The Weekly Journal - Wednesday, November 10, 2021

Puerto Rico and the Caribbean

Wednesday, November 10-16, 2021 - // no. 133

www.theweeklyjournal.com

New interactive tool to assess housing needs P9 POA’s confirmation hearings are underway P6 Liberty pr continues its growth P8

Insights into the

Cybersecurity: Challenges of Hybrid Workplaces Don’t be fooled by phishing links and malicious emails

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Rosario Fajardo

“ Diamonds and sneakers: an unusual auction P14

rfajardo@wjournalpr.com

@RosarioWJournal

ou can’t defend what you don’t know you have.” This security maxim remains true as ever, yet the mass shift to remote work over the last 18 months has made following this advice more challenging for organizations.

If it wasn’t hard enough to maintain accurate inventories of technologies used in the office, organizations now face the prospect of auditing

technologies their employees are using in their homes to support remote work. These technologies can carry unanticipated security risks, but if they are invisible to employers, they cannot be understood, assessed and ultimately managed.

The latest HP Wolf Security report – “Out of Sight & Out of Mind” – reveals how the rise of hybrid work is changing user behavior and creating new cybersecurity challenges for IT departments. The research shows that a growing number of users are buying and connecting unsanctioned devices GO TO PAGE 4

The Weekly Journal > Wednesday, November 10, 2021 2

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a week in review Triple-S: 10.8 Percent Revenue Growth YoY

>Courtesy

>Courtesy

Archive

Triple-S Management Corp. reported its third quarter 2021 results, highlighted by operating revenues of $1.0 billion, a 10.8% increase from the prior-year period, primarily reflecting higher Managed Care net premiums earned. The company also reported net income of $8.2 million, or $0.35 per diluted share, compared with $23.6 million, or $1.02 per diluted share, in the prior year period.

“We had a solid third quarter performance as we continued to record double-digit revenue growth year-overyear, driven by our Medicaid offering,” said Roberto García Rodríguez, the company’s president and CEO.

New Concept of Cannabis Planting Begins in Puerto Rico After an initial investment of $5 million and the creation of 25 jobs during the first year, the Tai Ana company began construction in the Lajas Valley of what will be the first producing farm of medicinal cannabis grown outdoors and directly in the ground, marking a new milestone for the growing cannabis industry in Puerto Rico. The project consists of the construction of a modular farm on an 18,000-square-foot lot in the Lajas Valley, where Tai Ana anticipates growing 4,000 plants every eight weeks.

Powered BY El Vocero de Puerto Rico, 1064 Ave Ponce de León 2nd floor San Juan, PR Postal Address: PO Box 15074, San Juan, PR 00902

Frontier Airlines Begins Operating Route Between Jacksonville and San Juan Low-cost airline Frontier began operating its new route between the cities of Jacksonville (JAX), Florida, and San Juan (SJU), with three weekly flights on Mondays, Wednesdays and Fridays. The economic impact is estimated at $13.1 million within one year of operations, according to Puerto Rico government officials. The aircraft used on the route between JAX and SJU is an Airbus 32N, with a capacity of 186 passengers.

President Salvador Hasbún shasbun@elvocero.com

VP of Accounting Félix A. Rosa frosa@elvocero.com

Human Resources Director Arlene Rolón, PHR arolon@elvocero.com

Vp of Marketing and Business Operations Michelle Pérez Miperez@elvocero.com

VP of Production Eligio Dekony edekony@elvocero.com

VP of Editorial Content Juan Miguel Muñiz Guzmán jmuniz@elvocero.com

Multi-Platform Graphic and Technology Director Héctor L. Vázquez hvazquez@elvocero.com

Phone: 787-622-2300, 787-721-2300

Multi-Plataform Digital Director María Arce marce@elvocero.com

Customer Service: 787-622-7480

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>Courtesy of Mastercard

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CONTINUED FROM PAGE 1 outside of IT’s purview. It also highlights that threat levels are rising, with attackers increasingly successful at bypassing defenses and tricking many users into opening phishing links and malicious emails. All of this is making IT support more complex, time-consuming, and costly than ever, according to the report.

The report examines data from a global YouGov online survey of 8,443 office workers who shifted to remote work during the pandemic, and a global survey of 1,100 IT decision makers conducted by Toluna.

“With increasingly distributed teams, there are fewer informal networks for people to sanity check: ‘Does this look a bit strange?’ before they click. Education helps, but it can only get you so far. While we should encourage and make it easy for people to report incidents, we can’t rely on selfreporting alone. Having layered security in place that can provide the right level of visibility is key,” stated Joanna Burkey, chief information security office at HP Inc. As reported by THE WEEKLY JOURNAL, cyber fraud is an increasing problem in Puerto Rico.

Evertec Inc. – a leading financial technology and transaction processing company in Latin America that is based in Puerto Rico – has shared some insight into cyber fraud in the region, raising awareness on this ever-growing issue affecting citizens and businesses alike.

Emilio Fuentes, Evertec’s VP of IT Service Management and Security, reported per a June 2021 study by Fortinet that there were 29 million cyberattack attempts in Puerto Rico in the first quarter of 2021 alone and more than 7 billion attempts in Latin America.

“The number will not go down because the

The number [of cyberattack attempts] will not go down because the increase in consumption of digital channels, online transactions and social networks continues to increase, and has even been accelerated by the [COVID-19] issue.

- Emilio Fuentes, Evertec’s VP of IT Service Management and Security

increase in consumption of digital channels, online transactions and social networks continues to increase, and has even been accelerated by the [COVID-19] issue,” Fuentes said. “This creates fertile ground for scammers and the individuals who engage in this cyber fraud.”

The Federal Trade Commission (FTC) indicated in its Consumer Sentinel Network - Data Book 2020 that, throughout last year, there were 6,110 official fraud reports in Puerto Rico. These represented roughly $8 million in total losses, with median fraud losses of $384.

The top-five report categories, in descending order, were Identity Theft (21 percent); Imposter Scams (17 percent); Credit Bureaus, Information Furnishers and Report Users (13 percent); Online

Shopping and Negative Reviews (9 percent); and Banks and Lenders (4 percent). The remaining categories made up 12 percent of reports collectively.

Key Findings of HP Wolf Security Report

• Pandemic-driven shadow IT is on the rise: The report found that workers are buying and connecting devices without being audited by IT. About 45 percent of office workers surveyed purchased IT equipment (such as printers and PCs) to support home working in the past year.

However, 68 percent said security wasn’t a major consideration in their purchasing decision, while 43 percent didn’t have their new laptop or PC checked or installed by IT, and 50 percent said the same of their new printer.

• More employees are falling for phishing and other social engineering techniques: An estimated 74 percent of surveyed IT teams saw a rise in employees opening phishing links in the last year.

Meanwhile, 40 percent of office workers surveyed aged 18-to-24 reported clicking on a malicious email with almost half (49 percent) said they have done so more often since working from home. Of office workers that clicked or nearly clicked a link, 70 percent didn’t report it to IT – 24 percent didn’t think it was important, 20 percent cited the “hassle factor,” while 12 percent had a fear of reprisal or being punished by their employer.

• IT teams are having to rebuild more systems in the pandemic: About 79 percent of the IT teams surveyed reported that they are rebuilding more systems now than before the pandemic. One of most common reasons for reimaging a system is when it has been compromised by malware, so the increase in the overall rebuild rate suggests that attackers have been successful at breaching endpoint defenses in a remote working setting.

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>Courtesy of Mastercard

The real figure could be higher still: 80 percent of IT teams worry that employee devices might be compromised and they don’t know about it.

• Remote work has made IT support more timeconsuming: An estimated 65 percent of surveyed IT teams said that patching endpoint devices is more time-consuming and difficult because of the mass shift to home working, while 64 percent said the same of provisioning and onboarding new starters with secure devices. Meanwhile, 77 percent of teams said the time it takes to triage a threat has increased in the past year, and an estimated 62 percent of alerts relating to endpoints are false positives, leading to wasted time.

• Remote work has increased the costs of IT security: The surveyed IT teams estimated the cost of IT support relating to security rose by 52 percent in the last year.

• IT teams feel over-stretched by the challenges created by remote work: About 83 percent of surveyed IT teams said the pandemic has put even more strain on IT support because of home worker security problems, while 77 percent of IT teams say homeworking is making their job much harder and that they fear teams will burn-out and consider quitting.

the most expensive targets and ransoms. rules to secure personal data and protect devices “At Microsoft, we share information and so that you may never have to replace IDs, credit knowledge that derives from the cards or official documents after work we do defending the online a cybercriminal has stolen your 10 Rules to Secure your Personal Data and ecosystem. Our objective is to identity.

Protect your Devices 1) Be cautious with whom help people and organizations to In the past year, Microsoft has carried out you share on social networks, understand the forms in which An estimated multiple studies where it has been proven that as attackers can use your cybercriminals are changing their 74 percent of identity theft based on brute force and password information against you. modes of attack and urge them surveyed IT teams spray have doubled during the pandemic, with 2) Be skeptical and analyze to take the necessary measures saw a rise in phishing attacks, ransomware and DDoS being the to secure their data in a more messages and emails that contain employees opening most common threats. digitalized world,” said Julio links and/or ask for personal phishing links in the Furthermore, in their recent annual report Ureña, a specialist in security information. last year. on Digital Defense, Microsoft informed that solutions at Microsoft.

3) Pay attention to voicemails cybercriminals, especially ransomware, continue As digital threats increase that you receive asking for evolving to return even more disruptive, permitting in volume and become more personal information - attackers the attacker to rob and analyze the victim’s sophisticated, everyone should have methods of pretending to financial documents and insurance policies and take measures to strengthen their be service providers of banks. If investigate the compromised networks to select first line of defense. For this, Microsoft shares 10 you are suspicious, call back at the official number of the service provider or bank.

4) Use multi-factor authentication to protect all of your accounts (email, social media, messenger, etc.)

5) Make secure passwords that are difficult to guess. One form of doing this is to use phrases instead of words, so that you can remember them easily. Example: “I like basketball.” Use spaces they are more difficult to guess.

6) Enable the lock function on all your mobile devices and request a PIN, digital fingerprint or facial recognition to unlock.

7) Keep applications, and the operating system of your computer and mobile phone, up-to-date, since updates often provide security solutions for active problems.

8) Make sure that all applications on your mobile device are legitimate. Do not download applications from unknown sources.

9) Use Windows 11 or Windows Defender as an antivirus and activate Tamper Protection to protect your security settings.

10) Avoid using public Wi-Fi. If you have to use it, avoid banking transactions or those that require personal information, since these can be Cybersecurity is always important, especially when children are online. intercepted.

In fact,

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Confirmation hearings for POA start in San Juan of creditors voted in favor, although some of these classes represent bondholders who will see the value of their credit go down with the confirmation of the plan. Other classes —mainly those made up The Weekly Journal Staff of government retirees— will not be affected in light of the changes incorporated into the POA by bout twenty participants Law 53-2021. presented their arguments at Bienenstock said that the FOMB tried to increase the first confirmation hearing the returns that creditors would receive with the of the Government of Puerto restructuring plan and argued that it was not Rico’s Plan of Adjustment possible —under the mandate imposed by the (POA), presided by Judge Laura United States Congress through PROMESA— to Taylor Swain, who directed the provide adequate financing for public pensions. proceedings from the Federal Court, in Hato Rey. Regarding the objection presented by the Puerto The hearing lasted for almost eight hours.

Rico Teachers Association (PRTA) on the proposed The parties favoring the confirmation of the POA freeze on educators’ pensions, Bienenstock shared the same conclusion on why they support stressed that the total cost of eliminating this the plan. They described provision would be the plan as “a new $5.6 billion throughout beginning,” “an essential the term of the and monumental step restructuring, until forward,” “the best 2051. possible outcome under That projection the circumstances” was challenged by the and “the resolution PRTA’s, José Luis Berríos, of America’s largest who argued that the municipal debt basis for this calculation restructuring.” is not the current On the other hand, number of participants opponents of the in the retirement plan provided varied systems —between arguments as to why 24,000 and 26,000— the POA should not but rather the number be confirmed, from of 36,000 participants.

Judge Laura Taylor Swain. >Carlos Rivera Giusti the alleged special According to Berríos, treatment that bondholders will receive compared taking into account the actual beneficiaries of the to retirees, to the claim from teachers so that their retirement system, the cost figure would be closer pensions do not be frozen. Other opponents of to $2,600 million. the plan stated that their claims do not have to do The lawyer insisted that the FOMB could get the directly with the content of the plan, but with the funds required to eliminate the freeze to teachers effect that its confirmation will have. pensions if it diverted some of the bonds that will However, a few hours after the hearing be paid to creditors, but stressed that even with began, the Government Development Bank for those options, teachers will be worse off under the Puerto Rico’s Debt Recovery Authority —one proposed POA. of the parties that rejected the confirmation of the plan— changed its position after reaching Argues That Plan Alters an agreement with the Financial Oversight and Constitutional Payment Order Management Board (FOMB). The agreement Opposition to the POA was headed by resolves claims filed by the entity against the bondholders Peter Hein and Arthur Samdovitz. government and the Public Buildings Authority Hein, objected to the special treatment given to the for funds historically assigned conditionally to payment of pensions, noting that it is unequal and the Puerto Rico Highways and Transportation unconstitutional.

Authority.

He based his argument on the Constitution of Puerto Rico, which specifically establishes a Dispute Over Pensions Freeze priority for payment of interest and principal Martin Bienenstock, attorney for the FOMB, for securities, something that, he argued, the began his presentation by highlighting the broad POA contradicts insofar as it guarantees the full support to the POA. He stated that 51 of 71 classes payment of pensions.

They Will Extend for 10 Days

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Supreme Court weighs in on Puerto Rico´s exclusion from SSI Mark Sherman, The Associated Press

The Supreme Court appeared reluctant Tuesday to rule for a resident of Puerto Rico who claims it’s unconstitutional to be excluded from a welfare program that’s available in all 50 states and the District of Columbia.

The justices acknowledged that the differential treatment of Puerto Ricans might be problematic, but several suggested that it is up to Congress, not the courts, to act.

Justice Brett Kavanaugh said there are “compelling policy arguments” for including Puerto Rico in the Supplemental Security Income program, which provides benefits to older, disabled and blind Americans. But Kavanaugh said the court had to confront a provision of the Constitution that allows Congress to treat territories and states differently. The Caribbean island has been a U.S. territory since the Spanish American War in 1898.

Jose Luis Vaello-Madero, the Puerto Rico resident at the center of the case, began receiving SSI payments after he suffered a series of strokes while living in New York.

The payments continued to his bank account in New York even after he moved back to Puerto Rico. When he notified the Social Security Administration, the payments stopped and then the government sued to recover more than $28,000 it said he was not entitled to.

Lower courts sided with Vaello-Madero, ruling that the exclusion of Puerto Rico from the SSI program is unconstitutional. In a similar case in Guam, a federal judge ruled recently that residents of that Pacific island also should be able to collect SSI.

Judge Sotomayor Opposes Exclusion

Justice Sonia Sotomayor, whose parents were born in Puerto Rico, was the clearest voice in favor of Vaello-Madero. Sotomayor said it seems irrational to treat poor Americans differently based on where they live.

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World’s Top Tourism Destinations Still Need Help

Between 2019 and 2020, Puerto Rico saw the biggest fall in employment rates

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Zoe Landi The Weekly Journal

any vacation hotspots faced financial disaster when COVID-19 brought the world to a halt. With shuttered restaurants, hotels and other venues, as well as canceled flights, the world’s top destinations were plunged into what could be called the tourist industry’s worst nightmare.

A newly released study by Next Vacay, an online search system that finds the best flights for its customers, analyzed the pandemic’s effects on various destinations, from Southeast Asia through the Mediterranean, all the way to the Caribbean.

Puerto Rico topped the list for job losses among the world’s top destinations. Between 2019 and 2020, the island experienced a 19.83 percent fall in employment. The disappearance of tourists meant that, despite the abundance The Condado area of San Juan is a major tourist hub in Puerto Rico. >Archive of attractions and gorgeous natural landscapes, of its GDP. The average 352,827 monthly visitors and travel restrictions loosen, there are ways there was less demand for jobs in tourism. The dropped to 110,806 in 2020. to support the local economy when on holiday, result was 200,000 jobs lost.

Other iconic destinations, beginning with supporting local businesses.

Interestingly, Puerto Rico such as Thailand and Macau, “A great deal for you means a great deal more simultaneously saw a 4.3 lost billions of their annual for them,” indicated Founder and CEO of Next percent rise in visitors, but earnings. Macau, usually Vacay, Naveen Dittakavi. with lingering concerns over receiving 3.28 million tourists the Delta variant of COVID-19, As the world begins to He listed the following tips for travelers to a month, only played host to there is uncertainty for the open up again and travel 491,419 each month in 2020. follow while on their next vacation: future. restrictions loosen, there This 85.04 percent decrease • Stay in local hotels instead of chains. This Other Caribbean countries are ways to support the decimated local businesses. benefits the local community and gives the suffered large economic local economy when on The situation in Thailand traveler a more authentic experience. losses as well. Barbados holiday, beginning with was equally discouraging, • Hire a local tour guide at monuments and relies on the tourist trade supporting local busior worse. Next Vacay listed attractions to learn things that no one else for 36.2 percent of its gross nesses. the beautiful Southeast will know. domestic product (GDP). In Asian country as the worst• Ditch duty-free, and instead buy souvenirs 2020, COVID-19 cut their hit by financial losses. The from street vendors. average number of visitors pre-pandemic average of • Eat like the locals. Although it is possible in half, and 10.85 percent of 3.3 million monthly visitors to find familiar chains the world over, Barbados staff are now out dropped by 83.15 percent, to independent restaurants offer a glimpse of work. It is one of a few islands where visitors 558,415 a month, resulting in an estimated $13.54 into the country as the locals live it. can scuba dive every day of the year at Carlisle billion loss.

• A good online review is always welcome.

Bay Marine Park, this, in addition to beaches, Taking into account the study’s disheartening It lets the business know that what they’re caves and historic mansion. Jamaica, boasting numbers, these countries’ tourism industries doing is right, and encourages new its colorful Kingston nightlife and abundant need help. As the world begins to open up again customers to share in the great service. beaches, depends on tourism for 34.7 percent

In fact,

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Liberty’s Naji Khoury, left, and Balan Nair >Archive

Liberty Puerto Rico: Strong Organic Growth in Q3 2021

14,000 new customers in fixed and mobile segments

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THE WEEKLY JOURNAL Staff

iberty Puerto Rico released its third quarter (Q3) 2021 earnings report, showing that its revenue grew by 214 percent and 2 percent on a reported and rebased basis, respectively. The reported growth benefited from the inclusion of Liberty Mobile in the quarter, according to the company.

Specifically, rebased revenue performance was driven by double-digit growth in its legacy fixed operations, partly offset by a decline at Liberty Mobile as subscription revenue growth was offset by lower equipment, B2B (business-to-business) and roaming revenue year-over-year.

Naji Khoury, president and CEO, issued the following statement: “Our results for this quarter reflect growth, along with the adjustments of incorporating the mobile operation into our business. The numbers were positive and show that our efforts are headed in the right direction and we have retained customer trust.

“On the fixed segment, we continue to see steady RGU (revenue generations units) growth with 13,200 net additions, once again powered by high-speed data (HSD) subscribers. This quarter, we added 4,400 new homes passed with our Fiber

Our results for this quarter reflect growth, along with the adjustments of incorporating the mobile operation into our business.

- Naji Khoury, president and CEO of Liberty Puerto Rico

to the Home connection and we are currently adding new communities so we can bring our services to more customers around the island,” he said.

Khoury also noted that “regarding our mobile business, we have been focused on the postpaid segment and we have seen very positive results.

We have put our full attention on offerings and distribution of postpaid services with aggressive new rates and promotions, leveraging the combination of fixed and mobile services. We registered a boost in this segment, with 14,000 new customers during the third quarter.

“We have not been focused on the prepaid segment and therefore, we have seen a loss of prepaid mobile customers due to inventory and distribution matters. We are confident we will turn that business around once we start dedicating efforts towards it,” he added.

Meanwhile Liberty Latin America CEO Balan Nair reported that from an organic perspective,

the company has continued to generate healthy fixed subscriber growth with 84,000 RGU (revenue generating units) additions in the third quarter, including positive contributions from each of their reporting segments. “Panama had a particularly strong performance, adding more subscribers in the third quarter than the first half of the year as we gained traction with our broadband-led bundled propositions. In mobile, we grew our base by 74,000 subscribers, with postpaid representing approximately half of the additions,” he said.

Nair also pointed out that “the penetration of fixed and mobile data services remains relatively low across our markets and we are committed to investing in our networks and product offerings to deliver greater access to high-speed connectivity solutions for our customers. In the year-to-date period, we added or upgraded approximately 600,000 homes.

Cash flow from operations and Adjusted Free Cash Flow, in the first nine months of the year, were $718 million and $149 million, respectively, representing strong growth year-over-year, he indicated.

“As we approach the end of the year, we are focused on delivering our guidance targets and establishing a platform for sustained organic growth across our operations. We are also working diligently to integrate the operations we have acquired in Puerto Rico and Costa Rica as well as to close the transactions announced in Panama and Chile. We remain confident that together, these actions will create additional value and position us to deliver higher Adjusted Free Cash Flow in the coming years,” Nair said.

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Digital Platform Reveals the Severity of Housing Needs by Municipality CNE estimates the damages to unrepaired homes at more than $11.8 billion

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Zoe Landi Fontana, The Weekly Journal

he Center for a New Economy’s (CNE) Blueprint, a recently launched initiative, reveals a digital platform intended for assessing each municipality’s financial needs pertaining to housing recovery, after Hurricanes Irma and Maria devastated the island’s already weak housing situation in 2017.

Initial housing and private property damages caused by the hurricanes were estimated at $37.7 billion. Although more than four years have gone by since Irma and Maria, estimated damages to unrepaired homes persist at $11.867 billion, as reported by CNE Research Director Deepak LambaNieves.

According to their research, only 36 percent of the total damage caused by the hurricanes has been addressed so far. The data shows the municipalities that reflect the highest percentage of unmet housing needs are Vieques (85 percent), Culebra (86 percent) and Maricao (87 percent).

Before the disasters, many homes around the island were located in flood zones, were not insured, or were noncompliant with building codes, creating a scenario in which residents were highly vulnerable to displacement, and in which post-disaster recovery would be considerably more arduous than in other areas.

Developed by Lamba-Nieves and Raúl Santiago-Bartolomei, CNE research fellow and a professor at the Graduate School of Planning of the University of Puerto Rico, the interactive platform shows municipalities’ individual pending housing needs. The new digital platform, called the Housing Reconstruction Monitoring Guide, visualizes the status of housing and rebuilding efforts in each municipality.

“The Housing Reconstruction Monitoring Dashboard is an interactive and dynamic tool that provides detailed data, at the municipal level, on damage to homes and investments in reconstruction related to Hurricanes Irma and María. It includes all available federal and state government aid. CNE’s calculation tries to get closer to a coherent estimate of how

Damages in Fajardo caused by Hurricane Maria in 2017. >Josian E. Bruno Gómez, Archive

much assistance is still needed and in which communities,” Lamba-Nieves explained.

The creators intended for it to be a resource for organizations to better focus their funding efforts, or to serve as data to support those looking to receive funding. Habitat for Humanity Puerto Rico, a supporter of its development, is one organization whose post-hurricane reconstruction efforts benefit from the new digital platform. The system enables their teams to make informed decisions on where to focus their resources based on the reported needs of each area.

“The dashboard that we are presenting… is a monitoring and transparency tool that helps inform decisions for a better-planned reconstruction. This can inform where there

is the most need and therefore, where resources should be invested.

Furthermore, it can be used by communities and municipalities to support their claims to increase investments in their communities,” expressed Santiago-Bartolomei.

Pending housing needs were calculated by subtracting Post Disaster Housing Assistance from Estimated Housing Damages for the Uninsured. Estimated uninsured housing damages were derived from data from the Individuals and Households Program (IHP).

Post Disaster Housing Assistance encompasses all investments from >Courtesy federal and local home repair and reconstruction programs, such as FEMA IHP, Tu Hogar Renace, SBA Disaster Loans, and the Department of Housing’s Home Repair, Reconstruction, or Relocation Program (R3). All the data used to develop the Housing Reconstruction Monitoring Dashboard are public.

CNE is a policy think tank and nonpartisan group that promotes the development of a new economy for Puerto Rico. Their Blueprint initiative seeks to improve housing and land use in Puerto Rico to develop a programmatic and inclusive housing and land use framework for the island’s reconstruction process. As new data comes in and more information is collected, CNE will continue to update the platform to reflect the actuality of the reconstruction processes.

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>Maricarmen Rivera Sánchez

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FEMA Promotes Accessible Tourism Projects in Puerto Rico

Tourism venues should be for the equal benefit of all

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THE WEEKLY JOURNAL Staff

s a major tourism destination in the Caribbean, accessibility for all is of prime importance to visitors and residents alike. A well-known project has been Mar Sin Barreras, in Luquillo’s famous beach, which has aquatic and floating wheelchairs for people with disabilities.

While there is still a long way to go, the Federal Emergency Management Agency (FEMA) has initiated the first federal and state project in Puerto Rico to eliminate accessibility barriers and help create tourism with greater equity and inclusion for people with functional diversity.

An estimated 25.5 million Americans have disabilities that make traveling outside the home difficult, according to the U.S. Bureau of Transportation Statistics. This population accounted for 8.5 percent of those age 5 and older in 2017. An estimated 13.4 million of these Americans—more than half—are adults age 18 to 64.

The initiative, created by FEMA’s team of advisors from the Disability Integration (DI) office, has impacted several municipalities with strategies such as the installation of signs and menus in Braille writing, tour guides qualified in sign language, removable ramps to adapt them to various facilities, and aquatic and floating wheelchairs for use in beaches and water parks,

among many other options.

In addition, the DI team provides suggestions to identify grants and recovery funds that include measures so that survivors with disabilities and access and functional needs can enjoy tourism activities under the same conditions.

“The recovery of Puerto Rico is very broad and goes beyond the allocation of funds for reconstruction work. The ongoing efforts to help the island recover provide the opportunity of collaborating with the government in this type of initiative for the equal benefit of all,” said FEMA’s Federal Disaster Recovery Coordinator in Puerto Rico, José G. Baquero.

In order to have a greater impact and promote joint efforts, FEMA worked with the Puerto Rico Tourism Company (PRTC) and Discover Puerto Rico, with the purpose of analyzing statistics about tourism economy, and reaffirmed that improving accessibility strengthens the results in this industry.

Carlos Mercado Santiago, executive director of the PRTC, stated that one of the Puerto Rico government’s goals is to encourage inclusive and accessible tourism. “As part of the initiatives that we have been doing in that direction, we are pleased to join FEMA’s efforts to educate and create awareness within our tourism entrepreneurs, organizations and communities in all of the Island’s municipalities,” he said in a statement.

Currently, DI continues to work directly with the municipalities and agencies to provide guidance on the importance of accessibility, its inclusive benefits and alternatives to acquire funding that make accessibility possible. Also, statistics of the population census are provided that identify the communities with disabilities in each municipality as an element to visualize how they can improve

their inclusion alternatives.

In Ponce, the director of the municipality’s Tourism Development Company, Ivan “Yuye” Rodríguez, said that the subjects of accessibility and inclusion within the Mayor’s work plan and public policy are of great importance. “Workshops like the one we received about Accessible and Inclusive Tourism, serve as a guide to develop strategies and achieve social cohesion while we work to boost economic development and tourism in our city, without losing focus on the general community’s well-being.”

Furthermore, these measures also support other areas such as sports tourism, as mentioned

by Jaime Rosado Villa, father of a young sports enthusiast who, during the last 10 years, has participated in various 5K races with his walker.

“In 2018, he walked two-and-a-half miles at the Miami Marathon, on December 2020, he walked 21 kilometers in 30 days. This year, due to the pandemic, the project of doing sports tourism was born with races that go through all the municipalities and the beauties of our country so that we all have the opportunity to enjoy what Puerto Rico offers as a tourist destination,” Rosado Villa said about his athlete son’s experience.

The Accessible and Inclusive Tourism Project began to develop in 2018. During that year, FEMA had the opportunity to participate in the assessments of various public facilities in Puerto Rico, and since February 2018, it has worked with different municipalities, like Aguadilla, Arecibo, Bayamón, Isabela, Maunabo, Ponce and San Juan with the goal of providing guidance on accessible tourism.

Organizations interested in receiving orientations may email jose.carorivera@fema.dhs. gov or fatmee.lopeztorres@fema.dhs.gov.

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Mastercard es una marca registrada de Mastercard International Incoprorated. Registro, activación, aceptación o uso de la tarjeta constituye una aceptación de los términos y condiciones establecidos en el Acuerdo del Tenedor de la Tarjeta. Esta oferta no está asociada, auspiciada o endosada por Mastercard ni Sunrise Banks N.A. Las líneas deben estar activas y al día cuando se reciba la tarjeta. Puede demorar de 6 a 8 semanas a partir de la fecha en que se cumpla con todos los requisitos. Máx. 1/BAN. Para cuentas de negocios de más de 20 líneas. No puede combinarse con otras ofertas o descuentos. Términos Generales Plan Business Unlimited Select: Oferta por tiempo limitado, sujeta a cambios. Válida hasta el 15 de noviembre de 2021. Requiere aprobación de crédito, depósito para servicio, kit básico con tarjeta SIM de $10 y, en tiendas o llamadas de servicio al cliente, un Cargo por Servicio de Asistencia de $30. Aplica Cargo Mensual de Programas Regulatorios (RPF, por sus siglas en inglés) y Recuperación de Costos de Telco (TRF) de $3.18 por línea de voz ($0.60 por RPF y $2.58 por TRF) y $1.16 por línea de data ($0.15 por RPF y $1.01 por TRF); impuestos/cargos aprox. 4−38% de la factura. Roaming Ilimitado en Estados Unidos. Data de alta velocidad ilimitada en Estados Unidos solamente; en Canadá/México, hasta 5GB de data de alta velocidad, luego ilimitada hasta 128Kbps en Select. Video streams hasta 1.5Mbps. Optimización puede afectar la velocidad de download de videos; no aplica a uploads de videos. Para mejor calidad, favor dejar cualquier aplicación de streaming de video en su resolución automática. Microsoft 365 no está disponible para plan Select. Enlace: 5GB de data de alta velocidad, luego ilimitada en nuestra red a velocidad máx. de 3G. Para la pequeña fracción de clientes que usen >50 GB/mes, el uso primario de data debe ser en un smartphone o tableta. El uso para smartphones y tabletas tiene prioridad sobre el servicio de Mobile Hotspot (enlace), lo cual puede resultar en velocidades mayores cuando la data se usa en smartphones o tabletas. Precios de AutoPago: solo para las líneas 1−5; descuento máximo: $25; sin AutoPago, $5 más por línea al mes. Es posible que no esté reflejado en la 1ra factura. Roaming Internacional: Uso gravable en ciertos países. Las llamadas desde países Simple Global cuestan $0.20/min. (sin cargos para llamadas Wi-Fi a EE.UU., México o Canadá). Clientes en planes regulares (por ej. algunos propietarios con una sola línea) pueden pagar $0.05 adicional. Velocidad estándar de aprox. 128Kbps en Select. No es para uso internacional extendido; debes residir en los Estados Unidos y tu uso primario debe ocurrir en nuestra red. Equipo debe registrarse en nuestra red antes de usarse internacionalmente. El servicio puede ser cancelado o restringido por uso excesivo de roaming. Cobertura no disponible en algunas áreas; no somos responsables por las redes de nuestros socios. Scam Shield: requiere equipo capacitado. Activar Scam Block puede bloquear llamadas que no desees bloquear. Puedes desactivar en cualquier momento. Gogo no aplica en plan Select. Red 5G más rápida en Puerto Rico y Estados Unidos: Basado en un análisis por Ookla® de data de Speedtest Intelligence® para velocidades promedio de download de 5G en Puerto Rico y Estados Unidos para Q2 2021.

Las marcas registradas de Ookla® son usadas bajo licencias y reproducidas con permiso. 5G: Requiere equipo compatible; cobertura no disponible en ciertas áreas. Algunos usos pueden requerir ciertos planes o funciones. Vea detalles de Cobertura, Términos y Condiciones e información de Internet Abierta para detalles sobre el manejo de la red (como optimización de video) en t-mobilepr.com. Manejo de Red: El servicio puede ser reducido, suspendido, terminado o restringido por mal uso, uso anormal, interferencia con nuestra red, o con nuestra habilidad para proveer un servicio de calidad a otros usuarios, o por uso significativo de roaming. Durante congestión, usuarios con alto uso de data (>50GB para la mayoría de los planes), y clientes que elijan planes con menor priorización, pueden notar mayor reducción de velocidad que otros clientes. El uso en el equipo tiene prioridad sobre el uso de enlace, lo que puede resultar en velocidades más altas para el uso de data en el equipo. Ver T-Mobile.com/OpenInternet para detalles. Ver Términos y Condiciones (incluida la cláusula sobre arbitraje) en www.t-mobile.com para información adicional. T-Mobile® y el color magenta son marcas comerciales registradas federalmente de Deutsche Telekom AG. ©2021 T-Mobile Puerto Rico, LLC.

< The Weekly Journal > Wednesday, November 10, 2021

DUEÑO DE PEQUEÑO NEGOCIO

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/ Wednesday, November 10, 2021

opinion Eduardo Hilera, M.P.S.,

Emergency Management and Homeland Security Expert

Facebook, Text, or Leave a Voice Message

S

ocial vulnerabilities are possibly the most significant challenge for emergency managers.

Communicating what is being done, or what needs to happen, is essential. Nothing is more dangerous, or a more obvious failure, than sending the wrong message to the right people at the right time.

Today, many people use their mobile devices to manage their live; from their family calendar to banking to the GPS they use to drive around town.

We also live in a world where people rely on radio, television, and newspapers, and still connect with the outside world by going to the bank, taking the bus or driving their car, and find out what’s going on by chatting it up at the local “panadería”.

These are some examples that illustrate the challenges that emergency and disaster managers must consider when they need to communicate with a community effectively, efficiently and most importantly, quickly.

In Puerto Rico, for instance, emergency managers must consider unique cultural, language, social and economic factors. Puerto Rico is the only jurisdiction in the country that does not speak English as its native language. Many Puerto Ricans get their news, social media, and even community information in Spanish. Stop signs in Puerto Rico are in Spanish, distances are measured in kilometers, fuel is sold in liters and speed limits are in miles per hour. Go figure! If federal emergency managers are not aware of this, or if state and local emergency managers don’t highlight these facts, it can lead to serious misunderstandings and unfortunate mistakes.

Puerto Rico’s unique circumstances and cultural nuances set an example of a broader, more complex picture. Every state and territory has cultural and social peculiarities that, left alone, can exacerbate vulnerabilities to disaster.

Governments, local, state and federal must take these into account when preparing for an emergency, responding to a disaster, and while recovering from an event.

All of this must happen regardless of language, specific and unique cultural realities and in full consideration of all communities. Not a single group is more important than the other, and every single group wants the safety and well-being of the other. We saw this in Puerto Rico after Hurricane Maria. Everybody came together.

Is there one single solution to all these challenges? Yes and no. The answer is that emergency management as a practical profession must continue to evolve, and emergency managers

must stay connected to the communities they serve —that is the solution. However, if emergency management remains at a stand-still and does not evolve along with the communities it serves, the same mistakes will continue to occur.

Thirty years ago technologies were different, social media did not exist, a face book was something entirely different: literally a book that universities distributed to students with information about other classmates. Thirty years ago mobile phones were just phones, without emails, let alone text messages —that’s what pagers were for.

Human interaction, however, is in our nature —it existed before the platforms we knew then, the ones we know today, and it will exist after the ones today evolve into something else.

Therefore, the most important work that emergency managers can do to prepare, is to focus on their understanding of social constructs and vulnerabilities before focusing on preparedness, and disaster response. As emergencies and disasters, pandemics and other overwhelming events occur, our understanding of each other will be the key to an effective response.

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/ Wednesday, November 10, 2021

Easy Upgrades for Your Patio Many simple updates are budget-friendly and make a big impact

L

Home Sweet Home

ife in the tropical Caribbean means that we spend a lot of our time outside. With the holidays just around the corner, you may be envisioning an updated patio space to gather with your friends and family. While some outdoor items can be pricey, many simple updates are budget-friendly while making a big impact. If you’re ready to transform your outdoor space without spending a fortune, here are five of the best ways to get started.

Solar Lights

Adding outdoor lights can suddenly turn the space from drab to magical; there’s something about twinkling lights beginning to glow as the sun goes down that can really transform your backyard. Solar lights are a great option for your patio since they don’t require an outlet nearby.

If you have a covered area, solar string lights are a simple and fun way to dress up your space.

For areas where hanging isn’t possible, consider placing colored lights around the perimeter of the patio or garden.

>Courtesy of Airbnb

variety of shapes, sizes, and styles. Find a model that has a mesh shield designed to catch any stray sparks, with a bottom bowl to hold ashes so that they don’t damage your pavers or lawn. Look for products made from high-heat-resistant materials rather than DIY versions that could start to break down after several uses.

Decorative Planters

The easiest way to brighten up your patio is by adding flowers and greenery. A few more pots around the perimeter will make it seem lush, full, and inviting. Take it up a notch and use fun and decorative planters to display your new blooms, rather than the typical terra cotta pots. If you have a fence, wall, or balcony running near your outdoor gathering space, try colorful hanging pots to create a beautiful focal point. If you have unused space on the ground, try something whimsical to showcase your plants, like a wagon planter.

Seat Cushions and Pillows

Outdoor furniture and seating areas are a big investment that make your patio space more enjoyable - but if it’s not in the budget to upgrade all of the pieces this year, you can make a big impact by getting new cushions and pillows. Not only will these new items improve the look of your patio, but they’ll also revamp the comfort level, too – and everyone at your house will be excited about more comfortable backyard seating! Use the cushions as an opportunity to introduce color and pattern; or, you could opt for a neutral cushion

Umbrellas

>Courtesy of Airbnb

paired with a whimsical pillow on each chair. Since this is all outside, make sure to purchase UVresistant items so that they don’t fade quickly in the sun.

Fire Pits

A fire pit outside can extend your festivities long into the evening. Great for establishing a gathering space, roasting marshmallows, or simply adding a little ambiance to the area, fire pits come in a wide

Spending time outside is enjoyable when the weather isn’t too hot, but once the sun is beating down on you in the middle of the day, you might be tempted to head inside. For around $100, you can solve this problem and add some style to your outdoor space. Many patio umbrellas can be used in various configurations depending on your layout; find one that can tilt and stay put at different angles, making it useful for gatherings that last into the afternoon and evening while the sun moves across the sky. Ensure that you also buy a base to fill with sand or water so that your new umbrella doesn’t tip over onto unsuspecting children or guests! You can even get a base with spots for planting (and wheels to move your umbrella wherever it’s needed).

No matter your decorating budget this holiday season, updating your patio can be fun, easy, and worth the effort!

>Twitter @DRNAGPR

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/ Wednesday, November 10, 2021

Portrait of a Rhesus macaque in Galta Temple in Jaipur, India >Archive

Errant Monkey Captivates Crowd in Puerto Rico’s Capital Life in the Caribbean

W

The Associated Press

ith necks craned and eyes shielded from the sun, dozens of people gathered for various days around a towering eucalyptus tree in the heart of Puerto Rico’s bustling capital for a most unusual sight: a rhesus macaque monkey on the loose.

It was first spotted clinging to the tree’s branches. Firefighters and other officials struggled to coax the monkey off the tree as the crowd offered suggestions.

“Give it some lunch to make it come down!” one man yelled.

“It’s too fat to come down!” retorted a woman nearby.

“Oh my gosh, it must be scared,” chimed in a third person.

When the first call reporting the monkey came, Ramón Luis Marcano, a lieutenant with the island’s Department of Natural Resources, did not believe it.

The caller reported the animal was in a tree on a busy, three-lane street that crosses the Santurce neighborhood in the capital of San Juan.

“And I’m like, ‘Where?’”

He went to the scene with doubts, but there it was: a juvenile male rhesus macaque, which is native to south, central and southeast Asia.

“This is not normal,” Marcano said on Wednesday as he observed workers from his agency place a ladder between the tree and the rooftop of a nearby apartment and filled a cage with water, oranges and bananas to lure the monkey.

But the monkey refused to budge further, moving up and down the tree at times to the delight of the crowd below that included students, security guards and waiters.

“Look! Look! It’s moving! There it goes! There it goes!” yelled one woman as she pointed upward.

Police directed traffic as drivers slowed down to try to catch a glimpse of the monkey, which remained largely hidden by leaves and branches.

Marcano said he has no idea where the monkey came from. Rhesus macaques, often descended from escapees from research projects, have been found on Puerto Rico’s main island and hundreds of them populate Cayo Santiago, a tiny island off Puerto Rico’s southeast

coast, where they are allowed to roam free.

But they’re very rare in urban areas — let alone on busy streets far from fruit trees and other sources of food. The only food available along that stretch of road where the monkey was located is a high-end food truck park and a handful of small, indoor cafeterias.

Rhesus macaques are omnivores and considered one of the least friendly monkeys.

They have reddish faces and bottoms and live between 20 to 40 years in captivity. They also can transmit the herpes B virus to humans, who can die from it if they don’t receive immediate treatment.

Marcano said that once the monkey is captured, it will be taken to a veterinarian and later placed with other rhesus macaques at the Dr. Juan A. Rivera Zoo in the western city of Mayagüez. The zoo has been the target of recent complaints and demands that it close following allegations of injuries and inhumane killings.

Picture and videos of the monkey filled social media, with the animal drawing ever-more attention while staunchly staying in the tree.

“I feel bad for it, honestly,” said Stephen Hoppe, a 34-year-old business owner who shot a video of the monkey. “I imagine it’s terrified. ...

Everyone is wondering where it came from.”

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/ Wednesday, November 10, 2021

Royal Jewels and Kobe Bryant’s Shoes set for Geneva Auction

Looking for something really special this Christmas?

G

The Associated Press

ENEVA (AP) — A diamond bracelet that once belonged to France’s Marie Antoinette and a sapphire-and-diamond brooch with matching ear clips that once dangled from a Russian grand duchess are among the featured items in auctions of jewelry and other collectibles in Geneva, Switzerland.

Also going under the hammer in the lakeside Swiss city will be a pair of high-top Nike sneakers from the late NBA star Kobe Bryant, the Los Angeles Lakers shooting guard who died in a helicopter crash in California last year.

The blue, white and gold Nike Air Zoom Huarache 2K4 basketball shoes are expected to fetch up to 35,000 Swiss francs (about $38,000) during a Nov. 11 sale at Sotheby’s. Bryant wore the sneakers in a March 17, 2004, victory over the L.A. Clippers, according to the auction house.

But as usual in the Geneva fall auction season, diamonds, emeralds, sapphires, rubies and other prized gems will be the highlights of next week’s sales at Sotheby’s and rival Christie’s.

Christie’s is putting up for auction an eyepopping pair of heavy bracelets from the 18th century that are studded with three rows of small diamonds. The bracelets are billed as one of the last remaining vestiges of Marie Antoinette’s rich jewelry cabinet that are still available for sale.

The auction house said the famed royal and wife of King Louis XVI was known to have carefully wrapped her jewels in cotton herself, hoping to keep them outside revolutionary France - which ultimately took her life via the guillotine. The bracelets, commissioned around 1776, were kept within royal lineage for over 200 years, Christie’s said.

“Despite Marie-Antoinette’s capture in the French Revolution and her unfortunate death in 1793, the bracelets survived and were passed on to her daughter, Madame Royale, and then the Duchess of Parma,” said Max Fawcett, head of Christie’s jewelry department, referring respectively to Marie-Therese of France, the couple’s daughter, and Princess Louise d’Artois, who died in 1864.

“To see them up for auction today is a unique opportunity for collectors around the world to own a piece of French royal history,” Fawcett said.

A Christie’s employee displays a pair of diamond bracelets, with approximately 140 to 150 carats and owned by Queen Marie-Antoinette of France, in silver and yellow gold, circa 1776. >Martial Trezzini/Keystone via AP

A Sotheby’s employee holds a pair of Nike sneakers of worn in game by former NBA player Kobe Bryant, in Geneva, Switzerland. >Salvatore Di Nolfi/Keystone via AP

The pre-sale estimate for the bracelets is up to 4 million Swiss francs ($4.38 million). They each weigh 97 grams (3.42 ounces), and include “old-cut” diamonds as well as silver and gold, Christie’s said.

Among the lots Sotheby’s plans to present is a pair of “perfectly matched” earrings, each set with 25.8-carat diamonds, that is expected to fetch up to 5 million francs ($5.5 million).

It will also showcase a brooch with a 26.8-carat oval sapphire surrounded by diamonds, and matching ear clips that once belonged to Grand

A Christie’s employee displays a ruby and diamond first anniversaire bracelet from 1938 signed Cartier and property of a Lady formerly from the collection of the Duchess of Windsor, in Geneva, Switzerland. >Martial Trezzini/Keystone via AP

Duchess Maria Pavlovna and were whisked out of Russia during the country’s 1917 revolution.

The trio is expected to garner as much as 480,000 francs ($525,800).

“She was the wife of Grand Duke Vladimir, the son of the tsar, and she was really passionate about jewelry. She had a fantastic collection of jewels,” said Olivier Wagner, the head of Sotheby’s Magnificent Jewels sales.

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