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Day: 23 April 2020

Prince’s Foundation initiates “day after” campaign

by: Cassandra Tanti
23/04/2020

The Prince Albert II of Monaco Foundation has launched ‘A green shift?’, a new campaign encouraging everyone to reflect on the impact the coronavirus crisis has had on the environment and use the opportunity to create a new balance between humans and the earth.
“The impulse of solidarity that unites us today is proof of our ability to act together with a common goal,” says the foundation. “The need for a collective response to global challenges is more fundamental than ever, whether it be the coronavirus or environmental preservation.”
The Prince’s Foundation says that we all, individually and collectively, have a role to play to ensure that we emerge from this crisis with a commitment to breathe new life into measures taken by countries and industries to combat climate change and biodiversity loss.
Through a series of short video interviews, the Foundation is inviting scientists to take the floor to reflect on the link between the environment and the pandemic, on the current impact of the crisis in various regions of the world, and on the perspectives for the “day after”.
The campaign began symbolically on 22nd April, the 50th anniversary of Earth Day, with a message of hope from HSH Prince Albert II of Monaco.
“Over the past few weeks, our lives have changed at an unprecedented speed. These upheavals will inevitably continue,” said the Prince in his message. “It is up to us to turn this situation to our advantage, to ensure that the current suffering leads to a better world.”
Several personalities will also share their points of view in areas of environment, science and the economy, and how this new balance between man and nature can be achieved at the end of the crisis.
The videos will be broadcast on the Prince Albert II of Monaco Foundation’s social networks and on its website.
 
Read more:

Prince joins Earth Day call to action

 
 

Government deficit means belt tightening in 2020

by: Stephanie Horsman
23/04/2020

The vote by the National Council on Wednesday night to amend the 2020 budget includes the “exceptional and historic” step of implementing a deficit – something not seen in the Principality since the financial crisis in 2009.

The new budget has created a fiscal deficit of €477.3 million to keep Monaco’s government running smoothly. This number roughly equals one-third of the Principality’s overall budget, and a quarter of the available funds from the Constitutional Reserve Fund (FRC).

The fund is fully endowed with €5.5 billion, but only €2 billion of that is in ready cash. This may sound like a tremendous amount of money but drawing vast sums from the reserves is not typically how things work in Monaco. In order to stay within this allotted financial plan, the government will need to not only tighten their belts, but also to generate income to replenish the coffers.  

Jean Castellini, Minister of Finance and the Economy, asks for the government to be “prudent and pragmatic in the budgetary choices which will require drawing from this Reserve Fund. It is the heritage of all Monegasques. It must be managed with intelligence, parsimony and in a virtuous way.”

He goes on to remind us that “In a country where the budget is generally voted in balance, where the last deficit episode dates back to the 2009-2011 period following the global crisis (€200 million spread over three years), we are talking here of almost €350 million of excess expenses… over three months!”

The Minister of Finance suggested some options to help along economic recovery, including new revenue streams from the digital economy, local commerce and the tourism industry, which is expected to bounce back once the epidemic is over.

Along with income possibilities, though, monetary caution is required. The Minister states that government operating expenses must be kept to a minimum. Expect to see more cost cutting measures such as the Palace’s recent announcement that they will be running a tighter ship this year. Finally, he reminds people to keep investing in the Principality and show belief that these times will pass quickly.

 
Photo: Jean Castellini, Minister for Finance and the Economy, © Direction de la Communication – Manuel Vitali
 
 

Monaco Scientific Centre starts Covid testing

by: Stephanie Horsman
23/04/2020

After delays and missing pieces, limited rhino-pharyngeal PCR testing for Covid-19 can now begin in the Principality.
Monaco’s Minister for Social Affairs and Health, Didier Gamerdinger, has announced that the automaton donated by the Monaco Scientific Centre (CSM) and adapted to process rhino-pharyngeal PCR tests is ready for action.
There are enough materials to carry out 150 to 200 tests to start, followed by an expected delivery of 1,000 more. After this, systematic replenishments will come into effect, ensuring that a steady stream of testing materials will be on hand.
The first tests were carried out by CSM’s Jérôme Durivault and Guillaume Groshenry before being cross-checked with the hospital in Nice. In normal practice, the samples will be taken at the Princess Grace Hospital (CHPG) and will be subject to an initial treatment within the hospital.
This makes it possible to send only the DNA and RNA of the virus, if a positive result is returned, to the Scientific Centre. This method has the advantage of not bringing the virus into the CSM, avoiding furthercontagion.
The test analyser can handle up to 30 tests at a time, taking approximately three to four hours to get final results. Having direct access to this machine is of great advantage to the Principality. Previously, it was necessary to send samples to Nice, Marseille or even Paris, prolonging waiting times by several days.
The automaton has been approved by the World Health Organisation and is simple to operate. Cartridges are placed in the machine where the tests are analysed and within hours, results can be obtained. The drawbacks are that the cartridges are expensive and currently in short supply.
Despite these issues, the tests are invaluable to the hospital, especially in cases of potential emergency situations. Due to the limited supply, only symptomatic people who are elderly, pregnant, organ/tissue donors or a health care professional can ask for the tests.
In addition to the nasal swab testing, serological and saliva tests are also being considered by the government, but probably not until the next generation come out.
Serological, or blood, tests only determine whether a person has produced antibodies to the virus, so are tricky as they cannot determine if a person is contagious or not. So far, no blood test has worked completely effectively, though researchers are working on this now.
 
 

Time to scale up

by: Cassandra Tanti
23/04/2020

As the world celebrates the 50th anniversary of Earth Day, the organisers of this year’s Transition Forum have announced that this, the third edition, will take place entirely online over the course of a month.
The Transition Forum was launched under the High Patronage of HSH Prince Albert II of Monaco in 2018, becoming a new global platform to accelerate the transition towards a clean future across all sectors and industries. The event is normally held in the Principality each June, attracting hundreds of global influencers, decision makers and innovators.
Given the current coronavirus crisis, the event will not go ahead as planned, however organisers will be hosting a series of inspiring and interactive online discussions around the topic of scaling up climate action.
“The current Covid-19 crisis is a harsh reminder of how the health of people and the health of our planet are interconnected, and of the need to rethink our business models and lifestyles,” say organisers. “It is more important now than ever to accelerate the transition to a resilient, sustainable and inclusive future.”
The 2020 edition of the Transition Forum will be completely online, connecting digitally with global business leaders, innovators and visionaries to turn insights into collective action.
The forum will feature five live sessions with inspiring talks from world-class speakers and dynamic panel discussions with global innovators, leaders and visionaries.
There will also be interactive Q&A and breakout sessions for participants to exchange ideas and turn insights into action.
And finally, the forum will offer one-on-one networking opportunities via a dedicated event platform during and after each live event.
Kicking off on Thursday 28th May (CEST), the forum will run over the course of a month, with different topics covered weekly: food, housing, mobility, and production and consumption.
Registration for the Transition Forum opens soon. Stay tuned to Monaco Life for updates.
 
 

Roger Federer calls for ATP and WTA to be united

by: Stephanie Horsman
23/04/2020

Tennis fans may have missed out on all the action of the Rolex Monte-Carlo Masters this year, but tennis star Roger Federer is making sure his sport stays in the headlines.
Roger Federer has taken to Twitter to ask his 12.7 million followers what they think about merging the men’s and women’s tennis worlds.
In his post the Swiss legend said: “Just wondering… am I the only one thinking that now is the time for men’s and women’s tennis to be united and come together as one?”
Needless to say, an avalanche of responses came his way, both positive and negative. They included a thumbs up from Judy Murray and a slap from Nick Kyrgios, prompting Federer to add, “I am picturing a merger between the WTA and ATP. I am not talking about merging competition on the court but merging the two governing bodies (ATP and WTA) that oversee the men’s and women’s professional tours. It probably should have happened a long time ago, but maybe now is really the time. These are tough times in every sport, and we can come out of this with two weakened bodies or one stronger body.”

 
Federer argued that it is confusing having different ranking systems, logos, websites and tournament categories for men’s and women’s tennis.
The merger idea isn’t a new one. The Association of Tennis Professionals (ATP) was formed in 1972 as a backlash to the arrival of the Open era to look after male tennis players’ interests. The ladies struck back the following year with the Women’s Tennis Association (WTA) building on the work started by Billie Jean King.
Since then, the idea has been casually bandied about, though no firm plans for combining the two ever came to fruition. With the onset of the Covid pandemic the tennis world, rocked by cancellations causing millions in revenue loss, loosely revisited the idea, though not in the way Federer imagines.
The ATP’s new chief executive, Andrea Gaudenzi, did not throw his weight behind support for the idea of combining the two administrative bodies, but conceded that greater cooperation was a good way to move forward. His argument is that the game is most popular and marketable when men and women play in the same tournaments, such as in Grand Slam events.
This attitude has been the predominant one, looking at bringing together the ATP and WTA tours under “one roof” whilst still maintaining separate governance. Perhaps the economic crisis spawned by the health one will force the two sides to look at viable solutions to financial woes.