COUNTRY CLEARANCE FOR KAREN D. TURNER TO

UNCLAS BRIDGETOWN 000395 SIPDIS AIDAC SIPDIS PASS TO LAC/CAR DAN RILEY E.O. 12958: N/A TAGS: ASEC OTRA BB EAID SUBJECT: COUNTRY CLEARANCE FOR KAREN D. TURNER TO TRAVEL TO BARBADOS REF: KINGSTON 00429 ¶1. Embassy Bridgetown grants country clearance for Ms. Karen D. Turner, USAID/J-Cars Mission Director to travel to Barbados on March 5-11, 2006. The purpose of this visit is the Mission's Director's monthly visit to Barbados to meet with CRP staff, US Ambassador and Deputy Chief of Mission and other Embassy personnel; donors and other international development partners to discuss disaster risk reduction in the regional and USAID partners. ¶2. Control officer is Sean Hall; Tel.(246)228-8070 or Fax. (246) 228-8589. ¶3. Entry requirements: A valid U.S. passport is required to enter Barbados and Dominica. No visa is required if your stay is under six months, including those travelers arriving with diplomatic or official passports. For further information, travelers may contact the Embassy of Barbados, 2144 Wyoming Avenue N.W., Washington, D.C. 20008, telephone (202) 939-9200 and the Embassy of the Commonwealth of Dominica 3216 New Mexico Avenue, N.W., Washington, D.C. 20016, telephone (202) 364-6781. ¶4. Departure tax for Barbados is BDS25.00 or USD19.00. ¶5. The following is general information pertaining to security and health considerations throughout the Eastern Caribbean: Security -------------- In the Eastern Caribbean, foot travel outside of well- established tourist areas is not generally recommended, especially at night. Be vigilant when using public telephones or ATM machines near roadsides or quiet areas. As in many U.S. metropolitan areas, wearing expensive jewelry, carrying expensive objects, or carrying large amounts of cash should be avoided. Visitors should also safeguard valuables while at the beach. While hotels are generally safe, many visitors have experienced loss of unattended items. Hotel burglaries are not uncommon and all valuables should be locked in room safes if possible. Health Information -------------- Throughout the Eastern Caribbean, the most likely threat to a visitor's health is sunburn. It takes several weeks to become accustomed to the heat and humidity. Prolonged exposure to the sun, without protection, causes sunburn and may ultimately result in sun-damaged skin or even skin cancer. Sunscreens should be used for protection. In Barbados, St. Lucia, and St. Vincent the major health threat is dengue fever, transmitted by mosquito. Dengue cases are most often seen in the summer months. Persons should therefore protect themselves with insect repellant. There is also a growing number of HIV/AIDS cases reported. The Eastern Caribbean enjoys clean and safe drinking water. Only routine boosters for immunizations (i.e. tetanus, diphtheria, and oral polio vaccine) are required when traveling to this region. Barbados has the best medical facilities of all the islands in the region and most of the medical specialties have practitioners here. KRAMER