New Nation, May 2023

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Tragedy at Mahdia Secondary School Dormitory

The APNU+AFC wishes to express our condolences to the families, relatives, friends, residents of Mahdia, Region #8 and all Guyanese as we mourn the loss of lives of our children and to state that we are deeply saddened by the loss of lives.

We wish all those that are injured a speedy recovery and express our support and gratitude to the medical team and others who are engaged in the process of treating and helping the injured and hope there are no more fatalities. Special appreciation and thanks to our brave pilots and the Joint Services who played and continue to play a key role in the entire operation.

We also wish to express gratitude to the people of Mahdia who worked assiduously to rescue the children trapped in the Mahdia Secondary School dormitory.

Our gratitude is also extended to our Regional Member of Parliament, the Mayor and Deputy Mayor for their compassion and positive involvement in helping to give leadership during these trying times.

We will continue to keep the situation under review and will make a full statement at a later time as we demand a thorough investigation into this horrific incident that has resulted in the loss of innocent young lives.

In light of this tragedy, we wish to call on all to make this Independence Day a Day of Mourning in solidarity and support with the families, friends, relatives, the citizens of Mahdia and Region #8 and all Guyanese and a Day of Support to the injured, their families, friends, relatives and the people of Region 8.

Page 2 Mahdia tragedy, the pain is unbearable

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Page 4 & 5

Independence Day Message

LGE 2023 Candidates Georgetown

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Forbes BurnhamIndependence Speech May 26, 1966

Page 9 & 11

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LGE 2023 Candidates Region #1 & #6

LGE 2023 Candidates Region #10

Mahdia Fire Victims

LGE 2023: A National Referendum on PPP’s failures

As we continue our campaign for the upcoming local government elections, let us remind our readers that APNU is contesting these elections to (i) protect our supporters in their communities from the viciousness of the PPP, (ii) to be positioned to expose the incompetence and corruption of the PPP and to resist its excesses in communities, (iii) to represent and give voice to the concerns and demands of all Guyanese, (iv) to ensure that the PPP does not destroy local democracy any further and advance its dictatorship, and (v) ) to demonstrate to the people that we are a credible alternative to govern this country for the good of all.

These elections, however, extend well beyond local and community considerations. These elections are also a national referendum of the PPP‘s term in office. Voters must use these elections to register their frustrations, distress, and despair over how the PPP governs. They must vote to send a message to the PPP government over the high cost of living, its corruption and incompetence, Su-gate and other scandals; its disdain and disrespect for the concerns, rights, and dignities of ordinary people; and its pathological obsession to control everything.

In LGE 2023, therefore, Guyanese must vote not only for what they see on the ballot paper. They must use their ballots to protest against the PPP and to send the message that Guyana can and must do better.

As a recent editorial in the Stabroek News remarked in also calling for LGE 2023 to be used as a referendum on the three years of the PPP/C Guyanese must ask themselves such questions as “Are you better off than then? Is your community better? The quality of your healthcare or your children’s school?” We can add other questions such as: “Do you see your life getting better any time soon?” and “Do you think the PPP has the ability and the right attitude to fix the daily problems that affect us as families, such as finding three meals a day?”

By using their votes as their voices, Guyanese can loudly send a message to the PPP/C that reads: “Despite all that oil money, you as a government have failed us and the nation; Time to go!”

My pain is unbearable, and if this be mine, then that of the Indigenous Guyanese community has to be beyond the blood of anguish that I sweat, the convulsions that wrack. Oh! The horror and agony of 19 young schoolchildren, the flower of indigenous womanhood, trapped in a cage and savaged by fire, then transformed into human pyres. There is nothing remaining of them, but the bitterest ashes in the mouths of parents maddened by grief, and a community struck in the cruelest manner, from both loss and the incredible contempt that came in the wake of their untimely, harrowing deaths.

All the right words and phrases are uttered, but they mean nothing. There will be three days of national mourning, but with a careful eye to complete that inconvenience in time for the usual Independence Day fun and frolic. How can this be, even contemplated, when Guyana has just had the equivalent of a mass killing. What kind of people are we? Of which god do we claim to be? What has happened to our humanity, or does this not extend to the indigenous people?

Nineteen gone, and we cannot even give them our time, our attention, our hearts. Surely, Indigenous life cannot be this devalued, this cheap. One can only imagine the outrage, the explosion of emotion and passion, if it were children other than Indigenous children, who had died like this, as prisoners, when their only crime was wanting an education, hoping to be somebody.

Surely, these dead Indigenous young are due some dignity, unlike what they got, where they met their gruesome end, in a cage of steel and concrete. My heart is wrenching, when the thought comes that the only feature that was missing had to be surrounding barbwire to seal the crematorium that is now their final place of stealthy restless sleep. It was what came like a thief in the night, and snatched their breaths, their life, away, with powerful authority, with fearsome finality. They had no chance. They were as good as dead. And now, the rush is for this to be over and done with, so that the festivities could not be interrupted. Oh, the urge is to call for ‗heads to roll‘, and there are many, and of that there must be at the proper time and place. Presently, the priority is for the Indigenous community to bury these young beloveds, these now forever lost ones. Amid the ugly official formality, I call upon my people, my own indigenous sisters and brothers, grieving mothers and helpless fathers, let us do our duty and bury our dead with love in our hearts and dignity in our steps. It is at times like this that the Guyana Indigenous community, none like those stricken parents, whose lives have been ripped to shreds, know what it is to live the soaring, immortal words of that great Greek philosopher, Aeschylus:

“Even in our sleep, pain which cannot forget falls drop by drop upon the heart until, in our own despair, against our will, comes wisdom through the awful grace of God.”

I pray for the parents.

I pray for the Indigenous Guyanese community. I pray for Guyana.

Lord, give us the strength and courage. Give us the grace.

Mahdia’s tragedy, the pain is unbearable

Leader of the PNCR and Leader of the Opposition, Mr. Aubrey C. Norton, MP, observed the burnt-out dormitory at Mahdia during a visit to the Township on Wednesday 24th May 2023.

Independence Day Message

PublicAccounts Committee continues to not meet due to Government’s absence

From the 25th of January 2021 up to the present day, an astonishing twenty (20) Public Accounts Committee (PAC) meetings have been canceled. What is even more astounding is that this trend persists into 2023, with eight (8) cancellations already recorded and counting. Adding to the gravity of the situation, sixteen (16) of these cancellations have occurred since the change in the quorum requirement.

The consistent absence of government members from PAC meetings, despite the need for two members from their side to establish a quorum, is a glaring display of incompetence on the part of the government. The PAC explicitly mandates the presence of two government members, two opposition members, and the Chairman to carry out a legitimate meeting.

avoid being accountable.

The PAC serves a pivotal role in financial oversight, ensuring transparency, and upholding accountability in government operations. The absence of government members not only dismisses the importance of these meetings but also undermines the fundamental principles of good governance, that of accountability.

When an entire government fails to fulfill the requirement of having two members present for a crucial PAC meeting, it is an unequivocal demonstration of incompetence and an unwillingness to be accountable. Such a failure reveals a disregard for prioritizing responsibilities, upholding democratic processes, and meeting their obligations to the public.

On the 57th anniversary of our country‘s independence, we wish we could say Happy Independence Day to our fellow Guyanese. Unfortunately, recent crises and tragedies have filled our collective and individual hearts with anxieties, fears, and anguish. We have reached another potential turning point in our country‘s trajectory where citizens are again unified in rejecting the failures in our country‘s governance and are demanding a government that is competent and caring, and one which accepts that it exists solely to serve the people.

We mark this 57th Independence Anniversary with greater national unhappiness and self-doubt and with diminishing national self-esteem and pride. We, as a people, today recognize more than ever that massive oil wealth means little if our government lacks competence, empathy, and compassion - if it cannot connect to our strug-

gles, frustrations, and despair.

As a Party, we firmly believe Guyana can and must do better. We have built our vision on our conviction that prosperity can be guaranteed to all citizens, that good governance can prevail, and that national happiness and selfconfidence can abound.

But these transformations will not occur automatically. They must be envisioned, planned, and implemented with zeal for the benefit of all persons. As the national crisis deepens, citizens must, more than before, use their voices and their votes to demand and get the changes they desire and deserve for their families, communities, and country.

On this Independence Anniversary, therefore, it is fitting to wish all our fellow Guyanese a better future. We pledge to work on your behalf towards achieving it.

Happy Independence!

The destruction of property at Hill Foot and the PPP misuse of the Guyana Police Force

The Opposition wishes to condemn the PPP use of the Guyana Police Force against its opponents and to enforce the wishes of the wealthy at the expense of people in poverty.

The demolition of ordinary citizens‘ homes at Hill Foot on the Soesdyke/ Linden Highway is another manifestation that the PPP government does not care for the people of Guyana. What is more saddening is that the regime is prepared to arm the Guyana Police Force and use force against the people of Guyana rather than address the real challenges that face the mass of people.

The destruction of people‘s property

by the regime and its friends, families and favourites is unacceptable and must be condemned by all. Even worst is the use of the Guyana Police Force to intimidate and shoot innocent civilians. It is the courts‘ responsibility to enforce court orders and not the Guyana Police Force. The Guyana Police Force‘s role is to maintain law and order and not to turn up as a show of force and initiate disorder.

The Parliamentary Opposition calls on the government to end the politicization of the Guyana Police Force and its use to enforce the will of the PPP elites, families, friends and favourites.

In recent times, it has become the norm for the government side to be conveniently absent from these crucial gatherings, often citing emergencies as their justification. However, this excuse raises doubts about the authenticity of their claims and reveals either a lack of adequate planning, organization, and commitment to fulfilling their responsibilities or a deliberate attempt by the government to avoid being accountable for the nation‘s money.

This recurring absence by the government side underscores a broader issue of incompetence within the current regime. Since assuming office, Guyana has been plagued by a series of unfortunate events. Yet, the fact that the entire government cannot muster the presence of just two members for a significant PAC meeting speaks volumes about their overall lack of competence or their deliberate attempt to

In light of this persistent pattern of absence, it is imperative to hold the government accountable for their incompetence and deliberate sabotage of the work of our Parliament. Their consistent inability to meet the basic requirements of attending PAC meetings raises serious doubts about their ability to govern effectively and their commitment to transparency and accountability which are needed to address the pressing challenges faced by the nation.

In conclusion, the government's continued absence from PAC meetings, despite the minimal requirement of having two members present, is a clear indicator of their significant level of incompetence and disregard for transparency and accountability. This lack of commitment to financial oversight and accountability necessitates that they reassess their abilities and responsibilities, or else face the consequences of their ineptitude.

The PPP’s misrule places all Guyanese in perpetual danger

By now, Guyanese fully recognize that the incompetence, immorality, and vanity of the PPP government place the country and all citizens in continuous danger. With each passing week, all aspects of our safety, livelihood, and existence are becoming more threatened, more fragile, and less guaranteed.

Just in the last month alone, the nation stood in disbelief as the PPP government tried to dismantle the safeguards that protect the country from bearing any financial burden for any major oil spill. This act of national betrayal by Bharrat Jagdeo still hangs over the head of the nation. We also learnt of the prison escape of Royden Williams, who has been convicted for murder. The circumstances of his escape attest to incompetence all the way up to the Minister of Home Affairs and ultimately to the President. Now, the country is grappling with the tragic consequences of the dormitory fire at Mahdia.

These incidents are not due to pure bad luck or coincidence. They are the result of a government that has little

incentive, interest, and ability in crafting good public policy and effectively managing public institutions. This is a government that feels no compulsion and no urgency in addressing the dire problems citizens face, such as poverty, food and nutrition inadequacy, high cost of living, high mortality rates, preventable illnesses and deaths, and family despair and desperation.

Calls and demands therefore for the government to fulfil its obligations to the people, and to deliver on their basic human rights and entitlements, will continue to fall on deaf ears. Calls for individual ministers to be fired for incompetence will not solve the problem though it is necessary, because the problem is embedded in and systemic to the PPP in its entirety. Guyana will stumble from tragedy to tragedy, danger to danger, and crisis to crisis once the PPP remains in office.

Let us as Guyanese citizens and patriots take stock of this reality. Let us also recommit to using our voices and votes to rescue our beloved country.

Georgetown, Region #4 APNU Candidates

#5 #6

CENTENNIAL BIRTH ANNIVERSARY OF FORBES BURNHAM

―YOUR ROYAL Highness, Mr. Speaker: May I, on behalf of the Parliament of Independent Guyana, and the people of this new nation, express gratitude first of all for your Royal Highness undertaking the duty – we hope with pleasure, of representing Her Gracious Majesty, the Queen of Guyana on the opening of this first and significant session of the National Assembly of Guyana.

Today is historic, primarily because we are indulging in an exercise which is the first of its kind by the Parliament of Guyana. We have come to the end of the road of Colonial Rule and not without significance, to our minds is the fact that her Gracious Majesty, Queen of the United Kingdom, is Queen of Guyana.

Our associations with the Crown, our membership to the Commonwealth, are matte s of free and untrammelled choice by the representatives of the people of Guyana. After some 150 years of British Rule and in some cases, misrule,

we are now independent, but we harbour no bitterness. Bitterness we feel is for children and the intellectually underdeveloped.

It is difficult, nay- impossible, to change the facts of past history and, in the circumstances, though we welcome with enthusiasm our new

status, we are prepared not to spend the time ahead of us abusing those who once dictated to us, but rather to, seek means of cooperation with them – to our mutual advantage, or should we say selfinterest?

I desire, on this occasion to request you, Your Royal Highness to convey to her Gracious Majesty, the Queen, the kind feelings we hold towards her as Head of the Commonwealth, and a person whom we have met, seen and admired, and in some cases loved. I shall ask your Royal Highness to convey to Her Majesty, the Queen of Guyana, the loyalty of the people of the independent nation of Guyana, who are happy to have her as their Queen. The days ahead are going to be difficult, and, in the circumstances, we are heartened and encouraged by Her Majesty‘s kind wishes, and also by the asseverations of friendship and willingness to assist coming from other Governments in the Commonwealth, more particularly in the present circumstances, from

the Government of the United Kingdom.

Tomorrow, no doubt, we as Guyanese will indulge in our usual political conflicts and ideological differences, but today, to my mind, is above such relatively petty matters, for today Guyana is history.

Today we say goodbye to the British as masters, and we shake hands with them as friends and colleagues.

It is difficult to say more, a descendant of those who were brought here against their will, one who has known the embarrassment of being a Colonial subject, I am moved and all I can say now is ―Thank You Sincerely, your Royal Highness, and please be good enough to convey to the Queen our thanks, our gratitude and our undertaking to make Guyana an outstanding member of the Commonwealth – we hope surpassing those who have been independent members for years before us.

Thank you.‖

The Challenges of Independence

The British Guiana (Constitution) Order 1964 established a House of Assembly as a unicameral legislature, consisting of 53 members elected in accordance with a system of proportional representation. It was under this system that elections were held in 1964 which resulted in the displacement of the PPP from office by a coalition of the PNC and UF parties.

The following year, the PPP boycotted the Independence constitutional conference in London. Registration for the elections, scheduled for 7th December, was completed and all three parties launched their election campaigns.

Burnham called his election manifesto The New Road and outlined a policy based on his concept of cooperative socialism within the framework of a democratic society. The People's National Congress gained 40.8 per cent of the vote, the People Progressive Party held 45 per cent of the vote and the United Force obtained 12.5 per cent. Burnham and d'Aguiar declared their decision to coalesce and the Governor invited Forbes Burnham to form a coalition government as Premier.

The colony's finances were in a mess after seven years of PPP administration. According to the British government, the colony was 'insolvent.' Forbes Burnham, however, was able to report to the people a remarkable recovery at the end of just six months.

His administration had established peace in a country that had been torn apart by civil violence. The economy started to show signs of buoyancy. With this effort at home, foreign-aid grants, lowinterest loans, machinery and technical assistance were secured.

Forbes Burnham fulfilled an election promise to raise the minimum wage of government employees and the administration successfully rehabilitated the thousands of persons who had become displaced as a result of the 'Disturbances.

Guyana became an independent state on 26th May 1966 after having been the colony of the Dutch and British for over 350 years. The Guyana Independence Act 1966 of the British Parliament removed UK Government responsibility, renamed the colony 'Guyana' and empowered the Guyana Legislature to make laws for governing the new State. The National Assembly and Supreme Court were established and a Governor General and Prime Minister were appointed.

Independence brought many changes and challenges in the following years and, as a first step, the Institute of Decolonisation was established to devise and discuss improvements to the new state.

There were major political changes. Political independence, for Forbes Burnham, was just the first step to true nationhood. He, therefore, articulated the view that the next objective should be for the

country to become a republic. He observed, in proposing the motion in the National Assembly to declare Guyana a Republic, that "moving to the status of a republic represents, to my mind, a further step in the direction of self-reliance and selfconfidence… we have decided that the monarchy should go."

He saw becoming a republic "as cutting us loose from a syndrome of dependency - political, economic, cultural, and psychological" and as bolstering "our sense of self-worth and fostering a nationalistic fervor that would make us confident in our ability and capacity to work at a level of sustained excellence, to convert our country into a modern, developed, prosperous State."

New institutions were developed.

The Guyana Defence Force, Guyana Youth Corps, Guyana National Service and National Insurance Scheme were established; new multilateral schools and Teachers' Training Colleges and the University of Guyana were constructed. Infrastructural works - pure water supply, sea defense, drainage and irrigation, and electricity generation were undertaken. The Black Bush and Tapakuma agricultural schemes were completed and the new international airport was opened.

There were major social and cultural changes. Forbes Burnham's administration introduced free education from kindergarten to university. The Caribbean Festival of

Arts and the Guyana Festival of Arts were initiated. The Committee on the Affairs and Status of Women was launched with the aim of promoting the economic, educational, social and cultural advancement of women in Guyana and the State Paper on the Equality of Women was presented and adopted in the National Assembly. Special emphasis on the welfare of the indigenous peoples was signalled by the passage of the Amerindian (Amendment) Act and the process of vesting land titles in Amerindian communities began.

Guyana's religious, ethnic and cultural diversity received special consideration. The Islamic festivals of Eid-Ul-Adha and Youman Nabi, and the Hindu festivals of Holi and Deepavali became national holidays under the Public Holidays (Amendment) Act approved by the National Assembly in 1967.

There were also major changes in the economy during the decade 1970-1980. Consistent with its policy of ownership and control of the country's natural resources, the People's National Congress administration proceeded to nationalize the 'commanding heights' of the economy including banking, bauxite and sugar interests with the full support of the People's Progressive Party. Burnham emphasised the practice of self-help and selfreliance and this resulted in the establishment of many productive enterprises.

Prime Minister Linden Forbes Samson Burnham’s Speech in Parliament on the Presentation of The Instruments of Independence (From Colonial Rule 26th May, 1966)

Linden Forbes Sampson Burnham, OE, SC

PNCR Leader’s visit to Mahdia Township

The Leader of the Opposition, Mr. Aubrey C. Norton, MP, visited the Township of Mahdia, Region #8 on Wednesday 24th May to Friday 26th May 2023. He visited the hospital and thanked the healthcare workers for their services as well as those of the fire service. He also visited the village of

Micobie where he held a meeting with residents of the community.

The Parliamentary Opposition is deeply saddened by the fire and tragedy at the Mahdia Secondary School Dormitory that claimed innocent lives and is calling for an urgent investigation. We express our gratitude to the

residents of Mahdia especially the First Responders who risked their lives to rescue many of the children who were trapped in the building and we hope that they are honoured for their bravery and heroic actions.

We owe it to the memory of the lost children, their grieving families, the

people of Mahdia and all our nation‘s children to ensure such a catastrophe never happens again.

It is our duty to hold accountable those responsible and ensure the enforcement of safety regulations across all educational institutions in the country.

Micobie

Outreach at South Vryheid’s Lust

On Sunday 29th May and continuing on Tuesday 30th May, Leader of the PNCR and Opposition Mr. Aubrey C. Norton, MP and Candidates for the upcoming local government election conducted an outreach in the South Vryheid‘s Lust community on the East Coast of Demerara.

The Leader and team interacted with the residents of the area as they expressed the feeling of neglect by the current Government and the PPP-led Better Hope/LBI NDC, They also complained of the deplorable drains and the need for the completion of the

LGE 2023 Walkabout and Outreach exercises

community ground.

The Leader assured the residents that their concerns would be raised and there will be continued representation for persons within the community, he also shared his vision for the community and country.

The Leader was accompanied by Trevor McArthur, current Councilor and Constituency Candidate, Odesher Burnette, Candidate; Shaneika Haynes, Candidate and PNCR Public Relations Officer, other local Party representatives and staff.

PR Officer of the PNCR and LGE Candidate, Ms. Shaneika Haynes interacts with a resident of South Vryheid’s Lust during a walkabout in the area on Tuesday 30th May 2023.

PNCR Leader Mr. Aubrey C. Norton, MP (second from right) and MP Coretta McDonald (left) along with Candidates conducted a walkabout in South Vryheid’s Lust on Wednesday 31st May 2023.

PNCR Leader Mr. Aubrey C. Norton, MP interacts with a resident of South Vryheid’s Lust during a walkabout in the area on Wednesday 31st May 2023.

Den Amstel

New Amsterdam

Wakenaam

LGE 2023 CANDIDATES Mabaruma, Region #1 APNU Candidates

In the next week, we go to the polls to elect our constituencies' representatives. We wish to remind our electorate of the reasons they must support our candidates. While we strive for transparency, accountability and good governance, those in the red are strangers to such principles and values. Alleged unaccountability of Communities' funds, alleged mismanagement of the SLED funds, disregard for the rule of law, awarding contracts to their siblings, poor management of the municipal marketing center are just a few indicators of their incompetence and lack of good leadership and governance.

The APNU is please to officially announce its youthful and competent team of Candidates for the upcoming Local Government Election on 12th June 2023 within the Municipality of Mabaruma, Region #1. Guyana's future is in our hands and it's our responsibility to elect the right people

who will effectively represent us. The people of the Town of Mabaruma must be reminded that the present Town Council did absolutely nothing for them throughout their term in office and re-electing them or their associates will be another major dismal failure. There is not a single major project that the present PPP controlled Town Council could name which they executed for the people of Mabaruma. It is a total embarrassment to them and the people who elected them.

The right people for a better representation and sustainable developmental ideas within the township lies in the hands of these carefully nominated APNU candidates. As such, all are encourage to give their full support for change and real development.

Also the APNU wishes to announce its competent team of Candidates within the MATARKAI NDC in Re-

gion #1. The future and real development of this NDC lies with the electorate who must ensure that they elect the most responsible candidates who will effectively represent them.

The people of MATARKAI will not cease to remember the struggle under the present PPP controlled Council. This present council will be remembered for its alleged massive corruption, mismanagement and unaccountability for Millions of Dollars!!

It is time to choose wisely! The right people of MATARKAI needs a strong and competent NDC whose vision and mission will be for sustainable development. As such, all are encourage to give their full support and vote for integrity, progress and visionary leadership. Our team looks forward to collaborating with all stakeholders for the benefit of ALL residents.

On June 12th, vote with confidence, vote for change, vote for competence,

vote for progress

The following are just a few areas which will be effectively addressed once elected:

1. Youth development

2. Sports development

3. Upgraded Vendors Market

4. Better scrutiny of Funds

5. Upgrading of sports facilities

6. Representation for better roads

7. Improved street lights

8. Upgraded Nature (Green) Parks

9. Efficient Garbage Collection System

10. More flexible marketing hours

11. Improved Sanitation

12. Collective Engagement with Vendors

13. Development of much needed bylaws

14. Development of building Codes

15. Closer collaboration with all stakeholders for the benefit of ALL residents.

Women’s health is massively underfunded and is one of the biggest missed opportunities in health

Women have traditionally been neglected in medical research, and conditions that affect women are chronically understudied. The good news is that even a small increase in funding goes a long way.

Women's health research is hugely underfunded when compared to spending on conditions that affect men, according to a new analysis of data from the US National Institutes of Health (NIH). While this won't come as a surprise to women's health researchers, who have been advocating for more funding for years, the data published in Nature demonstrates the extraordinary extent to which women's health conditions are neglected.

It also shows how much opportunity there is to make an impact on women's health. Even a small increase in funding would reap a huge return on investment. When diseases are ranked by burden, disorders that disproportionately affect women –migraine, headaches, endometriosis and anxiety disorders, for example – are at or near the top.

When this is reordered according to funding, these conditions are mostly pushed to the back of the queue, behind issues such as HIV/AIDS and substance misuse, which disproportionately affect men.

The research also looks at the ratio of burden to funding. For chronic fatigue syndrome or myalgic encephalomyelitis (ME/CFS), which affects mostly women, the ratio is 0.04. For HIV/AIDS, by comparison, that affects more men than women, the ratio is 15.6.

Historically, women have been neglected in much of medical research and have been underrepresented in clinical trials. Chloe Bird, professor of policy analysis at Pardee RAND Graduate School, explains that "Cardiovascular disease, for example, is the number one killer of women in the USA, but only about a third of participants in clinical trials for new treatments for cardiovascular disease are female."

Women of colour are even less visible in clinical trials. For instance, in a 2015 publication on global cardiovascular drug trials, only 3.2% of women were black.

However, even the smallest bump up in funding can mean significant upticks in return on investment, says Bird. A collaborative study in 2021 between RAND and Women's Health Access Matters, overseen by Bird, ran a series of simulations looking at the return on investment if the NIH budget for studies assessing the health of women was doubled.

The results are striking. Doubling the NIH budget for research on coronary artery disease in women from its current $20 million, could mean a staggering return on investment of 9,500%. Research on rheumatoid arthritis in women receives just US$ 6 million a year – doubling that would deliver return on investment of 174,000%.

While these numbers are US-focused, the pattern of poor investment in women's health and the opportunity to see massive benefits through increased funding are global.

Ultimately researchers tend to go where the money is, and funders need to increase what is available for currently neglected health conditions. As neuroscientist Liisa Galea, at the Centre for Addiction and Mental Health in Toronto, Canada, told Nature, "If you put a pot of gold at the end of a funding rainbow, researchers are going to go for it."

(Gavi.org)

Happy International Nurses Day

A Partnership of National Unity and the Alliance for Change – APNU+AFC Coalition - joined with the global community in celebrating May 12th - the birth anniversary of Florence Nightingale - which is appropriately observed as International Nurses‘ Day.

“Our Nurses: Our Future” is the profound theme of International Nurses‘ Day 2023. On this day we salute Nurses for their vital role in patientcentered care and in the strengthening of the global health care system for the achievement of universal health coverage.

While acknowledging an exodus of nurses to the Americas, Guyana must further invest in healthcare professionals to ensure that the ratio of 70.6 nurses and midwives per 10,000 is achieved. It is urgently necessary for us to correctly esteem the services of nurses by providing them with decent and improved remuneration and removing hindrances to our Nurses accessing further professional training. These measures will improve the quality of healthcare they provide and ensure adequate responses to the needs of our citizens. It is the only way to invest and attract quality nurses to the profession and guarantee the adequacy of nursing personnel.

On this significant and auspicious day, we call on

policy makers, civil society, and all stakeholders to rally around our health care providers who are at the frontline of health care and in the forefront of change. Our Nurses must be protected, supported, respected, and valued.

Long Live our Nurses!

Long Live the Nurses of the Cooperative Republic of Guyana!

CARPHA Observes World No Tobacco Day

Port of Spain, Trinidad and Tobago. 29 May 2023. Tobacco use remains a major public health concern in the Caribbean Region. There is no safe level of exposure to tobacco smoke. The use of tobacco products in any form harms nearly every organ of the body, irrespective of whether it is smoked, smokeless, or electronic. Of all the forms of tobacco use, most common in the Caribbean region is cigarette smoking. Cigarette smoking is the number one risk factor for lung cancer. Using other tobacco products such as cigars or pipes also increases the risk for this disease.

Second-hand smoke exposure causes stroke, lung cancer, and coronary heart disease in adults; and acute respiratory infections and severe asthma in children. It is a preventable risk factor for noncommunicable diseases (NCDs), which are the leading cause of death, disease and disability among Caribbean people.

This year, World No Tobacco Day focuses on Grow Food, Not Tobacco. This campaign advocates for ending tobacco cultivation and switching to more sustainable crops that improve food security and nutrition. The campaign observed annually on 31 May, also informs the public on the dangers of direct use, and exposure to tobacco.

In the Caribbean Region, non-communicable diseases (NCDs) are the leading cause of death and disability - 76.8% of the total deaths (non-Latin Caribbean, excluding Haiti) were due to NCDs in 2016. Cardiovascular diseases 30.8% and cancer 17.2% are the leading causes of death due to NCD, both linked to tobacco use. Many of these persons die in the prime of their lives before the age of 70 years old. The prevalence of smokers for overall tobacco products ranged from 57.2% prevalence (95%CI 48.4 to 65.4%) to 16.2% (95%CI 11.2 to 23.0%). According to the Report on Tobacco Control in the Region of the Americas (2018) Caribbean countries have the highest levels of tobacco experimentation before the age of 10.

Dr. Joy St. John, Executive Director at the Caribbean Public Health Agency (CARPHA) ―Smokeless does not mean harmless. Nicotine in e-cigarettes is a highly addictive drug and can damage children‘s developing brains. Children and adolescents who use e-cigarettes at least double their chance of smoking cigarettes later in life Preventing tobacco product use among youth is therefore critical. It is important that we educate children and adoles-

cents about the harms of nicotine and tobacco product use. We must work to prevent future generations from seeing such products as ―normal‖.‖

In 2008, the Caribbean Community (CARICOM) endorsed the recommendation to ban smoking in public spaces. Later, in 2012, CARICOM regulated a standard for labelling retail packages of tobacco products with health warnings. Caribbean civil society organisations (CSOs), working in collaboration with local governments and international partners, have led the charge in fighting for significant gains in tobacco control in the Caribbean region.

Dr Heather Armstrong, Head, Chronic Disease and Injury: ―At CARPHA, we believe that reducing the harm caused by tobacco use requires a collective approach, where government, civil society, and the individual play a critical role. CARPHA promotes the prevention of tobacco use in all forms and commitment to the WHO FCTC. The focus on tobacco control deals with the youth of the Region. Children and adolescents who use ecigarettes at least double their chance of smoking cigarettes later in life.‖

The Chronic Diseases and Injury Department of CARPHA provides leadership, strategic direction, coordinates and implements technical cooperation activities directed towards the prevention and control of NCDs in CARPHA Member States. CARPHA‘s message for prevention of tobacco product use has spread across its Member States.

In 2018, CARPHA in partnership with the University of the West Indies (UWI), Global Health Diplomacy Program at the University of Toronto, the Pan American Health Organization (PAHO), and the Healthy Caribbean Coalition evaluated the Port of Spain Declaration to learn which mandates helped to prevent and control NCDs. Taxation, smoke-free public places mandate, and mandatory labelling of tobacco products are some of the leading policies making the biggest impact on reduction of tobacco use in the Caribbean regions.

CARPHA urges Member States to work together to prevent and reduce the use of all forms of tobacco products, and scale-up efforts to implement their commitments under the WHO Framework Convention on Tobacco Control (FCTC). By doing so, the negative impact of smoking and its consequences on the health of our people, especially the younger generation, and the tremendous buFrden on the economies of the countries in our Region, will greatly be reduced

New Amsterdam, Region #6 APNU Candidates