florida Technical College (FTC), The DAVE School (Digital Animation and Visual Effects) and LaSalle Computer Learning Center in Florida. For more information on EduK Group, call 787-982-3000.
Stay at Best Western®, Earn LifeMiles From the Avianca and TACA Frequent Flyer Program
January 16, 2012
LIMA, Peru, Jan. 16, 2012 /PRNewswire/ — Best Western International, Inc., THE WORLD’S BIGGEST HOTEL FAMILY®, announced today that members of its Best Western Rewards® frequency program can now earn 250 LifeMiles, the frequent flyer points from Avianca and TACA Airlines, for every qualified stay at any Best Western hotel around the world.
In addition, between January 16, 2012 and March 31, 2012, Best Western Rewards members who have chosen LifeMiles as their earning preference will be awarded an additional 250 bonus miles for qualified stays at Best Western branded hotels in the United States, Canada, Mexico, Central and South America, or the Caribbean. For complete terms, conditions and limitations, click here and to adjust earning preferences, register for promotions and manage accounts, Best Western Rewards Members please visit www.bestwesternrewards.com.
“Avianca and TACA Airlines offers one of the most comprehensive networks in Latin America, and is an ideal partner for Best Western,” said Suzi Yoder, VP of International Operations for Best Western. “We have hotels in nearly every Latin American country they serve, and LifeMiles’ over 4 million members will now have the advantage of earning miles for their stays at any Best Western.”
“In terms of distribution throughout Latin America, Best Western’s presence is very strong. This partnership provides a huge added benefit for our frequent flyers, as they can earn LifeMiles for hotel stays in nearly every city we fly to in the region,” said Mauricio Angulo, LifeMiles’ Business Development Director.
Best Western Rewards is one of the industry’s most generous rewards programs and one of few that is truly international. With more than 4,000 locations in over 100 countries and territories, Best Western makes it easy for members to earn points that can be redeemed for global free room nights with no blackout dates, dining, shopping and entertainment gift cards, gas cards, airline miles and more. Rewards program members can book their award nights and purchase travel at www.bestwestern.com.
About AviancaTaca
AviancaTaca Holdings is a leading airline group in Latin America. With a modern fleet of 140 short, medium and long haul aircraft and an exceptional team composed of more than 15,000 Employees, Avianca and Taca directly serves over 100 destinations in America and Europe, which connect to over 750 destinations worldwide through agreements with partner airlines around the globe. With more than 4 million members in its loyalty program, the group recorded combined annual sales revenues of approximately three billion dollars. Its multi-hub operating model offers diverse and convenient passenger flight options through Bogota, Colombia, San Salvador, El Salvador, Lima, Peru and San Jose, Costa Rica. The group also offers a broad portfolio of air products and services, including air cargo, mail, courier, aeronautical support specialists and tourism packages. For more information about the airlines please visit www.taca.com or www.avianca.com
ABOUT BEST WESTERN INTERNATIONAL, INC.
Best Western International, Inc. is THE WORLD’S BIGGEST HOTEL FAMILY®, providing marketing, reservations and operational support to over 4,000* BEST WESTERN®, BEST WESTERN PLUS® and BEST WESTERN PREMIER® hotels in more than 100* countries and territories worldwide. Each Best Western-branded hotel is independently owned and operated. Now celebrating 66 years of hospitality, Best Western has grown into an iconic brand that hosts hundreds of thousands of guests each night. Equally committed to the business and leisure traveler, Best Western has embarked on a mission to lead the hotel industry in customer care. World Vision is the charity of choice for Best Western in building the world’s biggest family, with our hotels and staff sponsoring children in need around the globe. Our partnerships with AAA/CAA, racecar driver Michael Waltrip, and Harley-Davidson® help guests make the most of every trip. For the fastest way to a free night globally, join Best Western Rewards®. For more information or to make a reservation, please visit www.bestwestern.com.
Haiti, Two Years Later
January 12, 2012
News Americas, PORT-AU-PRINCE, Haiti, Fri. Jan. 13, 2012: Two years after the horrific earthquake in Haiti, some 500,000 people still live under terrible conditions in makeshift camps.
That’s the word from Doctors Without Borders/Médecins Sans Frontières (MSF), which was working in Haiti before the disaster and lost 12 staff members in the earthquake.
The piles of rubble and gaping holes in the streets of Port-au-Prince remain. MSF’s medical coordinator, Wendy Lai says “access to drinking water and sanitation is (still) very limited throughout the entire country, particularly in rural and remote areas.”
“This situation promotes the spread of infectious disease,” she added. “While the number of new cases of cholera has fallen considerably, we still see several hundred each week and the risk of seasonal resurgence remains very high. We must remain extremely vigilant.”
With more than 50,000 inhabitants, Jean Marie Vincent is the biggest IDP camp in the Haitian capital of Port-au-Prince, occupying several hectares of property near the city centre and close to Cité Soleil, one of the poorest and less secure areas of the city.
Raymond Lamarre, the UNPOL police spokesperson in Haiti, bluntly describes the difficulties faced by law enforcement: “The gangsters of Cité Soleil commit crimes and then hide in the IDP camp where it is more difficult for us and for the Haitian National Police (HNP) Force to track them down.”
Women remain vulnerable to attacks. Celia Romulus, a project manager for UN Women, the agency fighting violence against women, says: “We are confronted with dramatic situations in which young women are raped in broad daylight in their tents or even young children are being raped, We have found out that the latrines are particularly dangerous for women at night. That’s why we have decided to install lighting near these places where sexual predators happened to be lurking.”
Yesterday, on the second anniversary, President Michel Martelly was among those marking the day with a holiday. Many Haitians gathered in makeshift churches to remember the dead and hope for a new beginning.
The disaster killed 316,000 people and displaced 1.5 million. Services on the national holiday ranged from roadside affairs to a government-organized observance near a mass grave north of the capital led by President Martelly and attended by former dictator, Jean-Claude “Baby Doc” Duvalier.
Guyana’s Parliamentary Opposition Select Speaker Much To Ire Of President
January 12, 2012
Raphael Trotman takes the oath as Speaker of the Guyana National Assembly. (Demerara Waves image)
News Americas, GEORGETOWN, Guyana, Fri. Jan. 13, 2012: Guyana has a new speaker of the parliament and its minority-elected President is not too happy.
A Party for National Unity, with 26 seats, in the House, and the Alliance For Change, with seven seats, used their majority power Thursday to defeat the ruling party’s nomination of former Speaker Ralph Ramkarran and elect attorney Donald Trotman as the new speaker.
The move irked President Donald Ramotar, who released a statement last evening stating: “As President, I had hoped that the elections of a Speaker and Deputy Speaker for the National Assembly would have resulted from genuine dialogue rather that the product of some pre-arranged deal between the two opposition parties.”
“The APNU/AFC collaboration today also goes against the convention in parliamentary democracies where the governing party with the largest number of votes and seats secures the Speaker of the National Assembly,” he added. “This gross violation of an established convention is not a healthy development in this new dispensation.”
Trotman, the leader of the Alliance For Change, was elected to serve in the 65-seat National Assembly, that is for the first time controlled by the opposition.
Members of the incumbent Peoples Progressive Party Civic (PPPC) voted along party-lines for Ramkarran but its 32-seat vote were not enough to win the majority.
The new speaker expressed the hope that he would be able to call on his predecessor Ramkarran while acknowledging party member Moses Nagamootoo’s withdrawal of his name for consideration for the position.
APNU Chariman, David Granger, in his remarks said they were looking to the Speaker to manage the House in a way that would “promote democracy, prevent abuse, protect the people’s interest and that would provide a good life for all Guyanese.”
“My colleagues in A Partnership for National Unity are committed to giving you the support to make the aspirations of our people a reality,” Granger said.
Sangart Initiates Phase 1b Study of MP4CO in Patients With Sickle Cell Disease
January 12, 2012
SAN DIEGO, Jan. 12, 2012 /PRNewswire/ — Sangart, Inc., a global biopharmaceutical company dedicated to developing life-saving medicines specifically designed to enhance the perfusion and oxygenation of ischemic (oxygen deprived) tissues through targeted oxygen and other gas delivery, today announced the initiation of a Phase 1b study designed to evaluate the safety of MP4CO treatment in patients with sickle cell disease. MP4CO is designed to deliver therapeutic levels of carbon monoxide (CO) to patients suffering from a sickle cell crisis. This initial study will involve patients who are not currently undergoing a painful vaso-occlusive crisis. Preclinical studies show that carbon monoxide stabilizes the hemoglobin of patients with sickle cell disease and prevents the sickling of red blood cells.
“We are encouraged by the preclinical data on MP4CO and look forward to evaluating the safety and potential efficacy of this therapy in helping alleviate pain associated with a sickle cell crisis, while also potentially reducing the severity and duration of a crisis,” said Dr. Jo Howard, at Guy’s and St Thomas’ Hospital, London, UK. “There is currently a dearth of treatments for painful vaso-occlusive crises associated with sickle cell disease, and MP4CO represents a potential treatment option for these patients.”
The clinical trial is a multi-center, randomized, double-blind, controlled study that will enroll approximately 32 clinically stable adult patients with sickle cell disease who are not undergoing a painful vaso-occlusive crisis. The trial will be conducted at four sites across three countries, including the United Kingdom, France and Jamaica. The primary objective of the study is to establish the safety of treatment with MP4CO. The study will comprise ascending dose levels in five groups of single dose infusions followed by three groups of fractionated doses.
“This trial initiation is a key step towards providing a treatment to patients suffering from a sickle cell crisis. The strong preclinical data suggest that a clinical evaluation of MP4CO in patients could yield meaningful results,” said Brian O’Callaghan, President and CEO of Sangart. “Along with our other investigational therapy, MP4OX, we remain committed to developing medicines designed to enhance the delivery of oxygen and other gases to tissues and organs.”
Sickle cell disease is an inherited hemoglobin disorder affecting red blood cell circulation in millions of people around the world. People with sickle cell disease have red blood cells that contain mostly hemoglobin S, an abnormal type of hemoglobin. Due to the presence of hemoglobin S, these red blood cells become crescent or sickle-shaped and have difficulty passing through small blood vessels. When sickle-shaped cells block small blood vessels, less blood circulates through the body, causing severe pain and damage to tissues that do not receive a normal blood flow. This vaso-occlusion is known as a “sickle cell crisis”. There are currently no approved medications to treat sickle cell crises, and only symptomatic relief is available.
About MP4
Sangart’s product platform is based on the MP4 molecule, an investigational biopharmaceutical product designed to enhance the perfusion of oxygen-deprived (ischemic) tissues and provide targeted oxygen delivery in the capillaries. Using a novel pegylation approach, Sangart produces the MP4 molecule designed at the optimal oxygen affinity, diffusion potential and molecular size to perfuse capillaries and target oxygen delivery to tissues specifically at risk of ischemia. MP4 can bind carbon monoxide for delivery to hemoglobin in red blood cells and heme proteins in tissues to provide anti-inflammatory and anti-apoptotic (anti-programmed cell death) effects. Once carbon monoxide has been released, MP4 takes up oxygen, when circulating through the lung, for delivery to ischemic tissues.
About Sangart
Sangart is a global biopharmaceutical company dedicated to developing life-saving medicines specifically designed to enhance the perfusion and oxygenation of ischemic (oxygen deprived) tissues through targeted oxygen delivery. Based on more than a decade of research, Sangart has refined the pegylation of human hemoglobin to create a molecule, MP4, with the ability to carry oxygen through the circulatory system to prevent and treat ischemia, or carbon monoxide to prevent and reverse sickling and its consequences.
To learn more about Sangart, please visit the company’s website at www.sangart.com.
Caribbean’s Influence In Europe Waning
January 11, 2012
By David Jessop
News Americas, LONDON, England, Tues. Jan. 10, 2012: Most years Caribbean governments and their counterparts from beyond the region hold policy level encounters at which they discuss matters of common interest.
Such meetings, involving Heads of Government or senior ministers, have in the recent past included a meeting in 2011 in Trinidad with the Chinese leadership; a bi-regional summit between Europe, Latin America and the Caribbean in Madrid in 2010; a Heads of Government meeting with the US President and Secretary of State in 2009; and high level exchanges with individual nations which have a continuing interest in the region such as Canada, France, Spain and the UK.
The theory is that such events, if well prepared and with a clear outcome and action plan, offer not only the opportunity for a policy level exchange and the strengthening of high level relationships but also a more certain perspective on the future.
However, there is a sense in Europe and North America that unless encounters with the Caribbean become more dynamic, and focus on changed realities and what is deliverable, they are in danger of having ever less value.
Rightly or wrongly, what is being said in private is that much of the Anglophone part of the Caribbean does not relate to the ways in which traditional partners now think, is locked into an historic analysis and is deploying a formalised approach that no longer politically resonates. There is also a sense that the failure of the Caribbean to deliver an integrated region and the absence of any new narrative about itself or its strategic objectives is making it difficult to sustain high level political interest outside the region.
Of course it is quite reasonable to set this aside and respond, as some in the Caribbean do, that this is no longer relevant. The region’s future, they argue, lies elsewhere, in a stronger relationship with Brazil, Venezuela and the nations of Latin America and with China, India, South Africa and with others, and that this is where it is headed. Others counter that the value in newer ties comes when they form a part of a series of balanced and overlapping relationships and in providing all partners with clarity.
The sense of Caribbean marginalisation is particularly acute in Europe where despite the mature relationship and European rhetoric about partnership, the longer term policy trends point in a very different direction.
In a Europe of twenty seven states in which the majority have no colonial past, most officials and politicians see the Caribbean as marginal or no relevance to Europe’s priorities or global strategic interests. As a consequence EU Members states, the European Commission and the European Parliament largely lack interest or empathy and are taking decisions in a vacuum modified only by the extent to which Ambassadors and occasional visiting ministers can influence thinking.
Why this is important is because Europe is now at a stage of theological discussion about the nature of its longer term relationship with many parts of the world, including the Caribbean and Latin America. For the Caribbean the signs are not good.
The long term trend of seeing Latin America and the Caribbean as one region is gaining pace and the emphasis is on finding ways to encourage this. With European economies in crisis and a desire to promote a business agenda, the emphasis in Europe is to focus on economic growth and opportunity.
The consequence of this is that development policy will largely move away from the bilateral to the regional and be more focussed on newer priorities, while support will be focussed on growth and the private sector. With two exceptions, dealing with the Caribbean bilaterally is not on the European agenda.
The Caribbean so far has not said anything about this.
Indeed the sense in Brussels is that the philosophical battle is all but lost as the region has failed to demonstrate that it has either a new narrative or can deploy its strategic assets. The point is made that independent Caribbean will cease to be able to significantly modify politically what is now being discussed unless it can rapidly make clear: how it will exercise realistically the leverage its fifteen votes in the UN confer; demonstrate the value of its approach to security, the environment and climate change; recognise the significance of having Dutch and British Overseas Territories and French département d’outre-mer in its midst; and embrace the Hispanic Caribbean and Central America.
This may sound harsh, even arrogant, but this is the new transactional reality taking shape.
It requires a strategic regional political response of the kind that in the past a statesman like Sir Shridath Ramphal would have deployed or in the context of trade, the Jamaican Trade and Industry Minister, Anthony Hylton, was able to deliver. It also requires the cultivation of new political friends, money being spent on a politically acute Diaspora organisation overseas and a strategy that identifies at a regional level, the areas of mutual self interest with every external partner.
Unfortunately, this seems unlikely. Much of the Caribbean has become inward looking as it has sunk into a slough of debt, economic despondency and limited growth. Most nations have not yet addressed the toxic interrelated issues of public sector reform, pensions, taxation, public expenditure, youth unemployment and growth. Much of the private sector remains inward looking and protectionist and the gap between the economies of the region and their counterparts in Central and South America and the Hispanic Caribbean is growing. As my friend and colleague, Sir Ron Sanders, implied in a recent column, the regional ship is adrift and sinking.
Later this month Britain will bring an unusually high powered team of ministers to the Caribbean for a much delayed UK Caribbean Forum because it wants to find a new basis on which to engage.
The event will be important: not because it is with the former colonial power or about the inequities of APD or the need for continuing security or environmental co-operation, but because it offers the whole Caribbean the opportunity to begin to change the nature of its dialogue with Europe.
It comes at an important moment as the sense that emerges and the relationships that develop may come to influence longer term thinking in Europe as a whole about the Caribbean’s ability to escape from its history.
David Jessop is the Director of the Caribbean Council and can be contacted at david.jessop@caribbean-council.org. Previous columns can be found at www.caribbean-council.org.
Grenada Board of Tourism and Grenada Hotel & Tourism Association Launch New and Improved Booking Engine System By Regatta Solutions
January 11, 2012
ST. GEORGES, Grenada, Jan. 10, 2012 /PRNewswire/ — The Grenada Board of Tourism (GBT) and the Grenada Hotel & Tourism Association (GHTA) have jointly launched a new, and improved, booking engine on their respective websites www.grenadagrenadines.com and www.gogrenada.gd which, it is expected, will bolster the island’s tourism industry.
The implementation of Regatta allows hotels, villas and other activity providers in Grenada to use the websites of the tourism board and hotel association to exhibit control as to exactly how they are promoted. It also comes with the capacity to attract a much higher volume of bookings through the various channels that are available.
“We have every intention of maintaining close relationships with our Online Travel Agency (OTA) partners as well as our hotels,” commented Simon Stiell, Director of Tourism for Grenada. “But we are seeing impressive results from other Caribbean destinations that have implemented Regatta and this change in our online sales and marketing strategy makes perfect sense for us. Regatta’s powerful booking engine and destination marketing expertise is an attractive combination for any destination.”
Commenting on this development, Executive Director of the GHTA, Mrs. Pancy Cross noted that “Our hotels are very excited about this project. Regatta has made itself very accessible and we are pleased about having a partner that can finally help us reach consumers at a reasonable cost.”
President of Regatta Travel Solutions Mr. Ashwin Kamlani stated that “There is much potential in Grenada where the tourism industry is hungry for growth and waiting to take advantage of all of the new marketing tactics that are available on the internet. We are proud to have been chosen for this project.”
About Grenada Board of Tourism
The Grenada Board of Tourism’s objective is to market and promote Grenada as a preferred year round Caribbean tourist destination, while providing technical and managerial support to the travel trade, tour operators, industry partners and airlines. For more information on Grenada, contact the Grenada Board of Tourism at 416-595-1339, email at tourism@grenadaconsulate.com or visit www.grenadagrenadines.com
About Grenada Hotel & Tourism Association
The Grenada Hotel & Tourism Association’s purpose is to advocate and lobby on behalf of its members. In addition, the association assists members with the marketing of their businesses through its website and its printed medium, the Grenada at a Glance magazine. For more information on the GHTA call 444-1353, email mail@ghta.org or visit www.gogrenada.gd
About Regatta Travel Solutions Inc.
Founded by Ashwin Kamlani, Regatta Travel Solutions provides specialized online booking technology and marketing tactics for DMOs (Destination Marketing Organizations). DMOs that use Regatta on their sites can increase demand for their destination, lower the cost paid by suppliers per booking, and increase membership for their organizations. Visit www.regattatravelsolutions.com.
