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Month: June 2020

Monaco joins in for World Refugee Day

by: Stephanie Horsman
22/06/2020

As part of its relationship with the United Nations refugee branch UNHCR, Monaco is now the agency’s main contributor per capita, supporting projects for displaced people across the globe – an achievement that was commended on World Refugee Day.
World Refugee Day is celebrated yearly on 20th June and honours the courage and determination of those who have been forced to abandon their homes and flee persecution and conflict.
According to UNHCR, nearly 80 million people are currently displaced. They are a mix of asylum seekers, refugees from their countries or those who have been uprooted from their homes and are living as displaced people within their own borders. That number of people represents 1% of the world population.
Monaco has been a major contributor to the UN Refugee Agency this year and has donated generously. The help is always much-needed, but with the pandemic, the plight of refugees and displaced people is more precarious than ever.
When Monaco’s aid contribution is broken down to a per capita amount, it would be as if every man, woman and child in the Principality offered the organisation €25. The agency supports projects in Lebanon, Morocco, Mauritania, Tunisia, and Niger who are offering help such as education for young people and children, access to employment and social services to help those who are emotionally struggling to find their way again.
 
 

Luxembourg receives new Monegasque Ambassador

by: Stephanie Horsman
22/06/2020

Isabelle Berro-Amadeï has been named and accepted as the new Ambassador to the Grand Duchy of Luxembourg.

In a ceremony held on 19th June at the Palais Grand-Ducal, the Grand Duke of Luxembourg welcomed Isabelle Berro-Amadeï, accompanied by her husband Bernard Amedeï, as the new Ambassador to his country.  

After delivering her credentials of accreditation, she was officially sworn in by the Grand Duke, who then invited the Ambassador and her husband to spend time with him in a private interview. During the meeting, the Grand Duke made particular note of the excellent relationship between Luxembourg and Monaco.

They also spoke of the after-effects of the health crisis on their respective nations, Monaco’s negotiations with the European Union, environmental protection controls and measures taken in the fight against global warming and climate change.  

For her part, the Ambassador thanked the Grand Duke for his government’s help during the confinement with regard to the delivery of protective face masks and discussed the benefits of the data centre based in Luxembourg which should allow sensitive data from the Principality to be safeguarded from cyber-attack or natural disaster.

Finally, the two representatives of their countries made a commitment to continue their strong alliance and good relationship in the coming years.

 
Photo: Isabelle BERRO-AMADEÏ et son époux Bernard AMADEÏ, avec Son Altesse Royale le Grand-Duc de Luxembourg ©DR

Palace guards return for daily ceremony

by: Cassandra Tanti
21/06/2020

The Prince’s riflemen have taken up their carbines and resumed the ceremonial changing of the guard in front of the Palace, an important tradition witnessed by many tourists each day in Monaco. 
During the Covid-19 health crisis, the daily changing of the guard took place inside the Palace, without ceremony or traditional attire.
It is the first time in its history that the Compagnie des Carabiniers du Prince had not guarded the Palace in full uniform.

On Friday, the masked riflemen resumed their positions in the Palace Square as Prince Albert watched on from the Palace window.
The public are once again welcome to enjoy this ceremony every day at 11.55am. As a precaution, they must wear a mask and respect physical distancing rules.

During the First World War, the riflemen were, for the most part, mobilsed in the French army, so the Palace was guarded by Monegasques and retired riflemen, in civilian clothes.
 
© Photos: Gaetan Luci, Eric Mathon and Axel Bastello / Prince’s Palace – Manuel Vitali / Direction of Communication – © DR. Coll. Archives of the Palace of Monaco.

Gottlieb's anti-drink driving association adds new car to shuttle fleet

by: Cassandra Tanti
19/06/2020

Be Safe, the drink-driving awareness association initiated by Princess Stephanie’s daughter Camille Gottlieb, has been gifted with a shuttle car by the National Council.
Mayor Georges Marsan welcomed Camille Gottlieb, President of Be Safe, and other members of the Monaco association to the Town Hall on Thursday 18th June to receive the generous donation.
The association was created by the young member of the Princely in 2017 to combat drink driving in Monaco, primarily setting up a system of free shuttle vehicles at the exits of nightclubs to deliver people who had been drink safely to their homes.
In an effort to support the association, the Monaco City Council donated an eight-seater Toyota Hiace, which recently belonged to the City Council fleet.
“Your message is primarily intended for young people to warn them and raise their awareness of the dangers of drinking and driving, and I am sure you are excellent messengers by using the right words and targeting the right actions,” said Mayor Georges Marsan in his speech. “I am sure that this vehicle will be used wisely and I sincerely hope that it will help you to enhance the shuttle system and allow young and old alike to return home safely for after a night out.”
 
Photo courtesy Mairie de Monaco
 
 

International flight schedule set to take off

by: Stephanie Horsman
19/06/2020

Things are gradually returning to normal at Nice Côte d’Azur airport, where flights to 79 destinations will soon be possible – 62 of which are international – and the full reopening of Terminal 2 is set for 1st of July.

Nice Airport has resumed a certain amount of air traffic and will continue to accelerate the available flights in the coming weeks. The first phase of the resumption will include connections to the whole of the French territory, many major European cities, Magreb and Israel.  

The July flight schedule is significantly more expansive than June’s, with 17 French destinations about to be on offer as well as 62 abroad. Two new French cities will also be served, Brest and Caen on Volotea, from the start of July, making even more of France accessible by air than before lockdown. International flights are increasing from nine to nearly seven times that number, a dramatic increase in choice.

Additionally, Air France has announced there will be a significant uptick in flights between Paris Charles De Gaulle and Nice starting 1st July. Eleven flights a day on average will service the two cities initially, a sufficient number to start, though Orly will not be represented for the time being.

“With this flight program, Nice Côte d´Azur regains its rank as a contributor to the economic dynamism of its territory and allows residents of the entire southern region to travel as well as tourists, business or leisure, to return to Nice,” said Dominique Thillaud, Chairman of the Management Board of Aéroports de la Côte d’Azur. “The renewed confidence of the companies and their ambitions for direct international lines testify to the attractiveness of the platform and our ability to implement all the health measures capable of restoring the necessary climate of serenity that both passengers and members of crews have the right to expect from France’s ‘second airport’”.

All flights into and out of Nice will be served for the time being from Terminal 2 only. The reopening of Terminal 1 has been discussed, but not decided, and is unlikely to be before the end of 2020.

 
 

Monaco puts sport on the international agenda

by: Cassandra Tanti
19/06/2020

Monaco has initiated a Joint Declaration highlighting the important role that sport and physical activity played during the coronavirus crisis and calling on all countries to include these in their Covid-19 recovery plans.
The 19-point declaration released on Friday supports the World Health Organisation’s recommendation that all healthy adults do at least 150 minutes of moderate physical activity, or 75 minutes of vigorous activity, per week and that children do at least 60 minutes per day.
It highlights the role that sport and physical activity play in both the physical and mental health of people during lockdown, and suggests that the digital tools used for physical activity during this time be developed in the future.
It also recommends that sporting organisations be supported in their return to normalcy, declaring: “We are convinced that the Tokyo 2020 Olympic and Paralympic Games and all postponed events will, when invited, have a special place in the history of sport. They will be a symbol of unity and solidarity following the pandemic. We commend the tireless efforts made by the stakeholders involved in this report.”
118 member states supported the joint declaration drawn up by the co-Chairs of the Group of Friends of Sport for Sustainable Development, the Ambassador of Monaco to the UN Isabelle Picco, and her counterpart from Qatar, Alya Ahmed bin Saif Al-Thani.
In accordance with the biennial resolution of the UN General Assembly on sport, also negotiated by the delegation of Monaco, the declaration also stresses the importance of sport for sustainable development , the building of peaceful societies and socio-economic development.
“For these reasons,” concludes the declaration, “we call on all States to include sport and physical activity in their recovery plans for after Covid-19 and to integrate sport and physical activity into their national sustainable development strategies.”