Rice, beans, pork – and lots of it. That's a typical restaurant meal in Cuba, widely regarded by travelers as a culinary wasteland where the variety and quality of raw ingredients leave much to be desired.

“We have carried out extensive public diplomacy activities as well as cultural and people-to-people exchanges to encourage deeper understanding and friendship between the Chinese people and people of other countries.”

China is not squeamish about putting a price and index on its culture. In a quirky development last month, China launched its first cultural industry index at the Shenzhen Stock Exchange... The OCT Index, which as of now hasn’t generated much notice, does signal a shifting trend - China’s determination to change its growth model.

Even as Korean tech giant Samsung turns Sony into a has-been, Japan’s erstwhile colony is also beating it in the pop culture sphere: A decade after journalist Douglas McGray famously calculated “Japan’s Gross National Cool” and awoke the country to the potential of capitalizing on the global infatuation with its anime, games, J-pop, and manga, the concept of “Cool Japan” is under assault.

Minister of Foreign Affairs and Foreign Trade, Senator the Hon. A. J. Nicholson, says Jamaica will continue to stand in solidarity with Cuba, in its effort to promote regional integration in the Caribbean.

In 2004 Chinese-American rapper Jin released a song titled Learn Chinese. The hit song, which peaked up to 29 on the US Billboard Hot R&B/Hip-Hop Singles Sales, prophesied that "Ya'll gonna learn Chinese."

Bangladesh should go for an integrated branding policy, instead of taking piecemeal steps, as the country is at the crossroads towards higher growth trajectory.The call came at the conclusion of a two-day international conference on Positioning Bangladesh: Branding for Business at Sonargaon Hotel in Dhaka yesterday.