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Day: 14 December 2021

Coral reef fund directs $10 million to Phillipines

by: Cassandra Tanti
14/12/2021

The Board of Directors of the Global Fund for Coral Reefs, co-founded by the Prince Albert II of Monaco Foundation, has just approved the allocation of over US $10 million for coral reef conservation.
Following the 26th UN Climate Change Conference, the Global Fund for Coral Reefs (GFCR) Executive Board reconvened on 23rd, 24th and 25th November to review Fund progress and proposed programmes. The meeting resulted in the issuing of two decisions totalling more than $10 million USD in new disbursements for coral conservation.
The first is the approval of the Fund’s programme for the Philippines, ‘Mamuhunan sa mga Marine Protected Areas’ (Responsible Investment in Marine Protected Areas). At the heart of the Coral Triangle, the Philippines supports extraordinary levels of biodiversity,including hundreds of species of corals, sea turtles, sharks and more than 2,000 species of fish.
The Philippine programme, led by Blue Finance, focuses on catalysing the blended finance approach of the GFCR to improve the management and financial sustainability of three high-biodiversity Marine Protected Area (MPA) networks: the Verde Island Passage MPA Network, the Calamian Island MPA Network, and the Tañon Strait Protected Seascape. The three networks include 80 MPAs with more than 30,000 hectares of coral reefs.
“In a context of budget restrictions and Covid-19 recovery, blended finance solutions to generate critical finance for MPAs are a vital step toward marine conservation and natural resource management,” said Nicolas Pascal, Executive Director, Blue Finance. “Through the ‘Mamuhunan sa mga Marine Protected Areas’ programme supported by the Global Fund for Coral Reefs, generated investment revenues will allow us to sustain the financing of our MPA teams and community rangers (Bantay Dagats) in their daily activities in community development and ecosystem protection.”
Through a Philippines-based coalition of local and international actors, the programme will work to facilitate management concessions for MPAs, develop tangible sustainable revenue models, and secure up-front finance by attracting blended finance capital. Initial revenue models include MPA nature fees, a visitor centre and sales of blue carbon credits. The programme will also unlock finance for reef-positive business models such as eco-lodges and coastal aquaculture, that will, in return, ensure synergies with conservation objectives and contribute to financing for MPA management costs.
As a second decision, the Fund’s Executive Board approved the GFCR Blue Bridge, a service provided by GFCR partner United Nations Capital Development Fund (UNCDF) that deploys grant capital in the form of concessional finance instruments such as concessional loans, and financial technical assistance when needed. The GFCR Blue Bridge will support Convening Agents of GFCR programmes to achieve transformative changes by assisting early-stage reef-positive businesses with concessional instruments. By enabling development and growth of reef-positive business models and establishing financial track-records, the GFCR Blue Bridge will catalyze private sector investment for scaling and replication of reef-positive solutions developed by local entrepreneurs.
Since the GFCR’s previous Executive Board meeting, the Fund has welcomed the Government of Canada and the Green Climate Fund to its expanding public-private coalition of partners, which also includes the Paul G. Allen Family Foundation, the Prince Albert II Monaco Foundation, the governments of Germany, France and the UK, Pegasus Capital Advisors, United Nations Development Programme (UNDP), United Nations Capital Development Fund (UNCDF), and United Nations Environment Programme (UNEP).
 
 
Photo by Francesco Ungaro on Unsplash
 
 

New French health pass rule from 15th December

by: Stephanie Horsman
14/12/2021

From this Thursday, people aged 65 and over in France will need a third dose of the Covid jab in order to retain their health pass. By mid-January, this will be extended to the entire adult population. Here are the details on the next phase of the Covid health crisis.

The French health pass has been mired in questions and debate since its inception. Without it, a person cannot enter restaurants, bars, cultural centres, sports facilities or shopping areas, vastly limiting freedom of movement for non-holders and encouraging people to get vaccinated.

By and large, the French have come around to the idea and compliance has meant that life has gone on more or less as usual. Now, the pass is once again the centre of controversy and confusion with the introduction of the rule that those aged 65 and over must obtain a booster jab to keep their pass up to date. This rule will extend to all adults aged 18 and over in France from 15th January 2022.

This mandate seems straightforward on paper: Get the third dose or lose your health pass on those dates. As with most things relating to government administration and this virus, it is not exactly the case.

The 15th December date is the launch of the new rules and those aged 65 and over must have the booster to keep their passes if a period of seven months has lapsed since their last dose of a two-dose vaccine, or within a maximum period of two months after the Janssen single dose vaccine. The same idea holds for the 18 and older crowd come January. So far, 12-to 17-year-olds are not required to get a third dose. 

The booster can be given as soon as five months after the last injection, but no more than seven months, giving the public a two-month window to work with.

Beyond these deadlines, the QR code on the health pass will be automatically deactivated and placed in the “expired certificate” category.

As D-day for every person is different, the public can go to a new teleservice called My Covid Vaccine Reminder (Mon rappel Vaccin Covid), which tells users in a few clicks their eligibility date for the reminder as well as the expiry date of individual health passes. Additionally, the TousAntiCovid app will warn people in an alert that their time has come to go get a third dose.

“Your page will change colour when you present the pass, so that you can clearly see the time left before deactivation,” explained the Minister of Health. 

All adults have been eligible for the third dose since 27th November, but the uptake has been slow.

The alternative to getting a third dose is to get PCR or antigen tests, but since 29th November, the validity period for these has dropped from 72 to 24 hours, making it necessary to get a daily test, a costly endeavour as the tests are no longer free.

The President of the Scientific Council, Jean-François Delfraissy, is for the moment opposed to the implementation of a health pass for five to 11-year-olds, believing that there is not enough research on the side effects of vaccines in children to justify universal jabs.

Prime Minister Jean Castex announced that the government was considering opening the vaccination to children “if possible, by the end of the year”, but “on a voluntary basis”.

“If we have the authorizations, we will start before Christmas. We are ready,” Health Minister Véran announced on Sunday in an interview with Le Parisien.

Currently, Monaco is reportedly working on its third dose delay plan, but nothing solid has been announced by the government. Monaco’s plan will only be valid in the Principality, meaning without a third dose, travel outside the country will require a test or a booster, regardless of whether one has had the disease or not. 

 
 
Photo by Monaco Life
 
 
 
 

Mitrovic out, Obradovic back in for the Roca team

by: Luke Entwistle
14/12/2021

AS Monaco basketball head coach Zvezdan Mitrovic has been replaced by former coach Sasa Obradovic, in a surprise move announced on Monday night.
The announcement came out of the blue as Monaco, although doing poorly in a highly competitive Euroleague, currently sit second in their domestic division. Ultimately, what put pay to his time at the club was Monaco’s chronic inconsistency, as the side have failed to build a run-of-form on the European or domestic front.
The dismissal is once again a signal of intent from AS Monaco basketball President Sergey Dyadechko that he is not going to settle for anything short of brilliance on the court.
An official communication from the club Monday stated that Mitrovic’s departure was a mutual agreement between himself and the club. The Principality side went on to thank Montonegran for his services, saying, “Zvezdan Mitrovic’s name is forever etched in the history of AS Monaco Basketball. The leaders and staff of the Roca team sincerely thank Zvezdan for the work he has done.”
Mitrovic, in his first spell at the club between 2015 and 2018, helped elevate the club to new heights. In his first season he got the Roca team promoted from the LNB pro B, and in his second, led the side to first place in the LNB pro A, losing out to ASVEL in the semi-final playoffs. He also took Monaco to the championship game of the Basketball Champions League in 2017-2018, only to be defeated by AEK Athens.
Mitrovic re-signed to Monaco in July 2020 and led them into this year’s prestigious Euroleague competition, having won the Eurocup the season before.
Stepping in as head coach, Sasa Obradovic returns for his second spell at the club. He is both the predecessor and successor to Mitrovic, whom he previously replaced in 2019. The Serbian coach left in June 2020, and his return marks the Roca team’s continued oscillation between the two coaches.
Questioned on his motivation to return to the Roca team, Obradovic was full of praise for both the club itself and its trajectory. “It is a beautiful destination. The club is in the process of growing, it had some very beautiful results last season. Monaco has invested enormously and has a very beautiful future ahead.”
Obradovic has little time to prepare and implement his game, as Monaco come up against Lithuanian side Zalgiris on Wednesday, before his return to the Salle Gaston Médecin on Friday.
 
 
Photo of Zvezdan Mitrovic, source AS Monaco Basketball
 
 
 

Monte-Carlo Circus Festival cancelled again

by: Stephanie Horsman
14/12/2021

Organisers of the International Circus Festival of Monte-Carlo have regretfully announced the postponement of the event for a second year in a row, citing the ongoing health situation surrounding Covid-19.

The International Circus Festival of Monte-Carlo was due to run from 22nd to 30th January 2022 covering both the 45th Circus Festival as well as the 10th New Generation Circus. They are now hoping to return to the Big Top in Fontvieille in January 2023.

The announcement came over the weekend with a press release stating that, “In view of the actual sanitary and health conditions, this decision has been taken in accordance with the Government of Monaco and also due to the fact that the biggest Circus-Event in the world presents more than 200 artists from over 20 countries and receives a very international public.

“We sincerely regret this decision, but in view of the responsibility towards the health and security of everybody, we certainly may count on your understanding.”

The circus has been a staple of the Principality since its inception in 1974. Prince Rainier III created the event as a way to give international visibility to unique and interesting circus acts and performers. More recently, the New Generation Circus has been added under Princess Stephanie’s patronage, to give up and coming talent a platform to hone their skills and get noticed.

The Chapiteau in Fontvieille, the location of the circus, holds 3,000 spectators and a gala evening offers almost five hours of non-stop circus. The event is televised and reaches millions worldwide.

This is the fourth time the Circus has been cancelled. The first was following the untimely death of Princess Grace in 1982, the second in 1991 during the Gulf War, and now twice due to the health crisis.

Normally, tens of thousands attend the event each year and it is one of the biggest dates in the Monaco calendar. Combining the best of tradition and modernity, the International Circus Festival of Monte-Carlo is truly unique and special.

The cancellation is a blow to the Principality as well as to the performers, who have not been able to perform due to the global pandemic. 

 
 
 

 

Grace de Monaco perfume pop-up at Metropole

by: Stephanie Horsman
14/12/2021

Grace de Monaco is a new luxury brand inspired by Grace Kelly whose first fragrance, Promenade Sur le Rocher, is as enduring and elegant as the late Princess herself.

The new perfume by luxury brand Grace de Monaco is back on the market in the Principality, just in time for holiday shopping. Allowing the public get a sneak peek at this enticing scent, the company, created by the Princess Grace Foundation USA, has set up a pop-up location at the Metropole Shopping Mall where the perfume, and a few other new products, will be featured exclusively for a limited time until the beginning of January.

The perfumes come in beautifully crafted, simple gold-topped glass bottles, making it a visual treat, but it’s what’s inside that makes it special. The scent is described as “a poetic fragrance reminiscent of Princess Grace. Promenade Sur le Rocher evokes a timeless feeling that lifts you into an unforgettable world where dreams and reality are one in the same.”

The sensuous fragrance has notes of bergamot, jasmine, ylang-ylang and rose centifolia interlaced with warmer notes such as musk, amber and vanilla.

Promenade Sur le Rocher is a hundred percent sustainably made, adding a modern ethos. The perfumers say, “The fragrance was conceived with the intention of minimizing the impact that production has on our environmental footprint while always using the highest quality ingredients.”

There are two versions, the first being a highly concentrated 15% one and an eau de parfum that is equally lovely, but at a lower concentration. 

In addition to the scent, candles and diffusers will be on offer in the coming weeks to round out the offerings.