Carib Scope

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  • Agriculture Ministry weeding out bogus farmers’ IDs

    Agriculture Ministry weeding out bogus farmers’ IDs

    When the New Democratic Party took power in November, Agriculture Minister Israel Bruce inherited a broken, fraud-ridden farmers’ identification system that for years had siphoned critical state support away from the people who needed it most. Now, his ministry has launched a quiet yet transformative overhaul to root out systemic corruption, restore public trust, and ensure agricultural aid reaches legitimate producers.

    Bruce, speaking in an interview with Boom FM, pulled back the curtain on years of abuse embedded in the original ID program, which was rolled out under the previous Unity Labour Party administration. According to Bruce, the system was weaponized as a political patronage tool, with cards issued to non-farmers, political allies, and individuals who owned no land, raised no livestock, and grew no crops just to put extra cash in supporters’ pockets. This widespread fraud eroded the program’s credibility and diverted vital assistance from genuine agricultural workers who rely on state support.

    The cleanup effort is advancing on multiple interconnected fronts, starting with a systematic purge of fraudulent cards through the existing ID renewal process. All farmers’ IDs expire after a fixed term, and Bruce has issued strict instructions to the Farmer Support Company, the body responsible for final ID issuance, to enforce legal eligibility criteria for all renewal applications. “If you are not legally entitled to have a farmer’s ID, but you’re here looking for a renewal, that renewal will not come,” Bruce said. Already, the new requirements have had an impact: many holders of illegitimate cards have chosen not to come forward at all, while those who do apply and fail to meet qualifications are immediately rejected. Any expired card, even if still physically held by the recipient, no longer grants access to any state agricultural programs, Bruce confirmed.

    To strengthen the front end of the application process, acting Chief Agricultural Officer Marcus Richards outlined the mandatory verification protocols that will now be strictly enforced for all new and renewed IDs. Every legitimate application requires an in-person interview where applicants detail the specific crops or livestock they produce, a full inventory of agricultural commodities, and formal proof of legal access to farmland. Acceptable documentation includes a property deed, a formal lease agreement, or a written landowner permission letter that has been stamped by a Justice of the Peace — a requirement added after multiple cases of fraudulent permission letters that landowners never authorized. While some have criticized the documentation process as overly tedious, ministry officials argue it is a non-negotiable safeguard, as land ownership and access rights change frequently in agricultural communities.

    The overhaul also holds the Ministry of Agriculture’s own extension officers accountable, as their on-site field verification has long been the cornerstone of the ID approval process. Bruce admitted that in the past, many officers approved fraudulent applications without ever visiting the claimed farm to confirm the existence of crops or livestock. To end this practice, the upcoming revamped system will equip all extension officers with digital devices. Officers will be required to capture timestamped, geotagged photographs during on-site inspections, which are automatically uploaded to central supervisory systems once the officer returns to an office with internet access. This creates an immutable digital audit trail that confirms the date, location, and details of every inspection, rooting out officers who cut corners on due diligence. Bruce issued a clear warning to non-compliant staff: “I am putting them on notice that if you are part of any bunch that was not doing the due diligence … you will be shown up by the new farmers’ ID system that is coming on stream.” He added that the integrity of the agricultural sector is too critical to national economic development to allow the previous abuses to continue.

    Beyond cleaning up the existing registry, the government is pursuing an ambitious long-term redesign of the entire ID system. Cabinet has already held discussions on two competing proposals for a new technology-driven identification framework that will not only root out fraud but also eventually integrate with international agricultural databases, supporting better data management and market access for local farmers.

  • SVG ends 15-year ban on importation of pet birds

    SVG ends 15-year ban on importation of pet birds

    After 13 years of strict restrictions to protect local animal and ecosystem health, St. Vincent and the Grenadines has formally ended its nationwide ban on bird imports, with the policy change taking immediate effect.

    First implemented in 2011, the import prohibition was crafted as a proactive defensive measure. At the time, the country’s limited veterinary infrastructure left it vulnerable to devastating transboundary avian diseases, including highly pathogenic Avian Influenza and Newcastle Disease. Beyond guarding public and animal health, the ban served two critical additional purposes: shielding the country’s small, economically vulnerable local poultry industry from outbreaks, and protecting the wild population of Amazona Guildingii—the nation’s iconic endemic national bird, which is unique to St. Vincent and the Grenadines.

    In a formal press release announcing the policy shift, the Ministry of Agriculture, Forestry and Rural Transformation outlined the key changes that made lifting the ban possible. When the original restriction was put in place, the country lacked robust national diagnostic capabilities and widespread disease surveillance infrastructure. Today, targeted investments in modern laboratory testing capabilities and expanded regional cooperation partnerships have drastically upgraded the nation’s ability to identify, manage, and contain emerging animal health risks, the ministry explained.

    The decision to roll back the ban aligns with global regulatory standards set by leading international bodies, the statement noted. The World Organization for Animal Health (WOAH, formerly OIE) Terrestrial Code already outlines clear, evidence-based frameworks for enabling safe trade in pet birds, while World Trade Organization Sanitary and Phytosanitary Measures (WTO SPS) principles advise against broad, blanket import bans when targeted, risk-managed alternative policies can achieve the same public health goals.

    Regional alignment also factored heavily into the policy change. The ministry pointed out that fellow member states of the Caribbean Community (CARICOM) and the Organisation of Eastern Caribbean States (OECS) already allow controlled bird imports under structured certification and quarantine protocols. Harmonizing St. Vincent and the Grenadines’ rules with these regional standards will cut unnecessary trade barriers and advance ongoing efforts toward deeper regional economic integration, the ministry added.

    Domestically, the nation’s Veterinary Services Division now meets all requirements to oversee the new controlled import regime. The division has upskilled its personnel through specialized training, established functional diagnostic facilities, and built tested emergency response frameworks to rapidly detect and contain any potential avian disease incursions, according to the release.

    Beyond regulatory alignment, the policy shift is expected to deliver tangible socio-economic benefits for the island nation. Allowing controlled imports will support responsible pet ownership among local residents, stimulate growth for small local businesses including pet retail outlets and veterinary clinics, and create stronger connections between the country and its global diaspora, while also supporting the island’s critical tourism sector.

    To maintain biosecurity protections, all imported birds will be subject to strict new requirements. Importers must obtain an official veterinary health certificate issued by competent animal health authorities in the exporting country. All birds will also undergo a mandatory minimum 28-day quarantine period in government-approved facilities, complete with required laboratory testing for high-risk avian pathogens before being released to importers, and full compliance with St. Vincent and the Grenadines’ national biosecurity standards.

  • Jamaica haalt US$2,5 miljard uit toerisme ondanks zware economische nasleep orkaan

    Jamaica haalt US$2,5 miljard uit toerisme ondanks zware economische nasleep orkaan

    By the end of August 2026, Jamaica had welcomed 2.34 million international visitors, who injected approximately $2.5 billion USD into the Caribbean nation’s economy. But behind these top-line figures, the country continues to grapple with steep economic contraction and lingering damage from last year’s Hurricane Melissa, with key sectors like tourism and goods exports still performing far below pre-storm 2025 levels.

    Tourism Minister Edmund Bartlett noted that the 2.34 million visitor count marks a 17% drop compared to the same eight-month period in 2025, while total tourism revenue has fallen 18% year-over-year. Even so, Bartlett framed the current results as encouraging, given the severe capacity constraints the sector has faced since the hurricane hit in October 2025. The storm damaged dozens of coastal hotels and critical tourism infrastructure, leaving roughly 30% of the country’s total hotel room capacity still offline as of September 2026, with only 70% of rooms available for booking.

    Air connectivity has also not fully rebounded. While major airlines have maintained their existing routes to Jamaica, flights are currently operating with high load factors. Global aviation industry-wide headwinds, including persistent shortages of aircraft and replacement parts, have driven up ticket prices for travel to the island, putting downward pressure on booking volumes for budget-conscious travelers.

    The struggling tourism sector is just one component of a broader decline in Jamaica’s foreign earnings. Updated analysis of first-quarter 2026 economic data shows that the country’s goods exports plummeted more than 22% year-over-year, driven largely by a sharp drop in mining production and lower export shipment volumes. Service exports, of which tourism makes up the largest share, also fell dramatically, dropping 20.1% in the first quarter as lower visitor numbers translated directly to reduced spending.

    The trade data reveals a stark imbalance in Jamaica’s current account. In the first three months of 2026, the country imported nearly $1.87 billion USD worth of goods, while goods exports generated just $377 million USD. That means Jamaica spent almost five times more on imported goods than it earned from selling goods to foreign markets. A key buffer against this deep trade imbalance has come from remittances sent by Jamaican citizens living abroad, which rose 7.4% year-over-year in the first quarter. That growth prevented an even steeper deterioration of the country’s current account deficit.

    The economic fallout from Hurricane Melissa extends far beyond tourism and international trade. Preliminary estimates put Jamaica’s first-quarter 2026 economic contraction at 5.9% compared to the same period in 2025. The accommodation and food service sectors, which are the backbone of the tourism industry, were hit hardest, contracting by more than 20% year-over-year. Viewed against this broader economic downturn, the latest tourism figures actually signal slow but steady progress: even with one-third of hotel capacity still unavailable and air connections not fully restored, the sector still brought in $2.5 billion USD in foreign revenue over eight months.

    A robust recovery of the tourism sector is critical to Jamaica’s overall economic health. The industry not only directly creates jobs and generates government revenue, but it is also the country’s largest source of foreign currency, which Jamaica relies on to fund a large share of its essential imports. The latest data on trade, tourism and output also highlights the extreme economic vulnerability of small island developing states when a single natural disaster disrupts multiple key foreign revenue streams at once.

    The coming winter tourism peak will serve as a major test of Jamaica’s recovery trajectory. As more damaged hotels complete repairs and bring additional rooms back online, and as aviation capacity gradually increases, industry leaders and policymakers will be watching closely to see whether the country can continue to close the gap in visitor numbers and revenue lost to the hurricane.

  • Education must become an instrument of liberation, not just certification — Simmons

    Education must become an instrument of liberation, not just certification — Simmons

    Kingstown — At the 2026 Oscar Allen Memorial Emancipation Lecture held in Kingstown, prominent Vincentian educator and climate resilience specialist Andrew Simmons has delivered a urgent call for a radical reimagining of Caribbean education, framing lifelong learning as a core tool to advance the region’s unfinished journey toward full emancipation from structural colonial legacies.

    Simmons, who holds a doctorate in climate change and sustainable development, centered his address around the theme “We want to be wise: Education, identity, and liberation in a post-colonial Caribbean,” tying his arguments closely to the lifelong work of Oscar Allen — the late beloved community organizer, lay theologian, and writer whose legacy the annual lecture honors. Allen, Simmons explained, chose education, grassroots organizing, literature, and faith as his tools for collective change, rejecting the pursuit of personal wealth to dedicate his life to empowering poor and marginalized communities across St. Vincent and the Grenadines (SVG) and the broader Caribbean. Echoing the perspective of legendary musician and activist Bob Marley, Simmons noted Allen’s commitment to revolutionary change, summarized by the lyric: “It takes a revolution to make a solution.”

    Opening his analysis with a pair of timeless metaphors — that the longest river begins with a single drop, and a great fire starts with one small spark — Simmons emphasized that individual acts of service and organizing, like Allen’s, can ripple outward to create transformative change far beyond what one person could achieve alone.

    Digging into the core theme of his lecture, Simmons broke his argument into three interconnected pillars: wisdom, education, and liberation, all rooted in the unique lived realities of Caribbean societies. Drawing on sacred texts to ground his definition of wisdom, he argued that wisdom is not merely the accumulation of raw knowledge, but a deliberate way of living. This way of being includes practicing radical empathy, acknowledging gaps in one’s own understanding, prioritizing listening over speaking, learning from missteps, reflecting before acting, and relying on empirical evidence rather than unexamined assumptions. Simmons added that Allen perfectly embodied this approach: while deeply knowledgeable, he always centered one critical question: is this knowledge useful to the people it is meant to serve? “Knowledge in itself doesn’t make much sense unless people can use that for their own development,” Simmons told the audience.

    Turning to education, Simmons pushed back against the dominant model that frames learning as limited to formal schooling or job certification, insisting that education must be a lifelong, inclusive journey “from the womb to the tomb.” At its best, he argued, liberatory education cultivates critical knowledge, practical skills, shared values, and sound judgment; it empowers people to ask better questions, understand how systems of power operate, act with greater autonomy, and equip local communities to analyze their own challenges and lead collective action to address them. Citing the work of iconic Brazilian liberatory educator Paulo Freire, Simmons aligned Allen’s grassroots work with the model of education for liberation, which positions learners as active agents and partners in knowledge-building, rather than empty vessels to be filled with pre-determined content.

    Simmons stressed that this fully realized model of liberatory education has not yet been implemented in SVG, calling for a comprehensive re-evaluation of the region’s education systems through the lenses of climate change and sustainable development. Education, he noted, is both a fundamental human right and a critical tool for building community and regional climate resilience. It is essential for helping Caribbean populations understand climate risks, adapt to climate shocks, leverage emerging sustainable technologies, and meaningfully participate in decisions that shape their land, livelihoods, health, collective identity, and citizenship.

    On the topic of Caribbean identity, Simmons described the region’s identity as a layered, dynamic tapestry shaped by Indigenous histories, African survival and creative innovation, European colonial rule, Asian migration, centuries of resistance, diverse religious traditions, unique cultural and linguistic practices, labor movements, and ongoing intra-regional and diaspora community movement. He warned against framing this diversity as a barrier to development, emphasizing instead that “We should not see our diversity as a barrier to development; it is part of our heritage and one of our strengths.” The critical question, he argued, is whether regional institutions create space for all people to participate fully as citizens, while honoring their diverse identities and backgrounds. He specifically called for the development of a collaborative framework to formally integrate the more than 800,000-strong Garifuna diaspora across Latin America and the globe into the citizenship and development agenda of SVG.

    In his discussion of liberation, Simmons drew a clear distinction between the two concepts of freedom and liberation: freedom is the end condition that societies work to achieve and sustain, while liberation is the ongoing, active process of confronting and dismantling unjust structural barriers. He emphasized that while Caribbean nations have achieved formal political independence, this step has not automatically resolved deep-seated challenges inherited from colonial rule, including economic vulnerability, systemic inequality, external dependence on wealthy global powers, weak institutional capacity, and entrenched colonial ways of thinking.

    Small Caribbean states, Simmons noted, still operate within global systems they did not create, systems shaped by unsustainable debt burdens, unequal trade dependence, and ongoing geopolitical pressure from large global powers. He recounted his firsthand experience as part of a Caribbean delegation to 2015 global climate negotiations, where he witnessed wealthy nations dividing Caribbean delegates with targeted funding offers, undermining regional unity at a critical moment for global climate action.

    Simmons called for open reflection on the quality of regional governance within the Caribbean Community (CARICOM), arguing that external pressures do not excuse domestic policy failures. “Outside pressures cannot excuse poor decisions at home… When our own development choices increase vulnerability, damage ecosystems, or exclude communities, our governments and institutions must also be held accountable,” he said. The path forward, he argued, is not isolation from global affairs, but “informed, coordinated, and principled engagement” grounded in the unique values and history of Caribbean civilization, paired with honest accountability for domestic shortcomings.

    Closing with a reflection on climate vulnerability, Simmons cited recent extreme weather events like Hurricane Beryl, which can erase decades of hard-won development progress in just a few hours. He emphasized that the core challenge facing the region is proactively building resilience at the household and community level — a goal that a reimagined, liberatory, lifelong education system is uniquely positioned to advance.

  • Allen dedicated his life ‘to the service of his community and his country’

    Allen dedicated his life ‘to the service of his community and his country’

    At an official funeral service held at Kingstown Methodist Church on Wednesday, St. Vincent and the Grenadines Prime Minister Godwin Friday paid tribute to the late Alpian Rudolph Otway Allen, M.B.E., a former parliamentarian, educator, and decorated public servant whose decades of service left an indelible mark on the North Leeward constituency and the entire nation.

    Friday framed Allen’s decades-long public life as defined by a quiet, unwavering commitment to lifting up his community and country. He described answering the call to public office as a rare and noble calling rooted in duty and deep patriotism, noting that Allen answered that call selflessly and effectively, earning the enduring respect of constituents and fellow citizens across St. Vincent and the Grenadines.

    A devoted family man first, Friday explained, Allen’s commitment to his wife, children, and grandchildren formed the foundation for every other role he held throughout his life. Long before entering electoral politics, Allen built his reputation as a thoughtful educator, school principal, and mentor who shaped generations of young people in classrooms across the region.

    When Allen entered national politics as a member of the New Democratic Party (NDP), he translated that same dedication to growth and public good into his work as a parliamentarian and cabinet minister. Serving the North Leeward constituency from 1989 to 2001, Allen left a long list of tangible, lasting improvements to local communities and national institutions that still benefit residents today.

    Though their time in active electoral politics overlapped only briefly, Friday recalled that Allen consistently earned praise from those who knew him best for his honesty, integrity, and radical kindness. The prime minister, who has led the NDP since 2016 and took office after last November’s general election, noted that Allen exited the national political stage just as he was entering it. Even amid the turbulence of early opposition politics, Friday said Allen’s soft-spoken, generous demeanor and thoughtful advice were consistently uplifting.

    “[Allen] listened intently and spoke carefully, almost choosing every word,” Friday told attendees, adding that Allen’s career proved a powerful lesson: public impact does not require a loud voice, only steady commitment to the people one serves. Fellow former colleagues who served alongside Allen in government echoed this praise, valuing his steady wisdom and calm approach to leadership.

    Friday emphasized that Allen’s political success was rooted first and foremost in the trust of his local community. Working as principal of Troumaca Ontario Secondary School in 1989, when the NDP sought a candidate for North Leeward, Allen came highly recommended by his own neighbors, who already knew his character and commitment. In the historic 1989 general election that saw the NDP win all 15 parliamentary seats, Allen won every single polling precinct in North Leeward — a historic victory that remains unmatched in the constituency to this day.

    Over three consecutive successful election terms in 1989, 1994, and 1998, Allen held multiple senior cabinet roles, including Parliamentary Secretary in the Ministry of Health and the Environment, Minister of Health and the Environment, Minister of Foreign Affairs, Tourism and Information, and Minister of Education, Culture, Women’s and Ecclesiastical Affairs. Through every role, Friday noted, Allen never lost close touch with his constituents, prioritizing their needs and delivering visible, material improvements to daily life in North Leeward.

    Key achievements from Allen’s tenure include the complete rebuilding of Chateaubelair Methodist Primary School, a full renovation of Chateaubelair Hospital, and the construction of Troumaca Government School. He also brought critical infrastructure upgrades to the region: lighting for the Petit Bordel Secondary School hard court, the construction and resurfacing of dozens of village roads and the full North Leeward Highway, the construction and improvement of community centres, public playing fields, and recreational courts, and the first expansion of pipe-borne water and residential electricity access to hundreds of previously unserved households. He also upgraded regional public health infrastructure, including expanding local clinics and building new nurses’ quarters across the constituency.

    As education minister, Allen prioritized expanding vocational training opportunities for young people, most notably through the development of the Multipurpose Centre at Petit Bordel. He championed this work out of a core belief that accessible skills development would create sustainable, meaningful income for young people, particularly young men, and reduce involvement in harmful activity.

    After stepping away from active electoral politics in 2001, Allen redirected his energy toward faith and community service, becoming even more deeply involved in the Kingstown–Chateaubelair Methodist Circuit. He served for many years as a local preacher, circuit steward, and member of multiple pastoral committees. In 2003, he spent several months serving as a guest preacher across the United Kingdom, an experience he often spoke of with deep gratitude in later years.

    Allen passed away on August 18 at the age of 86. Prior to Wednesday’s funeral service, the prime minister and his wife Ave Friday paid their respects to Allen’s family during an official viewing at the Parliament Building in Calliaqua on September 2, 2026.

  • Leacock gets crime-fighting insights from NYPD

    Leacock gets crime-fighting insights from NYPD

    St. Vincent and the Grenadines (SVG) is reshaping its national approach to combating rising gun violence and homicides, drawing key insights from a recent working visit to the New York Police Department (NYPD) by Deputy Prime Minister and National Security Minister St. Clair Leacock. Leacock outlined the core takeaways from his trip during a parliamentary address this Thursday, emphasizing that proven NYPD strategies centered on community engagement, data-driven technology, and cross-sector partnerships can be adapted to fit the small Caribbean nation’s unique constraints, particularly its limited public funding for law enforcement.

    During his visit, Leacock received an in-depth briefing at NYPD’s state-of-the-art Operations Center, where he observed how the department monitors violent crime, tracks illegal firearms, and coordinates community safety responses in real time. While SVG’s population and operational scale are drastically smaller than New York City’s, Leacock noted that the core concepts behind NYPD’s command model — centralized data sharing, rapid intelligence dissemination, rapid response mobility, and inter-agency coordination — are already accessible through the Caribbean Community (CARICOM) Implementation Agency for Crime and Security (IMPACS), making them immediately adaptable for local use.

    A defining takeaway from Leacock’s trip that he stressed to lawmakers is the failure of enforcement-only policing. He repeated a key message he received from NYPD practitioners: a country cannot arrest or prosecute its way out of a persistent crime and violence crisis. Instead, NYPD leaders attributed their significant long-term reductions in violent crime to intentional community policing and collaborative partnerships with faith-based organizations, a model that Leacock says aligns closely with SVG’s social context. During his briefing, clergy from multiple religious traditions and local community violence prevention leaders joined NYPD officials to showcase how these cross-sector relationships work in practice, a dynamic that Leacock said has already delivered tangible public safety dividends in New York. He added that New York-based SVG native Wilmer Seaton has already begun exploring ways to support the development of similar collaborative partnerships in the Caribbean nation.

    One specific evidence-based initiative Leacock highlighted for local consideration is NYPD’s widely used gun buyback program, which allows authorities to safely remove illegal firearms from communities by purchasing them from holders who voluntarily turn them in. Leacock clarified that he is not pushing for mandatory adoption of the program, but noted that it has been tested and proven effective in one of the world’s most high-profile policing jurisdictions, and has already been implemented in other Caribbean states. He also pushed back against local public discourse that prioritizes coverage of homicides while ignoring consistent progress in illegal firearm removal: while media and the public quickly highlight fatal violent incidents to emphasize the severity of SVG’s crime problem, the weekly seizures of illegal guns by local law enforcement rarely receive the same level of attention, even though these removals prevent future violence, he said.

    Leacock was careful to emphasize that SVG cannot replicate NYPD’s full model wholesale, due to the nation’s small geographic size, limited population, and constrained law enforcement budget. Even so, he confirmed that many of the core principles and tactical tools he observed in New York are already being integrated into SVG’s evolving national crime strategy. Key adapted measures include expanded use of digital policing technology, regional cross-border intelligence sharing and surveillance, intelligence-led targeted policing, expanded community policing frameworks, and early intervention programs for at-risk community members.

    Citing parliamentary rules that allow ministers to withhold operational details that could put public safety or frontline officers at risk, Leacock declined to share full specifics of upcoming operational changes. “I’m not going to, in my elucidation, speak to issues that compromise the men and women in uniform… because their safety is paramount in the discharge of their duties,” he said. Ultimately, he framed the adoption of these NYPD lessons as part of a broader push to build long-term institutional capacity and improve individual law enforcement competence across SVG’s security sector. The government’s updated goal, he said, is not simply to respond to crime after it occurs, but to proactively prevent violence, disrupt criminal networks that facilitate serious offending, remove illegal firearms from communities, and improve offender detection and prosecution — objectives that have been directly shaped by the insights from his New York visit.

  • 13 students receive KCCU 2026 CPEA scholarships

    13 students receive KCCU 2026 CPEA scholarships

    Thirteen high-achieving primary school students who earned passing marks on the 2026 Caribbean Primary Exit Assessment (CPEA) have received formal recognition and financial support through a suite of scholarship and bursary programs run by the KCCU co-operative credit union. The awards are structured across four distinct funding streams tailored to recognize academic excellence, address economic barriers, support staff families, and offset educational costs for emerging scholars.

    Three students claimed top honors in the academic scholarship category, reserved for the highest performers on the regional exit assessment. The recipients are Amiah Anderson and Armani Ashton, both attendees of Kingstown Preparatory School, and Kelleigh Kirby, a student at Windsor Primary School. Three additional awards went out through the socio-economic scholarship program, which is designed to remove financial barriers for promising students from lower-income backgrounds. This cohort includes Dominic Soleyn of Fairhall Government School, Deondra Ollivierre of Paget Farm Government School, and Xyrell Dopwell of Kingstown Preparatory School. A seventh full scholarship was granted through the institution’s internal staff scholarship program to Joshua Sargeant, the child of a KCCU team member.

    Six students also received partial tuition bursaries to support their upcoming secondary education journey. The bursary recipients are Bryce Fitzpatrick of St. Mary’s Roman Catholic School, Nathan Williams of Kingstown Preparatory School, T-Niah Nichols of Windsor Primary School, Hailey Providence of Kingstown Anglican School, Carlina Williams of Spring Village Methodist School, and Renee Hutchinson of Calliaqua Anglican School.

    Unlike one-time educational grants, KCCU’s CPEA awards provide seven years of continuous financial support, covering the full duration of recipients’ secondary education. The funding is renewable annually, contingent on each scholar maintaining consistent satisfactory academic progress and upholding a demonstrated commitment to their studies.

    For KCCU, the scholarship program extends far beyond basic financial assistance. As a member-owned co-operative credit union, the institution frames the initiative as a long-term investment in youth development and the future of the co-operative movement. Officials note that the program is intentionally designed to nurture well-rounded young leaders who understand and uphold the core values of co-operative governance and community mutual support.

    To embed these values early, KCCU encourages all scholarship recipients to develop consistent savings habits and practice responsible personal financial management. This hands-on approach not only equips students with critical life skills but also helps strengthen and sustain the credit union movement, ensuring it can continue to serve community needs for generations to come.

  • Black Sands Swim Squad make major impact at 2026 SVG championships

    Black Sands Swim Squad make major impact at 2026 SVG championships

    The 2026 SVG Gallagher National Swim Championships, held between August 27 and 30, brought together competitive swimmers from across St. Vincent and the Grenadines (SVG) alongside visiting athletes from neighboring Caribbean nations including Barbados, Grenada and St. Kitts. Among the competing clubs, Black Sands Swim Squad (BSSS) delivered a historic performance, with 32 of its members competing across age-group divisions, securing a stunning total of 108 medals.

    The championship marked a key milestone for BSSS, as the squad introduced seven first-time competitors making their national championship debuts in club colors: Kandre Deshong, Dre Byam, Damarie Carrington, Darius Humphrey, Freya Providence-York, Grayson Richardson, and siblings Keri and Erin Dickson. Every BSSS swimmer turned in notable results, with many recording personal best times and marked improvements over their previous performances. While Janai George, Azalea Cox and Seth Byron claimed third place overall in their respective age groups, Anthony George and Rayshana Boyce-Edwards secured second place overall finishes.

    Young star Sarai Williams emerged as a standout in the Girls 8 & Under division, taking home all nine gold medals contested in the category. Her dominant performance earned her both the Overall Age-Group Champion Trophy and the Sprint Challenge Trophy, and she smashed two long-standing national records in the 7-8 age bracket. Williams lowered the 25-meter backstroke record from Eltonique Leonard’s 19.80 seconds to a new mark of 19.49 seconds, and cut 0.72 seconds off Zariel Nelson’s previous 50-meter breaststroke record of 45.97 seconds, setting a new time of 45.25.

    Following Williams’ lead, Ira Hadley continued her rapid rise as one of BSSS’s most promising young talents in the Girls 9–10 division, claiming nine golds, one silver and one bronze to take home the Overall Age-Group Champion Trophy. In the Boys 9–10 category, Methuselah McLean matched that success, winning seven gold and five silver medals to claim his own overall age-group title.

    In the Boys 13–14 division, Kione Deshong turned in an performance that drew international praise, winning nine gold and three silver medals to secure the overall championship, while breaking four SVG national records. Deshong lowered the 100m breaststroke record from Bryson George’s 1:08.03 to 1:06.81, cut 2.51 seconds off Alex Joachim’s 200m breaststroke record to set a new mark of 2:30.63, shaved 0.3 seconds off Eltonte Leonard’s 100m butterfly record to hit 1:01.39, and brought the 200m Individual Medley record down from Joachim’s 2:19.53 to 2:16.89.
    BSSS Head Coach Kyle Dougan highlighted the global significance of Deshong’s 100m breaststroke result, noting that when compared against international age-group rankings, the time places Deshong among the fastest 14-year-old swimmers in the world in that event. “For a young swimmer from SVG to produce a performance at that level is something we should all be extremely proud of. It demonstrates the potential that exists within our young swimmers and shows that athletes from the Caribbean can compete on an international level,” Dougan said.
    Former BSSS swimmer Tyler Robinson, who currently trains in Jamaica, returned to SVG to compete for a spot on the national team, and left his own mark on the championship by breaking three national records in the Boys 15–16 division. Robinson lowered the 100m breaststroke record from Shane Cadogan’s 1:05.78 to 1:05.08, cut more than two seconds off Alex Joachim’s 200m breaststroke record to set a new mark of 2:28.00, and shaved 0.19 seconds off Matthew Ballah’s 100m Individual Medley record to hit 1:00.84.

    In closing, BSSS extended its gratitude to the SVG Swimming Federation for its ongoing support of the event and local swimming development, and congratulated all competing teams, particularly overall points champion Blue Marlins for their win. The BSSS squad is led by Assistant Coaches Kathleen Bute and Joann Matthews, with Team Managers Desmond Cox and Vanessa Hadley supporting the team.
    Looking ahead, BSSS is partnering with Tropical Shipping to host its first-ever Developmental Meet on September 26 at the Shrewsbury Aquatic Centre. The event is open to all current and aspiring competitive swimmers across SVG, and the club has encouraged all interested athletes to register to participate.

  • Livelihood up in flames

    Livelihood up in flames

    A late-night fire that tore through two structures on Piccadilly Street in Port of Spain late Friday has left a long-running small appliance repair business in ruins, caused an estimated half-million dollars in total damage, and reignited urgent public and political debate over loose oversight of fireworks use in Trinidad and Tobago. While official investigators have not yet confirmed the source of the blaze, unconfirmed accounts linking fireworks to the ignition are at the center of the Trinidad and Tobago Fire Service (TTFS) ongoing probe, with multiple witnesses and community leaders pointing to unsupervised children playing with fireworks as the likely trigger.

    Emergency response protocols activated quickly after the first reports of the fire came in: just before midnight, Wrightson Road Fire Station received multiple emergency calls from alert residents, with crews from the nearby Woodbrook Fire Station also dispatched to the scene to assist in containing the spread of the flames. By the time firefighters brought the blaze under control, the two affected structures—both owned by the same group that operated the repair shop—had been completely destroyed. A neighboring residential property only suffered minor damage, limited to heat-scorched windows and damaged guttering, according to Northern Division Assistant Chief Fire Officer Gary Sookdeo.

    In an interview with the *Sunday Express*, Sookdeo declined to confirm the cause of the fire, noting that investigations were still in their early stages. He confirmed that claims fireworks were to blame are a core line of inquiry for the TTFS, however. When reporters arrived at the destroyed site around 2 p.m. the following day, contractors from the Trinidad and Tobago Electricity Commission (T&TEC) were already on-site working to replace and secure damaged overhead power lines that had been compromised by the intense heat of the fire.

    Carlton Balfour, co-owner of the destroyed small-appliance repair shop, told reporters he had been told the fire started when children firing Roman candle fireworks at one another accidentally sent a projectile into the shop. Balfour shared that his business partner was inside the building asleep when the firework entered through an open window, and only narrowly escaped unharmed after spotting the fire immediately and fleeing the structure before the blaze spread. When Balfour arrived at the scene, he told reporters the entire space was already engulfed in flames.

    At 62 years old, Balfour faces an uncertain future: he has operated his repair business out of the Piccadilly Street location for more than 20 years, building a customer base that drew clients from across the country seeking repairs for small appliances and machinery. While a number of friends have offered Balfour temporary space to restart his work—including one offer to set up a temporary tent for small repair jobs—Balfour says he is torn about how to move forward. Remarkably, he says he has not faced pressure from customers seeking compensation for the items they left at the shop for repair; one customer even joked that he was just grateful Balfour and his partner escaped alive. Despite the tragedy, Balfour joined local leaders in calling for immediate government action, noting this is not the first time fireworks have destroyed property in the East Port of Spain community.

    The call for tighter regulation was echoed by Minister in the Ministry of Housing Phillip Alexander, who told TV6 News he is convinced fireworks sparked the devastating blaze, and is pushing for sweeping changes to current fireworks laws. Alexander said he received dozens of calls from concerned residents in the wake of the fire, who confirmed children had been playing the “Roman candle game” in the area before the blaze started. Multiple residents reported being hit by stray fireworks that damaged their homes, including one that struck a window and another that hit an air conditioning unit, before the projectile landed in the repair shop and ignited the out-of-control fire.

    Alexander argued the incident exposes critical gaps in the country’s current fireworks regulatory framework, saying indiscriminate fireworks use poses a public hazard to people, animals, and private property alike. He backed calls from Prime Minister Kamla Persad-Bissessar for a much tougher stance on unregulated fireworks, noting that corporate irresponsibility among fireworks vendors is a key driver of the ongoing problem.

    “Fireworks are not toys,” Alexander said. He proposed a strict new regulatory framework that would limit fireworks use to specific pre-approved time periods, operated by permitted individuals in designated locations only. For those caught smuggling unregulated fireworks into the country, Alexander called for lengthy prison sentences to deter illegal trade, arguing that current penalties are not strict enough to dissuade smuggling operations. Alexander also contextualized Prime Minister Persad-Bissessar’s recent controversial description of the country as a “lawless dump,” saying the comment was not an attack on the country itself, but a reference to the fact that existing laws are either not enforced or not strong enough to prevent dangerous incidents like this Port of Spain blaze.

  • Give us jobs if you close the dump

    Give us jobs if you close the dump

    For hundreds of informal workers who earn their livelihoods scavenging, sorting, and processing waste at Trinidad and Tobago’s Beetham Landfill, the government’s plan to relocate the existing dump and convert the site into a dedicated recycling separation facility is not inherently unwelcome—so long as their right to first access to new formal jobs at the facility is guaranteed.

    The proposal to shutter Beetham Landfill within two years and redevelop the site was recently made public by Dr. Joth Singh, Chief Executive Officer of Trinidad and Tobago’s Environmental Management Authority (EMA). Singh shared details of the ongoing planning process during closing remarks at a climate-focused event hosted last month at the British High Commissioner’s residence in Maraval. The event, titled “Pathways to Net Zero for the Waste, Agriculture, Forestry and Other Land Use Sectors,” also included a presentation on the current state of pollution across Trinidad and Tobago.

    Singh explained that intergovernmental discussions on the future of the Beetham site are being led by Planning Minister Dr. Kennedy Swaratsingh. A top priority motivating the relocation is the need to cut methane emissions from the existing landfill, a critical step for Trinidad and Tobago to meet its national net-zero carbon targets. The leading proposal for waste diversion would see all new waste from Northern Trinidad redirected to a expanded sanitary landfill at Forres Park in Claxton Bay, which Singh noted is designed with modern protections to prevent leachate and toxic heavy metals from seeping into local water tables, reducing public exposure to carcinogenic contaminants.

    Singh acknowledged that one of the largest barriers to moving forward with the Beetham transformation is addressing the socioeconomic impacts on the hundreds of people who currently rely on the landfill for income. EMA consultant Ryan Roper clarified in a subsequent interview with the *Sunday Express* that closing or redeveloping the site does not have to mean an end to local livelihoods; in fact, he argued, a redesigned waste management system can create new formal employment opportunities. Under the current plan, the converted Beetham separation facility would create full-time roles sorting plastics and other recyclable materials, while the new sanitary infrastructure at Forres Park would also generate additional jobs.

    After the EMA’s announcement, a *Sunday Express* reporter visited the Beetham Landfill last month to speak with the informal workers, locally called hustlers, who depend on the site. Around a dozen men between the ages of 18 and 40, waiting near the entrance for work from passing waste trucks, shared their perspectives on the proposal. Most hailed from the nearby Beetham Gardens community, though one man explained he travels daily from Arima to work at the landfill.

    The workers estimate that more than 400 people currently earn income through the landfill, including informal scavengers, casual laborers, and employees of private companies that operate on site. Many of the workers said they turn to the landfill for work because formal employment opportunities are extremely limited, and for some, past criminal records have closed off doors to other sectors.

    The workers overwhelmingly said they would prefer formal permanent jobs with benefits including National Insurance Scheme contributions, sick leave, and paid vacation over the inconsistent, informal work they currently do. The only non-negotiable demand they raised is a binding guarantee that current Beetham workers will be the first hired for any new roles created by the site’s conversion. Several workers warned that if their demand for employment security is ignored, they are prepared to stage disruptive action that would block access to Port of Spain.

    A Beetham Gardens resident who spoke on condition of anonymity said she is skeptical of the government’s plans, arguing that policymakers cannot be trusted to deliver on promises of mass employment for the current workforce. She questioned whether the government would actually be able to create enough full-time roles for all 400+ workers currently dependent on the landfill, noting that even teenagers as young as 16 and 17 work informally at the site. She also pointed out that some informal workers earn more than the typical salary for a 9-to-5 job, so a transition to formal work could actually reduce their incomes. While she acknowledged the public health risks posed by the landfill, she noted that pollution is a widespread problem across the country, not confined solely to Beetham.

    Local scrap dealers in Beetham Gardens are divided on the proposal. Darren, a scrap dealer who spoke to the *Sunday Express*, acknowledged that closing the landfill would leave many people out of work, including informal hustlers, security firms, and employees of the state-owned Trinidad and Tobago Solid Waste Management Company who operate on site. He noted that informal hustlers far outnumber formal workers at the site, so a closure without proper planning would be devastating for that community. Still, he supports the transition to a cleaner facility to reduce toxic smoke exposure for local residents, explaining that while most wind carries smoke out to sea away from residential areas, shifting winds can blow toxic fumes into Beetham Gardens and even central Port of Spain. Darren said he understands that the government needs to prioritize the country’s climate and public health goals, but he added that creating formal salaried roles for current workers would be a net positive for the high-unemployment community of Beetham Gardens.

    Another local scrap dealer, Tyrese Williams, argued that residents cannot ultimately stop the government from moving forward with its planned changes to the landfill. Regardless of public protest, he said, the government will move forward with what it deems best for the country. Williams noted that he will personally adapt to whatever decision is made, but he acknowledged that the transition will create significant hardship for the large group of informal workers who currently rely on the Beetham Landfill for their daily incomes.