 Coming to you from our GIS studios, I am Anisia Antoine and this is your midday news brief. The Caribbean Youth Film Festival this year celebrates its 8th anniversary. Having employed as its mechanism a strategic module of teaching the film and television at home to youth, one of the festival's main objectives is the building of uniquely holistic and productive citizens. Festival director Colin Weeks explained that the shift of dynamics due to the COVID-19 pandemic allowed for an international pool of professors as well as participants. This year the Caribbean Film Festival competition is being held under the theme COVID Diaries. In an effort to support the youth and develop the film industry, Exporting Lucia has also partnered with the Caribbean Film Festival for the Film Competition. The COVID Diaries Film Competition was launched on Monday, August 24th at the Exporting Lucia headquarters. The Department of Education, Innovation and Gender Relations has finalised plans for the opening of the new academic year. The proposed date is September 7th, 2020 with teachers reporting to schools on August 31st, 2020. Officials say that dates are proposed given the fluid nature of the COVID-19 pandemic. The return of students to the classroom setting is being done under two formats. Option one is the whole school approach with the use of social distancing protocols. The students will attend school for four days in the week, Monday to Thursdays. Option two is alternate instructional days with an emphasis on assignments and student projects. Chief Medical Officer Dr Sharon Belma George says the decision to reopen schools was evidence-based. Several factors she explained were considered, including the number of active COVID-19 cases on Ireland, the lack of community spread, along with who are the infected individuals. The Centre for Disease Control, CDC, has reduced St Lucia's COVID-19 rating to the lowest, level one, as one of the only eight countries globally. For the period of July to August 2020 to date, St Lucia has welcomed 5,897 travellers through the approved parts of entry, of which 4,413 are visitors. Chief Medical Officer Dr Sharon Belma George noted that the strictly enforced protocols and measures have been effective in keeping the spread of the virus at bay. The public is reminded to follow all travel and on-island protocols as a continued measure in mitigating the risk of COVID-19 into local communities. This has been your midday news brief. Thank you for watching.