In a landmark step toward advancing demands for historical justice for the transatlantic slave trade, Barbados has announced it will escalate its campaign for slavery reparations to the United Nations through a historic collaborative initiative with the African Union, according to Trevor Prescod, the country’s Minister of Pan-African Affairs and Heritage. This formal announcement comes shortly after the return of Prescod and Barbadian Prime Minister Mia Mottley from an official diplomatic trip to the West African nation of Ghana, where the delegation participated in days of intensive global conversations centered on reparations for the harms of chattel slavery. During these high-level talks, officials anchored the core goal of advancing a formal reparations resolution all the way to the UN General Assembly, building broad international support for the long-running push for accountability. The diplomatic gathering hosted in Accra, Ghana’s capital, included immersive, moving reenactments of the transatlantic slave trade that brought the violent history of forced displacement to life for attending delegates. The summit drew a diverse array of global civil society and political leaders, among them the son of iconic Black nationalist leader Marcus Garvey and prominent U.S. civil rights activist Al Sharpton. Both Prime Minister Mottley and Ghana’s President delivered keynote addresses to the assembled international delegation, framing the reparations campaign as a critical moral obligation for the global community. Speaking on the deep ancestral and cultural connections between Barbados and West Africa, Minister Prescod emphasized that the national identity and heritage of Barbadians cannot be reduced to the timeline of European colonial settlement. “Barbadians must understand that heritage doesn’t begin at any specific point, that our heritage is not post-1627, but our heritage also relates back to the West African coast,” he said. The minister also noted that the movement for reparations has grown far beyond regional advocacy, confirming that what was once a localized conversation is now a central global debate demanding action.
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Guyanese soldiers on standby for humanitarian mission to earthquake-hit Venezuela
In the wake of a catastrophic pair of major earthquakes that struck northwestern Venezuela last Wednesday, leaving a devastating trail of death and destruction, neighboring Guyana has moved quickly to mobilize military and humanitarian support for the crisis-stricken nation.
As of the latest official updates, the initial quakes—classified as a seismic doublet with magnitudes of 7.2 and 7.5, the most powerful seismic event to hit the country since 1900—have claimed 1,430 lives and left 3,200 people injured. Rescue teams are still racing against time to locate more than 50,000 unaccounted-for people trapped under collapsed infrastructure, and a 4.8 magnitude aftershock rattled the region off Venezuela’s coast this Saturday, adding new risk to ongoing search and recovery operations.
In a public announcement made Saturday, Guyana’s President Irfaan Ali confirmed that the country has offered to deploy a contingent of the Guyana Defence Force (GDF) to Venezuelan territory to directly support post-disaster recovery and search efforts. “We have offered to have a team from the Guyana Defense Force on the ground to help in the recovery efforts in Venezuela,” Ali stated. As of Sunday afternoon, no further details have been released regarding whether Venezuelan authorities have accepted the offer, nor a confirmed timeline for the contingent’s departure if the deployment moves forward.
Beyond military assistance, Guyana has organized a large-scale humanitarian donation drive coordinated by the country’s Civil Defence Commission (CDC), with materials gathered from private sector donors and the general public. A cargo vessel chartered to carry the aid is scheduled to depart from Guyana next Friday, carrying 8,000 tonnes of emergency supplies including food staples and pharmaceuticals. President Ali added that Caribbean neighbor St. Kitts and Nevis has already pledged additional aid: two full containers of pre-packaged food and one container of medical supplies that will be added to the departing shipment. The vessel is on track to reach Venezuelan ports by the following Tuesday.
A GDF representative confirmed during a public livestream Saturday afternoon that both military personnel and CDC staff will be assigned to manage the national donation collection point. The site, located at the Muslim Youth Organisation (MYO) Ground on Georgetown’s Woolford Avenue, will operate around the clock 24 hours a day to accept donations from residents, which will then be sorted, packed, and transported to the cargo vessel ahead of its Friday departure. Brian Tiwarie, chief executive of Guyana’s large BK Group of Companies, added that a second cargo vessel capable of carrying an additional 7,000 tonnes of aid is already on standby to accommodate any additional donations that come in ahead of the deadline. If more supplies are gathered, both vessels will depart for Venezuela at the same time, doubling the amount of aid delivered to impacted communities.
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Here’s Who Made It and Who Didn’t in the FIFA World Cup Round of 32
After weeks of tense group-stage action across North America, the 2026 FIFA World Cup has moved past its opening round, with the full lineup of the expanded 32-team knockout stage now confirmed. The world’s biggest football tournament is entering its first elimination round, where every match will bring win-or-go-home stakes as sides battle to advance to the Round of 16.
All of the pre-tournament favorites have lived up to expectations to secure their place in the knockouts. Defending 2022 champions Argentina finished atop Group J, joined by co-hosts the United States and Mexico, and traditional global powerhouses Brazil, France and Germany. Beyond the elite sides, a crop of surprise underdog qualifiers has already cemented this tournament as one of the most unpredictable in recent memory.
Individual performances have also captured global football fans’ attention throughout the group stage, with three star attackers standing out above the rest. Argentina’s captain Lionel Messi made history during his side’s final group match against Austria, netting two goals to push his career World Cup goal total to 18, making him the tournament’s all-time leading scorer. France’s Kylian Mbappé has matched Messi’s red-hot form, notching four goals across just two group matches to keep Les Bleus as clear title favorites alongside Argentina.
The breakout star of this year’s group stage, however, is Norway’s Erling Haaland. The elite club striker has exploded onto the World Cup scene in his first tournament appearance, scoring four goals in two group matches. This achievement makes Haaland only the second player in the last half-century to score twice in each of his opening two World Cup matches, a feat last achieved by England’s Harry Kane in 2018, and has sparked a massive wave of global support for Norway’s deep tournament run.
The biggest story of the 2026 group stage, though, is the unprecedented success of African nations. For the first time in World Cup history, seven African sides have advanced to the knockout round. South Africa has reached the Round of 32 for the first time in its history, while Cape Verde qualified in its World Cup debut. Both DR Congo and Egypt have also booked their first ever spots in the knockout stage, with 2022 semi-finalists Morocco, plus Ivory Coast, Senegal, Ghana and Algeria rounding out the continent’s qualified sides. Analysts widely describe this as the strongest group-stage performance by African nations in World Cup history.
Not every side walked away from the group stage with a positive result, however. Former 2022 host Qatar suffered a disappointing early exit, finishing the group stage with just one point to crash out before knockouts. Iran, Scotland and South Korea all finished third in their respective groups, but failed to accumulate enough points to claim one of the spots for highest-ranked third-place teams, sending all three home early.
The single-elimination Round of 32 kicks off June 28 and will run through July 3, with the winner of each matchup moving on to the Round of 16 as the tournament narrows its path to the 2026 World Cup final.
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Derde helft WK 2026: Negen Afrikaanse landen naar knock-outfase WK
The 2026 FIFA World Cup has moved past the group stage, with the full schedule for the knockout round of 32 now finalized, kicking off Sunday with an opening matchup between South Africa and Canada at Los Angeles Stadium in California.
This opening fixture marks just the second ever meeting between the two sides. Their only previous encounter was a 2007 friendly held in Durban, where South Africa (nicknamed Bafana Bafana) secured a 2-0 victory. For Canada, the matchup presents an opportunity to break an unfortunate historical trend: the North American side has lost both of its previous official matches against African opponents, falling 2-0 to Cameroon at the 2001 Confederations Cup and 2-1 to Morocco at the 2022 Qatar World Cup. Despite this history, bookmakers and analysts currently favor Canada to claim a win in regulation. If the two sides cannot be separated after 90 minutes, the match will advance to extra time followed by a penalty shootout if needed to determine a winner.
The full confirmed schedule for the remainder of the round of 32 is as follows:
Monday, June 29: Brazil vs Japan at Houston Stadium, Texas (14:00 local time); Germany vs Paraguay at Boston Stadium, Massachusetts (17:30 local time); Netherlands vs Morocco at Monterrey Stadium, Mexico (22:00 local time)
Tuesday, June 30: Ivory Coast vs Norway at Dallas Stadium, Texas (14:00 local time); France vs Sweden at New York/New Jersey Stadium (18:00 local time); Mexico vs Ecuador at Mexico City Stadium, Mexico (22:00 local time)
Wednesday, July 1: England vs DR Congo at Atlanta Stadium, Georgia (13:00 local time); Belgium vs Senegal at Seattle Stadium, Washington (17:00 local time); USA vs Bosnia and Herzegovina at San Francisco Bay Area Stadium, California (21:00 local time)
Thursday, July 2: Spain vs Austria at Los Angeles Stadium (16:00 local time); Portugal vs Croatia at Toronto Stadium, Ontario (20:00 local time); Switzerland vs Algeria at BC Place Vancouver, British Columbia (00:00 Friday local time)
Friday, July 3: Australia vs Egypt at Dallas Stadium (15:00 local time); Argentina vs Cape Verde at Miami Stadium, Florida (19:00 local time); Colombia vs Ghana at Kansas City Stadium, Missouri (22:30 local time)Off the pitch, one major late development from the group stage saw Iran eliminated from the tournament, knocked out in dramatic fashion on the final matchday. Iran’s hopes of advancing depended on the result of Group J’s closing fixture between Austria and Algeria: Iran would only miss out on the cut for best third-placed teams if the match ended in a draw. The fixture finished 3-3, pushing Algeria into the final available round of 32 spot with four points as one of the eight best third-placed finishers, eliminating Iran from the competition.
The biggest story of the 2026 World Cup group stage is the historic breakthrough by African nations, which have set a new tournament record for progression. A total of 10 African teams qualified for the expanded 48-team 2026 World Cup, and nine of those have advanced to the round of 32 – the highest number of knockout-stage qualifiers from any single continent in World Cup history. The nine advancing sides are Algeria, Cape Verde, DR Congo, Egypt, Ghana, Ivory Coast, Morocco, Senegal and South Africa, with Tunisia the only African nation to exit at the group stage.
This milestone builds on the growing strength of African men’s football, which began with Morocco’s historic run to the 2022 World Cup semi-finals. As more African sides consistently challenge traditional football powerhouses, the continent has secured its strongest ever showing at the men’s World Cup.
For football fans around the globe, one highly anticipated storyline remains alive: a final showdown between global superstars Lionel Messi and Cristiano Ronaldo is still possible, should both captains lead their nations all the way to the July 19 final. With the knockout bracket now finalized, Argentina (led by Messi) and Portugal (captained by Ronaldo) are on opposite halves of the draw, which rules out the widely hoped-for quarter-final meeting between the two icons. That leaves the final as the only possible stage for the legendary rivals to face off in what would be one of the most iconic matches in football history.
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Ebola’s Fastest Spread Yet Amps Up Emergency Response
In a development that has elevated global public health concerns, a rapidly expanding Ebola outbreak spreading across the Democratic Republic of the Congo (DRC) and Uganda has prompted the United States Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) to activate its highest tier of emergency response. As of June 28, 2026, public health experts confirm this outbreak marks the fastest first-month spread of Ebola ever recorded, and the virus has for the first time in this crisis reached European territory.
According to reporting from Reuters, the CDC elevated its emergency activation status to Level 1 this past Friday. This highest alert classification has only been used for the most severe public health and disaster events in recent U.S. history, including the aftermath of Hurricane Katrina, the 2009 global swine flu pandemic, and the devastating 2014 Ebola crisis that swept West Africa. The outbreak is being driven by the Bundibugyo strain of the Ebola virus, which has already infected more than 1,200 people across the DRC and an additional 20 people in neighboring Uganda. Official counts have confirmed 321 deaths linked to the virus so far.
To ramp up global containment efforts, the White House has formally requested more than $1.4 billion in emergency funding from U.S. Congress. Of that requested allocation, $800 million is earmarked for the construction and operation of a dedicated regional quarantine facility in Kenya, which would serve as a hub for treating patients and stopping cross-border spread across East and Central Africa.
In a development that underscores the outbreak’s global reach, French health officials confirmed the first Ebola case diagnosed in Europe earlier this week. BBC reporting confirms the patient is a medical doctor who had recently returned from a humanitarian aid deployment working on the outbreak response in the DRC. The doctor is currently receiving care in a specialized isolation facility and is listed in stable condition. French public health authorities emphasize that the patient was placed into immediate isolation upon returning, and they maintain that the overall risk of wider spread across Europe remains “very low.”
The World Health Organization (WHO) has echoed that assessment, noting that while the outbreak’s rapid spread demands urgent coordinated action, the overall risk to the rest of the global population remains low. “There is no need to panic,” WHO Director-General Tedros Adhanom Ghebreyesus stated in comments reported by the BBC, calling for targeted investment in response efforts rather than widespread public fear.
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WATCH: Local Brewery Expected to Begin Operations in Early 2027, Browne Says
A new craft brewery rooted in the local community is on track to throw open its doors to beer lovers in the first quarter of 2027, according to project lead Jane Browne. The independent brewing operation, which has been in the planning and development stage for nearly three years, aims to fill a gap in the region’s fast-growing craft beverage market, bringing a range of small-batch, locally inspired brews to area residents and tourists alike.
In an interview this week, Browne, who has spent more than a decade working in the craft brewing industry across the Pacific Northwest, shared that the project has already cleared all major zoning and regulatory approvals from the local municipal government. Construction on the 12,000-square-foot facility, which will include a production floor, taproom with indoor and outdoor seating, and a small event space for community gatherings, is set to break ground by the middle of next year. “We’ve worked really closely with city planners, local business associations, and neighbors to make sure this space fits what the community actually wants,” Browne said in the interview. “Early 2027 is a realistic timeline that gives us plenty of time to build out a space that we, and the local area, can be proud of.”
The brewery has also announced plans to source more than 60% of its raw ingredients, including malted barley and hops, from family-owned farms within a 150-mile radius of the facility, boosting the regional agricultural economy. Once operational, the project is expected to create 18 full-time and 12 part-time local jobs, ranging from brewing and taproom staff to logistics and marketing roles. Local business development groups have welcomed the announcement, noting that craft breweries often act as anchor attractions for small business districts, drawing foot traffic that benefits nearby shops, restaurants, and retail outlets.
Browne added that the team is already developing test batches of core brews, including an IPA highlighting regional citrusy hops, a smooth oatmeal stout, and a seasonal wheat ale infused with local fruit. Pre-opening events, including pop-up tastings at regional farmers markets, are planned to begin in late 2026 to build buzz and connect with the local community before the full launch.
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Historian unpacks Carlisle Bay’s role in British wealth
A recent heritage lecture held in Barbados has pulled back the curtain on the dual, world-shaping role Carlisle Bay played for the British Empire, highlighting its outsized influence as both a core engine of colonial wealth and a strategically critical military outpost in the Caribbean. The event, the latest chapter of the Standpipe Stories: The Bay Street Edition lecture series, was organized by The University of the West Indies in partnership with the We Gatherin’ Secretariat, and drew history enthusiasts and scholars to the Oceanic Hub on Bay Street on Saturday evening. A panel of three of the island’s most respected local historians — Dr Henderson Carter, Claudette Levi-Farnum, and Fredrick Alleyne — joined the discussion to unpack the bay’s layered past. Opening the event with a foundational keynote address, leading maritime historian Dr Jeff Ward walked attendees through how Barbados’ one-of-a-kind geographic positioning, paired with the natural protective and logistical features of Carlisle Bay, funneled unprecedented levels of wealth directly into the British Crown’s coffers over centuries of colonial rule. Dr Ward explained that Carlisle Bay functioned as the vital “maritime urban interface” connecting the colonial island to global trade networks: it was the entry point for thousands of indentured laborers and enslaved African people brought to work the island’s sugar plantations, and the departure point for processed sugar, rum, and molasses bound for markets across Europe and North America. Even seemingly small tax rates on this massive colonial trade carried extraordinary global financial weight, Dr Ward emphasized. The historian noted that the tax revenue generated from commerce moving through Carlisle Bay was the primary source of funding for interest payments on the entire British national debt during the peak of colonial sugar trade. “The volume of wealth coming out of here was absolutely staggering,” he told the audience. “We need to understand why British sugar mattered to the entire imperial project.” The rare combination of the bay’s natural geological features and Barbados’ strategic location eventually cemented the island’s status as Great Britain’s most valuable economic anchor in the Caribbean, as well as a key forward-operating military base from which the empire projected naval power across the region. To illustrate just how high the stakes of controlling the region were for 18th-century British leaders, Dr Ward paraphrased famous British Admiral Vernon’s own reasoning: “Without naval superiority, the French and the Spanish will take our islands and the commerce they produce.” Beyond its economic and military legacy, Dr Ward also shed new light on how the bay’s physical landscape has been dramatically reshaped over hundreds of years by extreme Atlantic weather systems. He detailed how repeated, powerful hurricanes tore massive coral formations loose from the sea floor, gradually depositing them to create permanent, well-known local landmarks including Pelican Island, a landmark that remains an identifiable part of Carlisle Bay’s coastline today.
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Venezuela Death Toll Rises Over 1,400: Here Are Ways Belizeans Can Send Help
Three days after a pair of devastating earthquakes struck Venezuela on June 24, 2026, the human cost of the disaster continues to climb. Official updates put the confirmed death toll at 1,430, with nearly 69,000 people still unaccounted for and an estimated 6.76 million residents impacted across affected regions. As international rescue teams ramp up search and recovery operations, Venezuelan officials have shared clear, official channels for residents of Belize who wish to contribute humanitarian support to the crisis response.
Gerardo Antonio Argote, Venezuela’s Ambassador to Belize, has highlighted two verified avenues for donations: a dedicated national reconstruction fund administered by the Development Bank of Latin America and the Caribbean (CAF), and an emergency fundraising effort run by UNICEF.
For donors choosing to contribute directly to Venezuela’s long-term recovery and reconstruction, CAF manages the official Fund for the Recovery and Reconstruction of Venezuela, accepting donations in both U.S. dollars and euros. To complete a donation, contributors must first coordinate with CAF, include the reference line “Fondo para la Recuperación y Reconstrucción de Venezuela” alongside the donor’s full name in the transfer details. After processing the transfer, donors are required to send a copy of their bank receipt to alianzas@caf.com and trustfunds@caf.com, along with their full name, donation amount, currency used, transfer date, and contact information.
The second verified pathway is through UNICEF’s emergency response appeal, which is focused on meeting urgent needs for vulnerable communities, particularly children. The organization estimates that 1.8 million people, including 680,000 children, currently require life-saving humanitarian support across earthquake-impacted areas. UNICEF has already pre-positioned and deployed critical medical supplies, clean water infrastructure, and sanitation materials, but has issued a call for $52 million in additional funding to sustain its operations through the coming weeks and months.
“Three days into the response, the scale of need is becoming clearer,” explained Manuel Rodriguez Pumarol, UNICEF’s Representative in Venezuela. “Hospitals are operating beyond capacity, thousands of children don’t have reliable access to safe water, and many schools have been damaged.”
Acroads the worst-hit regions of La Guaira and Caracas, more than 2,000 rescue teams from 21 different international organizations continue working around the clock to pull survivors from collapsed structures and clear rubble. The international community has stepped up with additional support in recent days: the Trump administration confirmed it is preparing a new nine-figure aid package for Venezuela, which comes on top of the $150 million in emergency aid committed the day after the earthquakes struck. Per reporting from NBC News, SpaceX’s Starlink satellite internet service has also committed to providing free connectivity to support emergency coordination and recovery operations throughout the impacted zone.
Even as rescue efforts progress, survivors are still grappling with the trauma of the disaster. “People are still terrified to reenter what were their homes,” Loyce Pace, regional director for the International Red Cross, told NBC News.
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RGPF confirms safety and traffic arrangements for Gouyave Fisherman’s Birthday celebrations
Preparations for the annual Gouyave Fisherman’s Birthday celebrations, scheduled to take place on June 29 in Grenada’s St John parish, have moved into their final phase after a collaborative planning meeting between top law enforcement officials and local community leaders. Senior command members of the Royal Grenada Police Force (RGPF) gathered recently with St John’s Parliamentary Representative and leadership from the Gouyave Improvement Committee to align on logistics, public safety protocols and event management that will keep both attendees and local residents safe throughout the festivities.
The cross-stakeholder discussion created a structured space to address key community and enforcement concerns, ranging from crowd control and traffic flow to noise regulations and emergency access. After productive negotiations that balanced the desire for a festive celebration with the need for public order, all parties reached consensus on a set of binding operational rules for the event.
Under the agreed framework, no permanent or temporary physical structures will be built across the parish’s main thoroughfare to avoid blocking through traffic. Street vendors will be allowed to set up operations along the road shoulders, and are permitted to play music for attendees as long as volume levels are kept at a reasonable level that does not disturb surrounding residential areas. The group also agreed to a staggered start for event music: no musical performances will begin before the opening traditional church service concludes, and approved music can continue playing until 2 a.m. each day of the event.
To minimize disruption to regular local travel, pre-existing bypass routes will remain active throughout the celebrations to keep regular vehicular traffic moving around the event core. Event organizers have also received formal approval to construct the main performance stage on St Dominic’s Street, located directly behind the local gas station.
In a formal public notice released from the Office of the Commissioner of Police, the RGPF emphasized one non-negotiable requirement for all event stakeholders: organizers, vendors and attendees must maintain full, unobstructed access for emergency vehicles and large commercial trucks on both Central Depradine Street and Upper Depradine Street for the entire duration of the celebrations. This rule, police noted, is critical to guarantee that first responders can reach emergency scenes within the event area quickly if an incident occurs.
Closing out the announcement, the RGPF extended its gratitude to the Parliamentary Representative for St John, the volunteer members of the Gouyave Improvement Committee, and local residents for their proactive cooperation and shared commitment to building an event that is safe, well-organized, and enjoyable for everyone who participates, whether as an attendee or a local community member going about daily life.
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LISTEN: Government’s Bill to WIOC Nears EC$10 Million as It Keeps Fuel Prices Down
Against a backdrop of global energy market volatility stoked by ongoing geopolitical unrest, Antigua and Barbuda’s government has accumulated close to EC$10 million in outstanding debt to the West Indies Oil Company, Prime Minister Gaston Browne confirmed during his weekly appearance on Pointe FM over the weekend.
This debt stems from a deliberate policy choice by the Browne administration: the government has forgone collecting full fuel taxes to subsidize retail fuel costs, rather than passing the burden of spiking international oil prices onto local consumers. Instead of letting prices rise with global market trends, the government has covered the gap between unsubsidized costs and fixed retail rates, resulting in the current outstanding balance owed to the regional energy firm.
Browne explained that the intervention has successfully capped retail prices at EC$14.25 per gallon for gasoline and EC$14.50 per gallon for diesel – rates that remain among the lowest across the entire Caribbean, only outperformed by major oil-producing states in the region. The prime minister traced the current upward pressure on global energy prices to two key sources of geopolitical tension: the ongoing war in Ukraine and heightened geopolitical friction involving Iran, both of which have disrupted global energy supplies and pushed up international crude prices.
“ We were able to contain the costs of fuel, but it came at a cost to the government,” Browne emphasized during the broadcast. “We’ve been paying them to keep the prices where they are.”
The administration plans to maintain this price stability framework for as long as possible, arguing that consistent, predictable fuel prices deliver widespread benefits to both domestic households and local businesses. Browne framed the policy as a commitment to protecting the public during periods of economic uncertainty, noting that when fiscal conditions improve, the government will not face criticism for its proactive support during downturns. “At the end of the day, when the bad days arrive, you can be sure that we’ll provide a cover for you, the people,” he said.
Notably, the prime minister ruled out further cuts to retail fuel prices, warning that artificially low rates would risk encouraging excessive energy consumption that would undermine long-term energy sustainability. “You don’t want gas prices to be too low because that will fuel excessive consumption, and on the other hand you don’t want them to be too high,” he noted. “That $14.25 and $14.50 is reasonable.”
Looking ahead, the government’s long-term energy strategy does not rely on permanent fuel subsidies. Instead, Browne outlined plans to bring down overall energy costs through two core initiatives: introducing liquefied natural gas as a lower-cost transition fuel and scaling up investment in renewable energy infrastructure. The current subsidy framework will remain in place only until these alternative energy projects are operational and able to drive down baseline fuel costs permanently, the prime minister confirmed.