分类： society

Sophia Welch from the prestigious Mill Reef Club has received the distinguished Supervisor of the Year accolade at the 2025 Tourism Awards Gala. The recognition celebrates her exceptional leadership capabilities, dedicated staff mentorship, and unwavering commitment to sustaining superior guest satisfaction levels. Award committee members particularly highlighted how Welch’s distinctive management approach significantly boosts team performance while simultaneously elevating the overall visitor experience. The Tourism Awards Gala represents the industry’s premier event for acknowledging excellence in hospitality leadership and service standards across the sector. Welch’s achievement underscores the critical importance of effective supervisory practices in delivering outstanding tourism and hospitality services. Her award-winning performance sets a new benchmark for leadership excellence within the competitive tourism industry, demonstrating how strategic personnel management directly correlates with enhanced customer experiences and operational success.

The 2025 Antigua and Barbuda Tourism Awards Gala, an illustrious event celebrating excellence within the nation’s vital tourism sector, culminated in the prestigious recognition of Leon Norville from Sandals Grande Antigua as the Young Hotelier of the Year. The ceremony, orchestrated by the Antigua and Barbuda Hotels and Tourism Association (ABHTA) in collaboration with the Ministry of Tourism and the Antigua and Barbuda Tourism Authority (ABTA), convened industry luminaries on November 29 under the evocative theme, ‘Mirror Ball Gala: A Time to Reflect and Shine.’

The gala served as a platform to honor exceptional achievement across a spectrum of roles, from frontline service to executive leadership. Alongside Norville’s accolade, the ABHTA presented a suite of awards to other distinguished professionals. Albev Wade of Blue Waters Resort & Spa was celebrated as Employee of the Year, while Sophia Welch of Mill Reef Club received Supervisor of the Year honors. The Rising Star of the Year title was awarded to Shemaiah Gordon of Royalton Antigua. Culinary excellence was highlighted with Kahendi Jackson of Hermitage Bay named Young Chef of the Year and Jean-Pierre Tuitt of Jumby Bay Island honored as Chef of the Year. The media outlet ‘Antigua Inside Out,’ represented by Qasim Henry, was also recognized for its contributions.

In a parallel series of commendations, the Ministry of Tourism lauded top performers in critical frontline positions. Sandy Ramsaran of Sandals Grande Antigua was acknowledged for Customer Service Excellence. Jahlyn Turner of the Immigration Department was named Port Frontline Employee of the Year, Philbert John Baptiste of South Coast Horizons was declared Tour Guide of the Year, and Ian Richards of United Taxi Company Antigua Ltd was celebrated as Transportation Service Provider of the Year.

The evening also featured poignant special recognitions. Annette Michael was honored for an impressive 33 years of dedicated service to the industry, and Cleo Henry was applauded for her significant contributions to training and workforce development. In a moving tribute, a posthumous Lifetime Achievement Award was presented to honor the enduring legacy and decades of foundational leadership and support provided to the ABHTA by the late Alexandre de Brito e Cunha.

In a ceremony highlighting excellence within the hospitality sector, Albev Wade from Blue Waters Resort & Spa was distinguished as the Employee of the Year at the 2025 Antigua and Barbuda Tourism Awards Gala. The prestigious accolade, presented by the Antigua and Barbuda Hotels and Tourism Association (ABHTA), recognizes individuals who exemplify the pinnacle of service and dedication.

Wade’s unwavering professionalism and steadfast reliability were cited as key factors in his selection. His consistent ability to generate exceptionally positive guest feedback positioned him as a standout performer. Award organizers emphasized that his conduct and service quality have established a new benchmark for excellence, inspiring peers across the nation’s vital tourism industry.

The ABHTA officially lauded Wade as ‘a model of excellence,’ stating that his daily performance and commitment perfectly encapsulate the high standards the sector strives to maintain. This award underscores the critical importance of individual contribution in elevating the overall visitor experience and strengthening Antigua and Barbuda’s reputation as a premier travel destination.

In a ceremony brimming with optimism for the nation’s future, Senator Michael Freeland commended 25 exceptional young individuals at the 2025 National Youth Awards, positioning them as the cornerstone of Antigua and Barbuda’s developmental trajectory. The prestigious event, hosted at the University of the West Indies Five Islands Campus, served to distinguish 16 National Youth Awardees and an additional nine Youth Ambassador Awardees. These honorees were celebrated for their profound contributions spanning a diverse array of sectors such as entrepreneurial ventures, academic excellence, tourism innovation, agricultural advancement, and athletic prowess.

Addressing the gathering, Senator Freeland articulated that the accolades symbolized far more than mere recognition of past achievements. He framed them as a compelling mandate for the youth to pursue loftier goals, extend their influence, and dedicate themselves to generating an even more significant societal impact. His address underscored a commitment to progressive, gender-inclusive national policies, emphasizing initiatives designed to empower women and girls while simultaneously ensuring the active inclusion and development of young men.

Hailing the awardees as the ‘vanguard of a new generation,’ Freeland issued a powerful call to action. He encouraged them to forge connections across generations, foster collaborative endeavors, drive innovation, and actively mold Antigua and Barbuda into a nation recognized not only as a regional frontrunner but as an international leader in every field they represent. He further stressed the indispensable role of youth leadership in navigating pressing global challenges, with a specific focus on the critical issue of climate change. Concluding his inspirational address, Freeland expressed his hopes that the evening would serve as a catalyst for continued barrier-breaking and dream-building, extending his congratulations to all the distinguished awardees for their remarkable accomplishments.

Antigua and Barbuda is dispatching a high-level delegation of trade union representatives to participate in the Caribbean Congress of Labour’s 22nd Triennial Delegates Conference, scheduled from December 2-5 in Port of Spain, Trinidad. The landmark gathering brings together labor leaders from across the Caribbean basin to address pressing workforce challenges under the unifying theme “One Caribbean, One Voice: Advancing Workers’ Rights through Governance and Solidarity.

The Antigua and Barbuda Trades and Labour Union will be represented by President Bernard de Nully, First Vice President Lisa-Ann Yearwood, and Executive Member Jaquis Browne. This delegation signifies a concerted effort to champion workers’ interests through enhanced regional collaboration and strategic capacity building initiatives.

Conference agenda items will critically examine labor migration patterns, professional development frameworks, and mechanisms for strengthening cross-border cooperation. The International Labour Organization will deliver specialized presentations, providing global context to regional labor discussions.

President de Nully emphasized that their participation demonstrates an unwavering commitment to safeguarding workers’ rights throughout the Caribbean community while fortifying collective bargaining power through united action.

Additional representation includes the Antigua and Barbuda Public Service Association, represented by General Secretary Janela Evanson, and the Antigua and Barbuda Workers Union, which will send three delegates whose identities remained unconfirmed at the time of reporting.

In response to a concerning surge in robberies targeting tourists, Antigua and Barbuda has significantly enhanced security protocols at its most frequented beaches. The Ministry of Tourism has initiated a comprehensive safety strategy for the crucial winter season, a direct countermeasure to recent criminal incidents that have alarmed both visitors and local businesses.

The cornerstone of this initiative is the deployment of ten specially commissioned constables, vested with full arrest authority. These officers are now integrated with the national police force, focusing their presence on high-traffic coastal zones including Fryes Beach and Heritage Quay. Their primary mandate is to amplify security visibility, enable rapid response to any dubious activities, and act as a deterrent against opportunistic crimes targeting tourists.

Authorities have announced an increase in the frequency of patrols throughout daylight hours, with particular emphasis on areas known for large visitor gatherings. This visible reinforcement is a strategic effort to bolster the government’s assertion that the twin-island nation continues to be a secure and hospitable destination for international travelers.

Complementing the human patrols is a significant technological upgrade to the surveillance infrastructure. The ministry has already installed three new CCTV-equipped observation towers, with additional units scheduled for deployment in the upcoming weeks. This expanding monitoring network is designed to blanket key beach corridors, ensuring continuous surveillance of identified high-risk zones that are challenging to secure through foot patrols alone. The system will also serve as a vital tool for gathering evidence to aid in post-incident investigations.

Tourism officials have characterized these robust measures as an integral component of a wider security framework designed to safeguard the integrity of the nation’s vital tourism sector during its peak operational period. The action follows a notable increase in theft-related incidents on beaches, which had begun to erode confidence among the visitor population and local vendors dependent on the industry.

In a landmark ceremony concluding CARICOM Energy Month 2025, the Caribbean Community celebrated exceptional women and youth leaders revolutionizing sustainable energy development across the region. The prestigious WISE (Women in Sustainable Energy) and SEY (Sustainable Energy Youth) Awards recognized ten visionaries for their transformative contributions to policy innovation, community advocacy, and clean energy entrepreneurship.

The November 28th gala at Georgetown’s Pegasus Hotel honored eight female pioneers and two youth innovators spanning 2024 and 2025 award cycles. Guyana’s Shevon Wood received recognition for policy leadership while Jamaica’s Carol Lue triumphed in business entrepreneurship. Social impact accolades went to advocates Jayda Overton (Guyana) and Gabrielle Gay (Barbados), with utility sector honors awarded to Cheryl Lewis (Jamaica) and Nikita Mullings (Bahamas).

Youth champions Amir Dillawar (Guyana) and Damani Thomas (Jamaica) secured SEY honors for their groundbreaking solar energy initiatives and carbon neutrality efforts. Ambassador David Prendergast, CARICOM’s Director of Sectoral Programmes, emphasized that regional energy transition “must reflect and embrace the vital contributions of women and youth” across all sectors from policymaking to consumer engagement.

The German Agency for International Cooperation (GIZ), which partnered with CARICOM on the awards, reinforced through representative Dr. Neibert Blair that “the CARICOM energy transition cannot be achieved without women and youth.” Blair highlighted awardees’ roles in climate adaptation, workforce modernization, and policy development that collectively shape the region’s sustainable future.

This celebration capped a month-long series of energy transition activities including electric vehicle expositions, academic engagements, and community initiatives like the Regional Energy Kilo Walk. The awards ceremony underscored CARICOM’s commitment to gender-inclusive and intergenerational leadership in achieving its clean energy objectives across 15 member states and 6 associate members.