As witnessed by the still growing number of coronavirus cases in the Caribbean region… sunlight did not kill COVID.
The virus, which emerged from Wuhan, China, made its way across Europe and into America, and eventually snuck into the Caribbean through the cruise ship industry and return flights.
Here’s a look at COVID-19 in the Caribbean, the changes it brought, and all the ups and downs.
Illness and loss of life
The Dominican Republic was the first country to report a case in the Caribbean in March 2020 when a tourist from Italy arrived on a cruise ship. From there, the number of confirmed COVID-19 cases began to freefall in the Caribbean as more people continued entering the region.
As of December 29, the Caribbean recorded 355,415 confirmed cases, 5,789 deaths and 218,228 recoveries.
The Dominican Republic, Puerto Rico and French Guiana are the top three countries in the Caribbean with the highest number of confirmed cases.
In terms of CARICOM, the islands with the most active cases as of December 29 were Jamaica (2273), The Bahamas (1487), Haiti (1140), and Belize (926).
Masks, social distancing and curfews
Being told to tone down your social behaviour is not something Caribbean people are accustomed to. The wearing of masks in the hot sun, not being able to greet friends with hugs and kisses, copious amounts of hand sanitising and being told not to lime in large groups took a toll on people’s social lives.
Many islands declared state of emergencies, curfews, bans, fines for breaking quarantine and mandatory mask-wearing laws to stem the spread of the virus.
Economic blues
Stimulus packages had to be introduced in most Caribbean islands for people to survive as the pandemic wreaked havoc on the livelihood of citizens who were unable to work due to tough restrictions.
While remote work was an option for certain sectors, those islands which rely heavily on the tourism sector to employ their citizens suffered the most.
According to the International Labour Organisation (ILO), the coronavirus pandemic resulted in the loss of at least 34 million jobs in Latin America and the Caribbean.
The Economic Commission for Latin America and the Caribbean (ECLAC) says in 2020, the Caribbean region would have experienced a drop of –7.9 per cent in Gross Domestic Product.
Are you hearing me?… Online presence
With more people being forced to stay home, Caribbean countries had to fully embrace the digital age.
Banking, the paying of bills, classes and work meetings were all pushed online through apps whether or not you were prepared for it.
Procuring laptops and tablet devices became the number one priority for many islands as online learning had to be implemented.
Schoolchildren across the region continued their education online with only a few islands resuming face-to-face learning in the later part of the year.
Exam hiccups
The coronavirus pandemic apart from forcing schools to go online, really pushed the education sector to the limits with the hosting of regional examinations.
The Caribbean Examinations Council (CXC) held fast to the July 2020 date for the start of CSEC exams, with some CARICOM territories utilising e-testing and those without the infrastructure sticking to paper.
What happened next was complete disappointment, anger and frustration when the results were released, as students across different territories complained about low and ungraded CSEC and CAPE subjects.
Quality leadership
There was no way the coronavirus pandemic could have been prevented from entering the Caribbean, and with that being said the region’s leaders showed true fortitude.
The only Caribbean leader to fall ill in the latter part of the year was Prime Minister of Belize John Briceno, who recovered from the virus on December 7.
Other than that the region’s leaders remain healthy.
Prime Minister of Sint Maarten Silveria Jacobs made international headlines for the tough stance she took as a female leader for keeping her citizens in line during the pandemic.
What really made her famous was a viral video where she said: “If you do not have the type of bread you like in your house, eat crackers, eat cereal. Eat oats,” as Jacobs tried to stop the public from making unnecessary movements during the height of the pandemic.
We have already been told again and again that even when the COVID-19 vaccine is available, life as we knew it will never go back to the way it was and we must adapt to this, the new normal.