Carib Scope

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  • Gaza ceasefire a ‘deadly illusion’ — UNICEF

    Gaza ceasefire a ‘deadly illusion’ — UNICEF

    GENEVA, Switzerland – Eight months after a formal ceasefire was supposed to halt hostilities in Gaza, senior United Nations officials have issued a scathing condemnation of the ongoing violence, labeling the truce a dangerous deception that has cost the lives of hundreds of Palestinian children.

    The ceasefire between Israel and Hamas, the governing authority of Gaza, was announced in October 2025. But according to Gaza’s Ministry of Health – whose casualty data is deemed credible by the UN – Israeli military operations have continued unabated across the enclave, leaving at least 992 Palestinians dead since the truce took effect. Of that death toll, 265 are children, a statistic the UN Children’s Fund (UNICEF) has called an unconscionable and catastrophic injustice.

    Speaking to reporters in Geneva via video link from Amman, Jordan, UNICEF spokesperson James Elder laid bare the grim scale of child harm in the supposed period of peace. “Over more than eight months, on average, one child has been killed every single day during a window that was meant to bring restraint and safety to Gaza,” Elder said. “For months, the global community has been told a ceasefire is in place. But for Palestinian children, this supposed truce is nothing less than a cruel, deadly illusion.”

    Elder emphasized that the children killed since October have not died in active battlefront combat. Instead, they have been cut down in spaces meant to be safe: in their family homes, inside school grounds, while playing football with peers, and while fishing off Gaza’s coast. Their deaths have come from sniper fire, aerial bombardments, and strikes from unmanned quadcopters, he added. This week alone, the violence continued its unrelenting pattern: a two-year-old boy shot dead by Israeli forces, a 13-year-old killed inside his displacement camp tent, a five-year-old boy and his father killed in an Israeli strike, with dozens more similar incidents documented.

    Beyond the fatalities, more than 400 children have sustained injuries since the ceasefire was declared, many of whom suffer life-altering, catastrophic wounds. Hundreds of these injured children require urgent medical evacuation out of Gaza to receive life-saving care, but Israeli restrictions on the entry of essential medicines have worsened their suffering. Elder explained that these limitations leave wounded children grappling with extreme pain, and face far higher risks of infection, life-threatening complications, and additional amputations.

    Alongside physical harm, Elder highlighted the intergenerational psychological damage being inflicted on Gaza’s younger generation. “Fear, grief, and constant violence are stitched into the very core of childhood here,” he said. “The trauma is so deep that it disrupts children’s basic ability to eat, sleep, and grow and develop normally, harm that will resonate for decades to come.”

    Elder pushed back against the narrative that the ongoing child deaths are an unavoidable consequence of intractable conflict, arguing instead that the violence persists because of a global lack of political will to enforce the truce. “We cannot continue to accept levels of child death that would spark immediate, widespread international outrage if they occurred anywhere else on the planet,” he said. “It is long past time to stop normalizing what is plainly, unacceptably abnormal.”

  • Caricom EPG to schedule visit to Haiti ‘as soon as possible’

    Caricom EPG to schedule visit to Haiti ‘as soon as possible’

    GEORGETOWN, Guyana — A high-level advisory panel assembled by the Caribbean Community (Caricom) has announced its intention to deploy an on-the-ground mission to Haiti at the earliest possible date, as the regional bloc ramps up its monitoring of the Caribbean nation’s fast-shifting political and security landscape.

    The Caricom Eminent Persons Group (EPG)—a three-member panel led by former Saint Lucia Prime Minister Dr. Kenny Anthony, with fellow ex-heads of government Bruce Golding of Jamaica and Perry Christie of the Bahamas as members—has been tracking unfolding events in Port-au-Prince via consistent virtual consultations with a broad cross-section of Haitian stakeholders. These discussions have included input from government representatives, opposition political parties, and grassroots civil society organizations, the group confirmed in an official statement released this week.

    “Recognizing that firsthand engagement on the ground is critical to refining our understanding of the situation, and committed to empowering Haitian stakeholders to lead their own path out of crisis, the EPG will move forward with scheduling an in-country visit as soon as conditions allow,” the statement read. During the mission, panel members will hold face-to-face talks with political leaders, civil society representatives, and senior government officials to advance dialogue toward a peaceful resolution of the country’s long-running instability.

    Caricom first established the EPG in May 2023 with a clear mandate to broker inclusive dialogue and guide Haitian stakeholders through the country’s unprecedented overlapping political, security, and institutional breakdown. Beyond facilitating dialogue, the group is tasked with supporting the development of homegrown Haitian solutions that bring all major sectors together to build a peaceful transitional governance framework ahead of planned free and fair elections. It also backs targeted efforts to disarm and neutralize violent gang networks, reestablish state control over public spaces, and improve security for ordinary Haitian citizens who have borne the brunt of years of chaos.

    Since the panel was formed, it has already emerged as a key intermediary in the country’s fragile transition. Most notably, it played a central role in supporting the formation of Haiti’s Transitional Presidential Council and guiding the complex leadership changes that followed the ouster of former de facto leader Jovenel Moïse’s successor.

    The EPG’s announcement comes just days after United Nations Secretary-General António Guterres completed his own official visit to Haiti, during which he told reporters he remains confident the country’s transitional process is gaining momentum.

    “A positive dynamic is already in motion,” Guterres said during his trip. “My message to the international community is straightforward: it is past time for all of us to step up and meet our responsibilities to the Haitian people.” He called on every domestic stakeholder to unite alongside Haitians to work toward a shared future of peace, improved security, and human dignity.

    During his visit, Guterres held formal talks with interim Haitian Prime Minister Alix Didier Fils-Aimé, and used his public remarks to push back against what he calls the international community’s longstanding neglect of the crisis. He argued that the greatest threat facing Haiti today is not the pervasive violence of armed gang groups that control swathes of the country’s territory, but the global indifference that has allowed the crisis to fester for years.

    “The biggest wave we face is indifference—the tendency of the world to turn its attention away from Haiti for far too long,” Guterres said. “There is a direct connection between the international community’s absence and the lack of security that Haitian people live with every single day.

    Still, the UN chief struck an optimistic tone about the path forward, noting that incremental progress has already created opportunities to reverse the country’s downward trajectory. “Some key neighborhoods in central Port-au-Prince have already been recaptured by state security forces from gang control,” he pointed out. “The Council of Ministers has resumed holding regular meetings at the National Palace for the first time in more than three years. This is not just a symbolic moment—it is a clear sign that the Haitian state is progressively reestablishing its presence across the country.”

  • Dominican Republic activates emergency plan as El Niño increases drought threat

    Dominican Republic activates emergency plan as El Niño increases drought threat

    Against the backdrop of shifting global climate patterns, climate scientists and meteorological bodies have issued a clear call to action for the Dominican Republic: the nation must brace for overlapping extreme weather threats tied to El Niño during the 2026 Atlantic hurricane season. Unlike typical hurricane season outlooks, this year’s forecast brings a contradictory mix of conditions: suppressed overall tropical cyclone activity paired with elevated risks of prolonged drought and record-high temperatures across the wider Caribbean basin.

    El Niño, a climate phenomenon driven by anomalous warming of surface waters in the central and eastern Pacific Ocean, is known to reshape global atmospheric circulation by shifting warm air masses toward the Caribbean. For the region, this shift consistently delivers two key outcomes: it creates unfavorable atmospheric conditions that dampen tropical cyclone formation, and it amplifies the risk of extended dry spells and above-average seasonal temperatures. Even with the projected dip in total storm numbers, meteorologists stress that reduced activity does not equal zero risk – major, destructive hurricanes can still form and impact coastal Caribbean nations including the Dominican Republic.

    The 2026 Atlantic hurricane season, which officially spans from June 1 to November 30, is currently forecast to produce between 8 and 14 named storms. Of these, 3 to 6 are expected to strengthen into hurricanes, with 1 to 3 reaching major hurricane strength (Category 3 or higher on the Saffir-Simpson scale). If the forecast holds, 2026 will mark the second consecutive below-normal Atlantic hurricane season, following 2025’s 13-storm season that also fell short of the long-term historical average.

    In response to the forecast, Dominican authorities have already formally activated the national 2026 Cyclone Season Contingency Plan during an official launch event hosted at the country’s Emergency Operations Center (COE), with President Luis Abinader in attendance. During the event, President Abinader underscored that even the most current projections do not rule out the development of powerful, destructive storms, and called for fully coordinated preparedness across every level of government and public institution.

    Abinader also announced upcoming scheduled meetings with the national Governing Council and local municipal authorities to refine and reinforce community-level prevention strategies. He emphasized that preparedness efforts must extend beyond hurricane response to address the full suite of El Niño and climate change-driven hazards, including extreme heat events, episodic intense rainfall, and prolonged regional drought.

    As part of the contingency plan rollout, national agencies conducted a full-scale simulation of a Category 4 hurricane landfall response. During the exercise, President Abinader issued a formal directive requiring all state institutions to make their resources fully available to emergency response teams. He also publicly recognized and commended the pre-season preparedness work carried out by the Emergency Operations Center, the Dominican Institute of Meteorology (Indomet), and national civil protection agencies.

    International climate projections, including updated analysis from the U.S. National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration (NOAA), indicate that the ongoing El Niño event is likely to intensify in the coming months, with a 63% probability of it strengthening to a “very strong” classification between November 2026 and January 2027. A very strong El Niño would exacerbate existing rainfall deficits and prolong periods of extreme heat across the entire Caribbean region.

    These international warnings have been echoed by Dominican meteorological experts, who note that El Niño’s typical impacts in the country include reduced seasonal precipitation and a sharp increase in the likelihood of widespread meteorological drought, particularly during the second half of 2026 and the early months of 2027. Local experts have urged both the general public and key economic sectors, including agriculture and tourism, to embed a permanent culture of prevention to mitigate potential losses.

    Beyond emergency response planning, the Dominican government has already begun rolling out targeted preventive measures to address projected water shortages. National water authorities confirmed that preliminary water rationing protocols have already been implemented in at-risk regions to pre-empt supply shortfalls, while the interagency Water and Construction Committee continues to hold weekly coordination meetings to monitor conditions and adjust strategies as needed.

    Data from the National Institute of Hydraulic Resources (INDRHI) shows that the country’s major strategic dams currently hold approximately 73% of their total capacity, a level that provides stable water supplies for the near term. However, senior water resource officials warn that storage levels could drop rapidly if prolonged dry conditions take hold across the country in the coming months.

    As the Dominican Republic moves into the peak months of the 2026 hurricane season under El Niño conditions, national authorities continue to stress that proactive preparedness remains non-negotiable. The nation faces a unique balancing act: while the odds favor fewer named storms than average, the overlapping risks of major hurricane landfall, extreme heat, and worsening drought mean that constant vigilance and coordinated preparation remain critical to protecting communities and critical infrastructure.

  • Prime Minister Drew: Protecting People Must Remain Central to the Global Response to Sea-Level Rise

    Prime Minister Drew: Protecting People Must Remain Central to the Global Response to Sea-Level Rise

    On June 18, 2026, at the Berlin Climate Mobility Forum — a high-profile gathering co-hosted by the Global Centre for Climate Mobility (GCCM) and the Robert Bosch Stiftung focused on climate-driven displacement and adaptation — Prime Minister Dr. Terrance Drew of St. Kitts and Nevis delivered a urgent call to reorient global climate action around vulnerable communities, as Small Island Developing States (SIDS) already grapple with the irreversible, daily impacts of rising sea levels.

    Participating in a panel discussion centered on protecting human rights amid accelerating sea-level rise, Drew joined a cohort of global leaders, policy architects, climate researchers, and international development partners to share the on-the-ground reality of climate change for low-lying island nations. Unlike many regions still preparing for future sea-level rise impacts, Drew emphasized that his twin-island federation is already confronting the cascading harms of this climate crisis.

    “Our nation is not waiting for future consequences of sea-level rise — we are actively managing its harsh reality today,” Drew told the assembled audience. He detailed the overlapping threats already reshaping life across St. Kitts and Nevis: accelerating coastal erosion that eats away at populated shorelines, widespread degradation of protective coral reefs, more intense and destructive storm surges, and the permanent loss of culturally significant historic sites. These challenges, Drew argued, extend far beyond environmental harm — they directly erode fundamental human rights for local communities.

    “Sea-level rise is far more than a single-dimensional environmental issue,” Drew explained. “When we talk about protecting rights in this context, we are highlighting threats to every core pillar of human dignity: the right to life and safety, the right to housing and ancestral land, the right to food, clean water and basic necessities, the right to health, the right to stable livelihoods, and the right to preserve our culture, identity and shared heritage.”

    Drew stressed that any effective global response to sea-level rise must keep protecting vulnerable people at its core, rather than prioritizing abstract policy targets or economic interests. All resilience-building efforts, he added, should be designed to safeguard at-risk communities while preserving their inherent dignity, cultural heritage, and access to equitable opportunity.

    During the forum, Drew also showcased St. Kitts and Nevis’ forward-looking national development framework: the Sustainable Island State Agenda. This strategy anchors climate resilience, environmental stewardship, and community empowerment at the heart of all national policy, and the federation has already advanced targeted initiatives and global partnerships to strengthen coastal defense systems, support vulnerable coastal populations, and embed long-term sustainability across all sectors of the economy.

    The prime minister highlighted the impactful ongoing partnership between St. Kitts and Nevis and the GCCM as a model for effective global climate cooperation. He pointed to the joint Communities Climate Adaptation Facility as a successful example of how international collaboration can deliver practical, locally led solutions: the initiative provides critical financing and policy guidance to support community-driven adaptation projects that directly address the needs of at-risk groups.

    “Multilateralism — which I have long championed — and intentional global partnership are not just abstract ideals for us. They are our most valuable tools for recourse and our only clear pathway to survival,” Drew said.

    He further emphasized that climate adaptation strategies can only succeed if they are shaped by the people who bear the brunt of sea-level rise impacts. Long-term, effective solutions require coordinated collaboration between national governments, local communities, development partners, and civil society organizations to ensure interventions align with local realities, knowledge, and lived experiences, rather than being imposed from outside.

    As St. Kitts and Nevis continues to advocate for ambitious climate action on the global stage, Drew closed by reaffirming the federation’s unwavering commitment to working alongside international partners to protect the rights, livelihoods, and future prospects of all vulnerable populations disproportionately impacted by the climate crisis.

  • Prime Minister Drew Calls for Climate Justice and Community-led Solutions at Climate Mobility Forum in Berlin, Germany

    Prime Minister Drew Calls for Climate Justice and Community-led Solutions at Climate Mobility Forum in Berlin, Germany

    In a high-profile gathering of global leaders in Berlin on June 18, 2026, Prime Minister Dr. Terrance Drew of St. Kitts and Nevis delivered a passionate, principled address at the opening of the Berlin Climate Mobility Forum, calling for systemic climate justice, equitable cross-border collaboration, and the centering of local community voices in crafting global climate solutions.

    Drew joined fellow heads of state and government from climate-vulnerable nations including Palau, the Marshall Islands, Honduras, Tuvalu, and the Maldives for the forum’s High-Level Exchange on Climate Mobility Principles. The session, organized by the Global Centre for Climate Mobility (GCCM) in partnership with the Robert Bosch Stiftung, aimed to build unified global consensus around climate displacement, adaptive migration, and resilience-building strategies.

    Speaking to an audience of international policymakers, development partners, climate researchers, and civil society delegates, Drew framed climate change as an inherently moral and justice issue, pointing to the extreme inequity faced by Small Island Developing States (SIDS). These low-emission nations contribute just a tiny fraction of global greenhouse gas output, yet face some of the most catastrophic and life-altering impacts of a warming planet. To illustrate this gap, Drew shared the example of a local Caribbean fisherman who watches his livelihood erode as sea levels rise, ocean temperatures warm, and native marine ecosystems shift beyond recognition.

    Crucially, Drew emphasized that vulnerable nations are not seeking handouts or sympathy from the global community. “We are not seeking charity, we are not seeking pity. We are seeking justice and partnership, which are fundamental to dealing with these issues,” he stated.

    Rewriting the dominant narrative around climate mobility, Drew argued that movement driven by climate change should not be framed as a failure of community resilience. Instead, it should be recognized as a legitimate adaptive strategy that allows people to preserve their dignity, livelihoods, and social bonds amid a growing global crisis. While international funding and technical expertise play an important supporting role, Drew stressed that lasting, effective solutions can only grow out of local knowledge and alignment with on-the-ground realities.

    He shared a cautionary example from the Caribbean, where a top-down climate recommendation developed without local input nearly missed critical cultural and economic context that would have made the policy unworkable. That experience, Drew said, reinforced a clear lesson: any climate initiative implemented at the local level must meaningfully include local community stakeholders. “It will be considered arrogant to say that local people, who have been living there for hundreds of years, who had developed solutions, and who had adapted to that climate and who had local solutions to any issue, that [they] would not be good enough to include them in your solution,” he argued.

    Drew further noted that robust climate mobility policies must prioritize the protection of indigenous and local cultural identity, traditional livelihoods, and fundamental human rights, while strengthening national resilience and security. He commended the GCCM for its ongoing collaborative work with vulnerable nations including St. Kitts and Nevis, highlighting the organization’s focus on supporting community-led adaptation and locally designed climate responses. The ongoing partnership between the GCCM and local stakeholders on the island of Nevis, he said, serves as a successful model for how global partnerships can empower, rather than override, local action.

    The prime minister also called for a fundamental shift in how climate financing is structured, urging global funders to align investments more closely with local needs and priorities. This alignment, he explained, ensures that vulnerable communities are empowered to address their own climate challenges, rather than being further displaced by misaligned external initiatives.

    Closing his address, Drew reaffirmed St. Kitts and Nevis’ unwavering commitment to international climate cooperation, calling for greater global solidarity to confront what he called one of the defining challenges of the 21st century. “It is partnerships like these that keep me optimistic, that keep me hopeful. Partnerships like these tell us what is possible. We just have to work together,” he said.

  • Minister Michael Joseph Calls for Greater Support for Communities on the Frontlines of Climate Change at Berlin Climate Mobility Forum 2026

    Minister Michael Joseph Calls for Greater Support for Communities on the Frontlines of Climate Change at Berlin Climate Mobility Forum 2026

    Against the backdrop of escalating climate impacts that disproportionately threaten low-lying and small island nations, Michael Joseph, Antigua and Barbuda’s Minister of Health, Wellness, Environment, and Civil Service Affairs, delivered a urgent, community-centered call to action at the 2026 Berlin Climate Mobility Forum in Germany on Wednesday. Speaking to a cross-sector audience of government delegates, leaders of international organizations, development finance specialists, and leading climate researchers, Joseph centered his remarks on the need to redirect more climate investment directly to frontline communities already grappling with climate change’s worst effects.

    The forum’s ongoing discussions focus on advancing the Global Principles for Addressing Climate Mobility, a framework Joseph publicly endorsed, while stressing that successful climate adaptation cannot be designed from distant capital cities. “Local communities hold unique on-the-ground knowledge that no external stakeholder can replicate,” Joseph explained. “They know exactly which neighborhoods flood during storm surges, which coastal roads erode faster each year, which shorelines are retreating, which households need urgent support, and which natural ecosystems once buffered their communities from extreme weather. But local knowledge means nothing without the resources to turn that knowledge into action.”

    For Small Island Developing States (SIDS) like Antigua and Barbuda, Joseph noted, climate change has already stretched critical public systems to breaking point, putting housing, public healthcare, national food security, core infrastructure, and overall community well-being at growing risk. He argued that climate finance mechanisms must not only strengthen national governing institutions but also be structured to deliver tangible support directly to the vulnerable populations that need it most.

    To illustrate what effective local climate action looks like, Joseph highlighted his country’s ongoing Home Assistance Programme for the Indigenous (HAPI), a targeted initiative that supports low-income and at-risk groups including elderly residents, unemployed workers, people displaced by climate disasters, and storm survivors. The program provides funding for new housing construction and home rehabilitation, allowing vulnerable citizens to stay safe and rooted in their home communities rather than being forced to relocate prematurely.

    Beyond physical infrastructure and economic impacts, Joseph drew attention to a long-overlooked dimension of climate harm: the persistent mental health toll of repeated climate shocks. Repeated exposure to hurricanes, forced displacement, sudden loss of livelihoods, and ongoing uncertainty about the future, he explained, leaves lasting psychological damage on affected communities that is rarely accounted for in global climate planning.

    Joseph also emphasized the irreplaceable role of natural coastal ecosystems in building climate resilience, highlighting that beaches, wetlands, coral reefs, mangroves, and healthy fisheries deliver a suite of critical services that protect communities from extreme weather, sustain food supplies, support local livelihoods, and preserve centuries of cultural heritage for island nations.

    Reiterating Antigua and Barbuda’s unwavering commitment to global climate goals, Joseph warned that uncurbed global warming poses an existential threat to SIDS, reaffirming his country’s support for global efforts to cap long-term warming at 1.5 degrees Celsius above pre-industrial levels. “For Antigua and Barbuda, 1.5 degrees is not an arbitrary policy target – it is the line between manageable climate risk and permanent, irreversible damage to our homeland,” he stressed.

    The minister also drew global attention to the growing crisis of climate loss and damage, noting that even the most robust adaptation measures have limits when communities face repeated climate shocks, gradual land loss, destroyed public infrastructure, failing water systems, and permanent collapse of local livelihoods. Drawing on decades of collective experience across Caribbean nations, he noted that recent hurricane seasons have inflicted trillions in combined economic and social harm across the region, and called for a fundamental overhaul of the international financial architecture to make it more responsive and equitable to the needs of vulnerable climate frontline nations.

    Joseph reaffirmed Antigua and Barbuda’s support for two key policy frameworks designed to address this gap: the Multidimensional Vulnerability Index and the Antigua and Barbuda Agenda for Small Island Developing States. Both frameworks, he explained, are critical to expanding access to affordable climate finance and ensuring that the unique vulnerability of SIDS is properly recognized in global development and climate financing systems.

    Joseph’s participation in the 2026 Berlin Climate Mobility Forum is supported by Rulita Kamasho Thomas, Antigua and Barbuda’s Climate Ambassador. The annual forum brings together high-level stakeholders from across governments, multilateral bodies, development institutions, and civil society to advance practical, actionable solutions to the growing challenges of climate mobility, while accelerating global progress on climate resilience and adaptation.

  • No Tsunami Threat to Antigua and Barbuda After 6.7 Magnitude Atlantic Earthquake

    No Tsunami Threat to Antigua and Barbuda After 6.7 Magnitude Atlantic Earthquake

    A 6.7-magnitude earthquake struck the central Mid-Atlantic Ridge on Wednesday afternoon, triggering rapid official assessments of potential tsunami risks for nearby Caribbean island nations. According to preliminary data released by the Antigua and Barbuda Meteorological Service, the seismic event hit at 2:57 p.m. local Atlantic Standard Time, roughly 10 kilometers beneath the ocean surface. Its epicenter was pinned near geographic coordinates 0.4 degrees south latitude and 20 degrees west longitude.

    Within an hour of the quake, the national meteorological agency issued an official Tsunami Information Statement at 3:15 p.m. AST to calm public concern, confirming that the seismic activity does not generate any meaningful tsunami hazard for Antigua and Barbuda. While officials acknowledged a tiny chance that minor tsunami waves could impact Atlantic coastlines located closest to the epicenter, they emphasized that Antigua and Barbuda faces no imminent danger and no emergency response measures are needed for the country at this time.

    To boost community preparedness, the meteorological service has urged residents across the country, particularly those living in low-lying coastal districts, to stay tuned to future official updates. It also encouraged local communities to use this event as a timely opportunity to revisit their established tsunami evacuation protocols, re-familiarize themselves with pre-marked safe evacuation zones, and ensure all household members understand emergency protocols. The agency added that no additional public statements will be released going forward unless new seismic data emerges or the risk situation changes materially.

  • ‘5 by 35’ – Caribbean leaders pitch for billions to boost climate resilience

    ‘5 by 35’ – Caribbean leaders pitch for billions to boost climate resilience

    At the opening of the Climate Smart Summit held at Barbados’ Hilton Barbados Resort this Wednesday, regional leadership put forward an ambitious, coordinated investment initiative dubbed “5 by 35” that aims to reshape the Caribbean’s energy and agricultural sectors over the next decade. The plan calls for mobilizing $5 billion in targeted investment by 2035, with leaders framing unified action as the only path to boosting regional climate resilience, cutting costly food imports, and lowering living expenses for local communities across the bloc.

    Dr. Mohammad Nagdee, executive director of the Caribbean Centre for Renewable Energy and Energy Efficiency (CCREEE), formally introduced the “5 by 35” vision to summit attendees, emphasizing that the $5 billion target by 2035 is fully within reach, even as total regional investment needs for renewable and sustainable energy across CARICOM member states far outpace this figure. “Industry analysis shows meeting all of CARICOM’s renewable energy requirements would demand more than $12 to $15 billion in total investment,” Nagdee explained. “But the $5 billion by 2035 target is an achievable starting point that will drive meaningful transformation.”

    A core critique underpinning the new initiative is the Caribbean’s long history of fragmented climate and development action, where years of strategic planning have failed to translate into tangible on-the-ground progress. “It’s often said the Caribbean produces more development and climate reports than any other region in the world, but far too few of those plans have been turned into financing and real impact for people,” Nagdee said. “A fragmented approach will never get us where we need to go — we need coordinated, collective action to unlock the scale of investment required.”

    CCREEE has already made early progress toward the 5 by 35 goal: the organization has secured $15 million for active projects in the first half of 2026, and is currently negotiating another $350 million in potential investment, both directly and through partnerships with regional and global stakeholders. Proposed projects under the initiative include offshore wind energy pilot programs, green infrastructure for sustainable shipping, and large-scale energy resilience projects to strengthen utility systems against extreme weather.

    Nagdee stressed that concessional, low-interest financing from global development partners in the Global North will be critical over the next two years to de-risk investments for private capital and make the region attractive for large-scale funding. “Over the next two years, we need to leverage the support of our development partners to reduce investment and country risk, so we can unlock the much larger volume of private investment we need to hit our targets,” he said.

    Alongside the regional energy plan, Barbados’ Minister of Agriculture Dr. Shantal Munro-Knight outlined a $272 million national agricultural investment package at the summit, designed to strengthen the island’s food security and modernize its agricultural sector. The package targets five priority areas that will scale local production and attract private investment, with projected returns for both investors and the national economy.

    The largest allocations include $110 million to restructure Barbados’ legacy sugar industry into a fully circular economy, where every byproduct of sugar production will be utilized, including for renewable energy generation. Another $110 million will go toward building a modern export pack house and central food terminal hub, which will deliver more consistent supply for markets and greater income certainty for farmers and distributors. The plan also allocates $24 million for a new state-of-the-art abattoir and $8 million to revive and expand Barbados’ iconic Sea Island cotton industry.

    Cutting Barbados’ heavy reliance on food imports remains a top national priority, Munro-Knight noted. Currently, the island imports 8.6 million kilos of agricultural goods annually, totaling $325 million in import spending. “We’ve identified 16 key products that we currently import that we can produce locally at scale, and at a lower cost than bringing them in from overseas,” she said.

    To kickstart the transformation and signal government commitment to private investors, Barbados is already increasing public investment in enabling agricultural infrastructure, including a new tissue culture laboratory, upgraded veterinary and food testing facilities, support for household food production initiatives, and digital agricultural tools for smallholder farmers. “We are stepping out first to deliver food security, demonstrating our commitment by putting our own capital on the line,” Munro-Knight said. “This sends a clear signal to private investors: come partner with us, because we are invested in this transformation too.”

  • Minister Michael Joseph Joins Global Leaders at Berlin Climate Mobility Forum 2026

    Minister Michael Joseph Joins Global Leaders at Berlin Climate Mobility Forum 2026

    The 2026 Berlin Climate Mobility Forum officially kicks off today in Germany’s capital, bringing together a diverse cohort of senior government officials, heads of international bodies, and representatives from leading development institutions to confront one of the most pressing interconnected challenges of the 21st century: climate mobility.

    Over the course of the two-day gathering, stakeholders from across the globe will collaborate to deepen cross-border and cross-sector cooperation on climate mobility, while working to advance actionable, scalable solutions that strengthen climate adaptation, build community resilience, and advance inclusive sustainable development.

    As climate change accelerates and its impacts ripple through communities on every continent, climate mobility — the movement of people displaced or compelled to relocate by climate-related disasters and slow-onset environmental changes — has emerged as a critical policy issue that intersects with environmental protection, public health systems, governance structures, and broad socioeconomic development strategies. What was once a marginal concern for small island developing states and low-lying coastal nations is now recognized as a global challenge that demands coordinated international action.

    The roster of high-level attendees reflects the broad global consensus on the urgency of this issue. Participants include Nilda Borges da Mata, Minister of Environment, Youth and Sustainable Tourism of the Democratic Republic of São Tomé and Príncipe; Diaz Faisal Malik Hendropriyono, Vice Minister of Environment of Indonesia; Noelia Souque, Ambassador for Cross-Border Cooperation of Andorra; M.T. Oshurbayev, Vice Minister of Ecology and Natural Resources of Kazakhstan; Emmanuel King Urey Yarkpawolo, Executive Director of the Environmental Protection Agency of Liberia; and Daniel M. Best, President of the Caribbean Development Bank. Among the delegates is Michael Joseph, Minister of Health, Wellness, Environment, and Civil Service Affairs of Antigua and Barbuda.

    Joseph is joined at the forum by Ruleta Camacho-Thomas, Antigua and Barbuda’s Climate Ambassador, who has long led the nation’s climate advocacy work across regional and international platforms. Her on-the-ground expertise and policy experience will support Joseph’s engagement in the forum’s working sessions and negotiations.

    The forum fills a critical gap in global climate governance by offering a dedicated, high-profile platform for open dialogue and collaborative problem-solving. As nations grapple with the growing toll of climate change on vulnerable communities and livelihoods, this gathering creates space to align priorities and align collective action.

    Core discussion topics for the event center on strengthening national and regional policy frameworks for climate mobility, boosting community-level resilience to climate shocks, and building inclusive cross-border partnerships that directly support vulnerable populations impacted by climate-related displacement and migration.

    For Antigua and Barbuda, a low-lying small island developing state on the frontlines of sea level rise and climate change, Joseph’s participation underscores the nation’s unwavering commitment to tackling climate impacts, contributing to global collective action, and advancing shared goals of building global resilience, promoting responsible long-term environmental stewardship, and supporting communities around the world that face growing climate-related challenges.

  • Kaia appears in court

    Kaia appears in court

    A high-profile criminal case unfolding in Trinidad and Tobago has taken a dramatic turn, with a 25-year-old paralyzed woman charged in the police-involved shooting death of her husband granted bail following her first court appearance. Kaia Sealy, a hairstylist and mother of a five-year-old child, is at the center of a case that raises complex questions around police procedure and judicial procedure following a January shooting that left her husband Joshua Samaroo dead and Sealy permanently paralyzed.

    Prosecutors are building their manslaughter case against Sealy around a body of forensic evidence and testimony from 30 witnesses. The state’s narrative holds that Sealy fired first at responding police officers during the January 20 incident at the intersection of College Road and Bassie Street Extension in St Augustine, which prompted officers to return fire. That return fire ultimately killed Samaroo, who was struck 19 times, leading authorities to charge Sealy with his unlawful killing. In addition to manslaughter, Sealy faces multiple firearm-related charges: possession of a Glock pistol and two 9mm rounds, possession of a firearm with intent to endanger life, discharging a firearm within 40 meters of a public road, and shooting at three named police officers.

    Sealy had been out of the country in Panama for treatment related to her injury prior to the court date. Under a prearranged agreement between her legal team and law enforcement, Sealy was scheduled to land at Piarco International Airport at 1:45 a.m. yesterday, attend a 6 a.m. pre-surrender medical appointment, and voluntarily turn herself in at the Arouca Police Station by 7 a.m. But the plan fell apart within minutes of her plane touching down: officers took Sealy into custody immediately, transferred her first to Arouca Police Station then to Tunapuna Police Station, and arranged for an emergency virtual first appearance before Master Nazeera Ali at the Tunapuna North B Court by 10 a.m. the same morning.

    During the hour-long virtual hearing, Sealy participated from a wheelchair while her legal team, led by attorneys Larry Williams and Fayola Sandy, and lead prosecutor Anthony Jacob made their respective submissions. Sealy’s attorneys flagged the breach of the prearranged surrender plan to the court, a detail Jacob acknowledged, confirming that tentative arrangements had fallen through.

    In a key outcome, Master Ali granted Sealy bail set at $700,000, with no objection from the prosecution. In her ruling, the magistrate outlined multiple factors supporting her decision: Sealy’s age, her lack of prior criminal convictions, her ongoing need for medical treatment at home and abroad, the low risk of reoffending given her current physical condition, and the minimal risk that she would attempt to interfere with prosecution witnesses.

    Bail came with specific conditions: Sealy must reside at her mother’s home in Champs Fleurs, she must give the prosecution at least one week’s advance notice before any travel to the United States for medical treatment, she is restricted to staying at a specific address in Brockton, Massachusetts during her treatment trips, and any change of residence in the U.S. requires prior court approval. Master Ali initially planned to add a requirement that Sealy check in with local police monthly, but withdrew the condition after defense attorneys argued that the unpredictable length of her medical stays in the U.S. would make compliance impossible. Sealy is next scheduled to travel to Boston for a specialized wheelchair evaluation, with the timeline for that care entirely dependent on her medical team. Prosecutors also agreed not to request that Sealy surrender her passport, a standard bail condition, given her ongoing need for cross-border medical care.

    Following the ruling, Sealy was transported to the Arouca Women’s Prison for bail processing just after 3 p.m., and was released into the care of her family by 5:30 p.m. The hearing also addressed a dispute over DNA evidence: after Sealy refused prosecutors’ request for an intimate DNA sample on her attorneys’ advice, the defense challenged the request in court. Williams argued the request was unnecessary, noting the state already knew Sealy was in the vehicle the couple was traveling in during the shooting, and that the prosecution had not been transparent about its investigative goals. Prosecutors countered that they wanted to compare Sealy’s DNA to samples recovered from the vehicle, but the dispute remains unresolved as the case moves forward.

    Master Ali has set clear timelines for the next stages of the proceedings: the full police case file must be submitted to the Office of the Director of Public Prosecutions by July 17, with prosecution documents due to the court by August 24 (any extension request must be filed by August 17). The defense will have until September 25 to file any responding documents if needed. A routine status hearing is scheduled for October 8, and a preliminary sufficiency hearing has been tentatively set for October 22 – a date Williams joked would be the perfect birthday gift if the case against Sealy is dismissed.

    Outside the airport following the hearing, Sandy told reporters her client is “holding on well” as she navigates the legal process and her ongoing recovery from the shooting that left her paralyzed.