06 July, 2009 - Published 21:40 GMT

BBC Caribbean News in Brief

Economic crisis affects HIV treatment

A joint report by the United Nations AIDS programme and the World Bank says the economic crisis has disrupted HIV prevention and treatment programmes, including causing shortages of anti-retroviral drugs.

The report, published Monday, states that 22 countries have already been affected including several in the Caribbean.

It also notes that besides concern over external funding for treatment programmes, job losses and falling incomes are making health care more difficult to afford.

A senior UN officials said it's a wake-up call which shows that many of the gains in HIV prevention and treatment could unravel because of the impact of the economic crisis.

Haiti's HIV infection rates fall

The rate of HIV infection in Haiti is said to be decreasing.

There were previous fears that the virus had the potential to wipe out a third of the country's population.

Instead, according to research by the Associated Press news agency, Haiti's HIV infection rate stayed in the single digits, then plummeted.

It says Haiti's success in the face of chronic political and social turmoil came because organisations cooperated and tailored programs to the country's specific challenges.

According to the United Nations Aids programme, the rate of HIV infection among men and women aged 15 to 49 is is 2.2 percent.

While that's still far higher than in the developed world, it's lower than the Bahamas, Guyana and Suriname, and much lower than sub-Saharan Africa.

St Lucia to host Libyan embassy

Relations between Libya and some Caribbean countries appear to be gaining momentum.

The St Lucia government has announced that Castries will be the site of a new Libyan embassy to the OECS.

The sub-region formally established diplomatic ties with Libya recently.

St Kitts and Nevis announced last week that is being considered as the possible headquarters of a proposed Libyan Development Bank in the Caribbean.

St Lucia's Foreign Minister Rufus Bousquet says talks have already begun between Castries and Tripoli on opening the Libyan office.

Mr Bousquet also reports that St Lucia has approached the United States regarding having an American embassy based there.

The US embassy in Barbados serves the OECS countries, but Mr Bousquet says having an office in St Lucia would mean significant savings in travel and accommodation costs for OECS residents.

Caricom task force to tackle financial crisis

A Caricom response to the global financial crisis has been placed in the hands of a committee of leaders.

Chairing the so-called Caricom financial crisis task force is the regional grouping's new chairman, President Bharrat Jagdeo of Guyana.

Mr Jagdeo stressed the importance of the self-help approach, in addition to relying on assistance from global institutions.

The committee also includes prime ministers Patrick Manning of Trinidad and Tobago, Bruce Golding of Jamaica and Ralph Gonsalves of St Vincent and Grenadines.

The task force will be advised by a number of regional institutions including the Caribbean Development Bank and the Caricom Secretariat, the OECS Secretariat and the Eastern Caribbean Currency Union.

CDB seeks funding change

The president of the Caribbean Development Bank, Compton Bourne, has told BBC Caribbean that the bank would like to raise additional funds to onlend to the region.

But he said the member countries would have to agree to raise current limits on how much the bank can borrow.

Caricom countries have agreed to coordinate their efforts to source international funds to help them through the economic crisis.

Dr Bourne said the bank was willing to do what it can to assist, and had already relaxed some lending conditions.