Tag: Joey Hew
Third undersea cable pointless, says C&W
(CNS): Cable & Wireless, part of the consortium of members that use and operate the existing undersea telecommunications cables that keep the Cayman Islands connected to the rest of the world, has said that plans by government to sink a third undersea cable are unnecessary. Even if there was a five-fold increase in communication traffic […]
Hew: ICT and transport weakness are priorities
(CNS): The state of Cayman’s information and communications technology (ICT) infrastructure and public transport are priorities that government must address now to help business rebound in the wake of the COVID-19 pandemic, Commerce Minister Joey Hew has said. The minister said that tackling these issues had already been on government’s agenda but it had to […]
Minister: ID cards won’t be compulsory
(CNS): The minister responsible for e-government, Joey Hew, has said the ID card system that government is working on will not be compulsory and the public can choose what they share with government and which entities they share it with. The plan to create a national register and issue cards to residents has caused some […]
Development deals to remain secret
(CNS): Planning Minister Joey Hew has said that government has no intention at present of making agreements it has made with developers public because most contain commercially sensitive information. The minster claimed that government was looking at forming a policy framework that would be public but he did not think it was currently justified to […]
Gov’t and Cisco create WiFi hotspots across islands
(CNS): The Ministry of Commerce has partnered with IT company Cisco to provide free public wireless internet access at ten community sites across all three islands. As the three-month lockdown comes to an end, the service has been launched to help people connect with family, friends and online resources, officials said in a release. The […]
Bank’s law is barrier to small business loans
(CNS): The law governing the Cayman Islands Development Bank appears to be a barrier to small businesses accessing low-cost government-guaranteed loans to help them weather the COVID-19 economic challenges. Some CI$5 million has been set aside to fund a low-interest loan programme through the government-owned bank but uptake has been very low. So far, only […]
Over 200 small businesses applied for grants
(CNS): Giving an update on efforts by the Cayman Islands Business Development Centre to help local businesses get through current challenges, Commerce Minister Joey said last week that, as of Wednesday afternoon, 13 May, they had received 219 applications under the grants programme, which is designed for small and micro businesses to help them convert […]
Roadworks underway while island under curfew
(CNS): With fewer vehicles on the road during the current curfews, the National Roads Authority is taking advantage of the lull in traffic, using this time to work on critical road infrastructure projects on Grand Cayman, which a release from the NRA said will inject over $25 million into the local economy. The first projects […]
Drivers get reprieve on vehicle inspections
(CNS): Government will now be able to continue collecting vehicle licence fees and drivers can remain legal without a certificate of road-worthiness after amendments to the Traffic Law were passed in the Legislative Assembly on Thursday. The minister responsible for roads, Joey Hew, said the change allows Cabinet to issue directives to the director of […]
$9M in grants and $5M in loans for small business
(CNS): Commerce Minister Joey Hew has announced a low interest loan programme for 100% Caymanian-owned micro and small businesses and a grants initiative for local businesses that could survive the immediate post COVID-19 economy. At Monday’s press briefing Hew outlined the first measures in a stimulus package that government plans to implement once the curfew […]
CIG tackling rising rent and house prices
(CNS): The explosion in the cost of rent on Grand Cayman, which many believe is exacerbated by the growth locally in the use of short-term rental platforms like Airbnb, plus the rising property prices, often blamed on foreign investment, is having a huge effect on the cost of living. In response, Housing Minister Dwayne Seymour […]
