Officials of the CARICOM Secretariat and representatives of the Global Fund for HIV/AIDS, Tubercolosis and Malaria (GFATM) last Friday signed a grant in the sum of $12.663 million to execute a project aimed at reducing the spread of HIV/AIDS in the Caribbean Region.

The funds will complement the many HIV/AIDS initiatives in the Region and enhance the capacity of regional institutions and agencies, working along with communities to lessen the impact of the epidemic on already vulnerable populations.

The Tenth Caribbean Community (CARICOM)- Japan Consultation was held at the CARICOM Headquarters in Georgetown on August 24, 2004. The delegation of CARICOM was headed by Ms Fay Housty, Director, Foreign Policy and External Economic Relations of the CARICOM Secretariat and that of Japan by Mr. Satoru Sato, Deputy Director-General, Latin America and Caribbean Affairs Bureau, Ministry of Foreign Affairs.

Leaders of the Caribbean Community (CARICOM) are being urged to shift from a production focus to gauge and meet internal needs and export demands in the agriculture sector.

This view was expressed by outgoing CARICOM Assistant Secretary-General, Mr. Byron Blake in the first of a series of open fora with staff of the CARICOM Secretariat, at the CARICOM Secretariat, Georgetown office.

Leaders of the Caribbean Community (CARICOM) are being urged to shift from a production focus to gauge and meet internal needs and export demands in the agriculture sector.

This view was expressed by outgoing CARICOM Assistant Secretary-General, Mr. Byron Blake in the first of a series of open fora with staff of the CARICOM Secretariat, at the CARICOM Secretariat, Georgetown office.

Caribbean Community (CARICOM) trade officials and representatives of national standards bureaux will participate in a Training for Trainers Workshop aimed at assisting CARICOM Member States to reap maximum rewards in the global trade arena.

The CARICOM Secretariat is collaborating with the CARICOM Regional Organisation for Standards and Quality (CROSQ) in staging the Workshop which will take place in Barbados 8-10 September 2004 The Workshop will focus on Standards and Technical Regulations, which can sometimes be used as artificial barriers to free trade.

The first President of the Caribbean Court of Justice (CCJ), the Right Honorable Justice Michael de la Bastide of Trinidad and Tobago will be sworn in on Wednesday, 18 August.

President of Trinidad and Tobago, Dr. George Maxwell Richards will administer the Oath of Office before a gathering expected to include Prime Minister of Grenada and CARICOM Chairman, Dr. the Honorable Keith Mitchell; CARICOM Secretary General, Mr. Edwin Carrington; and Commissioners of the Regional Judiciary and Legal Services Commission (RJLSC).

Civil Society in three CARICOM Member States is to benefit from workshops on Opportunities and Commitments for Establishment, Services and Capital in the CARICOM Single Market and Economy (CSME). A CARICOM Secretariat team of officials and consultants are scheduled to execute the sessions in St. Vincent and the Grenadines, Grenada and Dominica in August.

After spending millions of dollars over the past decade fighting the free exchange of their products over the Internet, some media companies are now yielding. The best way to get something in return, they are deciding, may be to accept that consumers want to play but few seem to want to pay. If enough of them join the game, there can still be a payback — either from consumers themselves or, increasingly, from advertisers.

The Caribbean Community mourns the passing of one of its pioneer sons, Sir Kenneth Standard, Professor Emeritus (Community Health) of the University of the West Indies (UWI) at the age of 82.

Vice Chancellor of the University, Professor Rex Nettleford, remembering Sir Kenneth, recalled that in 1948 this young Barbadian, already a headmaster in his native island journeyed to Mona, Jamaica to become one of the now famous "first 33" students to walk through the doors of the new the University College of the West Indies (UCWI) Faculty of Medicine.