BANGO 2005 Agenda

Background of BANGO

Establishing Civil Society

Directory of CSOs

Establishing Focal Points

Portfolios of CARICOM Heads

CARICOM Islands

CARICOM Secretariat

Caribbean Policy Development Centre

Caribbean People Masses Unity Committee

Charter of Civil Society for the Caribbean Community

Caribbean Single Market & Economy

Conferences

Newspaper Articles

Resource Library

THE CIVIL SOCIETY PLATFORM

Articles published by BANGO in the
Barbados Advocate Newspaper

Forward Together and Encounter: 3 Years After

It was with much anticipation of a buzz of future activity that a Civil Society delegation left the shores of Barbados simultaneously as delegations from 14 other CARICOM States headed to Guyana to participate in the Forward Together Conference....

Digital Divide on Commonwealth Heads Agenda

The theme of the Commonwealth Heads of Government Meeting (CHOGM) slated for Malta 25 - 27 November 2005, is 'Networking the Commonwealth for Development'. The digital divide (the gap between those who have access to digital technology and those who do not) will form part of....

Contractors taking it to the next level
By Trevor Yearwood

After years of divisiveness, small contractors are finally getting their act together. They are on the verge of launching their own association, following in the wake of such professional groups as the architects and....

Consumer Choices not to be taken Lightly

With all the high tech marketing and packaging techniques being employed with more and more sophistication, consumers must be careful about what attracts them and rather, look for what they want....

Consultations and Good Governance

A previous BANGO article touched on the process of consultations with the Fair Trading Commission and the questions were asked, "Were the outputs of the consultation considered....

Part IV - Quality Jobs - A prerequisite to Peace and Good Governance
by Professor Neville Duncan

Caribbean countries still have serious employment problems. Although this seems to be in the downward phase there are very serious concerns with both unemployment and underemployment. ....

Public Owned Universal Access will bridge Digital Divide

In preparation for the World Summit on Information Society (WSIS) and the Commonwealth Heads of Government Meeting (CHOGM), the UWI and the Commonwealth Secretariat convened the Caribbean Seminar/Workshop on the Information....

Big Day for NGOs and CBOs

Sherbourne Conference Centre should come alive on Tuesday 21 st June 2005 as the first day of a two-day Summit begins for all NGO and CBO Leaders in Barbados. ....

Bajans Caught in Cell Phone Trap

The recently announced unification of the cellular phone providers to collect what they call bad debt can only be described as a further assault on Barbadians who fell prey to what I call the cellular phone trap.

Add Governance Principles to "Due Process"

An apology from the Attorney General sparked much debate across popular liming spots as to why she would want to say sorry. Did she apologise because the decision to uproot the vendors did not go through due process according to....

A Case for Professional Intervenors

As the FTC announced that it is developing guidelines for arriving at costs for intervenors, we are left to wonder what they have up their sleeves. The statement issued by them and reported in the media is cause for concern for two reasons. ....

The State of Civil Society Affairs

There is no need to get uptight about globalisation. The fact is that it is upon us even as this article is being written. One thing is certainly clear, that is, in order to survive the mode of governance must change. .....

Say No to Metered Telephone Rates: A fad worth discarding

If ever there was a good reason for the citizens of this little rock to resist the introduction of metered rates, it would be to keep Barbadian citizens competitive in an already expensive country. ....

What Wendell must have Endured

With the FTC hearing into C&W application for rebalancing and adjustment of rates barely on the way, the drama of the intervenor has only just begun to unfold. ....

Memorandum of Understanding - No Secret Deal

According to the Utilities Regulations (Procedural) Rules 2003, rule 12 states: "Subject to rule 13, documents filed in respect of a proceeding shall be placed on the public record. ....

The CARICOM Sojourn

With the call for Civil Society to participate in the policy and decision making machinery at the national and regional level, I was pleased to accept the assignment as a BANGO representative, to coordinate a Civil Society delegation from Barbados to participate in what is now called the CARICOM "Forward Together" ....

A Time for Action -
The Charter of Civil Society - 1

The importance of Civil Society to CARICOM Governments is enshrined in what is called, "The Charter of Civil Society" which was signed by the Heads of Government on Wednesday February 19, 1997 in St. John's, Antigua. This came as a result of one of the strongest recommendations of ....

A Time for Action -
The Charter of Civil Society - 2

The Charter of Civil Society has many provisions which concur with principles espoused by Civil Society including democracy, individual rights, justice, freedom and participation. The Preamble begins:

"We the people of the Caribbean Community, acting through the assembled representatives of our governments." .....

The Charter of Civil Society -
Establishing New Rights & Responsibilities

The charge has been made that the Heads of CARICOM Governments have put their signatures to regional and international agreements, treaties and protocols, establishing rights on behalf of Caribbean citizens, of which the people are ....

The CSME and the Future of Our Artists

There is an important difference between art as an avocation and art as a vocation. Professional art at any level is a business venture which can only work when it is treated as one.....

The Landship Example - No Way to Treat CSOs

In recent times many Civil Society Organisations (CSOs) have been complaining that Government has been stealing their ideas and implementing them before the CSOs could get their programme fully off the ground. What can be said is that much of the social ....

C & W Rebalancing does not mean rate increase

With reference to an article appearing at page 4 of the Advocate News of Wednesday 27 th October 2004, entitled "C&W: rebalancing will lead to lower international rates", it is time that this myth ....

Call for empowerment of BANGO

Civil society groups attending a United Nations-sponsored consultation over the week-end called for the empowerment of the Barbados Association of Non-Governmental Organisations (BANGO)....

Civil Society not Second Class

It is so unfortunate how arrogantly we live life until something happens to remind us that we are all human beings; all as vulnerable as any. We become equal when we have to battle ....

To a Prosperous CSME New Year!

As that magical date of 1 st January 2005 approaches, the heralding in of the CSME, seems too low profiled and BANGO is encouraging Civil Society Organisations (CSOs) to get ....

UNDP Getting Involved

Many academics, especially political scientists would argue about the effectiveness of the UN system. Many would like it to be what they want it to be including being a powerful ....

The Challenge of Empowering Poor People

With the dawn of globalisation, the empowerment of people has suddenly become very important if we are to successfully compete with the rest of the world or at least ....

Poor people make a large contribution

With the debate that raged over housing for low income workers prior to the production of the prototype by the Minister of housing, one must now wonder about those who sought to convince the whole of Barbados that low income housing is a myth; that it could not be ....

Government Cannot Go Into Denial of Itself

The recent call-in debates on the radio sparked some criticism of the Prime Minister's response to a young participant. Indeed, the question arises as to whether or not people feel free to comment, criticize or praise matters ....

ICT Key to Creating Competitive Citizens

As we move into a new era of conducting business access to information and Communication Technology (ICT) is absolutely essential to the modern citizen. Mass connectivity is no longer a word to ponder but rather, an objective to fulfill as we move towards building a knowledge-based information society ....

Much Talent but Little Faith: Policy must embrace the Potential

Orlando Marville, former Barbados Foreign Diplomat stated on Oct 3, 2004 , "We have gone through a disastrous period in West Indies cricket and the only person being blamed is Lara. Let us put blame squarely on the shoulders of the WICB administrators. They. show little understanding of what is required ....

No Room for Playing Politics

Most disheartening was a statement made by Sir Leroy Trotman during his address at the opening ceremony of the Biennial Conference of CTUSAB on Saturday September 11, 2004 . Sir Leroy charged Government with being manipulative by not inviting the Trade Unions to be part of the Barbados delegation to an upcoming meeting with the European Union (EU) ....

Power, Authority and Governance

When Pinelands Creative Workshop (PCW) put in its proposal to the Minister of Housing in 2002, to partner with Government on the housing project in Lower Burney, it was at first met with some caution ....

Celebrating International Day of the Volunteer

December 5 th has been designated by the United Nations as International Day of the Volunteer and as usual BANGO is organizing a week of activities designed to highlight and recognise the work of volunteers from 5 th - 11 th December 2004....

Repercussions from Haiti

Not only does Haiti 's seat remain empty at the level of CARICOM Governments, it is also empty at the level of CARICOM Civil Society. We have indeed lost touch with the two official representatives from Haiti who sat with us on the CARICOM CIVIL Society Task Force....

The Importance of Public Sector Reform

As we approach the implementation of the CSME something must be done to make the Public Sector more efficient or at least change the mode and the pace at which this sector operates.....

Anyone Can Hit Bottom

The West Indies Cricket Board (WICB) in attempting to reverse the team's humiliating record over the past few years have decided to follow the patch, through the appointments.....

World Aids Day: Time To Reflect

As another year passes there must be a more determined effort for us to reduce and aim to eliminate the incidences of new HIV/AIDS cases in Barbados. One obvious strategy is to increase the active involvement of young people in the fight against AIDS for the battle to be more effective than it is. Presently there is no doubt that there....

Bajans Paying a High Price: No Questions Asked

The complacency of Barbadians when it comes to consumer rights is astounding. It seems like we have gone into a mode of silently complaining, silently paying and silently suffering....

BANGO Here to Serve and Empower - Part I

One of the greatest challenges to Civil Society in Barbados is to come together under one umbrella organisation that will be representative of this sector.

BANGO, formed to fulfill that role, quickly found this to be an ideal ....

BANGO Here to Serve and Empower - Part II

Many have been seeking clarification on the role of BANGO. Many have asked, if BANGO is not an umbrella body how can it go forward? The simple answer to that is that it is not BANGO that must go forward, it is the organisations that must go....

BANGO Preparing a Place for Civil Society

It was 1994 when a young despondent man, not yet 40 yrs old, found an ally in an old friend who offered him a space to call an office at #10 Garrison, St. Michael, home of the Commonwealth Liaison....

Beware! All is Not Well in Caribbean Telecoms

Years after the independent people and governments of this region have made it abundantly clear that yes, we are keen to follow not only global trends but WTO mandates as well, and liberalise the stranglehold that telecom monopolies have had on our....

Caribbean Approaches to the FTAA -- A Specific Civil Society Perspective

The launch of the WTO and the emergence of the FTAA and the CSME have all caught Civil Society Organisations virtually with their pants down. Yes there are Civil Society personnel who have great knowledge ....

Competitiveness Via the Internet

A major requirement for combating the onslaught of globalisation and free trade is competitiveness. It is good that people are starting to get back to Barbadienne or Barbadianna; .....

Engaging Civil Society: Hats Off to the GEF

Last week was a very absorbing week for BANGO with the Inter-American Development Bank (IADB)/Caribbean Development Bank (CDB) dialogue and the United Nations' Global Environmental Facility (GEF)/Small Grants Programme (SGP) for Barbados and OECS workshop focused on the....

WI Cricket -- Unity Led by Disharmony?

I have always wondered how people with the identical facts could come up with diametrically opposite conclusions; it must be a question of agenda. President Griffith's statement on the cricket impasse is a case in point ....

Networking in Civil Society

One of the ideals of our society is to bring Civil Society Organisations (CSOs) together. How hard or how easy is this when each organisation is independent, autonomous and has diverse interests and focus....

Price Cap Mechanism Can Wait

It has been said that the reason for having a Price Cap Mechanism is to avoid Cable & Wireless (C&W) having to apply to the FTC for a change in rates. This is supposed to save the taxpayers and the consumers the expense of frequent rate hearings....

Republic is a Question of The Manner and The Form

It was so interesting to hear the republic debate: "Speculations speculating speculations" on the manner and form of a republic. Interesting also to hear the opinions on whether or not there should be a ....

Seeking Guidance and Understanding

The hot topic of the week was the student protest at the UWI Cave Hill Campus which evoked more criticism of the students than support for the students. However, we should remember that most of the students who protested are dependent on their parents to foot their bills....

Tribute to a Fallen Comrade

Gordon Ricky Parris served as a member of the Management Committee of BANGO representing the interests of the Pan African Movement of Barbados. But quite apart from that, his presence also represented the interests of several other organisations including the Barbados Peace Council....

Say No to Genetically Modified Foods

There is much to be done to sensitise consumers about their purchasing habits and the repercussions of those habits. This year Consumer International, the world consumer body has as its theme for World Consumer Day ( March 15 th 2005 ), "Say no to Genetically Modified Organisms (GMOs)". These GMOs....