Miss World Trinidad and Tobago, Aché Abrahams debuted her national costume during the Miss World Opening Ceremony in India on Tuesday, February 21. Abrahams proudly introduced herself as T&T’s representative, noting that the nation is famous for its steelpan, soca and Carnival.
Her costume, designed by Lost Tribe’s Solange Govia, depicted the Fancy Sailor and channelled the Golden Era of Sailor Mas portrayals, which the designer said acknowledged “the sophistication, vibrancy and power of the mas character.”
Govia explained: “I also started thinking about being a woman in the Carnival industry, and the fact that is also my duty to always honour our womanhood in these sacred traditions. I always want my costumes to remind people that there will always be a place and space for female representation in mas, and I am grateful that Val allowed me this amazing creative opportunity to challenge my design instincts, to inject this sense of femininity and grace into this design, and to just create freely.”
The designer provided some insight into the design elements of the stunning costume.
“From the embellished hat, to the towering collar, to the classic stick, I wanted to pay homage to the opulence that the Sailor Mas experience brings to the streets of Port of Spain. Of course, there had to be a design twist in this Fancy Sailor – the sand-coloured feathered skirt that replaced the bell-bottom pants, to not only represent the first visit of British, French and American naval ships in our nation’s history, but to also highlight where the Caribbean Sea meets the T&T shoreline,” she continued.
“For me, it is this simple reminder that through every storm, women have become ‘the glue’ to the Carnival experience. We bring these powerful elements together to define our legacy, and we will always be pivotal in pushing the winds of change forward,” Govia concluded.
The costume will again grace the stage for the Dances of the World segment.
The Miss World 2024 pageant takes place Saturday, March 9 from 10am - 1pm AST. (Source: The Loop, Feb 21, 2024)

inister of Agriculture, Land and Fisheries Kazim Hosein toured a rice project which is intended to revitalise the local rice industry, with the help of disease-resistant seeds from Guyana. 
In an update, the Ministry shared photos of Agriculture Minister Kazim Hosein on a tour of the project today. 
The Ministry said in 2023 it procured and distributed 91 tonnes of high-yielding, disease-resistant rice seeds from the government of Guyana—an essential step towards enhancing the quality and quantity of the country's rice production.
The Ministry said the project has not only met but exceeded acreage cultivation targets set by MALF's technical team.
The Ministry said other notable achievements of the project include contracts issued to individual rice farmers by National Flour Mills, repairs and servicing of MALF's Rice Harvester and other equipment, and ongoing training sessions introducing modern production techniques.
Currently, Minister Hosein is actively spearheading the identification of new lands for rice production—a strategic initiative aligned with the Ministry's growth objectives. 


In 2022 regional leaders attended the Agri Investment Forum and Expo II to discuss food security and creating the easier movement of goods and services within the region. 
CARICOM has committed to a 25 per cent reduction in its regional food import bill by 2025.
According to the Food and Agriculture Organisation of the United Nations (FAO), the combined food import bill (FIB) for the 14 Caribbean Community member states sky-rocketed from US$2.08 billion in 2000 to US$4 billion in 2008, and surpassed the US$4.25 billion mark in 2011. (Source: The Loop, Jan 22, 2024)

​The national bird of Tobago is the Rufous-vented chacalaca, locally called the Cocrico because of their call. Main Ridge, Tobago. (Credit: Jerome E. Foster Photography)

AN e-book version has been created for the book Celebrating Trinidad and Tobago's Culture and Arts, making it freely accessible globally.
Author Nasser Khan expressed his gratitude to Minister of Tourism Randall Mitchell and his staff for backing the initiative.
Described as the Students Companion of TT Culture and the Arts, over 600 educational institutions received approximately 2,000 hard copies of the 336-page book back in 2019.
Researched and written by Khan, his 30th publication inclusive of the e-book, the book contains 33 chapters on topics including Carnival, literary arts, religious festivals, culinary arts and music. There is a special chapter entitled Uniquely Tobago, a media release said.
Khan had lamented back in 2019, "Currently in the schools of TT there is no one reference book specific to the broad spectrum of our culture and the arts. Students and teachers must therefore use a variety of resources for assignments…I wanted this book to be a one-stop shop to reduce the amount of time it takes for people to consult multiple sources on the history and culture of TT, depending on the scope of their research.”
Then minister of culture Nyan Gadsby-Dolly said, "The very title of this book, Celebrating TT's Culture and Arts, speaks to the importance of what this book brings to our young people."
She said it is important for people to recognise the country's rich culture and develop a greater sense of patriotism.
The book covers all of TT's cultural and artistic forms of expressions, with illustrations.
The online link is: https://archive.org/details/cultureandthearts.com

Fishermen and Friends of the Sea (FFOS) say the origin and purpose of the overturned vessel in Tobago must be identified quickly.
In a media release on February 13, FFOS said the country remains in the dark about the situation, almost a week since the vessel was found leaking an oily substance 200m off the coast of the Cove Eco-Industrial and Business Park.
FFOS said, "According to the Tobago Emergency Management Agency (TEMA), booms have been successfully deployed in the vicinity of the leaking Gulfstream vessel, but isn't more oil still leaking from the vessel?
"It's critical at this stage that we determine how much more oil will be leaked to determine if the booms will contain it."
FFOS speculated that the substance being leaked into the ocean could be crude oil and warned about the devastating impact on the environment and people's livelihoods.
"The thick oil-like substance observed appears to be an unrefined crude oil, suggesting that the Gulfstream is either a tanker or a floating storage and offloading vessel...
"Based on this Gulfstream length, which is estimated to be between 300 to 560 feet, and to be conservative, if it was half-filled, we estimate that it could contain between 150,000 to 350,000 barrels of crude oil."
FFOS said the name of the vessel and its measurement will help identify its owner.
"Worldwide, there are many Gulfstream-named vessels. Most are of different lengths and uses. If the TT investigating team measures the length and width of the vessel, this would be the first step to identifying the model of this vessel and/or confirming whether it’s a freight vessel or a tanker and would narrow down an International Maritime Organisation search of the possible owner/s.
"Secondly, and much easier, since this vessel sails under a St Kitts and Nevis flag of convenience, why haven't our team already contacted the St Kitts and Nevis authorities to reveal the owner's names and all details of the capacity and use of this vessel? Certainly, they should have records of what this Gulfstream is equipped to do. Or do they? And if not, why not?"
FFOS also called for more skimmers to be used in the clean-up operations.
"According to the 2014 National Oil Spill Contingency Plan (NOSCP), Petrotrin owned three vacuum skimmers and five other types of skimmers. Where are these skimmers today? BpTT has three rope skimmers, and BHP has three skimmers. Why haven’t these skimmers been immediately deployed? Now the oil is spreading northwest!"
A release by TEMA on Monday noted that the oil slick measures 48 nautical miles (approximately 88km) in length and 0.13 nautical miles (approximately 248m) in width.
"The spill extends from the west to the northwest into the Caribbean Sea, with noticeable oil weathering beginning around 9.71 nautical miles (approximately 18km) from the source," TEMA said.
FFOS said the vessel drifting undetected into TT's marine space is an indictment on our border patrols and needs to be addressed.
"Does it mean that any vessel can enter our border and carry any substance… undetected?" it asked.
After one family temporarily relocated... Lambeau residents want answers on oil spill
Residents of Lambeau who live close to the coast are calling for the investigation into last week's oil spill to be concluded and the area cleaned and restored to normalcy as soon as possible.
The spill emanated from a mystery vessel that was found overturned in the sea some 200 metres off the coast of the Cove Eco-Industrial Park around 7.20 am.
Clean-up operations have been ongoing, with central government getting involved, the expertise of private companies utilised, environmental stakeholders brought in, and volunteers recruited.
Booms have been used to contain the oil spill and keep operations at the Scarborough Port unaffected.
Newsday visited Lambeau on Monday and unlike a few days ago, the odour of the spill was not evident.
One resident who spoke anonymously said the scent had subsided by then.
"On Wednesday when the incident had just happened, you couldn’t even stay in the area – the stench was horrible."
She said she was visited by her area representative, Wane Clarke.
"By Thursday, Friday, we didn’t have it so bad as compared to then, but it’s understandable based on what Mr Clarke told us. I really hope that they get to the bottom of this soon."
Another resident, who gave his name only as Hiram, said he was aware of the incident on Wednesday when he came home from work and asked about the stench.
He said he had numerous questions about the incident.
"Whose boat, how long was it here; so many questions yet so little responses – definitely a mystery."
A resident who only wanted to be identified as Phyllis said: "We just want an end to this issue. We’ve listened to both the chief secretary and the Prime Minister on the issue and we’re really glad that they could have come together on this, but we as residents – we just want an end."
Clarke told Newsday that one family was temporarily relocated.
Secretary of Health, Wellness and Social Protection Dr Faith BYisrael urged the residents to be cautious.
"They should stay away from the site, wear a mask when in close proximity, and keep their windows and doors closed – if necessary. If they feel dizzy, nauseated or generally unwell... they should seek medical attention."
She added: "The fact is that we have to get to identify exactly what the substance is, therefore, we encourage folks to be cautious – not fearful but cautious."
At a news conference with the Chief Secretary last Saturday, the Prime Minister said they are waiting on the results of the sample to determine the content of the spilt cargo.
So far, he said, the authorities have not been able to determine if the oil-like substance leaking from the vessel is bunker fuel, fuel for preparation of the vessel or raw crude.
Dr Rowley said the identity of the vessel remains a mystery.
But he added that the central government will have to provide the THA with whatever support it needs. (Source: Newsday,  Feb 13, 2024)

THE masterminds of international organised crime syndicates are targeting Trinidad and Tobago, the Prime Minister revealed on February 2. However, law enforcement agencies from the United States are prepared to help this country fight these criminals.
Dr Rowley spoke at a media briefing at Whitehall, Port of Spain, after his return the night before from the US where he met with top officials from national security agencies including the Federal Bureau of Investigations (FBI) and the Central Intelligence Agency (CIA).
Rowley said he travelled with Energy Minister Stuart Young, Foreign and Caricom Affairs Minister Dr Amery Browne and Digital Transformation Minister Hassel Bacchus, and they met officials including Vice President Kamala Harris, Secretary of State Antony Blinken and Assistant Secretary of Defense Melissa Dalton.
"We also met with officials of the FBI. We do have some problems here in Trinidad and Tobago which I will not burden you with today. We do have some internal problems."
Touting the TT-US relationship, he said, "The resources of the FBI and CIA were made available to us to deal with our own internal problems."
"We met with officials of the Department of Homeland Security who gave us a listening ear with respect to what we might need to assist in certain matters."
Rowley also met top officials of the US State Bureau of Cyberspace and Digital Policy and attended a workshop on cybersecurity and cybercrimes at CIA headquarters in Langley, Virginia.
He said artificial intelligence (AI) can make it hard for leaders to know what is true and what is not, as he quipped it can now pass the Bar exam plus doctors' exams.
"Given the positives of the technology, there are a whole lot of negatives we now have to confront, and so we spent the morning on that and it was a great eye-opener."
The PM said local law enforcement officers were strengthening their capabilities via US-funded security co-operation initiatives. Again, he did not go into specifics.
These programmes will help with policing strategies for crime-fighting and citizen security. They also help to create specialised and vetted units against organised crime.
"Because we are now attracting elements of international organised crime, which is very concerning to the Government, we are discussing this with the US to get as much help as we can, in ensuring that our bad (crime) situation is not worsened by these developments."
Rowley named three more areas of TT-US collaboration.
"We have made plans, and the US has agreed to help us, with increased maritime operations. So we will be working on that in the coming weeks to see what we can get out of that."
He said a gun crimes intelligence unit was a priority area of collaboration between Trinidad and Tobago and the US.
"We intend to establish a cybersecurity bilateral technical working group which will offer institutional technical exchanges and digital transformation support for our people here in Trinidad and Tobago working closely with their (US) colleagues."
A statement on the White House website, recounting the Rowley-Harris meeting, referred to "key priorities, including regional security issues and the imperative of addressing firearms trafficking." Rowley said he had met a congressman who was piloting a bill to curb firearms trafficking which the PM said affects places like Trinidad and Tobago.
Rowley also told reporters on February 2 that he had not had a vacation or an annual medical check-up, but would do so just after an upcoming energy conference and Caricom leaders meeting – both being held in Guyana. He said after the Guyana engagements, he would be away for ten days. "I will be here in spirit."
Less than six months ago, on August 17 to 22, the PM flew off to Barbados for vacation, following the holding of local government elections.
In the question session, he was pressed about the interest of international criminals in Trinidad and Tobago.
He replied that Trinidad and Tobago was an open country, such as in its trade links. "Certain criminals are liking us and I say no more. I say no more." (Source: Newsday, Feb 2, 2024)