HARARE, Zimbabwe – West Indies begin their quest for a spot at next year World Cup when they face minnows United Arab Emirates in their opening match of the ICC World Cup Qualifiers today, hoping to turn the page on their ordinary form.

The Caribbean side struggled on the slow pitches here in their two warm-up matches, sensationally losing to Afghanistan before rebounding to narrowly beat UAE and escape embarrassment.

Labelled as favourites but aware now more than ever that the qualifying campaign could be fraught with peril, Windies captain Jason Holder on Monday underscored the importance of a strong start to the competition.

“Ideally we need to start well – it’s been a common trend in these tournaments where you really need to start well,” the all-rounder asserted.

“There’s obviously been a bit of weather around in terms of rain and we don’t want to find ourselves scrambling in the end.

“So I’ve really emphasised the importance of starting well. We’ve got UAE and Papua New Guinea up front and I think it’s important we beat both those teams heading into the last two encounters with Ireland and Netherlands.”

West Indies’ fickle batting remains their ever-present plight. Against Afghanistan, they failed to chase down a modest revised target of 140 and were dismissed for 110 – after being well-placed on 80 for two at one stage.

The shocker came against UAE when they were rolled over for 115 and needed a strong bowling effort in order to pull off victory in the end.

They boast in their ranks the veteran pair of Chris Gayle and Marlon Samuels who among them have played a combined 467 One-Day Internationals, and also have the likes of match-winners like the youthful pair of Evin Lewis and Shai Hope.

Holder said he was hoping for a better strip at the Old Hararians Ground as the Windies looked to mount an improved batting effort.

“It should be a really good contest. We played against them before a few days ago so we had a good look at the opposition and what they bring,” he explained.

“Hopefully tomorrow the conditions are a lot better than they were in the warm-up game. From all reports, the last game played here … seemed to be a really good wicket with the ball coming on and you can get pretty good scores on it, so hopefully our batsmen can capitalise on the conditions tomorrow, basically stamp their authority and get us to a really good total

The match bowls off at 9:30 am (3:30 am Eastern Caribbean time). (CMC)

SQUADS

WEST INDIES – Jason Holder (captain), Jason Mohammed (vice-captain), Devendra Bishoo, Carlos Brathwaite, Sheldon Cotterell, Chris Gayle, Shimron Hetmyer, Shai Hope, Evin Lewis, Nikita Miller, Ashley Nurse, Rovman Powell, Kemar Roach, Marlon Samuels, Kesrick Williams.

UAE – Rohan Mustafa (captain), Adnan Mufti, Ahmed Raza, Amir Hayat, Ashfaq Ahmed, Chirag Suri, Ghulam Shabber, Imran Haider, Mohammad Boota, Mohammad Naveed, Muhammad Usman, Qadeer Ahmed, Rameez Shahzad, Shaiman Anwar, Zahoor Khan.

There will be four persons representing this country in the sporting discipline of Table Tennis at next month’s Commonwealth Games in Australia.

Lawyers representing the T&T Olympic Committee (TTOC) and national players Dexter St Louis and his step daughter Rheann Chung yesterday came to an agreement which saw them joining the T&T Table Tennis Association (TTTTA)’s representatives, Aaron Wilson and Yuvraj Dookram, for the games.

The agreement came as St Louis and Chung’s lawsuit challenging the selection process used by the association came up for trial before Justice Eleanor Donaldson-Honeywell in the Port-of-Spain High Court.

Under the consent order, all four will travel to Gold Coast, Queensland, Australia, for the games, but no player is guaranteed a starting position as that decision will remain with the association’s technical team.

The compromise, brokered by the T&TOC, resolved the issue of whether there would be representation for the games as the lawsuit could not have been determined before the deadline for submission of participants, later this week.

St Louis and Chung’s lawsuit over the fairness of the association’s selection was postponed to April 24 as Donaldson-Honeywell said there was no urgent need for it to be determined before the games, which will be held between April 5 and 15.

In a brief telephone interview from his home in France yesterday, St Louis said he was upset despite scoring a technical legal victory.

St Louis said that the T&TOC should have intervened in the dispute since it arose in November, last year, as the lawsuit and subsequent hearings had cost him and Chung thousands of dollars in legal fees.

“This should have been stopped a long time ago. Even if I go and I get to go, it is still a bitter feeling for me,” said St Louis.

In a press statement issued yesterday evening, St Louis and Chung’s lawyer Matthew Gayle suggested that the T&TOC’s constitution be amended to allow athletes the right to arbitration hearings in disputes with their respective associations. Under present rules only associations can refer disputes to T&TOC’s arbitration panel.

“It is simply not good enough that players should have to fight lengthy and expensive legal battles before the T&TOC takes heed of these very real issues faced by the athletes,” Gayle said.

In the lawsuit, St Louis, 50, and 33-year-old Chung, the most decorated athletes to ever represent T&T in the sport, are questioning the process used by the association to select 19-year-old Wilson and 21-year-old Dookram for the games.

They are seeking damages for breach of contract, conspiracy and unlawful interference.

In defence of the lawsuit, the T&TTTA is claiming that the duo was informed via email of the selection criteria and chose not to participate.

It also alleged that they only decided to challenge the process after it was completed.

The T&TTTA is also claiming that it had closely followed the T&T Olympic Committee (TTOC)’s guidelines and deadlines for selection, which focuses on youth participation.

In granting St Louis and Chung an injunction against the association in January, Donaldson-Honeywell refused an application seeking to compel the association to refer the dispute to TTOC’s arbitration tribunal.

Last Friday, Appellate Judges Allan Mendonca, Peter Jamadar and Prakash Moosai upheld Donaldson-Honeywell’s ruling as they found evidence that the process of selection was not fair or transparent.

St Louis and Chung are being represented by Mathew Gayle, Sheriza Khan and Dr Emir Crowne, while Dinesh Rambally, Kiel Tacklalsingh and Stefan Ramkissoon are representing the T&TTTA.

Elton Prescott, SC, represented the T&TOC for yesterday’s hearing.

Foxy Boy looks a crafty declaration by Northern-based trainer, Rebecca Bastiman, for the opening ‘aged’ sprint handicap over five furlongs of Southwell fibresand; this four-year-old has not encountered the ‘deep stuff’ to date!

However given Foxy Boy comes out clear ‘best-in’ from seven rivals and experienced apprentice Phil Dennis claims 3lbs allowance so we’ll have to chance him eachway.

Of course this is down to the judgement of Msa Bastiman and it will indeed be fascinating to watch Foxy Boy in action; his actual ‘career-best’ time-handicap mark was achieved on a soft Beverley surface last September, which was followed up seventeen days later on ‘good’ Redcar ground.

Although fibresand appears to be deep, as runners rut it down the straight, times suggest it rides much faster than most realise; it’s a quandary but a license to print money for anyone who sees fit to specialise on racing at the Nottinghamshire circuit.

Back in the 1990’s Southwell was my ‘second home’ and a vibrant scene but last week only THIRTEEN paying customers turned up, along with TWO bookmakers!

Princess Way is an obvious selection for division one of an all-aged handicap over seven furlongs, the reason is apprentice Gabriel Malune, who claims 7lbs but not for much longer!

Gabriel has been a revelation, rides like he’s been a champion elsewhere, hope that’s not the case; it was several years ago when a jockey was barred for life after his true identity revealed a sensational riding career, in ‘another life!

Malune is close to losing the full claim, Princess Way is best of a moderate bunch snd simply can’t be opposed with trainer David Evans’ yard in scintillating form.

A massive factor, at all times.

Napping in the eight-runner ‘aged’ sprint handicap over six furlongs, this top-rated five-yearold is mount Luke Morris!

There has to be a good reason why trainer Olly Murphy has booked the current all-weather champion jockey and don’t oppose without good reason.

All snow has gone, Cheltenham will now have a chance to recover before next Tuesday and don’t forget Prestbury Park drains like a sponge; quick ground can NEVER be ruled out!

It is not far fetched though; after all, Tobago does boast a mine of creative treasure.

With the spotlight currently on the sister isle still basking in the glory and honour brought to the getaway destination by its home-grown Winston Duke, actor and star in the criticallyacclaimed Black Panther film, a world over phenomenon on the big screen, it vows to be consistent in showing the world what Tobago can do with the sixth installment of Tobago Fashion Coda carded for April 26, 2018.

For the first time since its running, the premiere fashion event which heralds the annual Tobago Jazz Experience with a somewhat total local concept diverges to collaborate with an external fashion designer through the Embassy of the Kingdom of the Netherlands. Twenty-seven year-old Dutch designer Liselore Frowijn will present a full showcase at Fashion Coda—a collection she opted out of the renowned Paris Fashion Week which began on February 27 savouring it just for Tobago.

Describing it as a secret collection just right for Tobago, in a Skype interview with the media at the Embassy yesterday where the Launchof Fashion Coda took place,  Frowijn expressed her love for the Caribbean and though it would be her first visit, she is anticipating nothing but the best and is excited about exploring this cultural exchange.

“I can promise it will be good,” she says. The bright-eyed Frowijn who has a creative obsession with luminous colours and the use of them in her designs, perhaps influenced by her affinity for Caribbean aesthetics, is a graduate of the ArtEZ Institute of Arts in Arnhem, the Netherlands, where she obtained a BA in Fashion Design, graduating with honours in 2013.

In her short career so far she has been able to work with some of the world’s leading fashion name brands such as Gucci, Prada and Chanel and has won several awards. Her visit to the island might well be overdue, as initially she had planned to come in 2016 after talks with Fashion Coda’s brainchild and DgEvents director Don Grant, but with clashing dates for her then collection showing, plans fell through.

Coding it fate, she says timing is everything and all things happen for a reason.

“When the same question of my participation came again in 2017, I had no doubt because I was sure I could join this year and I really want to do it because I think on both sides what is happening here is something very interesting.”

She continues: “I get to bring my European collection there and it just shows how everything is connected and that is what I really want to show through my work.”

She communicated that a lot of time went into the collection and preparations to come to Tobago and finally launching it made the whole experience very special.

During his feature address Ambassador to Kingdom of the Netherlands Jules Bijl praised Frowijn’s work and said she creates fashion for people who have the guts to be seen.

Of the first time cultural exchange between both countries, Bijl who played a pivotal role in Grant and Frowijn meeting, tells the T&T Guardian, the Netherlands might be known primarily for its maritime and agriculture but there is also a huge and thriving creative industry bearing some of the world’s famous architects and artists. Boasting of the European country being the home of celebrated Dutch painter Vincent Van Gogh and former head designer for BMW Design Adrian van Hooydonk, he said the creative industry is “hot” in Europe, but now has a special focus upon fashion.

“The Dutch are catching up and we’re spreading out a bit all over the world and to do so you need exceptional talent and Liselore is that exceptional talent,” Bijl boasts.

In his 11 years living in the Caribbean there are a few things that strikes him about the Caribbean like the intensity of the light and the way people wear colour which he says is far more outspoken than what is normally worn back in Europe.

It’s early for Bijl to say whether this could be the genesis of a healthy trade between T&T and the Netherlands, but he does believe there are unique aspects of the Caribbean with unlimited possibilities to explore.

Subsequently a visibly-elated Grant spoke of his desires for this newfound relationship. He believes though a small start; eventually it will encourage trade.

His hope is that Frowijn’s participation in this sixth installment will signal to other international designers that Tobago is open to working with fashion designers from around the globe.

He notes the fashion industry is a multi-billion dollar business and T&T is still very miniscule in the scheme of things. Grant says the European Union (EU), is the mecca of fashion and local designers and the T&T’s fashion industry could learn a lot from these kinds of cultural exchanges.

In fact, he believes an exchange programme for designers should be officially developed between the Caribbean and the EU so that local designers can get a better understanding of what the fashion industry is all about.

“We have a lot to learn and a lot to gain and it is my hope that with this initiative it can only grow and go to the next level,” Grant says.

Tobago Fashion Coda is the face and image of a lifetime experience in Tobago. It fuses fashion, art, entertainment and cuisine. And serves as a platform for seasoned and budding designers alike.

This year it takes on the theme Smile—as it welcomes local designers Ecliffe Elie and Tobago designer Dayle Abeje Angus who will collaborate with another international designer, Austrian Andre Jack Voight.

Tobago’s very own Elizabeth Arthur who has had the good fortune of working alongside esteemed international designers and even the opportunity to present her praised Kimimi Swimwear collection at Los Angeles Fashion Week for two consecutive years (2016/17), will present her 2018 collection at Fashion Coda.

At the transformed Magdalena Grand, home to the prestigious calendar event from inception, multiple International Soca Monarch SuperBlue, no doubt high of his 2018 Road March win, a collaboration with soca superstar Machel Montano, will entertain patrons. Also billed to bring some diversity to the atmosphere is former Chutney Soca Monarch KI and Tobago soca artiste Adana Roberts.

n For more information visit: www.tobagofashioncoda.com and dgevents9.com. You can also check out the Tobago Fashion Facebook page.

Call it be called self harming? How about cutting off your nose to spoil your own face? A self inflicted two-day shut down by the business community in Tobago is like cutting off a leg without anaesthetic. But, if that is what they want, let them do it. I do not believe in putting water in my mouth to talk. This living in a dream world has to stop. All this ego stroking that must be entered into before people just do what they have to do, is becoming boring.

It may not be the revered, the beloved Gallicia, but a new ferry is on the way. The other two permanently always limping ferry boats are supposed to be fixed to limp less often. What more do you want? Ah ha! Is it that the Tobago hoteliers want a free government hand-out to dry their dribbling noses?

Is it because the Prime minister was born in Tobago that, morning, noon and night, he has to lick everybody’s shoes and find extra money to play political games with Tobagonians?

LYNETTE JOSEPH
Diego Martin

It has been announced that a bill granting greater autonomy to Tobago is to be introduced in the House of Representatives shortly. The matter of greater autonomy for Tobago has been a bone of contention since the “amalgamation” of Tobago to Trinidad in 1888 by the 1887 Act of Union of the British Parliament. However, the only concrete action taken, in this regard, has been the recent enactment of the Tobago House of Assembly (THA) Act by our own Parliament in 1996 which not only re-established the ancient Assembly but granted to the THA some powers which had hitherto been the complete preserve of the Central Government in Port-of- Spain.

It is clear that Tobago was a prized jewel which was even a part of the British-administered Windward Islands group along with St Vincent, and Grenada. However, it is also clear that the abolition of the Slave Trade and the wavering fortunes of “King Sugar cane” were to lead to a collapse of Tobago’s economy to the extent that Tobago was unable to meet the cost of being governed as a separate entity and hence a decision of the British Government to “amalgamate” Tobago with Trinidad, thereby applying the laws of Trinidad to Tobago and, the complete loss of autonomy by Tobago.

There is no doubt that the loss of autonomy by Tobago has resulted in a loss of self-respect by, and for, Tobagonians as well as several negative “side effects” some of which may be evident from the following:

1. Could it have been that a culture of “real” dependency took its root with the “amalgamation”?

2. The void left by the departure of the “Massas” has never been filled by a truly rooted indigenous entrepreneurial class;

3. What may be termed the “business community” in Tobago has contributed to the dependency of Tobago on Trinidad by being, for the most part, commission agents and distributors of goods which reach Tobago via sources in Trinidad;

4. Decline of the agriculture sector has resulted in a failure of Tobagonians to provide themselves with foodstuffs which, at one time, they even used to ship to Trinidad;

5. Allied to item 4 is a failure of Tobagonians to strike out for the island by itself, a clear path in the development of the island’s Tourism and a Tobago-based small manufacturing and haberdashery sector;

6. In light of the constant depressed state of the island’s economy, the “emigration” of better educated Tobagonians to Trinidad and elsewhere and the attraction of Government programmes which are today revealed in the form of the URP and the Cepep.

Can the granting of greater autonomy, by itself, result in the development of a culture of entrepreneurial thrust in Tobago? Time will tell!

ERROL OC CUPID,
Trincity, Tacarigua

Trinidad-born superstar Sly Goodridge has returned to his native country and resides quietly in Point Fortin.

Goodridge is the author of Waiting for the Storm, a recently published romance novel in e-book and paperback on Amazon.com Goodridge, who has made a name in the entertainment industry in the US working with such shows as the 1980’s mega hit television series Miami Vice, XFactor, and movies including Step Up Revolution, Band of the Hand and many others, is home to develop local projects for production.

A veteran of both the US Army and the US Naval Air Command, Goodridge’s decision to return to his homeland is based purely on his love for his country. He is the owner of Sly’s Pub in the heart of Point Fortin, where he also maintains his production office for his company SGS Studios (Sly Goodridge Studios).

This multi-talented Trini has created a milestone in his career as Lighting Designer for most of America’s top celebrity artistes and actors such as Broadway star Melba Moore, Clarence Carter, The Temptations, Harold Melvin and the Blue Notes and many more, including now deceased, world renown actor, Sherman Hemsley of The Jefferson’s, television sitcom, and South African music icon Hugh Masekela.

Goodridge has written and directed many film projects including his own music video Body Movur, which can be viewed on YouTube and MTV Artist. He was collaborative songwriter with Sherman Hemsley and was instrumental in bringing the television star to Miami to be the grand Marshall for the Miami Carnival. While working on Miami Vice, he shared his spare time as a judge on the Miami Carnival during its early days of development.

Goodridge has written, arranged and produced many songs including his last EP in 2013 called I Just want to Love Ya.

His use of soca music has maintained a more international quality since he first began recording in 1978. He has always been known to fuse the genre with Jazz, R&B, and a taste of Brazilian instrumentation.

Goodridge’s song Ah Gotta Go, was the theme song for the album recorded in the 1990’s by Canadian based soca artist Ellsworth James. Goodridge also wrote the song Unity in the Community recorded by Blue Ventures around the same time and was one of the album’s Executive Producers.

Goodridge has made Trinidad proud by being the silent force behind the production of the Miami Soca Monarch competition. He provided technical advisement and assistance to the show’s producer, Norris Forde, when he personally designed the show’s lighting and conducted the stage management to create a quality programme that lasted many years. Goodridge is reputed to be the first designer to include robotic lighting and special effects in a soca competition.

A visionary who has brought success to many young artistes as well as behind-the-scenes production crews, Goodridge was and Executive Board member of the International Alliance of Theatrical Stage employees of the United States and Canada (IATSE) Local 545 of Miami, Florida. He was also a member of Local 500 and Movie Local 477. He was instrumental in creating careers for many young black men desired to work professionally on the stage and in the movie industry.

Goodridge was Department Head for many major productions such as the 2004 and 2005 MTV Music Awards. He served as Lighting Director and advisor for thousands of productions and his designs has graced the stage of every major theatrical facility in the State of Florida.

Goodridge has been duly awarded for his work in an industry that at one point was only privy to sons of its members. He opened doors that were closed and broke down barriers that were only crossed by a selected few. Some of the awards he received for his work include the Miami Gala Award, The T&T Sagaboys Record Producer of the Year Award, The Tri City Community Award for a children’s programme he developed for television and numerous others.

Goodridge pioneered lighting design with the use of projection, creating movement within the background of a dance performance. His work as Lighting Director with many colleges, universities and professional companies has had a lasting impact on the arts globally. His profession has taken him to as far away as West Africa, and throughout the US and the Caribbean. He also served as Technical Director and Production Manager for the Miami-Dade County’s Joseph Caleb Auditorium where he spear-headed the multi milliondollar renovation of the facility. An extremely knowledgeable, highly skilled, ambitious individual, this former military professional has received numerous battle medals and awards for his service. One such Award is the Navy Achievement Medal issued to him by his squadron in Virginia for his continuous involvement in military operations. As class leader in aviation school in New Jersey, unknown to Goodridge, he impressed the base admiral continuously as he marched his class to and from the barracks to the hangar bay every day singing Anchors Aweigh, a popular Navy song. The admiral called the school to find out who was the class leader that forced him to stare through his office window when the class came marching by. At graduation the admiral issued a special award for Goodridge and he was also awarded for best class leader in the entire school.

During early 1970 this former football player got a second call back for the first T&T under seventeen football tryout. He migrated to New York during that time and continued his football career. He played for Miami-Dade College and while in the Navy he was the only Navy personnel selected for the All Marine Corp Championships.

The team won second place and earned them a silver medal.

Goodridge also played for Camp Elmore Devil Dogs and his goal-scoring ability as a striker led the team to win the Third Division league of the Tide Water Soccer Association. The team moved up to Second Division and copped second place in the championship. After a brief move to play for Stihl Soccer Club, Goodridge returned to Camp Elmore as its player/coach and eventually took the team to the First Division league.

Goodridge is currently multi tasking as owner of Sly’s Pub and preparing his other three novels for publication, as well as filming local projects highlighting T&T.

Why is it so very easy to immediately think of mental illness once we hear the words mental health?

Much of the conversations people have had about mental health focuses on mental illness. But there’s more to mental health and mental well-being than simply being with or without mental illness. And mental health is not mental illness.

Among those writing and researching mental well-being, which has become more topical globally, are people who understand mental health and who accept that mental health is neither the same nor necessarily the opposite of mental illness.

Mental health is something that every human being has or, as I like to say whenever I engage an audience, “If you have a mind then you have mental health. At any moment in one’s life, you may have good mental health or you may not. You may experience bad mental health for a period and resume your good mental health after. Everyone with a mind, however, has mental health.”

But not everyone has mental illnesses or disorders. Yet everyone with a mind, if they do not maintain good mental health, is susceptible to mental illness, issues, problems, distress, or disorders. And as in many other health situations, some vulnerabilities exist which predisposes some to mental ill health.

It is the exact concept as having a body and having physical health. Some people are physically well; at times a person experiences physical illness, which is treated and they return to good physical health.

Sometimes a person may have a physical illness that is treatable but not curable, but overall they are managing their illness and enjoying good physical well-being, or not.

Recently, I have been looking at a model which may appear over simplified, but nevertheless it makes a good point about teaching that every human being has mental health or experiences varying degrees of mental health and we do so on a continuous basis meandering from periods of good mental health to periods of bad mental health to disorder to recovery, interchangeably, altogether and throughout our lives.

In The Interrelationship of Mental Health States, Dr Stan Kutcher discusses the significance of the relationship of different mental health states and the importance of language in helping us to define and differentiate mental health and its varying stages which could include periods or incidents of mental ill health.

This scholarship teaches that, “A person can be in one or more of these mental health states at the same time. For example: a person can (be diagnosed with) Schizophrenia (a mental disorder), their mother has recently died (a mental health problem), they lost their car keys earlier today (mental distress) and now they are hanging out with a friend and enjoying themselves.

And there are people with on-going mental disorders. The key to good mental health or good well-being has to do with issues such as management of health and recovery from periods of illness. There are people whose mental health is so disordered that they need long-term care. There are others who can manage the disorder and participate actively in their own recovery and care.

Your mental state can impact your ability to enjoy life. A poor state can affect your physical and mental health and interfere with you having a balanced and rewarding life. Everyone can benefit from learning how to enhance and protect their mental health—whether or not they have or are experiencing mental illness.

Mental health is not the same as mental illness.

• Caroline C Ravello is a strategic communications and media professional and a public health practitioner. She holds an MA with Merit in Mass Communications (University of Leicester) and is a Master of Public Health With Distinction (The UWI).

Flow TV and Caribbean Tales Incubator (CTI) premiered three films—Battledream Chronicle, Caribbean Girl NYC and Heat — at The Big Black Box, Woodbrook on Thursday evening.

The CTI programme’s goal is to increase the pool of world class indigenous film and television content by providing a year-round development production hub for Caribbean and Caribbean diaspora producers, aiming to create strong, compelling and sustainable content for a global market.

As Flow continues to commit to the development of the Caribbean filmmaking industry, customers within Flow TV network in partnership with CTWD, Caribbean Tales Worldwide Distribution, can now have access via Flow on Demand, to Alain Bidard’s Battledream Chronicle, Mariette Monipierre’s Caribbean Girl NYC and Menelik Shabazz’ Heat, recent additions to the existing variety of Caribbean themed content currently available.

Bidard’s Battledream Chronicle, now an animated mini-series, is about young black slave females defeating their Machiavellian master and bringing down his empire, in a futuristic world where the slave plantation is a video game. Monipierre’s Caribbean Girl NYC tells a story of an immigrant girl, Isabelle, from Guadeloupe who moves to New York City, in pursuit of fame, money and love.

Without money or working papers she is still determined to live the American dream from her Crown Heights apartment she shares with roommates Trinidadian Tilly, Jamaican Dana and Barbadian Kate.

Shabazz’ Heat, set in multi-cultural Barbadian society, is a mini series about murder, drama, class and sex. PICTURES DION ROACH

Noted costume designer Loyce Arthur will deliver the keynote speech at Design for Performance TT 2018 (DPTT).

Arthur is an associate Professor of Design at the University of Iowa who has designed costumes for productions in the US, UK and Greece.

She has studied design in Italy, Ghana, Bali and West Africa, and researched carnival in Trinidad, Brazil, the Netherlands and Toronto, Canada.

Arthur will also deliver a presentation titled Intersections between Carnival and Theatre Design on the first day of the three-day event.

She will join a host of theatre professionals, including Wendell Manwarren, Tony Hall, Margaret Sheppard and Mervyn de Goeas who will participate in a series of panels which will take place between March 8 and 10 at the National Academy for the Performing Arts (NAPA), Port of Spain.

The panels will include Set design. Is there a Trini way?; Sound Design for Theatre in a Trinidadian Context; Lighting the stage: theatre and mas; Production and Technology; a live demonstration of Makeup for Performance; and International Events/PQ 2019. How do we get there?, among others.

Panellists include Benny Gomes, Navid Lancaster, Manwarren and Hall.

Exhibitors at DPTT will include Meiling, Christopher Cozier, Kathryn Chan, Greer Jones-Woodham, de Goeas and others.

An event of this type has not been held since 1990, and industry professionals and practitioners say it is long overdue.

DPTT is being presented by UTT (Napa), in collaboration with the National Drama Association of T&T (NDATT).

The event marks the launch of the PQ2019 Initiative, a concerted effort to present a T&T pavilion at the Prague Quadrennial 2019, the world’s most important exhibition of performance design.

Local artists will be invited to collaborate on the project.

The 2019 instalment of the Prague Quadrennial of Performance Design and Space will be the 50th anniversary of the event, which brings the best of Performance Design, Scenography and Theatre Architecture to the front line of cultural activities to be experienced by the professionals, as well as the public.

Limited space is available for the panels. For further details, find Design for Performance TT 2018 on Facebook and visit the NDATT website at www.thendatt.wordpress.com

HARARE—Man-of-the-Match Shimron Hetmyer and veteran opener Chris Gayle both struck imperious hundreds as West Indies overwhelmed United Arab Emirates by 60 runs to make a winning start to their World Cup qualification campaign yesterday.

Choosing to bat first in the Group A contest at Old Hararians, the Caribbean side motored to a massive 357 for four off their 50 overs, with Hetmyer blasting 127 and fellow left-hander Gayle carving out 123.

Hetmyer faced 93 balls and belted 14 fours and four sixes to mark his maiden One-Day International hundred while Gayle lashed seven fours and 11 massive sixes in a 91-ball innings which delivered his 23rd one-day century. Stroke-maker Shai Hope gathered 35 before retiring hurt with a knock to knee in the final over while left-hander opener Evin Lewis struck 31.

In reply, Rameez Shahzad stroked an impressive unbeaten 112 as UAE rallied to 297 for six off their allotted overs, in an effort that gained the minnows plaudits.

Shaiman Anwar weighed in with 64, Adnan Mufti got 45 while Chirag Suri hit 38, as UAE did well to bat out their 50 overs despite the defeat.

Captain Jason Holder was the best Windies bowler, picking up five for 53 with his medium pace.

The result was never really in doubt once the Windies notched their fourth highest total in ODIs, as Gayle and Hetmyer dominated the inexperienced UAE attack.

Gayle posted 88 for the first wicket with Lewis who faced 49 balls and struck three fours before falling lbw to left-arm spinner Ahmed Raza in the 17th over.

His dismissal brought Gayle and Hetmyer together, and they added a further 103 for the second wicket to keep the Windies in cruise control.

The 38-year-old Gayle provided the early momentum, punching five fours and three sixes to ease to his half-century off 47 deliveries, before racing to three figures off a mere 32 more balls.

He brought up his landmark in the 25th over with a single down the ground off seamer Mohammed Naveed, to become only the third batsman to score ODI hundreds against 11 different countries.

South African Hashim Amla and Indian legend Sachin Tendulkar are the other two batsmen to have achieved the feat.

Gayle then celebrated with successive sixes off the first three balls of the next over from captain and off-spinner Rohan Mustafa before eventually holing out to deep mid-wicket in the 29th over off leg-spinner Imran Haider.

The 21-year-old Hetmyer quickly took charge of the innings, accelerating the scoring to reach his hundred off 78 balls in the 44th over. He added 77 for the third wicket with Marlon Samuels (15) and a further 65 for the fourth wicket with Hope before falling to a catch at the wicket off seamer Amir Hayat in the 48th over.

In reply, UAE found themselves in early trouble when they lost, their top three to slump to 69 for three in the 17th over.

Seamer Kemar Roach had Mustafa caught at the wicket by Hetmyer for eight in the fourth over with the score on 19 and Holder struck twice, first claiming Ghulam Shabber caught and bowled for six in the 13th over and then sending back Chirag Suri caught behind.

To UAE’s credit, however, there was no collapse as Shahzad and Anwar out on 144 to keep West Indies on their toes.

The 30-year-old Shahzad counted nine fours and four sixes in a knock requiring 107 balls to post his second ODI century while Anwar faced 62 balls and slammed five fours and three sixes.

Holder struck twice in the 39th over, removing Anwar and Mohammad Usman (1) and even though Shahzad and Mufti put on a lively 80 off 60 deliveries for the sixth wicket, the target proved beyond UAE’s reach.

West Indies face Papua New Guinea in their second match on Thursday the same venue.
(CMC)

T&T will soon get its third Olympic Gold medal following Hasely Crawford ( 1976) and Kershorn Walcott (2012) triumphs. T&T’s men’s 4x100 metres team which finished second to Jamaica at the 2008 Beijing

Olympics will receive the gold medal after Jamaica was disqualified after a doping violation and has finally returned the medals earlier this year.

T&T’s four-time Olympic medallist Ato Boldon, speaking on i95.5fm Isports programme on Saturday confirmed the latest development in the matter. He said, “As you know, I am an Ambassador with the IAAF, and I can confirm, that Jamaica have handed in their gold medals following the disqualification and all the appeals etc.”

Boldon when pressed as to when the medals will be handed over and where he said, “At the moment, I can only say that it is expected to be this year. I cannot say whether it will be three months or six months time, but I am confident based on what has happened since the return of the gold medals, that it will be in 2018.”

Boldon was speaking together with three-time Olympic medallist Richard Thompson on the controversy involving the Ministry of Sports Elite funding issues and several related communication between athletes and ministry officials.

He said, “None of this should be a surprise to anyone, it has been going on for a long time in the sports arena, perhaps now it is more obvious because a lot of stuff is in writing, but it appears that the Ministry of Sports has gone from one extreme too lenient to another too severe.”

“But now if the team is to get another gold medal our third, it will be interesting how the officials will deal with this having ignored the athletes letters and calls in the past. It would appear strange that they would now want to have photo opportunities with our gold medal winning team, but nevertheless this is something that we have to celebrate, our third gold medal, it is an historic moment and has to be fully appreciated as that, hopefully by then, these matters could be sorted,” noted Boldon.

Thompson was of the opinion that, “This is a bridge that we will cross when it reaches, but for the moment I am hopeful that I can have a meeting with the Minister of Sports and his team so that we can sort out some of these points which have been raised, which need to be clarified. I will try to talk with the NAAA and ask them to coordinate a meeting. This is not about Richard Thompson, this is about our athletes knowing where they stand.”

In theory, women in this country enjoy the same legal rights as men when it comes to employment. In practice, that is not the case.

While significant strides have been made over the years and women are represented at all levels in the labour force, including in senior executive positions and in board rooms, there are still major disparities.

On the one hand, data from the Central Statistical Office (CSO) shows that the share of women in the labour force has been steadily increasing since the 1980s. This is not surprising given the fact that at all educational levels, T&T’s women are keeping pace with, or surpassing, their male counterparts.

However, although this country has already had the distinction of electing a woman to the highest political office—Kamla Persad-Bissessar, from 2010 to 2015—and another will soon be installed in the highest office in the land—Paula Mae Weekes will be sworn in as President on March 19—gender pay equality has not been achieved. Neither the ruling People’s National Movement, nor Persad-Bissessar’s United National Congress have it on their political agendas.

Had it been anywhere on the horizon, Mrs Sharon Rowley, wife of Prime Minister Dr Keith Rowley, had the opportunity to speak about it when she launched International Women’s Week at UWI on Monday.

However, she did mention her husband’s commitment to equality of the sexes, which he now should take the opportunity to demonstrate by introducing policies and legislation to level the gender playing field.

Political will is needed for elimination of T&T’s gender pay gap once and for all. At present there are no laws or regulations requiring equal pay for equal work. While equal pay for men and women is the rule rather than the exception in the public sector, there are still significant disparities in pay between men and women in the private sector.

As of 2016—the most recent period for which data can be found—T&T ranked 91st in the world out of 114 countries in wage equality. On average, women earn US$$22,656 a year, while men earn US$41,527 for the same period.

The gender wage gap is largest on the lower end of the income scale where it is estimated to be at 25.9 per cent and women in the 35-44 age group face the highest levels of discrimination.

Some legal protection exists for the country’s working women, but not enough. Apart from United Nations Conventions ratified by this country such as International Labour Organisation (ILO) Conventions and the Tripartite Consultation (International Labour Standards) Convention, 1976 (No. 144), there is the Industrial Relations Act (1972), the Retrenchment and Severance Payments Act (1985), the Minimum Wage Act (1976), and most recently, the Equal Opportunity Act (2000).

Add to those disparities the reality of T&T’s working women are also primary care-givers, carrying the bulk of the responsibility for raising children, performing housework, taking care of the sick, the ageing and elderly, and other social functions, and it is clear that this country still has a long way off from gender parity.

This reality should weigh heavily on all of us, particularly today, as T&T joins the rest of the world in observing International Women’s Day.

Could it be that this nation is still saddled with a strong patriarchal network holding fast to historical and cultural attitudes and practices that do not place sufficient value on women’s work? If so, the country is not fully benefitting from all that women can bring to the table, such as multitasking, teamwork, a nurturing mindset.

The time is now therefore for the Rowley administration, with support from the Opposition and none of the usual political grand standing, to ensure passage of legislation that ensures equal pay for equal work across all economic sector and in all income levels.

In other jurisdictions there are such laws.

In the United States, for example, the Equal Pay Act requires that jobs be substantially equal. It covers all forms of pay, including overtime, bonuses, profit sharing and allowances. In short, it is it illegal to discriminate based on sex in pay and benefits.

Iceland, widely regarded as the world’s most gender-equal country, requites all public and private entities employing more than 25 people to pay equal wages for work of equal value or face daily fines.

However, while the passage of more progressive laws will move things forward, the onus cannot be only on T&T’s legislators to ensure pay equality. Businesses must also commit to fair hiring and promotions practices, focusing on accountability and results.

Men and women will enjoy the resulting measurable economic benefits. Consider, for example, how pay equality can create a larger tax base; eliminate growing concerns about the sustainability of the National Insurance Scheme (NIS) as the size of the pool of contributors will increase, and boost household savings rates.

For the private sector, closing the gender pay gap could boost profitability. Companies that promote gender diversity enjoy better financial results than their competitors and enjoy improved performances all round including within their senior leadership teams.

Trade union, too, can help make a difference by lobby harder for pay equality in their collective agreements. They also need to be more outspoken on the various forms of discrimination that still exists in the workplace.

International Women’s Day is an opportunity to celebrate the progress we have made, as well as identify challenges and shortcomings and how they can be overcome.

By this time next year, T&T gender pay gap should be substantially reduced, or completely eradicated.

Three decades ago, five friends enrolled in a short course in handicraft in their close-knit Paramin community. At the end of the state-sponsored course, as they tried to figure how to use their newly acquired skills, their instructor offered an idea.

“He told us why not apply for a grant and go into making seasoning as a business,” one of the women, Veronica Romany, recalled.

“We all laughed because we told him, ‘we from Paramin and we know everything about seasoning. We born and grow up in seasoning’.

But Romany explained the instructor meant to process and bottle seasoning.

She recalled he said, “Do more with it after you plant it.”

Romany said their instructor saw what we did not see in ourselves— that we were business women.

Romany and her friends has since taken this advice and have established an agro-processing business, Genuine Paramin Seasoning, making full use of the abundant supplies of chive, broad leaf thyme, pimento and chadon beni growing in the lush green hillsides around their community.

The entrepreneurs pooled whatever savings they had and invested in modest equipment for their factory—small blenders and glass bottles.

“It was hard at first because we never did this before. It was time consuming also. We managed to buy about three or four little blenders initially and we had to do plenty grinding. But when the business started to pick up, we invested the profit into more equipment. We bought larger blenders which could grind about 60 pounds of herbs one time,” Romany said.

Today the women have a sense of fierce independence and resilience, encouraged by the success of their venture against all odds.

Romany, 62, and her business partners Martina Romany, 77, Jean Letren, 66, Gabriella Joseph 52 and Pamela Lawrence—are also part of the Paramin Women’s Group and have been instrumental in providing a platform for farmers and other micro-business owners in the area.

“We buy about 700 to 800 pounds of various herbs from the farmers in the area. We get first preference. We are a regular market for the farmers and they appreciate that,” Romany said.

As the business grew, the women got assistance from the Caribbean Industrial Research Institute (Cariri) and the Inter-American Institute for Co-operation in Agriculture (IICA) to increase their production capacity.

These days, once a week on Wednesdays, the women—who all live within walking distance of the factory at Saut D’eau Road—weigh, trim and wash the herbs, freezing whatever is left over for the following week. The next day the herbs are grounded separately and poured into large barrels, then mixed together with potassium sorbate as a preservative.

Painstakingly, the women manually fill bottles with the seasonings, which are then sold for $15 a bottle or $190 a case.

When she is not churning out the popular green mixture, Romany is busy making sugar cakes and brewing home-made wine, just like some of the other members of the group.

All avid churchgoers, the five attend Sunday mass at the Paramin RC Church every week.

“We always pray before we start the day in the factory. We give the Lord thanks and ask Him to bless the business,” Romany said.

The factory produces only for the local market and, at present, there are no plans to export.

“Expanding outside Trinidad is too much money,” Romany said.

Even as they enjoy the success of their business, however, the women admit they are concerned about the future of the factory.

“The younger generation does not seem to be interested in hard work like planting garden. They only want to dress up and go out and look nice,” said Romany whose three adult daughters do not share her passion.

The other big challenge is finding workers.

“We had some but they don’t stay and it is even harder because it is an all-woman business. The workers we get always moving on,” Romany said.

There are still fundamental issues yet to be tackled for the advancement of women in this country. Even after some 20 years of clarion calls to put in place policies to empower women, these are yet to be recognised, far more implemented.

For today’s observes of International Women’s Day (IWD) the key theme #PressforProgress, builds on the #MeToo and #TimesUp movements as women around the world continue to push for gender parity.

But how much progress has really been made thus far in T&T?

According to chairman of the Equal Opportunities Commission (EOC) attorney Lynette Seebaran-Suite, the country falls short in many areas. Pregnant women are still discriminated against and several complaints have been brought against employers for failing to recognise maternity rights and benefits.

“We do have some maternity legislation but we do get complaints frequently of women being disadvantaged in the workplace due to their maternity status,” she said.

“These have to do with complaints of women being victimised for being pregnant, or when they try to come back out there is no job for them.”

Seebaran-Suite said while women have made great strides in various fields, including education, the road ahead is still somewhat arduous.

“It is not an even march forward. Sometimes we take one step forward and two steps back. We still have not had the good fortune to have our government pronounce on a gender policy.

“We also do not have modern, forward-looking abortion laws. We still have the question of looking again at our domestic violence remedy. We have made some progress as we have domestic violence legislation, we have a domestic violence court, we have shelters but the remedy needs to be tweaked and the legislation needs to be looked at,” she advocated.

The EOC also gets many complaints of gender discrimination, especially relating to promotion.

Unequal pay for equal work remains a troubling area of sex discrimination, Seebaran-Suite said, but can be tackled within the remit of the EOC.

“The government might want to pass legislation to make it very clear in society that women should receive equal pay for work of equal value,” she said.

The most educated fall victim

What’s the difference between an abusive relationship and love? Even women perceived to be well-educated are often unable to decipher, rendering them stuck in years of horrific violence of all forms.

The International Women’s Resource Network (IWRN)—an organisation aimed at saving women from abuse—has a gynaecologist among its clients.

IWRN president Adriana Sandrine Isaac-Rattan said educating women is an ongoing process as some needed to be “literally dug out” from the bowels of mistreatment that is meted out to them in all forms.

“Education starts from understanding the space that we coexist in which can be one of abuse. We have situations where many women have mixed feelings and mixed information and so they become confused and that is where we have to start, with education.

“It’s really about educating these women so they can come out of their shells,” Isaac-Rattan said.

Urging that “conversations be move to concerted effort” Isaac-Rattan emphasised that the IWRN has no desire to be part of forums.

“That is just about talk. We need to go into the trenches to get men and women in a space where they can understand what is going on with them.

“Both parties must understand where they are. We ask two simple questions: do you love your man and do you love your woman and do you want to remain in the relationship. Many times when we ask those questions both parties break down in tears but we are very on the ground. We keep it real,” she said.

Echoing the views of Seebaran-Suite, she said women had progressed over the years but there is need for a certain level of awareness particularly relating to gender justice and sexual harassment.

More voices are being heard, so those topics were no longer considered taboo, she said.

Women still a minority

In the area of economic and corporate decision-making at high levels, women remained a small minority, said Dr Gabrielle Hosein, head of the Institute of Gender and Development Studies of UWI’s, St Augustine campus.

This is not a reflection of their qualifications or capacity but rather of gender stereotype—some women are perceived as either too feminine and too willing to make sacrifices in their career for family. or seen as too masculine, too aggressive or domineering when in power.

Women are also saddled with greater responsibilities, as the care for children and the aged affects their career trajectory in ways which do not often affect men.

“The low number of women at the highest level of decision-making also have to do with informal factors such as mentorship, male network, and other kinds of informal relations amongst men… when they play golf or make business decisions in bars and rum shops.

“So pressing for progress means looking at the percentage of women at the highest level of corporate leadership and decision-making and asking if that low number seems to reflect what is fair, just and good for overall gender equality and development,” Hosein said.

A large percentage of women also comprise the sales and retail sector, but often hours are long, wages are poor and they are non-unionised.

“That labour segregation,” Hosein said, “is one of the reasons why the average income of men is around $15,000 more per month than that of women in T&T.

“When you average all male income and all women income, this is the figure and it says that women remain poorer in addition to them having less access to decision-making.”

She said this gender pay gap ultimately affects a woman’s ability to own a house, business or improve on professional qualifications.

Oil company bpTT has not been robbing the government of money by using transfer pricing to avoid paying correct taxes on LNG exports.

So says outgoing president Norman Christie who, in his exit interview with Business and Money, admitted that the country has not earned as much money from LNG but maintained it was not a result of transfer pricing.
In its simplest form, transfer pricing refers to the rules and methods for pricing transactions between enterprises under common ownership or control. An oil and gas company may have a trading company that’s part of its group and may agree to sell LNG from Point Fortin to its trading arm for a particular price. That trading arm may resell the same LNG at a higher price and the government only gets taxes based on the lower price. This results in the company’s profits increasing and a loss of taxes to the state.

The Rowley administration claims transfer pricing has resulted in billions of dollars of losses to the State.

However, Christie said the matter is misunderstood. He explained that in Train 1 there can be no transfer pricing because all of the companies that buy LNG have no relationship with the owners of the train or bpTT, the sole provider of gas to the Train 1 plant.

In Trains 2 and 3, close to 90 per cent of the LNG going to parties with no relationship to the shareholders. The only difference is Train 4 which was set up as a processing facility, and the matter is very complicated.

Christie said the government will earn more money from Train 1 when the contracts are renegotiated.

He explained that 20 years ago the Train 1 contract was negotiated tying T&T to LNG prices at the Henry Hub in the United States. With the shale gas revolution prices became depressed and T&T’s earnings from Train 1 plummeted.

“That is mainly because of the contractual arrangements that were made 20 years ago. As time has moved on, some of those contracts have exposure to Henry Hub which, at the time, was the preferred market.

Henry Hub is now not as favoured a market. Had we known 20 years ago what we know now, we would not have set ourselves up for the exposure,” Christie said.

“When Atlantic was initially constructed you needed 20-year contracts because you could not get short-term finance. Train 1 needed secured supply contracts and off take contracts because the length of the loans were also long

“We now have trains that have been heavily depreciated, not burdened by debt and in a market that is far more liquid. You can now do shorter-term contracts.“

Asked if he could guarantee more revenue to the state after the Train 1 negotiations Christie said: “Yes it will be better. The markets have changed. It is no longer buyer’s market, so the structure we are proposing will lead to greater net back to the country. I can say without reservation that the country will benefit.”

Christie expects there will be need for fixed contracts and room for spot sales of LNG.

Asked if in the negotiation bpTT would want the contract extended beyond five years bearing in mind, it was only willing to provide the NGC with a five-year gas agreement, Christie said: “I am not talking terms here but what I will say is that we will use the same logic with Atlantic that we used with the NGC. We will not get ahead of ourselves in terms of the developments that we currently have.”

Commenting on the NGC contract, he said: “We have done a term of a contract consistent with the resources that we currently have and then we will asses as we continue, so you can have extensions as we find more but you don’t want to get ahead of yourself and contract what you don’t have.”

Christie said he was proud of the team he built with 95 per cent of bpTT’s staff being locals and representing more than 75 per cent of the leadership team.

Reminded that under his watch 10 per cent of the staff was sent home, Christie admitted that was a difficult decision.

“We did what was necessary to ensure that we had a stronger organisation,” he explained.

He said the bpTT is committed to being in T&T for the long run and was shooting seismic last year as they continue to look for opportunities in the Columbus Basin.

“We have strong confidence in the Columbus Basin and then we look at other options,” he said. “We have our sights set on deep water as well but I don’t want to undermine what we have in our heartland which is significant.”

At the end of the month will leave T&T for London to head the office of BP Plc’s global CEO. He will be replaced by the first female CEO of a major oil and gas company in this country.

As a country historically dependent on its energy sector for growth, T&T will definitely require revenue from the sector to finance any of our short-, medium- and long-term ambitions.

A decision to develop road infrastructure projects or even finance our entry into new industries like maritime services would be influenced in some way by our energy sector’s fortunes. Whether these ambitions come to fruition depend on how global energy prices, our oil and gas production levels, tax incentives and other investment indicators intersect. Therefore keeping track of the rise and fall in taxes the country earns from the sector is instructive and can help inform policy and project decisions and give a sense of the country’s economic health.

Access to publicly available, credible data analysis is therefore key for government, companies and citizens.

The T&T Extractive Industries Transparency Initiative (TTEITI) provides independently verified and audited information on oil, gas and mining revenue. The EITI focuses on promoting high standards of transparency and accountability in how a country governs its natural resources. The principles at the heart of the EITI require countries to publish accurate information on key aspects of their natural resource management including how much tax and social contributions companies are paying and how this money is allocated on a national and sub-regional level. The initiative also promotes reconciliation of company and government production, disclosure of beneficial owners of companies and gives concrete recommendations on how countries can improve their tax collection, audit and assurance and even data management systems.

Based on information gathered by the TTEITI, it is clear that in the past seven years, there has been a sharp decline in revenue earned from the energy sector.

In fact, all of the major energy sector taxes trend downwards. The following charts provide information on the trends of the major energy sector taxes paid between 2011 to 2017. However, it should be noted that the figures presented for fiscal 2016 and 2017 have not yet been audited by the Independent EITI auditor/administrator BDO Trinity Ltd.

Chart 1: PSC Share of Profit

This chart identifies the share of profit government received from its producing production sharing contracts (PSCs). From this share of profit, the Ministry of Energy and Energy Industries (MEEI) also pays the tax liability of its PSC partners to the Board of Inland Revenue (BIR).

For instance, if government partners with two companies for a PSC, the State is entitled to pay taxes such as Petroleum Profits Tax, Supplemental Petroleum Tax, Unemployment Levy, Green Fund Levy etc on behalf of its two partners.

Over the past seven years, government received $12.8 billion in PSC share of profit and paid $8.5 billion in taxes from these profits on behalf of its PSC partners to the BIR. Between fiscal 2014-2017 there has been a 67 per cent decline in PSC share of profit received by government.

Chart 2: Petroleum Profits Tax and Supplemental Petroleum Tax

Companies pay Petroleum Profits Tax (PPT) on their taxable profits after deducting expenses for activities linked to exploration and production e.g. drilling costs. PPT is charged at a rate of 50 per cent on taxable profit generally but at a 35 per cent rate for deepwater oil and gas developments.

PPT applies to both producing and refining companies. In fiscal 2011, the Government collected $9.1 billion in PPT whereas in fiscal 2016 collections this fell dramatically to 901 million, a 90 per cent decline.

Supplemental Petroleum Tax (SPT) is directly linked to the price of oil and is triggered when oil prices rise above US $50 per barrel. Between fiscals 2011-2015, the Government collected $18.9 billion in SPT.

Oil prices averaged US $78 during that period and averaged US $43 in 2016 and US $50 in 2017. Between fiscal 2015 and 2016 SPT collection declined from TT $4.7 billion to $135 million, closely mirroring the decline in oil prices. Between 2011 and 2016, SPT collection declined by 96 per cent. Payment of this tax is due every quarter therefore short term oil price increases can lead to increased SPT.

Similarly, if prices are depressed and below US $50 per barrel the Government will not receive any SPT payments. The Government has signaled its intention to amend the existing SPT regime in the near future.

Chart 3: Royalty

Open Oil, an extractive sector NGO, describes royalties as “a percentage share of production, or the value of the production which goes to the Government regardless of the rate of production or costs to the operator”.

Simply put, if a particular oil well produces 100 barrels per day in March and oil prices average US $50 per barrel for that particular month, the cash flow would be $5,000 per day. If the Government agreed to a 12.5 percent royalty rate then it would receive $625 per day. Between fiscal 2011-2017, the royalty Government received fell by 63 per cent, declining from $2.3 billion in fiscal 2011 to $855 million in fiscal 2017.

Government recently amended the Petroleum Regulations and, from January 1, 2018, all Exploration and Production licensees or PSC contractors will have to pay a royalty rate of 12.5 per cent.

NGC dividends

According to the EITI report 2014-2015, NGC was the single largest contributor to Government revenue in both 2014 and 2015, with payments totaling more than $8.3 billion in 2014 and $8.4 billion in 2015.

In fiscal 2016 this trend is likely to continue with the company making payments of $5.6 billion (unaudited). It is important to note that dividend payments account for the bulk of the company’s contribution.

In fiscal 2011, the company paid $350 million in dividends to the Ministry of Finance which ballooned to a historic high of $5.7 billion by 2015. In 2016, NGC’s dividend payments declined by roughly $1 billion to $4.6 billion and in 2017 payments dropped to $1.3 billion (unaudited).

What data represents

The data presented above tells the story of energy sector revenue generation in the T&T economy as well as the current economic challenges the country faces. The decline in energy sector revenue should force us to rethink how we manage and allocate what is earned from the sector. The data provided can help inform legal and fiscal reforms, provide independently verified research for analysts, policymakers and commentators.

Most importantly, it empowers citizens with information to strengthen their demands for sustainable spending of the earnings from the energy sector, the mainstay of the national economy.

The latest T&T EITI Report will be available in April. Visit www.tteiti.org.tt

In celebration of Alta’s 25th anniversary, the Association will host a series of events in the month of March. Since 1992, Alta has provided free reading and writing classes to adults around the country. This has resulted in an Association of over 250 tutors, thousands of students and over 50 venues around Trinidad. Due to the size of the organisation, Alta operates in regions with a coordinator spearheading all Alta programmes and decision making in the different regions. The regions have decided to celebrate the 25th anniversary in their own way.

Alta’s first event will be a Sports Day, to be held on Saturday, March 10, 2018 from 9 am-6 pm, at the Lopinot Historic Complex. This event will be hosted by the East and Mid-East Regions and will cater specifically to Alta students and tutors in this region. It will be a day of competitive and non-competitive fun among both tutors and students from Alta’s East Trinidad classes.

The Alta programme encourages at least one outing per academic year which should stimulate a writing lesson for students. As the East region has often done this as a regional event, their sports day was welcomed by students and tutors alike.

The Sports Day will be followed by an afternoon of Readings Under the Trees. This event will be hosted by Alta’s North region on Saturday, March 17, from 2 pm – 5:30 pm at the Royal Botanical Gardens in Port-of-Spain. Well known authors such as Michael Anthony, Lisa Allen Agostini and Judy Raymond will be joined by newly published writers such as Kevin Jared Hosein, Breanne McIvor and Judith Theodore.

Members of the public are invited to come listen to readings by these authors, as well as Alta tutors and students. Children are also welcomed as there will be a special area for them with appropriate readings from authors and literacy games. Alta asks that all attendees walk with drinks, eats and mats or blankets as we celebrate.

The final event will be hosted by Alta’s South and Central regions and will take the form of a Fun, Food and Frolic Day. The event which is also open to the public will be held on Saturday, March 24, at Guaracara Park, Pointe-a-Pierre from 10 am-4 pm. The event will be partly sponsored by Mario’s Pizzeria Limited who will be there with giveaways, games, their mascot and prizes for winners of the various games! The different Alta venues in South and Central Trinidad will be distributing samples of food and playing literacy-centred games, all with a literacy theme.

Alta is looking forward to the celebration of the organisation in the coming weeks and encourages members of the public to join Alta tutors and students at Readings Under the Trees in Port-of-Spain on March 17 and the Fun, Food and Frolic Day in Pointe-a-Pierre on March 24.

•Volunteer, Donate or Sponsor-a-student. Call 621-5708 or email altapos.tt@gmail.com for more info. Keep up to date with ALTA on Facebook, Twitter and Instagram: ALTA TT