Day: 1 December 2016

HSH Princess Stephanie celebrated International Aids Day by handing out eight memorial quilts at the Oceanographic Museum, each quilt carrying the names, birthdates and dates of death of 72 victims of the disease.

Each quilt is four by four metres and the highly original works of art have been made by volunteers since 2011.

Hervé Aeschbach, coordinator of Fight Aids Monaco, said: “This is a high point in the life of the association. First for the preparation of quilts, where volunteers and affiliates work to draw, sew, assemble. There are many hours of work, in which everyone talks about the people they honour. And then today, the presentation of quilts to the public is the second high point. Some of these 16-square-metre works of art will be exhibited at the Ministry of State, the National Council and the Lycée Technique et Hôtelier.”

Princess Stephanie, the founding president of Fight Aids Monaco, said: “It’s very emotional. We are here to remember those who died in the physical suffering, and often in mental suffering, abandonment, isolation. We show them today that we are there, we support without judging them, even if they are no longer on this earth. It is important to take action because, nowadays, no one does anything in neighbouring countries, we talk a little on TV, and that’s it. HIV is a forgotten cause. Monaco is a small country but it does much more than large countries in terms of information, awareness, education. International Aids Day is made to remember that HIV exists, that HIV kills, it hits every day, regardless of social class, religion, ethnicity or skin colour.”

This year marks 35 years since the discovery of the disease that was soon to be called AIDS.

Monaco’s elected National Council has given its approval to the establishment of Multi Family Offices (MFOs) in the Principality.

While there are already about 40 Single Family Offices operating in Monaco, MFOs will be able to offer a range of services to more than one family. The move will provide a major boost to the volume of financial management services on offer, while at the same time controlling their quality. This in itself is expected to make the Principality even more attractive to prospective residents already drawn by the advantages of low taxes, high quality of life and security.

The MFOs will require the setting up of a SAM, a fully-fledged Monaco company, and they must be completely independent of financial institutions, which will not be allowed to own a majority.

The Government has responded to problems relating to faulty pipelines within the residential complex “Les Jardins d’Apolline” by appointing an official to coordinate the rehabilitation of the homes that have been affected by the problems.

Jean Castellini, Minister of Finance and Economy, issued a statement on Thursday evening following a meeting between his department, the Department of Social Affairs and Health, the Department of Infrastructure, Environment and Urban Planning, and representatives of the inhabitants of the building,

“In order to better manage the problems related to the building’s faulty pipelines, and in response to the wishes of the residents, the government has appointed a single interlocutor, Mrs Elodie Boyer, who will coordinate the rehabilitation of the dwellings. To do this, an email address “ddejap@gouv.mc” has been created.

“At the same time, people who have to leave their homes during the construction period will be relocated free of charge during this period, with retroactive effect if rent has already been paid. The State will bear the costs of removal and will facilitate all the necessary steps, in particular with regard to services.

“If a part of the apartment is not habitable but a relocation is not necessary, a 50 percent reduction of the rent will be granted.

“Finally, in the case of a Capital Accumulation Contract, occupants will be exempt from charges during the duration of the work and the payment deadline will be deferred until the end of the work. In case of imperative relocation, the inhabitants will be able, if they wish, to stay in their new apartment.

The Minister said work on the restoration of defective pipelines will begin during the first quarter of 2017 and will last for a maximum of six months with regular information on the quality of drinking water and air inside the building will be provided to residents.

The residential complex, intended for Monegasque nationals, was built between 2009 and 2013, and sits just to the west of Lycée Technique et Hotelier.

The first Chefs’ World Summit has ended in Monaco after three mouth-watering days at the Grimaldi Forum. A total of one hundred exhibitors took advantage of the limelight.

The first course was an inaugural evening with the announcement of the 100 best chefs in the world, chosen and ranked by 534 two and three-michelin-starred international chefs for Le Chef magazine.

The winner was Alain Passard, chef at l’Arpege in Paris. Perhaps unsurprisingly, there were five French chefs in the top ten, although second place went to Martin Berasate of Spain for his work at Lasarte-Oria, another three-star establishment.

Although there was a strong competitive flavour to this first event in Monaco, the Chef’s World Summit was more than anything a happy celebration of gastronomy at its summit.

The Barclays Monaco & Fight Aids team achieved an incredible overall 3rd place at the 17th No Finish Line that took place the third week of November.

More than 220 Barclays colleagues and families in Monaco joined 30 members of the Fight Aids Monaco Association to participate in the annual No Finish Line (NFL), a Monegasque sporting event organised by the Children & Future Association, and one of the most important charity events in the Principality.

In 2015 the Barclays Monaco team collectively ran 8,000km and raised €8,000, claiming the top spot for the Banking category.

This year, and to further demonstrate Barclays’ commitment to this great cause, the team raised the bar and set its objective at 10,000 km.

To motivate the team, Marketing and Events colleagues organised NFL on-site morning events to create engagement, to build motivation, and to start the challenge with morning laps before the teams headed to the office. Following that, three colleagues continued the challenge over 24 hours, fighting fatigue and sleep deprivation to reach the incredible achievement of 10,321 km, raising €10,321 and placing Barclays in the 3rd place position (and 1st place again in the Banking challenge).

Francesco Grosoli, Chief Executive Officer–Wealth & Investment Management, EMEA & Monaco branch, commended the Barclays’ team on this year’s achievement: “I am very proud of the team and the way they pushed themselves beyond their limits for this great initiative. It is this same drive and determination to achieve excellence that allows us to continue delivering our best to our clients, the community and the Principality. Our commitment to Monaco is as solid as the Rock.”

Top Barclays staff performers with a distance covered of more than 100 km: Julien Gallo (101 km), Laurent Rumiano (102 km), Richard Boch (103 km), Ladan Natali (110 km), Josephine Puons (110 km), Michel Artieri (117 km), Martine Frost (117 km), Gerald Mathieu (124 km), Ulf Dagele (133 km), Jerome Maman (187 km), Alexia Chapey (196 km), Emma Petrini (200 km), Aristide Traore (203 km), Ivana Liegeois (207 km), Gary Gueye (281 km) and Lorenzo Turco (298 km), who completed the most laps (213) for the team and placed 67th overall.

READ MORE: No Finish Line kicked off Saturday
READ MORE: Barclays client breakfast sheds light on foreign exchange markets

Various events were organised in Monaco’s schools on Thursday, December 1, to mark World AIDS Day as part of the Info-Sida programme.

For eight years, a high-quality partnership between the Directorate of National Education, Youth and Sports, the Department of Social Affairs and Health and the Lycée Albert 1er, has provided interactive workshops and conferences dedicated to the prevention and the fight against AIDS.

As for the workshops offered to the pupils of the second year, an anonymous and free screening centre with medical and nursing staff provide an interactive course in a round table with a small group of pupils. This approach makes it possible to establish a real dialogue, addressing aspects related to the AIDS virus in all their diversity.

A presentation of current events on the topic HIV-AIDS is also offered to students of the first grade, sensitising them to the evolution of the pandemic, on proposed treatments and also on the need for individual protection.

As a follow-up to World AIDS Day, the Directorate of National Education, Youth and Sports, the Monegasque Red Cross and Fight Aids Monaco will propose on February 9 and 10 a new edition of the “Après-Midis du Zapping “, to which students of the Terminale classes of the Lycée Albert 1er and the 1st of the Lycée Technique et Hôtelier will be invited.

An interactive show, based on prevention, quizzes and television extracts, will provide students with the opportunity to learn and exchange insights about sexuality and AIDS.