PHILIPSBURG:--- The St. Maarten Chamber of Commerce & Industry (COCI) would like to inform the business community that the next “Grow Your Business with COCI Workshops scheduled for March 26 has been postponed for a future date.
This is the last workshop in the series which will be about Financial Planning, by Ahmed Bell. A new date will be announced at a later point in time as the interest in the workshop series since its inception has been very high from entrepreneurs seeking information.
COCI says that a number of restrictions have been put in place by the Government of St. Maarten with respect to protecting public health due to the global COVID-19 outbreak.
The Chamber requests all businesses to follow local public health advice and World Health Organization (WHO) recommendations such as making sure workplaces are clean and hygienic, for those business operations that continue to provide service to the community and are considered essential services.
Maintain social distancing of at least one-meter (3-feet) distance between yourself and anyone who is coughing or sneezing. When someone coughs or sneezes, they spray small liquid droplets from their nose or mouth which may contain a virus. If you are too close, you can breathe in the droplets, including the COVID-19 virus if the person coughing has the disease.
WHO recommendations are: Surfaces (e.g. desks and tables) and objects (e.g. telephones, keyboards) need to be wiped with disinfectant regularly; Why? Because contamination on surfaces touched by employees and customers is one of the main ways that COVID-19 spreads.
Promote regular and thorough handwashing by employees, contractors and customers: Put sanitizing hand rub dispensers in prominent places around the workplace. Make sure these dispensers are regularly refilled; Display posters promoting hand-washing – ask your local public health authority for these or look on www.WHO.int; Combine this with other communication measures such as offering guidance from occupational health and safety officers, briefings at meetings and information on the intranet to promote hand-washing; Make sure that staff, contractors and customers have access to places where they can wash their hands with soap and water; Why? Because washing kills the virus on your hands and prevents the spread of COVID19.
Promote good respiratory hygiene in the workplace: Display posters promoting respiratory hygiene. Combine this with other communication measures such as offering guidance from occupational health and safety officers, briefing at meetings and information on the intranet etc.; Ensure that face masks and / or paper tissues are available at your workplaces, for those who develop a runny nose or cough at work, along with closed bins for hygienically disposing of them; Why? Because good respiratory hygiene prevents the spread of COVID-19.
