Carib Scope

作者： admin

  • Women’s Voices Shape New Workplace Priorities at ABWU Women’s Conference

    Women’s Voices Shape New Workplace Priorities at ABWU Women’s Conference

    The annual Antigua and Barbuda Workers’ Union (ABWU) Women’s Conference, which centered its 2025 discussions on the critical dual themes of women’s empowerment and mental health, has wrapped up with a landmark resolution to expand and strengthen protections for female workers across the nation. Drawing nearly 100 female delegates from dozens of workplaces spanning Antigua and Barbuda’s diverse industries, the three-day gathering created a collaborative space for participants to unpack their on-the-job experiences, exchange actionable strategies, and build collective momentum to improve well-being both at work and in their personal lives.

    The newly adopted resolution outlines four clear, high-priority focus areas that will guide the ABWU Women’s Council’s advocacy work over the coming year, pushing for tangible, equitable, and enforceable workplace reforms tailored to women’s unique needs. First, the union will advocate for infrastructure upgrades that meet gender-specific needs, ensuring all workspaces are safe, accessible, and responsive to women’s requirements. Second, it will push to expand access to comprehensive health supports, including preventive care, reproductive health services, and reasonable workplace accommodations for menstrual health needs. Third, the resolution enshrines mental health as a non-negotiable component of overall workplace wellness, requiring employers to prioritize accessible mental health resources for female staff. Finally, the union will ramp up its advocacy to close persistent gender pay gaps and deliver fair, equitable compensation for all women workers.

    Beyond passing the resolution, the conference featured interactive deep dives into three underdiscussed issues that disproportionately impact working women: mental load, unpaid invisible labor, and occupational burnout. Clinical psychologist Jo-Nelle Walsh led the session, explaining that centuries of rigid traditional gender roles have left the vast majority of women overwhelmed by unbalanced expectations that stack professional duties alongside unpaid domestic and care work. She urged attendees to set intentional, healthy boundaries around their time and energy, emphasizing that prioritizing personal well-being is not a selfish act. “It is okay to say no—and to say no without feeling guilty,” Walsh told the engaged audience.

    Human resource consultant and popular columnist Calisha Spencer echoed that call to action, encouraging participants to claim greater agency over their personal and professional trajectories. “Own your choices and take charge of the direction of your own life,” Spencer advised the gathered delegates. Additional thought-provoking sessions were delivered by Senator Malaka Parker and former ABWU executive member Andre’ Sharpe, who shared practical tools and frameworks to help women build long-term economic and personal empowerment.

    Reflecting on the conference’s growing impact, Women’s Council Chair Hazel Luke noted that the annual event has built steadily increasing momentum over the past three years, with participation and engagement rising each session. “We are deeply encouraged by the feedback we receive each year,” Luke said. “Our women are truly benefiting, not just from the sessions themselves but also from the progress we’re making turning our resolutions into tangible changes through collective bargaining agreements.”

    Women’s Council Secretary Imani Meade highlighted a recent, concrete win that proves the conference’s work drives meaningful, lasting change for female workers. Earlier this year, the Antigua and Barbuda Labour Department certified the union’s first collective bargaining agreement that includes explicit provisions addressing the so-called 3Ms: menstruation, maternity, and menopause, as well as andropause. Those groundbreaking provisions originated directly from a resolution adopted at the 2024 ABWU Women’s Conference, and the union is now pushing to include similar language in other ongoing collective bargaining negotiations across multiple sectors.

    Attendees left the conference with overwhelmingly positive impressions, with many highlighting the value of connection and collective action. “Women really need to stick together. I’m very happy that I came to this conference,” one long-time participant shared. Another attendee, who has joined the conference’s workshops for two consecutive years, added: “They have been inspiring, and I thoroughly enjoy them.”

    Today, the ABWU Women’s Conference stands as one of the union’s most impact core initiatives, underscoring the organization’s unwavering commitment to advancing gender equity, empowering working women, and driving progress that improves lives both in the workplace and across Antigua and Barbuda’s broader society.

  • Chikungunya-uitbraak voorbij, virus circuleert nog

    Chikungunya-uitbraak voorbij, virus circuleert nog

    After weeks of elevated transmission, Suriname has officially moved out of the epidemic phase of chikungunya, according to an announcement from the country’s Bureau for Public Health (BOG). While case numbers have dropped sharply across most of the nation, public health officials warn the mosquito-borne virus still circulates in local communities, and ongoing preventive action remains critical to avoid a new outbreak.

    Stephanie Cheuk A Lam, acting head of BOG’s Environmental Inspection division, confirmed that both laboratory-confirmed cases and symptomatically diagnosed infections have declined to levels that no longer qualify as an epidemic. “We are now out of the epidemic phase. Chikungunya is still circulating at low levels in Suriname, but the case count is not high enough to trigger major public health concern,” Cheuk A Lam stated in an interview with Suriname’s Communication Service.

    As of the early August update, residual cases are concentrated in two districts: Paramaribo and Brokopondo, where ongoing transmission is still being recorded. All other districts across the country have reported only sporadic isolated infections. BOG also addressed public confusion stirred by recent circulating media content that suggested a new surge in cases: the organization clarified that the widely shared images date back to June, and do not reflect the country’s current epidemiological situation.

    Despite the encouraging decline in infections, BOG stresses that preventive measures cannot be relaxed. The single most critical step the public can take, officials say, is eliminating standing water sites where mosquitoes that carry chikungunya lay their eggs. “If every person does their part to clear mosquito breeding grounds, keep their surrounding communities clean, and stay alert, we can prevent another large outbreak from occurring,” Cheuk A Lam noted.

    BOG points out that insecticide spraying alone is not enough to keep chikungunya under control long-term. Spraying only targets active adult mosquitoes at the time of application, leaving mosquito larvae and eggs untouched in standing water habitats. These dormant eggs and larvae can eventually develop into new mature mosquito populations, triggering a resurgence of transmission. For this reason, eliminating breeding sites entirely is a far more effective long-term strategy.

    With the dry, warm seasonal period underway, BOG is urging the public to pay special attention to common, often overlooked breeding sites: plant pots, flower vases, animal water bowls, and other small standing water storage containers. Covered water storage containers, officials add, should be properly sealed and thoroughly cleaned on a regular basis. “Just because the weather is dry does not mean we are free of mosquitoes,” Cheuk A Lam warned. Mosquito eggs can survive through entire dry seasons, and will hatch once rainfall returns, creating new populations if left unaddressed.

    BOG also advised the public to take any potential chikungunya symptoms seriously and seek prompt medical attention if they develop. Common symptoms include fever, joint pain, retro-orbital pain (pain behind the eyes), and rashes. Because these symptoms overlap with multiple other tropical diseases, official medical assessment is critical to get an accurate diagnosis and appropriate care.

    Moving forward, BOG will continue to closely monitor chikungunya transmission across the country through multiple channels, including routine laboratory testing, ongoing epidemiological surveillance, mandatory hospital reporting, and regular check-ins with targeted outpatient clinics across all districts.

  • State given five days to answer violation notice

    State given five days to answer violation notice

    A standoff over an unconsulted joint army-police security post construction has escalated in Trinidad and Tobago, with the Tunapuna/Piarco Regional Corporation giving state authorities five days to respond to an official violation notice over the project at Eddie Hart Savannah in Tacarigua. Corporation chairman Josiah Austin laid out the details of the dispute during an on-site press conference on Wednesday, outlining a months-long breakdown in communication between local regional governance bodies and central state agencies.

    The violation notice was formally delivered to the project’s contractor last Friday, Austin confirmed, after repeated attempts by the Corporation to arrange a sit-down with officials overseeing the construction fell through. The local governing body had originally requested a meeting with representatives from the Urban Development Corporation of Trinidad and Tobago (UDeCOTT) for 10 a.m. Wednesday, which was declined. A second request, offering flexibility to match authorities’ schedules, also failed to result in a scheduled dialogue. Austin emphasized that the corporation is only demanding basic, good-faith consultation on a project sited on land over which the Corporation holds jurisdiction.

    While the corporation has received legal advice to pursue formal court action against the project, Austin said leaders are still weighing their options and hold out hope that a negotiated resolution can be reached to avoid litigation. Crucially, Austin stressed that the corporation does not oppose the creation of a new security post in the region entirely. Two other planned security posts in the area, at Grand Bazaar and Acono, have moved forward without any pushback from the local body, he noted. The conflict is rooted entirely in the lack of process and the specific complications of the Eddie Hart Savannah site.

    “On this piece of land, which is vested under our Corporation, they moved ahead with construction with zero consultation and zero respect for our jurisdiction,” Austin said. “That is the core of this issue.”

    Beyond the lack of advance discussion about the post itself, Austin raised urgent safety concerns about unannounced work carried out over the recent weekend on existing underground gas lines at the site. Senior industry officials informed him that construction workers arrived at the location early Saturday morning to map out existing National Gas Company (NGC) pipelines, then began excavation work that continued until 6 p.m. that evening. Crews dug between six and eight feet deep, carried out modifications to the lines, “blown out” the pipes to clear residual gas, then re-covered the excavation site. Austin questioned why neither the Corporation nor other relevant state agencies were notified before this high-risk work got underway, calling it a clear example of the dangers of skipping pre-construction consultation.

    “My concern is that no consultation has taken place, not just with us, but with every other state agency that has infrastructure here,” he said. “Authorities only became responsive after we raised public concerns, rather than doing the right thing and talking to all stakeholders before breaking ground.”

    Austin added that the Corporation already had a fully consulted, community-backed development plan for Eddie Hart Savannah that included a new police post, alongside major upgrades like a new public pavilion, expanded parking facilities, and improved recreational amenities. The planned police post in that master plan was sited at the southern end of the Savannah, selected after careful assessment of existing infrastructure including the grass running track, cricket nets, public restrooms, and planned future additions. That information would have been shared freely with state authorities if they had reached out for input, he said.

    Austin’s criticism extends far beyond this single construction project, however. He used the press conference to highlight a growing pattern of central government undermining the authority of the country’s 14 regional corporations. Historically, regional corporations controlled hiring and project management for local development work, but Austin said that power has increasingly shifted to central government ministers and their departments, eroding local governance autonomy.

    “This is a stance on behalf of all 14 regional corporations against what the central government is doing to our authority,” Austin said, adding that multiple other regional bodies have shared similar frustrations over lack of consultation on state-led projects in their jurisdictions.

    Proper advance consultation would have avoided almost all of the current conflicts over the project, Austin argued. The site hosts a complex network of underground infrastructure, including NGC gas lines, WASA water lines, and buried cesspit lines that crisscross the entire area. Moving ahead without mapping and consultation has created unnecessary safety risks, he said.

    “They just said they were coming here, and they showed up without talking to anyone. Senior local officers don’t know what’s happening, our corporation has no details, NGC only found out after work started, other agencies are in the dark. Who knows what other unexpected issues will pop up? At the end of the day, they went ahead without asking. They are acting like bullies in this situation. Now we will just have to wait and see how this gets resolved.”

  • Back in business

    Back in business

    A shuttered steel manufacturing facility at Trinidad and Tobago’s Point Lisas is set to roar back to life, bringing back hundreds of lost jobs and unlocking billions in investment that signals a new era of economic cooperation between the United States and the Caribbean nation, U.S. Deputy Secretary of State Christopher Landau announced at a recent official ribbon-cutting ceremony.

    First shuttered in 2016, the facility threw 644 skilled industrial workers out of employment when it ceased operations. Now, U.S.-based metals and industrial investment firm Pinnacle Steel and Vanadium Corporation is reviving the site through its local Trinidadian subsidiary, Ibis Steel Company of T&T Ltd. Over the first two years of the project, US$250 million in initial capital will be poured into refurbishments and upgrades, with total planned investment – including future expansion and facility modernization – set to hit US$750 million by the completion of all planned phases. Barring unforeseen delays in refurbishment work, regulatory approvals and local permitting, the plant is on track to deliver its first commercial output by the end of 2027.

    At the ceremony held at the Pt Lisas Industrial Estate in Couva, Landau framed the project as a landmark mutual victory for both nations, far beyond the reopening of a single industrial site. “This is not just the metal that we’re seeing here; it’s the lives that are impacted,” Landau told attendees, referencing the 644 direct jobs that will be restored alongside dozens of indirect positions supporting the facility’s operations. “Those jobs are coming back… and that’s a win not only for Trinidad but also for the United States.”

    Landau emphasized that the revival serves as a powerful example of how foreign private sector investment can reverse long-standing industrial decline and deliver tangible, widespread economic benefits to host communities. Comparing the restart to a biblical resurrection, he noted, “I think there is nothing more beautiful, frankly, than being able to see a plant like this that’s been shuttered come back to life. It’s like Lazarus arising from the dead again.”

    For the United States, the investment addresses a pressing strategic and economic priority: securing stable, reliable access to critical industrial minerals that have become increasingly vital to national and economic security. For decades, the U.S. allowed its domestic mining and processing sectors to shrink, leaving the country dependent on foreign suppliers that may not align with American strategic interests. The Pt Lisas plant will process local ore and industrial residue into two high-demand materials: steel, used in everything from civilian skyscrapers to U.S. military battleships, and vanadium, a critical alloy that strengthens steel for industrial and defense applications. The project also repurposes century-old industrial waste tailings left from previous operations, turning a legacy environmental liability into an economic asset.

    “We need these critical minerals. You need jobs. You have tailings and industrial residue that’s been left over from 100 years of industrialisation. This is a perfect example of what we’re talking about. That is great for Trinidad. It’s great for the United States,” Landau explained.

    The investment also comes at a time when both the U.S. and Trinidad and Tobago governments are actively working to deepen bilateral economic ties. Landau noted that American businesses have grown increasingly hesitant to pursue cross-border investment opportunities in recent years, leading to frequent questions from global partners asking “where are the Americans?” The Pinnacle investment, he said, sends a clear signal that U.S. companies are returning to the Caribbean, and that the bilateral relationship is moving beyond rhetorical partnership to deliver tangible on-the-ground results.

    Landau framed the Pt Lisas project as a symbol of a new, refocused chapter of U.S. engagement with the Caribbean region, crediting current Trinidadian Prime Minister Kamla Persad-Bissessar for opening new doors to cooperation that have not been available in six decades of prior relations. He stressed that the private sector remains the core driving force behind the project, noting that the restart would not have been possible without private investment leadership. Beyond economic and strategic gains, Landau said the revived plant will restore a sense of dignity and community pride to the Pt Lisas region, where workers lost their livelihoods nearly a decade ago.

    “I really get choked up when I sit here, and I look out at these rusting steel mills to think, you know, this will again be a place where people can show their kids, ‘that’s where I work’. And I think that can be a source of great pride for the people of Point Lisas and all of Trinidad and Tobago, as well as for the people of the United States,” he said. Landau added that he hopes the project marks a new beginning for collaboration between the two nations, with many more mutually beneficial partnerships to come.

  • On an ‘anti-democratic path’

    On an ‘anti-democratic path’

    A senior sitting judge of the Caribbean Court of Justice (CCJ) has raised urgent alarms about authoritarian leadership practices at the regional judicial body, warning that unaddressed misconduct could validate long-held public and political skepticism and put the court’s very future at risk.

    Justice Arif Bulkan, a Guyana-born judge on the CCJ bench, made the remarks in a series of leaked internal emails exchanged among court judges in June 2026, as tensions over the leadership of court president Justice Winston Anderson boiled over into open conflict. A majority of the court’s judges have already leveled multiple serious allegations against Anderson, ranging from imposing unilateral judicial dress codes to “panel fixing” and improper attempts to sway the final outcomes of pending cases. Most critically, the majority accuses Anderson of running the regional institution in an overtly authoritarian and dictatorial style that undermines core judicial norms.

    In his email, Bulkan specifically addressed longstanding distrust from regional political leaders, including Trinidad and Tobago Prime Minister Kamla Persad-Bissessar, who has publicly questioned the CCJ’s integrity. Bulkan explained that the core concern driving this skepticism is the risk that a single judge could override the majority position of a full judicial panel, imposing their own preferred legal outcome against the consensus of fellow justices.

    He emphasized that the entire design of the appellate judicial process is built to prevent exactly this kind of overreach: appellate panels require multiple judges to independently review cases specifically to ensure rigorous deliberation, draw on a wider range of professional experience and expertise, and guard against individual bias or improper influence. “If a president could overrule a majority there is no need for a panel,” Bulkan wrote. “If one could simply say, I am doing X, even though four or five feel otherwise, the safeguard of the appellate process vanishes.”

    Bulkan went on to note that this exact fear has been the primary barrier holding most Caribbean nations back from formally adopting the CCJ as their final appellate jurisdiction. Multiple countries have rejected accession in public referendums, with both voters and leaders including Persad-Bissessar openly questioning whether a regional judicial body can uphold consistent integrity and impartiality.

    According to Bulkan, a recent incident related to the handling of the high-profile Mohamed case has become the “back-breaking straw” that forced him to speak out. The unilateral process Anderson attempted to impose in that case, he argued, directly validates the worst fears of the CCJ’s critics. “If we were to continue along this anti-democratic path, the very survival of this institution will be threatened,” he warned.

    Beyond questions of judicial outcome integrity, Bulkan also called out toxic working conditions within the court, criticizing Anderson’s failure to maintain a collegial, respectful environment for all judges. He argued that healthy institutional culture requires recognizing fellow justices as equals, taking their concerns seriously, and creating space for open dialogue and input, rather than dismissing dissenting views out of hand.

    Local media outlet Trinidad Express has reached out to Prime Minister Persad-Bissessar via WhatsApp to request her response to the leaked allegations, asking whether the claims from sitting CCJ judges have altered her position on the court and its leadership. As of publication, no response has been issued.

  • Shot dead in van

    Shot dead in van

    In a shocking early morning incident that has shaken a close-knit Port of Spain community, a 38-year-old local woman was gunned down in her vehicle on Tuesday, as two armed robbers attempted to hijack the truck she called home. The violent encounter unfolded around 7 a.m. near Achong Street, directly across from the John John Towers residential complex, according to official police statements.

    Investigators outlined that Jameelia Lewis, who had been living out of her black Isuzu D-Max pickup after facing personal hardship, was seated in the parked vehicle when the two assailants approached. The pair gained entry through the unlocked passenger door and moved immediately to pull Lewis out of the truck, in what law enforcement suspects was a targeted vehicle theft. When Lewis resisted their attempt to force her from the only shelter she had, one of the attackers opened fire, striking her four times at close range. She was pronounced dead at the scene, and the two gunmen fled the area empty-handed—they did not manage to steal the vehicle or any other belongings.

    The crime was not discovered until commuters driving into central Port of Spain spotted the truck pockmarked with bullet holes and alerted local authorities. Responding units from the Besson Street Police Station, the Region One Homicide Bureau, and the national Crime Scene Unit arrived promptly to secure and process the location. After forensic teams completed their work, Lewis’ remains were transported to a local mortuary in East Port of Spain for autopsy.

    Lewis had deep roots in the John John neighborhood; she was originally from Foster Street, just a short walk from the site of her killing, and remained connected to the community even after she lost housing. Neighbors who knew her for decades described her as a warm, resilient woman who chose to stay close to her childhood home despite her circumstances.

    Isaiah James, a childhood friend of Lewis, recalled that he heard the gunshots that killed her Tuesday morning. “She used to sleep in the van but she was still close to home in a kind of way,” James shared. He explained that Lewis had experienced devastating personal loss three years prior, when her three children—an 18-year-old son, and two daughters aged 16 and 13—were placed into state custody. The separation from her children left a profound emotional impact on her, he said. Like other community members, James believes Lewis fought back against the attackers to protect her vehicle, the only major possession she had left, and that her resistance prompted the fatal shooting. “She was a tough person,” he noted.

    Another neighbor clarified that the children were removed from Lewis’ care after she fell behind on enrolling them in school, and that she fell into deep depression following the separation. They rejected any characterization of Lewis as unstable, explaining “She wasn’t mad, yuh know. She was simply the kind of person who wanted to live off the land and in the bush.” Lewis parked her truck near the neighborhood specifically because she felt safe there, the neighbor added. A third community member added that Lewis had recently started gathering discarded wooden pallets to build a small makeshift shelter close to her regular parking spot, as she worked to establish more stable housing for herself near the community she loved.

    As of this incident, the national murder toll for the current year stands at 228. This marks a small six-person decrease from the same point last year, when the toll hit 234.

  • PM: More gas on the way

    PM: More gas on the way

    In a major announcement delivered during the official visit of U.S. Deputy Secretary of State Christopher Landau at St Ann’s Diplomatic Centre, Trinidad and Tobago Prime Minister Kamla Persad-Bissessar unveiled two landmark energy deals that mark a turning point for the nation’s industrial and energy future.

    The first and most significant of these agreements sees global energy giant BP agree to transfer a 20% stake in the Trinidadian portion of the cross-border Cocuina-Manakin natural gas field to Trinidad and Tobago’s state-owned National Gas Company (NGC). Spanning the maritime border between Trinidad and Tobago and Venezuela, the field is split between Manakin, located in Trinidad’s Block 5, and Cocuina, which sits in Venezuela’s Plataforma Deltana Block 4. Negotiations over the coordinated development of the field stretch back more than a decade, rooted in a 2015 bilateral agreement between the two governments that unitized the field, allocating 66% of reserves to the Manakin side and 34% to Cocuina. This makes the project the first fully agreed unitized cross-border gas development in the Western Hemisphere.

    Under the existing production sharing contract for Block 5, BP’s local affiliate Amoco Trinidad Gas BV has served as the primary operator. Persad-Bissessar outlined that years of stalled negotiations gained new momentum in 2024: the U.S. Office of Foreign Assets Control (OFAC) granted a negotiation license to BP and NGC in May of that year, followed by Venezuela’s issuance of a 20-year license in July 2024 that formalized a 20% stake for NGC and 80% stake for BP across the entire cross-border project. Negotiations were left unfinished when a change of government occurred in April 2025, but were finalized within 16 months of Persad-Bissessar’s administration returning to office.

    Persad-Bissessar emphasized that the new ownership structure, which aligns NGC’s stake across both the Trinidadian and Venezuelan portions of the field, removes the last major barrier to progress. “These agreements align NGC across the field, remove a major obstacle and allow BP to accelerate its final investment decision, completing in a little over one year what remained undone for more than ten years,” the Prime Minister stated. She added that the project is set to become the first successful cross-border development to monetize natural gas through Trinidad and Tobago’s existing energy infrastructure.

    Alongside the Cocuina-Manakin deal, the Prime Minister announced that BP has completed the acquisition of all of Woodside Energy’s shareholding in the deep-water Calypso gas field. First awarded to BHP Billiton during the 2012–2014 bid rounds under Persad-Bissessar’s first administration, Calypso is one of the country’s most promising untapped domestic gas sources, spanning Blocks TTDAA 14 and 23(a). After returning to office in April 2025, Persad-Bissessar’s government brought all parties to the table to resolve the impasse that left the project undeveloped, with the acquisition finalized on August 6, 2026. The full ownership consolidation will speed up project sanctioning, cut operational costs, maximize use of existing NGC infrastructure, and unlock necessary fiscal support from the Ministry of Energy, bringing much new gas supply to the country, the Prime Minister said.

    These developments come on the heels of other growing international interest in Trinidad and Tobago’s offshore energy sector. Persad-Bissessar highlighted that ExxonMobil, which exited local exploration in 2003 after a period of unsuccessful activity more than two decades ago, has recently returned and signed a new exploration agreement. The company’s endorsement of the upcoming deep-water exploration bid round, paired with BP’s two new deals, signals a resurgence of global investor confidence in the nation’s offshore energy potential, the Prime Minister noted.

    Independent reporting from Reuters confirms that the Cocuina-Manakin field holds an estimated one trillion cubic feet of proven natural gas reserves. NGC already holds a 20% stake in the Venezuelan Cocuina portion of the field, aligning with its new stake on the Trinidadian side. Under current marketing plans, 70% of the field’s output will be supplied to Atlantic LNG, home to Latin America’s largest liquefied natural gas export terminal. The facility has faced significant operational strain in recent years as declining domestic gas production from Trinidadian fields cut into its output, forcing the idling of one of its four processing trains. BP holds a 45% stake in Atlantic LNG, with NGC owning 10% and Shell holding the remaining 45%. The remaining 30% of Cocuina-Manakin output will be allocated to domestic petrochemical production. Industry sources quoted by Reuters expect a final investment decision on the project to be reached by the end of this year. Venezuela’s oil ministry had not responded to requests for comment as of yesterday’s reporting.

    During the announcement, Persad-Bissessar also publicly thanked U.S. President Donald Trump for his administration’s support, noting that the deepening bilateral partnership between the two countries has translated into tangible development opportunities for both nations and the wider Caribbean region. Landau’s visit, she added, advanced three key bilateral development initiatives: the proposed Curlew Midstream fuel storage and bunkering terminal, Pinnacle Steel and Vanadium Corporation’s restoration of the shuttered former ISCOTT steel plant, and the BP-NGC Cocuina-Manakin agreements. New MOUs signed yesterday with Pinnacle Steel and Hummingbird AI Holdings also reinforce Trinidad and Tobago’s goal of becoming a regional hub for technology-driven investment, she said. “We are restoring Point Lisas as an engine of growth. Pinnacle’s acquisition and proposed upgrade of the former ISCOTT plant for steel and vanadium production can and will restore capacity, create jobs and benefit local contractors and manufacturers, while signalling confidence in our steel sector,” Persad-Bissessar said.

    The Prime Minister closed by reaffirming her government’s commitment to working alongside BP, NGC, and all industry stakeholders to speed up final investment decisions and bring both new projects into production as quickly as possible to support long-term industrial growth in Trinidad and Tobago.

  • Europa maakt zich op voor nieuwe hittegolf na recordtemperaturen

    Europa maakt zich op voor nieuwe hittegolf na recordtemperaturen

    After two months of record-shattering high temperatures that have already triggered devastating wildfires, dried up major river systems, and claimed thousands of lives across the continent, Europe is now bracing for a new wave of extreme heat. This new heat event comes as multiple nations already struggle with the cumulative impacts of repeated heat and drought through the 2026 summer season.

    Early Monday, official extreme heat warnings were already issued for multiple regions across the United Kingdom and France, with forecasters projecting temperatures will climb well above 30 degrees Celsius in the coming days. The United Kingdom, in particular, is facing its fifth consecutive heatwave of the year, with more than 27 million residents currently living under mandatory water use restrictions. To conserve dwindling freshwater supplies, the British government has implemented strict irrigation limits for agricultural producers and banned garden hose use for non-essential purposes across multiple affected regions.

    Tony Grayling, Director of Sustainable Business and Development at the UK’s Environment Agency, warned that the prolonged stretch of hot, dry conditions is taking a severe toll on British agriculture and will leave long-lasting damage to local ecosystems. “The cumulative stress on our land and water resources cannot be understated,” Grayling noted, emphasizing that the impacts will extend far beyond the summer heat season.

    Across the Channel in France, 70 percent of the country is already under water use restrictions, as consecutive heatwaves have pushed drought conditions to critical levels. Non-essential water consumption, including private garden watering, swimming pool filling, car washing and large-scale agricultural crop irrigation, has been limited or banned entirely in most affected areas.

    In Spain, the national meteorological agency AEMET confirmed Monday that July 2026 was the warmest July on record since national temperature tracking began in 1961. It was also the driest July ever recorded for mainland Spain, with total rainfall measuring just 4.3 millimeters – only a quarter of the historical average for the month. The record heat and dryness have also fueled the largest wildfire the country has seen in modern history.

    Dry, heat-amplified conditions have also sparked widespread wildfires in both Greece and southern Spain’s Andalusia region, where emergency crews have been locked in a days-long battle to contain blazes burning near the medieval town of Niebla. Antonio Sanz, head of emergency response for Andalusia, described the firefighting effort as a “long-distance obstacle race” that could continue for days. Nearly 500 local residents have already been evacuated from high-risk areas to ensure public safety.

    The impacts of the prolonged drought are also disrupting critical European supply chains. Germany’s inland waterway association BDB has warned that falling water levels on the Rhine, one of Europe’s most important freight shipping routes, will soon block commercial navigation on key stretches of the river. According to BDB managing director Jens Schwanen, low water has effectively split the Rhine into two unconnected segments, eliminating continuous navigation for large cargo vessels and threatening major disruptions to regional goods transport.

    Climate scientists have repeatedly noted that Europe is warming faster than any other continent on Earth due to human-caused climate change. Beyond the major western European nations, elevated temperatures are also forecast for Switzerland, Austria and Hungary in the coming days, extending the reach of the extreme heat event across much of the continent.

  • A day of shared ideas

    A day of shared ideas

    On Monday, ahead of the official opening of the first ever International Colloquium titled \”Fidel: Legacy and Future\” at Havana’s Convention Palace, Cuba’s top leader Miguel Díaz-Canel Bermúdez — who serves simultaneously as First Secretary of the Central Committee of the Communist Party of Cuba and President of the Republic of Cuba — convened a full day of productive meetings with high-profile delegates from across the globe who gathered in the Cuban capital to honor the legacy of iconic Cuban revolutionary Fidel Castro.

  • The Book Fair remains a great stronghold of ideas

    The Book Fair remains a great stronghold of ideas

    The 34th iteration of the Havana International Book Fair officially opened its doors on Wednesday, with Cuban President and First Secretary of the Central Committee of the Communist Party Miguel Díaz-Canel Bermúdez leading the opening ceremony at Havana’s iconic Cultural Station located at the intersection of Línea and 18th Streets.

    In his opening remarks, Juan Rodríguez Cabrera, president of the Cuban Book Institute, underscored the significance of moving forward with the beloved cultural event despite challenging external conditions. This year’s fair carries a special thematic dedication to Fidel Castro, the revolutionary leader who shaped modern Cuba’s literary and publishing landscape. “However adverse the circumstances, we could not fail to hold this Book Fair, dedicated to Fidel, because that great reader, the Commander, became, from the very first days of the Revolution’s triumph, our greatest promoter of books and literature,” Cabrera told the assembled crowd of dignitaries, authors, and book lovers.

    Cabrera detailed Castro’s far-reaching legacy in building Cuba’s domestic publishing ecosystem, noting that the late leader was the founding force behind not just the National Printing Office of Cuba and the National Publishing House, but also the Cuban Book Institute and the nationwide Territorial Publishing System. Beyond institutional building, Cabrera emphasized that Castro’s personal advocacy made it possible for Cuba to secure publishing rights and release domestic editions of many of the most influential works of contemporary global literature. For decades, Cabrera added, the Havana Book Fair has served as a critical crossroads for knowledge sharing, the diffusion of cutting-edge literary movements, and open debate on global issues – a role it retains as a vital hub for intellectual exchange even today.

    Alongside its broader dedication to Fidel Castro, this year’s fair also pays tribute to two of Cuba’s most prominent contemporary intellectuals: poet, novelist, and journalist Marilyn Bobes, and leading historian and researcher José Bell Lara. Two custom audiovisual productions highlighted the decades-long careers of both figures, featuring their own acceptance remarks alongside tributes from fellow writers and scholars who celebrated their contributions to Cuban cultural life.

    A highlight of this year’s event is the participation of the Russian Federation as the fair’s guest of honor, a role that highlights the longstanding ties of friendship, solidarity, and cultural cooperation between Moscow and Havana. Speaking at the opening ceremony, Mikhail Shvydkoy, Special Representative of the President of the Russian Federation for International Cultural Cooperation, noted that the opening came just ahead of the centennial celebration of Fidel Castro’s birth, closing his impassioned address with a rousing cry of “Long live Cuba!” Shvydkoy also reflected on Cuba’s enduring global reputation as a destination that draws creators from across the globe, noting that the island has long been a magnet for writers.

    Attendees gave a standing ovation to a special performance by the Russian State Academic Folkloric Ensemble, which treated the crowd to two pieces: a tribute titled “Comandante Fidel” and a lively set of variations on the well-known Russian folk piece “Kalinka.” The official opening ceremony wrapped up with a performance from celebrated Cuban musician Pancho Amat and his group Cabildo del Son.

    The opening ceremony was attended by a host of top Cuban government and party officials, including Esteban Lazo Hernández, President of the National Assembly of People’s Power; Manuel Marrero Cruz, Prime Minister; Bruno Rodríguez Parrilla, Minister of Foreign Affairs; Yuniasky Crespo Baquero, member of the Central Committee of the Communist Party and head of its Ideological Department; and Alpidio Alonso Grau, Minister of Culture. Russian Ambassador to Cuba Víctor Koronelli also joined the ceremony alongside the Russian delegation.