The historically left-leaning Working People’s Alliance (WPA) on Monday said there was diplomatic space for Guyana to find the balance between regional solidarity with Cuba against the United States (US) and securing American support to deal with Venezuela’s increasing aggression over the Essequibo region. While Guyana needs to retain the support of the US and ...

Santo Domingo.- Political economy specialist Arismendi Díaz criticized the Dominican Republic’s healthcare system, stating that hospitals remain a symbol of poverty and inefficiency despite significant social protection coverage. Speaking on Contacto 360, he noted that while 97.3% of the population has healthcare access, the quality of care has not improved.

Díaz highlighted that despite strong economic growth, the country lags in social investment, with spending at half the Latin American average. He emphasized that this disparity has delayed healthcare reforms, requiring four decades to establish the current Social Security Law.

The loud music and even louder engine noise coming from the so-called “kitipos,” which occur from the early hours of the afternoon until the early hours of the morning, generate intense anxiety in different neighborhoods of the country.

HOY newspaper confirmed this reality when it moved to the Los Alcarrizos sector in Santo Domingo Norte as part of the special series Hoy en tu barrio. In interviews, several community members agreed that the noise is so unbearable that some have had to “sleep at work” to rest.

Survey

To find out if this situation is replicated in other communities, Hoy newspaper surveyed social networks, asking readers: “Do you face problems in your community due to loud music or other annoying noises?«

Most Internet users responded affirmatively, denouncing that noise pollution affects their quality of life.

Complaints from citizens

Hostensia expressed his frustration with the noise pollution: “I almost bleed from my ears, every day of the week, the whole day the windows shake from the noise, you can’t watch TV, you can’t rest.”

Angela Harvey denounced the alarming situation in La Vega: “Yes, La Vega is a disaster. Among the businesses that give permission to open in front of houses, schools, hospitals, and cars with horns, they are destroying peace.”

Orquídea narrated her experience: “We can’t rest easy, the street is on foot and those neighbors have parties every day. Believe me that last Tuesday we had to close the house and go somewhere else, we couldn’t hear our own voice. That is from Monday to Monday, and to make it more tragic they also do karaoke.”

Another user lamented the lack of control: “There is still a long way to go to control this disease, which is a disorder.”

Sandra, for her part, said that the situation is even more serious due to insecurity: “There is a lot of scandal, with criminals covering our society.”

They ask for action from the authorities

Some citizens took advantage of the conversation on social media to call on the Minister of Interior and Police, Faride Raful.

Richard encouraged the official: “Yes, the whole country is a noise. Faride, go ahead and fight this disorder.”

Francisco Alberto Encarnación denounced the constant problem of noise pollution in his sector, Villa Liberación, in Santo Domingo Este: “We have a lot of problems with noise pollution.”

However, not all users agreed with the complaints. Julissa Crisóstomo and Miguel affirmed that they do not face this situation in their sectors.

For his part, Yunior describes noise pollution as a widespread problem: “This is a society sick with noise. Good for Faride Raful, the people need to rest.”

President Irfaan Ali on Saturday said Guyana has asked the United States (US) to provide proof that Cuban workers were being exploited in Guyana, amid the Trump administration’s decision to cancel the visas of foreign government workers and their immediate family members if Cubans continue to be put into forced labour. “We also said to ...

The Ministry of Health reported that it has the necessary vaccines to protect the population and aims to cover 95% of people requiring inoculation.

The director of Immunopreventable by Vaccines (IVD) of the Ministry of Health, Aida Lucía Vargas, said that vaccines to reduce the risk of influenza A and B, among others, are available in more than 1,450 fixed posts throughout the national territory.

Anyone as young as six months of age can get a flu vaccine at these vaccination sites for free.

The director reported that in 2025, in addition to girls between 9 and 14 years old, boys of the same age will also be vaccinated against human papillomavirus. Before, we only vaccinated females.

Vargas indicated that the Dominican Republic, through the Ministry of Health, has a vaccination schedule following its epidemiological situation. This schedule includes vaccines against hepatitis B and pentavalent (which prevent diphtheria, tetanus, polio, measles, rubella, and mumps) and for reducing the risk of meningitis, whooping cough, rotavirus, and TDAP for pregnant women, among others.

“We have vaccines for the entire life course of people,” she said.

The specialist called on parents to go to the vaccination centers with their children to protect them from diseases.

Santo Domingo—Nurses at the Santo Domingo Health Center say that the population is heeding the call of Public Health and regularly coming to get vaccinated against influenza, polio, and human papillomavirus (HPV).

The nurses explained that the flu vaccine is one of the most requested by users, both adults and children, especially during the seasons when flu cases tend to increase.

On the other hand, the person in charge of the vaccines area, Alvin Johnson, highlighted the availability of the HPV vaccine, which will be used as a preventive method for boys between the ages of 9 and 14 as well as girls.

In the case of polio, Jonhson emphasized that unlike the flu and HPV vaccines, it is a compulsory vaccine given to children from two months of age, and the schedule is completed by age four.

In the same vein, the manager pointed out that, given the center’s activity and high demand for offering vaccination services free of charge, they currently have a sufficient supply of vaccines to attend to the entire population that wishes to come.

“The country and the center do have the necessary and sufficient vaccines to vaccinate the population,” said Johnson.

On the 13 March, 2025 in commemoration of World Obesity Day and under the theme “Changing Systems, Healthier Lives”, the HCC hosted a webinar, “Changing Systems, Healthier Lives: The Caribbean Road to UN High Level Meeting on NCDs and Mental Health” attended by over 150 people it covered the following:

• it outlined key advocacy priorities for Caribbean countries in preparation for the 2025 UN High-Level Meeting on NCDs.
• it presented examples of ongoing efforts and success stories in NCD prevention, control, and advocacy within the Caribbean region, highlighting potential progress or setbacks if advocacy priorities are not addressed.
• it explored how attendees can amplify the Regional Advocacy Priorities through their local, regional and global work.

Useful resources:

• Conflict of Interest in Policymaking for Non-communicable Diseases a Primer for Public Sector Policymakers in the Caribbean
• Safeguarding Public Health Nutrition in the Caribbean During Emergencies: Guidelines for Managing Donations from the Commercial Sector
• GCHA’s Latin America Caribbean Network is one of those spaces where we can begin strategizing and collaborating around climate change and health. Become a member:
• WHO Best Buys

Presenters

The post Webinar: Changing Systems, Healthier Lives appeared first on Healthy Caribbean Coalition.

View the full post Government provided over EC$4 million subvention to NGO on NOW Grenada.

Trisha Tannis, president of the Barbados Private Sector Association, has challenged the government to rethink its strategy on healthy eating, arguing that the latest measure to curb non-communicable diseases –  a ‘sodium tax’ on salty snacks – is insufficient without making nutritious alternatives more affordable for low-income families.

“As much as I support the thrust to reduce NCDs—and it is a must—the government has been congratulated for putting that in the crosshairs,” Tannis said. “But I would like to see an equal amount of strategy and emphasis on reducing the cost of healthy foods because when mothers, particularly in the vulnerable economic population, go into the supermarket, they are not making a nutritional choice. They are making an economic choice.”

Her comments come in response to the government’s latest budget proposal, which introduces new taxes on salted snacks such as potato chips and corn curls in an effort to discourage unhealthy eating habits. Tannis argued that this approach remains “ad hoc” and does not provide struggling families with viable alternatives.

“You simply give that woman an impossible decision to make,” she said, further noting the financial strain that many shoppers face when trying to prioritise nutrition over affordability. 

Tannis stressed the need for a targeted strategy that ensures a significant price reduction on essential fruits, vegetables, and other nutritious foods, suggesting that, just as unhealthy products are being taxed, healthier options should be deliberately made cheaper to empower households to make better dietary choices.

“We need a strategy that says you can pay extra for the bad things, and you can pay less for the good things,” she said. “Essentially, we need to empower households and women who are shopping for their children to make it easy to pick up the healthy things.” 

(SM)

The post BPSA: Make healthy food affordable instead of taxing snacks appeared first on Barbados Today.