The Virgin Islands experienced the fourth-highest decline in gross domestic product of the Caribbean Development Bank’s 19 borrowing member countries in 2020, according to the CDB’s Regional Report: 2020 Review …
Premier mum on number of biz grants paid out
Premier Andrew Fahie still hasn’t said how many of 1,258 businesses approved for stimulus grants have received their cheques as part of a $6.5 million initiative launched last year to …
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Over 6,000 get vaccine
As of Wednesday, March 17, 6,511 people in the Virgin Islands had been vaccinated against Covid-19, and health officials hope to see that numbergetgrow steadily following the scheduled arrival of …
‘Marine corridor’ opened through exclusion zone
Boaters can now travel directly between Nanny Cay and Jost Van Dyke in a “marine corridor” through the exclusion zone that was established last June. A new, amended curfew order …
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Government saw $30 million revenue shortfall during 2020
Legislators have often discussed the financial hardship caused by the Covid-19 pandemic, but they hashed out some of the details during last week’s House of Assembly sitting. The territory was …
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EDITORIAL: Kudos to pandemic heroes
March 11 marked the first anniversary of the World Health Organisation’s declaration of the Covid-19 pandemic, which brought a year of extraordinary challenges for this territory and the rest of …
Covid-19 vaccines halted, then restarted
Covid-19 vaccines are available once again after a weeklong saga in which the rollout was halted, then restarted, then halted again before finally lurching back into motion on Tuesday. Last …
Border barges cost $360k per month
Though the Virgin Islands reopened to tourists at the start of December, the seaports remain closed to international travel, and government is continuing with measures to fortify border patrols. To …
Ports opening pushed with four days’ notice
The government isn’t equipped to monitor both the Covid-19 vaccination rollout and a long-promised sea border reopening, which therefore has been pushed back another 45 days to April 15, the …
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49th Spring Regatta postponed until 2022
The annual BVI Spring Regatta and Sailing Festival has been pushed back for a second year due to complications arising from the Covid-19 pandemic, organisers announced Friday. “As much as …
Vaccines halted until more doses arrive here
The Covid-19 vaccine programme that launched last month has temporarily halted after administering 4,500 doses, in order to guarantee that vaccinated residents will receive their second doses in a timely …
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Opposition leader calls for ‘stimulus 2.0’
As the first anniversary of the Covid-19 pandemic approaches, Opposition Leader Marlon Penn recently highlighted a need for additional relief while addressing the pandemic, the tourism industry and other economic …
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Despite hitches, vaccines now in full swing
When the Seventh-day Adventist Church in East End opened to distribute Covid-19 vaccines on Feb. 17, Lutia Durante was third in line, daughter and grandson in tow. By Tuesday, when …
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Top law enforcement officers take Covid-19 vaccine
Police Commissioner Michael Matthews and Customs Commissioner Wade Smith sat next to each other while receiving their first jab of the Covid-19 vaccine at Police Headquarters last Thursday morning. Outside, …
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3,000 masks and counting
When the Covid-19 pandemic hit the world, Virgin Islands resident Denise Carson made it her goal to ensure that everyone in need of a face mask was able to get …
Cabinet relaunches meeting summaries
As conversation about the importance of good governance buzzes in the community, officials recently relaunched a transparency measure they had discontinued shortly after the start of the Covid-19 pandemic. On …
‘Temporary layoffs’ get longer
The workforce furlough extension passed in the House of Assembly last year has been prolonged by another month and now lasts through the end of February, government announced. The move …
EDITORIAL: A memo for Governor John Rankin
We welcome Governor John Rankin, who takes office at a time when the territory’s relationship with the United Kingdom is as strained as it has been in recent memory. He …
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14th governor sworn in
Governor John Rankin first visited the Virgin Islands not on vacation, but to lend his support as leader of a fellow overseas territory in the aftermath of Hurricane Irma in …
Court requires 14-day waiting period for recent arrivals
After completing their mandatory four-day quarantine period, travellers to the Virgin Islands must now wait an additional ten days before appearing at the Magistrates’ Court, Court Manager Annette Williams-Sylvester announced …
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Interview: Departing governor reviews tenure
After arriving just 16 days before Hurricane Irma devastated the Virgin Islands in 2017, Governor Gus Jaspert has since been largely focused on the territory’s recovery and the Covid-19 …
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Contact tracing finds 5 Covid cases
A contact-tracing effort launched after two visitors to Virgin Gorda tested positive for Covid-19 during exit screening led to the discovery of five additional cases, bringing the total number of …
Reporter recounts family’s arrival
I first began to feel the blues of lockdown last summer. Unable to visit my family in the United States or even leave the territory, I kept my relatives informed …
Cruise ships arrive for 30-day ‘warm layups’
For the first time since last March, two cruise ships docked Monday at the Cyril B. Romney Tortola Pier Park. But they are carrying only crewmembers, and no one will …
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Survey details major Covid impacts
Twenty percent of about 50 businesses that responded to a November survey from the BVI Chamber of Commerce and Hotel Association reported an “extremely negative impact” from the Covid-19 pandemic …