Carib Scope

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  • Belize City Couple Charged After Cocaine Found in Home

    Belize City Couple Charged After Cocaine Found in Home

    A joint law enforcement operation targeting illegal narcotics and unregistered firearms across Belize has resulted in felony charges for a local Belize City couple, alongside a major haul of illegal weapons and ammunition seized over a five-day enforcement blitz. The operation, run by coordinated specialized police teams and regional law enforcement units across the country, ran from May 25 through May 29, 2026, with a targeted search in the Kings Park neighborhood of Belize City yielding a key drug bust.

    During the search of a residential property on Vasquez Avenue, officers from the Eastern Division police unit uncovered 154 grams of suspected cocaine, leading to the immediate arrest of the home’s two residents: Corey Ottley and Tricia Ottley. Both have been formally charged with possession of a controlled substance with intent to supply, a charge that indicates authorities believe the pair intended to distribute the narcotic rather than hold it for personal use.

    The Belize City drug arrest was just one outcome of the widespread nationwide enforcement push. Across targeted search operations in three key jurisdictions – Belize City, Corozal, and Belmopan – police also confiscated 10 illegal firearms. Officials report that these recent seizures have pushed the total volume of illegal weapons taken off Belize’s streets since the beginning of 2026 to 116, spanning multiple calibers. Alongside the firearms, law enforcement has seized a total of 3,724 rounds of unregistered ammunition so far this year. To date, 109 individuals have been taken into custody on charges linked to illegal firearms and ammunition possession across the country.

    The crackdown comes as part of Belize’s ongoing efforts to curtail cross-border drug trafficking and reduce gun-related violent crime, which has remained a top public safety priority for law enforcement across the Central American nation. This latest operation reflects a coordinated, multi-regional strategy to target illegal contraband at the local level.

  • Plans unveiled to transform Consett Bay into multi-use fisheries, cultural hub

    Plans unveiled to transform Consett Bay into multi-use fisheries, cultural hub

    Barbados’ government has launched an ambitious full-scale transformation project for the aging Consett Bay fishing facility, reimagining the outdated site as a modern, multi-functional hub that integrates commercial fishing operations, public recreation, and cultural activity. The project will center both international technical guidance and local community feedback to shape the final design, marking a major shift from past piecemeal maintenance work to a complete overhaul of the site.

    Deputy Prime Minister Santia Bradshaw, who also serves as Minister of the Environment and National Beautification, confirmed the government’s new approach during a public community forum, where local residents shared decades of frustrations with the facility’s current inefficiencies and failing infrastructure. One of the most vocal contributors was Paul Standard, a Martins Bay resident with direct experience working around the site’s limitations, who detailed the grueling daily challenges fisherfolk face under the current layout.

    Standard explained that fisherfolk currently rely on manual labor and outdated wheelbarrows to transport heavy catches from the end of the jetty up an inclined path to the market, navigating a confusing, awkward layout that requires multiple turns to reach the sales floor. To cut down on wasted time and physical strain, he proposed a simple but impactful reconfiguration: moving the market’s main entrance to face directly onto the jetty, and installing an electric tram system to move catches and supplies automatically. This system would not only speed up fish transfers but also allow the tram to return to service other vessels immediately, eliminating the long waits that come with manual wheelbarrow trips, and can even be used to transport heavy ice bags back to waiting fishing boats.

    Beyond layout inefficiencies, Standard highlighted critical failing infrastructure that impacts both fisherfolk and local small vendors. The facility’s existing ice machine is outdated and constantly on the brink of failure, he said, noting that it serves not just commercial fishermen but also local snow cone vendors and snack sellers that operate at community events like funerals and fairs. The current ice storage unit, which he described as a tiny 4-by-4 foot box, is far too small to meet daily demand. Standard closed his remarks by expressing cautious optimism, saying he placed faith in the new minister to deliver meaningful change that addresses longstanding unmet needs.

    Bradshaw directly responded to these concerns at the forum, reassuring attendees that community feedback will be a core guiding force for all architectural and design decisions. She shared that recent site visits with local MP Charles Griffith confirmed that the facility required far more work than initial assessments suggested, and that the site’s unique coastal location makes it ideal for a mixed-use development beyond just a working fish market.

    “Consett Bay to me lends itself to being developed as a space for recreation, for culture, for fisheries. The transformation that I see in that space for me is phenomenal,” Bradshaw said.

    To deliver a best-in-class upgrade, the government has turned to global leaders in fisheries infrastructure for technical support. Bradshaw revealed that the administration has already held discussions with the Japanese ambassador to secure targeted technical assistance for the project, noting that Japan is widely recognized as the global gold standard for sustainable, efficient fisheries infrastructure.

    The partnership with Japan will specifically prioritize two of the most pressing needs raised by local residents: replacing the outdated ice machine and expanding cold storage capacity for freshly landed catches. Meanwhile, a private sector engineering firm is already finalizing designs for upgrades to the facility’s jetty, which will be shared with the local community for additional feedback before construction begins.

    The government’s broader vision for the site addresses multiple longstanding design flaws that have held back economic activity. Currently, vendor stalls are tucked away in hidden ocean-side locations that casual visitors cannot easily find, leading many tourists and locals to leave without stopping to shop. To fix this, the ministry will rework the processing hall’s windows and layout to bring vendor operations into more visible, accessible spaces.

    Accessibility is another core priority of the redevelopment. Currently, the entire facility only has one road in and out, creating major traffic and safety challenges. Bradshaw confirmed that the project includes plans to add a second access road to create separate entrance and exit routes, improving flow for vehicles and pedestrians. The National Conservation Commission has already begun preliminary site work, carrying out clearing and beautification across the property, and the government is in the process of acquiring adjacent land to expand public parking. Upgrades will also include new public lighting and fully renovated public restroom facilities to make the space comfortable for recreational visitors as well as working fisherfolk.

  • Interpol weigert OM wederom opsporingsverzoek tegen Hoefdraad

    Interpol weigert OM wederom opsporingsverzoek tegen Hoefdraad

    The international law enforcement cooperation agency Interpol has for a second time turned down a request to issue a so-called Red Notice for former Surinamese Finance Minister Gillmore Hoefdraad, according to an official correspondence sent by Interpol to Suriname’s prosecutor general.

    Details of the rejection were confirmed by Hoefdraad’s legal defense team, which confirmed that Interpol reviewed the renewed request from Suriname to add the former minister to its global wanted person alert system. After assessment, the agency once again found no justifiable grounds to approve the request. This marks the second time Suriname’s attempt has failed, after Interpol revoked an earlier global alert for Hoefdraad months prior.

    Murwin Dubois, a lead defense attorney representing Hoefdraad, told local outlet Starnieuws that this second rejection sends a clear signal: Interpol continues to harbor serious doubts about the objectivity of the criminal prosecution against the former minister. Interpol operates under strict core rules designed to prevent the agency from being drawn into legal matters that carry potential political motivations, a policy that guided the agency’s decision in this case.

    When Interpol rejected Suriname’s first request, it explicitly justified its ruling by concluding that the prosecution against Hoefdraad carried political motives. The agency also noted that Suriname’s Public Prosecution Service failed to submit sufficient documentation and solid legal evidence to disprove that conclusion. Today, Dubois argues that the string of rejections should prompt a full, critical re-evaluation of both the entire criminal case against Hoefdraad and the procedural practices that have guided the prosecution to date. He pointed to longstanding criticism from multiple independent jurists and defense lawyers over flaws in key parts of the investigation and legal process.

    The attorney further called on Suriname’s Public Prosecution Service to release full transparency about all requests submitted to Interpol in the Hoefdraad case, as well as all responses received from the agency. “Suriname’s society has an inherent right to know the full details of proceedings in a case brought in the name of the Surinamese state,” Dubois argued.

    As of this report, the Public Prosecution Service has not issued any official comment on Interpol’s latest rejection. Beyond the short formal notification sent to the prosecutor general, Interpol has not released any additional supporting documentation or public explanation of its second rejection.

  • Duck Run 1 Gets New Polyclinic, Hurricane Shelter

    Duck Run 1 Gets New Polyclinic, Hurricane Shelter

    On Thursday, a landmark infrastructure project officially opened its doors to residents of Duck Run 1 Village, located in Belize’s Cayo District, delivering a much-needed dual-purpose facility that combines critical primary healthcare access with emergency storm protection. The new polyclinic and hurricane shelter, the product of a collaborative partnership between the government of Belize and the International Organization for Migration (IOM), represents a key milestone in a broad regional development effort focused on boosting climate resilience and upgrading community well-being across western Belize.

    The entire cross-community initiative, branded “Building Climate Change Resilience and Social Integration of Displaced People in Settlements of Western Belize,” was first launched back in February 2022, with core funding of BZ$4.6 million provided by the European Union. Of that total investment, more than $1.5 million was allocated to the construction of the new Duck Run 1 facility, which was formally transferred this week to Belize’s Ministry of Health and Wellness for long-term operation and community use.

    Unlike many single-purpose infrastructure projects, this development delivers dual benefits to local residents: the polyclinic will expand access to routine and urgent primary care services for a community that previously faced longer travel times for basic medical treatment, while the reinforced structure doubles as a hurricane shelter capable of accommodating dozens of local families during extreme weather events that have become increasingly frequent amid global climate change.

    The broader initiative covers six vulnerable communities across western Belize: Santa Familia, Billy White, Los Tambos, and the three Duck Run settlements (Duck Run 1, 2, and 3). Beyond the construction of new healthcare and emergency infrastructure, the program has delivered a suite of complementary upgrades to support long-term community resilience. Project activities include the construction of five combined hurricane shelters and community centers across the target region, improvements to existing potable water systems, upgrades to storm drainage infrastructure to reduce flood risk, the procurement of new firefighting equipment for local emergency response teams, and hands-on training for community health workers to strengthen local care capacity.

    Officials involved in the project note that the initiative addresses two overlapping challenges facing western Belize: the need to improve access to basic social services for local and displaced communities, and the growing urgency of adapting to the impacts of climate change, which has brought more intense and frequent hurricanes to the Caribbean region in recent decades. The handover of the Duck Run 1 facility marks the first of several completed infrastructure projects set to open across the six target communities in the coming months, with organizers saying the development will serve as a model for climate-resilient infrastructure investment across Central America.

  • Major plans for fight against sargassum

    Major plans for fight against sargassum

    As a massive annual sargassum seaweed bloom continues to endanger key coastal sectors across Barbados, the island nation’s government is accelerating its mitigation strategy – with a new focus on intercepting the invasive algae before it reaches shore. Deputy Prime Minister and Minister of the Environment Santia Bradshaw outlined the expanded response during Friday’s launch of an educational outreach bus focused on Barbados’ Marine Spatial Plan at the Garrison, where she emphasized the growing environmental and economic toll the persistent influx has placed on the island.

    Bradshaw noted that the recurring sargassum blooms, which have plagued Barbados’ waters since 2011, pose far-reaching threats to the country’s most valuable marine and coastal assets. “This valuable marine space also faces very real threats,” she explained. “Sargassum seaweed influxes continue to impact our beaches, fisheries, coastal communities, and tourism product, while coastal erosion exacerbated by accumulated blooms threatens our infrastructure, our ecosystems, and our vulnerable shorelines across the island. These challenges remind us why careful planning and sustainable management of our marine environment are so critical.”

    To date, the Barbadian government has already rolled out a series of coordinated onshore interventions to address the crisis. This includes hiring contract workers to carry out regular beach cleanups, and partnering with international organizations and foreign governments to scale up mechanized removal efforts for more efficient, large-scale clearance. “This includes engaging contract workers to support the cleanup efforts and collaborating with international agencies such as the UNDP and countries such as Japan to increase the use of mechanized equipment for more efficient and large-scale sargassum removal,” Bradshaw said.

    Moving beyond immediate cleanup actions, the government has spent years pursuing long-term, locally tailored solutions to the decade-long problem. Since Bradshaw took on the environment portfolio, her team has held consultations with partner nations, multilateral development bodies including the Inter-American Development Bank (IDB), and local industry and community stakeholders to develop homegrown strategies that fit Barbados’ unique coastal context.

    The next major pillar of the national strategy will be offshore collection, a proactive measure designed to cut down the volume of sargassum that actually washes up on Barbados’ coastlines. Bradshaw confirmed that government officials have already entered discussions with a team of specialized marine experts, who will work alongside local stakeholders to map out the most cost-effective, efficient operational model for offshore interception, with implementation expected to begin in the coming months.

    The shift to expanded, proactive action comes as officials warn that 2024’s sargassum bloom is on track to be one of the most severe on record. “It is clear that more systematic action is needed, especially as this year’s bloom is expected to reach record levels, affecting lives, livelihoods, and coastal communities,” Bradshaw added.

    Alongside the mitigation strategy updates, Friday’s event marked the launch of a mobile educational bus centered on Barbados’ Marine Spatial Plan. The outreach vehicle will travel across the island to raise public awareness of marine conservation issues, and reinforce the critical importance of protecting Barbados’ coastal resources for current and future generations.

  • Officials Say Nicotine Addiction Drives Vape Industry Profits

    Officials Say Nicotine Addiction Drives Vape Industry Profits

    Ahead of the upcoming World No Tobacco Day, health authorities and international public health organizations have convened a national youth-focused forum in Belize to confront the growing public health threat posed by the tobacco and vape industry, calling out the sector’s deliberate business model built on sustaining nicotine addiction to drive repeated profits.

    Hosted jointly by Belize’s Ministry of Health and Wellness and the Pan American Health Organization (PAHO), the National Tobacco Youth Forum held on May 29, 2026, serves dual purposes: it delivers evidence-based education to young people on the severe harms of all tobacco products, especially modern alternatives like vapes and e-cigarettes, and creates a space for youth to share their own experiences and concerns about industry outreach in their communities. This event marks the launch of a nationwide series of public awareness initiatives designed to counter misleading industry marketing.

    Esner Vellos, director of Belize’s National Drug Abuse Control Council (NDACC), condemned the industry’s deceptive marketing tactics that frame vaping products as glamorous, trendy, and socially desirable to hook new young users. He highlighted a particularly worrying emerging trend: a steady rise in tobacco and vape use among young women, a demographic that has become a key target for industry advertising campaigns.

    Misleading promotion across social media has fostered a dangerous misconception among large swathes of Belize’s youth: that vaping is a safer, less harmful alternative to traditional cigarette smoking. Health officials emphasize that this widespread belief is entirely false. Vellos stressed that contrary to popular marketing claims, vapes still contain thousands of toxic chemicals linked to the development of cancer and other life-threatening chronic conditions.

    Dr. Karen Lewis-Bell, PAHO/World Health Organization representative for Belize, expanded on the industry’s strategic targeting of young consumers. Tobacco companies now design vapes with trendy flavors and modern, appealing packaging to deliberately downplay risks and position the products as harmless recreational items for young people. At their core, these products are engineered to leverage the powerful addictive properties of nicotine. “The most addictive substance in cigarettes is the nicotine. And so the vapes now focus on the addictive substance because the industry really wants to get you hooked and get your money over and over and over again,” Lewis-Bell explained.

    Beyond cancer, long-term use of vapes and other nicotine products carries severe chronic health risks, including heart disease, stroke, chronic lung disease, and aggravated asthma, according to public health experts. As the first in a planned series of events, the National Tobacco Youth Forum kicks off a sustained effort to correct misinformation and protect Belize’s younger generation from the predatory practices of the vape and tobacco industry.

  • CDB president urges bold action to break Caribbean debt and climate crisis cycle

    CDB president urges bold action to break Caribbean debt and climate crisis cycle

    In a high-stakes keynote address delivered at IDB Invest Sustainability Week 2026 in Barbados on May 26, Caribbean Development Bank (CDB) President Daniel M. Best has issued an urgent call for a fundamental rethinking of how Caribbean nations fund development and climate adaptation, warning that inaction will lock the region into a self-reinforcing cycle of soaring debt, sluggish economic growth, and intensifying climate catastrophe.

    Hosted by the Inter-American Development Bank’s investment arm, the annual sustainability gathering provided a critical platform for Best to outline the growing economic and environmental vulnerabilities facing small island Caribbean states. He pushed back against the incremental, piecemeal policy approaches that have dominated regional development efforts to date, calling for coordinated action from national governments, multilateral financial institutions, global investors, and private sector stakeholders to adopt ambitious, long-term strategies that match the scale of the region’s challenges.

    According to Best’s projections, the Caribbean faces a total gross financing gap of roughly $65.2 billion over the coming 10 years. Of that, the region requires an estimated $14 billion annually to upgrade infrastructure and build systemic resistance to climate-driven disasters — yet currently, less than 10% of that required annual funding is actually secured.

    A central pillar of Best’s proposal is a much larger role for the private sector in driving regional transformation. Rather than framing private actors as passive beneficiaries of development aid, he argued that private enterprise is the core engine of job creation, productivity gains, and sustained economic expansion across the Caribbean. “If we are serious about building resilient economies, then the private sector must be enabled, incentivised, and financed to lead that transformation,” Best said during his address.

    Best laid bare the harsh economic realities that have held back the region for decades: crippling sovereign debt loads, constrained government budgets that leave little room for public investment, and repeated external shocks from climate disasters and global economic volatility. He added that even Caribbean nations with consistent, reliable debt repayment histories are still locked out of affordable lending, facing exorbitant borrowing costs that limit their ability to invest in long-term growth.

    This dynamic, he explained, creates a vicious feedback loop: debt servicing payments crowd out critical public and private investment, constrained investment suppresses economic output, and slow growth in turn worsens fiscal vulnerability, sending countries back into deeper debt.

    On the climate front, Best emphasized that climate risk is not a distant threat for the Caribbean — it is a current, existential crisis. Over the past eight years alone, the region has been hit by five Category 5 hurricanes, each causing billions in damage and setting back development gains by years. Rising sea levels and more frequent extreme weather events threaten to displace entire communities and wipe out decades of economic progress, he noted.

    To break this cycle, Best highlighted innovative financing models as a critical path forward, pointing to the Multi-Guarantor Debt-for-Resilience Swap as a blueprint for action. This model brings together multiple guarantors to lower sovereign borrowing costs, reduce overall risk, and free up much-needed fiscal space for national governments. Rather than providing generic debt relief, the swap redirects funds that would have gone to debt servicing toward high-priority resilience investments, including public health infrastructure, climate adaptation projects, and disaster preparedness systems.

    “At its heart, this swap is about partnership and choice,” Best explained. “This is not debt relief for its own sake. It is debt transformation — turning liabilities into opportunities, and obligations into investments in people, communities, and futures.”

    Best stressed that no single actor can solve the region’s challenges on its own. Successful scaling of models like the debt-for-resilience swap requires deep collaboration between national governments, multilateral development banks, private insurers, commercial financial institutions, and global impact investors.

    He also outlined the CDB’s ongoing work to expand private sector participation across the region, through blended financing structures, risk guarantees, co-investment partnerships, and targeted entrepreneurship programs that aim to improve the overall investment climate for local and international firms.

    In closing, Best urged regional and international partners to move beyond endless discussion and take decisive, immediate action to address the Caribbean’s challenges. Against a backdrop of ongoing global economic volatility and uncertainty, he emphasized that regional collective action is the only path forward.

    “The global environment is uncertain and volatile. And the reality is clear: no one is coming to rescue us. The responsibility rests with us — our institutions, our partners, and our people — to act collectively, to act boldly, and to act now,” Best said.

  • IICA member states back new strategic plan focused on food security and agricultural resilience

    IICA member states back new strategic plan focused on food security and agricultural resilience

    The Inter-American Institute for Cooperation on Agriculture (IICA) has secured unanimous, broad backing from its member states for its long-term strategic roadmap through 2030, during the first official working gathering between newly installed Director-General Muhammad Ibrahim and national agricultural representatives at a meeting of the Special Advisory Commission on Management Issues (SACMI).

    SACMI acts as a permanent consultative body for IICA’s top governing structures, creating a structured space for ongoing open dialogue between member nation representatives and the institute’s leadership. This May 2026 session marked Ibrahim’s first formal engagement with ministry delegates from across the hemisphere since he assumed office earlier this year. Per an official IICA statement, this year’s commission was selected by the institute’s Executive Committee in adherence to geographic representation principles, and includes delegates from eight nations: Argentina, The Bahamas, Bolivia, Brazil, Canada, Mexico, Panama, and the United States.

    During the meeting, Ibrahim updated attending delegates on the progress of drafting IICA’s 2026-2030 Medium-term Plan (MTP), the document that will shape the organization’s core work across the next five years. The plan is centered on cementing IICA’s role as a critical strategic partner for all American nations across four high-priority focus areas: bolstering regional food security, driving inclusive rural economic growth, advancing environmental sustainability in agriculture, and building systemic resilience to global shocks.

    Ibrahim also walked attendees through a series of outreach and engagement activities he has led since the start of 2026, including multiple working visits to nations across the region. During these trips, he held discussions with national agricultural ministers and senior officials to align on shared sector priorities, and also held productive talks with stakeholders from the private sector, smallholder and industrial farmer organizations, and regional agricultural development financial institutions.

    Representatives from all participating member states voiced enthusiastic support for the proposed strategic direction, highlighting the plan’s alignment with national and regional priorities. Donald Willard, an International Trade Specialist at the United States Department of Agriculture (USDA) speaking on behalf of the U.S. government, commended IICA’s ongoing work and called for expanded technical cooperation to support farmers, strengthen food security, boost agricultural productivity, and increase the competitiveness of the hemisphere’s agrifood sector.

    Willard noted in his remarks, “The implementation of the Medium-term Plan will deliver tangible results for the region. IICA fills a central role in building coordinated hemispheric coalitions that allow us to respond collectively to international trade measures that impact our producers, such as the European Union’s Deforestation Regulation.” Closing his statement, he emphasized, “We must collaborate with IICA and fellow member states to prevent and eradicate crop and livestock diseases that threaten food production, and to fend off unfair trade barriers for our producers. This is our shared hemisphere, and the United States stands ready to work collectively toward shared goals.”

    Canada also formally endorsed the proposed strategic plan. Daryl Nearing, Deputy Director of Agriculture and Agri-Food Canada, drew particular attention to the plan’s strong focus on science-driven innovation, trade expansion, and agricultural and biosecurity health. “We greatly value that IICA has prioritized integrating science and innovation into agricultural practice to help farmers increase production and raise their incomes. IICA is an incredibly powerful instrument to support all of our agricultural producers across the region,” Nearing explained.

    Lourdes Cruz, Director General of Multilateral Affairs at Mexico’s Secretariat of Agriculture and Rural Development (SADER), noted that bilateral discussions between Mexico and Ibrahim since his appointment have already yielded productive outcomes that benefit broader regional agricultural development. “For Mexico, one particularly valuable feature of the 2026-2030 Medium-term Plan is its explicit recognition of regional diversity, given the enormous heterogeneity of agricultural sectors across every corner of the hemisphere,” Cruz stressed.

    Panama’s representative Diana de Guinard, Head of the International Technical Cooperation Office at the country’s Ministry of Agricultural Development, added that the MTP aligns almost perfectly with Panama’s own national agricultural sector priorities. She also noted that talks with Ibrahim helped surface and align on shared cross-regional challenges that IICA can help address.

    Speaking on the institute’s core mission, Ibrahim emphasized that all IICA initiatives are designed to deliver practical, actionable solutions and measurable, on-the-ground outcomes for rural populations and farming communities across the hemisphere. “For an organization like IICA, which is dedicated to driving the transformation of the Americas’ agrifood systems and advancing sustainable development for rural areas, the needs of producers, rural families, and vulnerable communities must always remain at the center of everything we do,” Ibrahim said.

    He added, “Agriculture is fundamental to global sustainable development, and it is inextricably tied to both economic inclusion and environmental stewardship, at a time of growing global uncertainty. That is why our institution’s work must always stay rooted in our core mission.”

    IICA’s leader also addressed the pressing interconnected global challenges that shape regional agriculture today, including widespread economic instability, rising global food prices, and growing environmental pressures from climate change. “Against this backdrop, fully integrating smallholder farmers and marginalized rural communities into formal markets, regional value chains, and the production opportunities unlocked by new technologies will be essential to building broader systemic resilience and advancing meaningful social inclusion across the hemisphere,” he warned.

    As outlined in the plan document, the 2026-2030 MTP establishes four core technical cooperation priorities for the institute: 1) Science, Technology, and Innovation for Inclusive Production Development; 2) International Trade, Regional Integration, and Competitive Agribusiness; 3) Agricultural Health, Biosecurity, and Food Safety and Quality; and 4) Sustainable Management of Strategic Natural Resources to Boost Agrifood System Productivity and Resilience.

    Francisco Alpízar, Technical Advisor to the IICA Directorate General, presented additional technical details on the plan to delegates. Alpízar highlighted that a defining feature of the new MTP is its commitment to tailoring technical cooperation programming to fit the unique needs of the hemisphere’s extremely diverse agricultural systems and production models, addressing variations not just between countries but within individual national contexts as well.

  • Oscar Arnold to Take Over as MOFA CEO on June 2

    Oscar Arnold to Take Over as MOFA CEO on June 2

    In an official confirmation made during a public interview on the *Open Your Eyes* program, Belize Prime Minister John Briceño has announced a key leadership transition at the nation’s Ministry of Foreign Affairs (MOFA): veteran diplomat Oscar Arnold will officially take office as the ministry’s new Chief Executive Officer on June 2, with a formal handover ceremony scheduled for the day prior, June 1.

    Briceño shared that Arnold has already begun preparing for his new role by working alongside outgoing CEO Amalia Mai to shadow her day-to-day responsibilities, ensuring a seamless transfer of leadership. The Prime Minister highlighted Arnold’s track record in his previous diplomatic posting as Belize’s ambassador to Mexico, noting that his tenure in that position was widely regarded as a successful one that strengthened bilateral ties between the two nations.

    Contrary to earlier public speculation of a forced leadership shakeup at MOFA, Briceño clarified that the leadership change comes as a result of a mutual agreement between outgoing CEO Amalia Mai and Foreign Minister Francis Fonseca. Mai’s initial one-year contract had already been extended for five years of continuous service at the ministry, and the transition was planned well in advance following the contract’s conclusion. The Prime Minister emphasized that Mai was not dismissed from her position, and she will remain in public service moving forward.

    Following her departure from the MOFA CEO role, Mai will take up a new senior diplomatic posting based in Mexico. In her new capacity, she will hold multiple concurrent credentials, including oversight responsibilities for the Central American Integration System (SICA) and Argentina, as well as serving as non-resident ambassador to Brazil.

    Weeks before the official announcement, the leadership change had been the subject of widespread public speculation. Earlier this month, Foreign Minister Francis Fonseca declined to confirm or deny emerging reports of the impending MOFA shakeup, choosing to defer any official comment to the Prime Minister’s office. In his address, Briceño took the opportunity to publicly commend Mai for her years of service to Belize, praising her consistent diligence and long hours of work advancing the nation’s foreign policy interests.

  • Nexora FC reign supreme in six-a-side tournament

    Nexora FC reign supreme in six-a-side tournament

    Nexora FC outperformed 11 competing squads to claim the top prize at Empire Sports Club’s six-a-side football tournament, held as a centerpiece of the club’s 112th anniversary celebrations this week. The tight final match at Bank Hall ended in a regulation goalless draw, forcing a decisive penalty shootout where Nexora FC held firm to secure a 1-0 win over runners-up Easy on Tuesday. The official prize presentation for the top two finishers took place two days later in a short ceremony hosted at Massy Distribution.

    This year’s competition marked a break from the club’s traditional anniversary football programming, which usually sees a veteran squad take on younger team members. According to Patrina Brathwaite, Assistant Secretary of Empire Sports Club, the new six-a-side format was designed to bring fresh energy to the anniversary celebrations. “We wanted to do something different for our football celebration this year, so we developed this open 12-team tournament,” Brathwaite explained. Local brand Rude Boy stepped in as a sponsor to cover the winner’s prize purse, and Brathwaite noted that organizers already plan to host a follow-up tournament in the coming months.

    A lifelong club member who first joined when she was just nine years old, Brathwaite shared her enthusiasm for the historic Barbadian sports institution, which has fostered generations of elite athletes. “I’ve played both hockey and football here my whole life, and I truly believe it’s one of the finest clubs across Barbados,” she said. “It’s known as the home of champions – we’ve had dozens of talented cricketers develop here, many of whom went on to represent the West Indies at the international level.” Brathwaite also used the post-tournament occasion to issue an open invitation to local sports lovers, encouraging more community members to sign up as club members and take part in future programming.

    Stephen Bennett, Brand Manager for Rude Boy, echoed that commitment to local community sports, saying the brand was thrilled to partner with Empire Sports Club on the anniversary tournament. “When opportunities arise to support grassroots football and engage with local communities, Rude Boy always jumps at the chance,” Bennett stated. He also publicly recognized Katrina Pixie Brathwaite for her ongoing contributions to Barbadian community sports, calling her a consistent driving force behind local athletic initiatives. “These kinds of community-focused projects are exactly what Rude Boy wants to support,” Bennett added. “We’re committed to lifting up positive local activities that bring people together through sport, and we look forward to more partnerships like this going forward.”