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  • FGM petitions National Assembly over no parliamentary sittings

    FGM petitions National Assembly over no parliamentary sittings

    As Guyana navigates an unprecedented windfall from newly developed oil reserves, a small opposition political faction has ramped up pressure for institutional accountability, launching a formal public petition to Guyana’s National Assembly and calling for regional and international democratic bodies to intervene. On Tuesday, May 19, 2026, Amanza Walton, leader of the one-seat Forward Guyana Movement (FGM), delivered a petition bearing 100 citizen signatures to Sherlock Isaacs, Clerk of the National Assembly. This action came just one day after Walton dispatched formal correspondence to multiple leading regional and international democratic institutions, urging them to press Guyana’s governing administration to reconvene parliament, which has not held a sitting in 95 days as of the petition’s filing.

    The core demands laid out in the FGM petition center on three key institutional reforms that the opposition argues are critical amid the country’s rapidly growing oil revenue. First, the group calls for the National Assembly to schedule sittings at consistent, publicly announced intervals, arguing that regular sessions are a non-negotiable requirement for the legislature to carry out its constitutional duties of oversight, representation, and policy debate. Second, FGM demands that the legislative body publish a formal, structured parliamentary calendar, a step the group says would reduce opacity, boost public trust in democratic institutions, and create clearer opportunities for citizen engagement in national governance. Third, the opposition is calling for the immediate establishment and activation of all required standing and sectoral parliamentary committees, which are tasked with detailed scrutiny of government policy, public spending, and administrative actions.

    FGM emphasizes that these reforms have taken on new urgency as Guyana manages expanding national revenue from its burgeoning oil sector. In the text of the petition, the organization notes that the absence of active parliamentary committees and infrequent sittings directly undermines the legislature’s core oversight mandate. Without active, functioning committees, the group argues, the National Assembly cannot conduct granular reviews of policies and spending that directly impact Guyanese citizens’ daily lives, from public service delivery to economic and social development initiatives. Any delay in activating these key bodies, the petition stresses, permanently weakens the National Assembly’s ability to fulfill the constitutional responsibilities assigned to it by Guyana’s governing framework.

    Beyond the domestic petition, FGM reached out to a wide range of global and regional bodies on Monday, including the Caribbean Community (CARICOM), the Commonwealth Secretariat, the Commonwealth Parliamentary Association (CPA), the Inter-American Commission on Human Rights (IACHR), the Inter-Parliamentary Union (IPU), the Organization of American States (OAS), and ParlAmericas. The opposition also notified members of the diplomatic community based in Guyana, including representatives from the ABCEU bloc. In its correspondence, FGM raises alarm over what it frames as a growing pattern of democratic erosion in the country more than six months after the 2025 General and Regional Elections. These concerns include restrictions on press access to parliament, limitations on opposition parliamentary speech, and the ongoing failure to form key oversight bodies, including the critical Public Accounts Committee.

    The organization was careful to frame its international appeal not as an invitation for foreign interference in Guyana’s sovereign affairs, but as a request to international and regional bodies to uphold the democratic standards and commitments that Guyana voluntarily adopted when joining multilateral agreements. FGM stressed that ultimate responsibility for safeguarding Guyanese democracy rests with the country’s own people and constitutional institutions, but added that as a member of the international community bound by multiple democratic governance frameworks, Guyana’s democratic progress is a legitimate matter of shared regional and global concern.

    In a statement accompanying the petition, Walton emphasized the stakes of the current push for accountability. “A Parliament that does not sit cannot effectively scrutinize public spending, represent the people, or hold power accountable. At a time of unprecedented oil wealth, democratic oversight in Guyana should be expanding, not disappearing,” she said.

  • LIVE: Novena in honor of the Holy Spirit Night 6 Theme – Called to be Ambassadors for Christ

    LIVE: Novena in honor of the Holy Spirit Night 6 Theme – Called to be Ambassadors for Christ

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  • Changing climate conditions intensify risks across Latin America and the Caribbean, WMO finds

    Changing climate conditions intensify risks across Latin America and the Caribbean, WMO finds

    A groundbreaking 2025 climate assessment from the World Meteorological Organization (WMO) has delivered a stark warning about accelerating, irreversible climate shifts across Latin America and the Caribbean, documenting a surge in destructive extreme weather events that are already upending communities and economies across the region. The annual *State of the Climate in Latin America and the Caribbean 2025* report catalogs a growing list of climate impacts: intensifying hurricanes, life-threatening heatwaves, worsening cycles of drought and flood, accelerating sea level rise, and rapid glacial retreat, all of which are pushing regional ecosystems and social systems to their breaking point.

    WMO Secretary-General Celeste Saulo emphasized that the evidence of human-caused climate change across the region is now “unmistakable,” pointing to the clear trends of faster glacial loss, more powerful tropical cyclones, and increasingly frequent climate extremes that have moved from future projections to current reality. Even amid these growing risks, however, Saulo highlighted a critical area of progress: regional governments have steadily expanded their capacity to prepare for climate disasters and save lives through improved weather forecasting and expanded early warning systems that reach at-risk communities.

    The report’s most striking case study of this new era of extreme weather is Hurricane Melissa, which made landfall on Jamaica in October 2025 as the first Category 5 hurricane ever recorded to hit the island’s shores. The unprecedented storm claimed 45 lives and caused an estimated $8.8 billion in economic damage – a sum equal to more than 41% of Jamaica’s total annual gross domestic product. Despite the storm’s unprecedented intensity, WMO analysts noted that Jamaican officials successfully cut the potential death toll through proactive disaster planning and targeted financial preparedness built on advanced climate risk modeling, a promising example of effective adaptation in action.

    Beyond hurricanes, the report flags extreme heat as one of the fastest-growing public health threats facing the region. Throughout 2025, record-shattering heatwaves pushed temperatures above 40°C across vast swathes of North, Central and South America. Mexicali, Mexico hit an all-time national temperature record of 52.7°C, while Rio de Janeiro recorded 44°C and Mariscal Estigarribia in Paraguay reached 44.8°C. Historical data underscores the scale of the risk: between 2012 and 2021, researchers estimate roughly 13,000 heat-related deaths occur annually across 17 regional nations, though the actual mortality toll is almost certainly far higher, as most countries do not systematically track heat-linked fatalities.

    The report also documents dramatic, disruptive shifts in regional rainfall patterns over the past 50 years, with weather systems swinging more sharply between prolonged severe drought and extreme, flood-causing rainfall. Central America, northern South America, and parts of southeastern South America have seen increased rainfall and more frequent flooding events, while central Chile, northeast Brazil, and large sections of the Caribbean are trending progressively drier. In 2025 alone, floods across Peru and Ecuador displaced and affected more than 110,000 people, while flood events in Mexico killed 83 people and caused widespread damage to critical infrastructure. In a striking example of the region’s new climate volatility, June 2025 was the wettest June ever recorded in Mexico, even as 85% of the country simultaneously grappled with severe drought that drained reservoirs and crippled agricultural production. The Caribbean faced parallel water shortages, while rainfall deficits of more than 40% across parts of southern South America drove steep agricultural losses and elevated wildfire risk. WMO researchers warn that regional agro-food systems remain extremely vulnerable to these shifts, as extreme weather directly disrupts crop production, undermines rural livelihoods, and destabilizes food markets.

    Glacial and marine systems, which underpin billions of dollars in economic activity and supply critical freshwater to hundreds of millions of people, are also under growing threat. The Andean glaciers, which supply drinking water, irrigation, hydropower, and industrial water to roughly 90 million people, are retreating at an accelerating rate, with the most dramatic losses recorded in the southern Andes and the tropical glacier regions of Colombia and Ecuador. In the oceans surrounding the region, warming, acidification, and deoxygenation are threatening the marine ecosystems, coral reefs, and commercial fisheries that support the economies of most coastal communities. In 2025, surface ocean acidity hit record lows across large sections of the Atlantic and Pacific adjacent to the region, while extreme marine heatwaves developed in the Gulf of Mexico, the Caribbean Sea, and offshore of Chile. Along many tropical Atlantic and Caribbean coastlines, sea levels are rising faster than the global average, amplifying flood and storm surge risk for the dense coastal communities that make up most settlements on Caribbean islands.

    Launching the report in Brasília, Brazil, Saulo framed the WMO’s findings as an urgent call to action for regional governments and the global community. She emphasized that accessible, reliable climate information is a core tool for protecting vulnerable populations: it helps farmers adjust planting schedules to shifting rainfall, enables health systems to prepare for heat emergencies, and gives at-risk communities the resources they need to adapt to a rapidly changing climate.

  • “Child Protection is Everybody’s Business”

    “Child Protection is Everybody’s Business”

    A recent surge of arrests connected to sexual violence against children has sent shockwaves through local communities across Belize, driving child protection advocates to push for collective action rather than just public outrage. The movement has taken tangible form this week with the launch of capacity-building training led by the UNICEF-backed Blue Teddy Bear Campaign, a national initiative designed to equip ordinary Belizeans with the skills to identify signs of child abuse and file official reports when concerns arise.

    On the morning of May 19, 2026, staff members from the Yarborough Community Resource Center joined the first training session hosted at the Department of Youth Services. The campaign is a collaborative effort between UNICEF, Belize’s National Commission for Families and Children, and the Ministry of Human Development, aiming to break down systemic and cultural barriers that allow abuse to remain hidden.

    Carla Alvarez, the lead consultant guiding the training, outlined a key, underrecognized barrier to child safety that the initiative seeks to address: it is not a lack of public care that enables abuse, but widespread fear of involvement among ordinary people. “Sometimes we see things, but we are afraid to report because there’s that fear that we’re gonna be exposed as the reporter,” Alvarez explained. She also noted that shifting social and technological landscapes have left modern children vulnerable to risks that previous generations never encountered at young ages, requiring a more proactive public response than ever before.

    Alvarez pushed back firmly against the common misconception that child protection is the exclusive responsibility of official bodies like police forces or specialized nonprofits. “Child protection is everybody’s business. It’s not just the business of the police or community-based organizations or UNICEF. It’s everybody’s business,” she emphasized.

    The training also challenged two widespread harmful assumptions about child abuse that contribute to underreporting. First, Alvarez reminded participants that abuse does not only occur in low-income or so-called “troubled” households—it impacts every socioeconomic segment of Belizean society, a cross-cutting reality that helps keep abuse unaddressed and unspoken. Second, the training expanded public understanding of what counts as child abuse, stressing that harm extends far beyond visible physical or sexual violence. Psychological mistreatment, emotional abuse, and neglect are equally damaging to children’s long-term well-being, yet these forms of abuse are far less likely to be recognized or reported by community members.

    “There has to be that talk and that dialogue about what exactly is child abuse and violence,” Alvarez said. “One of the goals of this training is to ensure that everybody understands the ramifications of what encompasses abuse and violence.” The initiative comes as Belize grapples with growing public awareness of child safety gaps, with organizers hoping that widespread public education will turn passive concern into active protection for vulnerable children across the country.

  • Pompen bij Sabaku project en Indira Gandhiweg aanpak wateroverlast

    Pompen bij Sabaku project en Indira Gandhiweg aanpak wateroverlast

    Cross-border cooperation is delivering much-needed relief for flood-prone communities in Suriname, as two water pumps borrowed from neighboring Guyana are set to be deployed to tackle persistent flooding in two high-need areas.

    The newly arrived pumps, provided on a loan basis by Guyana, are designed to speed up the drainage of excess rainwater and surface water in regions that have long struggled with recurrent waterlogging, according to Suriname’s Ministry of Public Works and Spatial Planning (OWRO).

    Installation schedules are already in place: the first pump will go into place at the Sabaku Project site starting Wednesday, while the second unit will be installed along Indira Gandhiweg. This second pump will support drainage operations for the Rahemal development project and the residential neighborhoods surrounding the corridor.

    As construction teams prepare to install the new equipment, the ministry has issued a public advisory noting that temporary road closures and traffic disruptions are expected during the installation work. Motorists and local residents have been asked to plan ahead for the construction, adjust travel itineraries and use alternative routes when necessary to avoid delays.

    Beyond the immediate deployment of the borrowed pumps, OWRO confirmed that long-term, systemic solutions to address flooding across multiple regions of Suriname remain a top priority. The government will continue advancing structural interventions that build long-term resilience to chronic water overcapacity across vulnerable communities.

  • Can Real-Time Tracking Change How Fishing is Managed in Belize?

    Can Real-Time Tracking Change How Fishing is Managed in Belize?

    By 2026, Belize’s fisheries management sector is undergoing a major digital transformation, as the country’s Fisheries Department phases out traditional paper-based logging in favor of an integrated digital data collection platform. This shift, designed to overhaul how fishing activity data is gathered and utilized nationwide, has reached a key implementation milestone with a specialized training workshop held on May 14, 2026.

    Hosted by the department’s Capture Fisheries Unit, the workshop brought together fisheries officers to build hands-on skills with the new SMART digital system, which replaces handwritten paper catch logs with digital recording and instant cloud uploading. Unlike the legacy paper system that required weeks or even months to process data, the new platform enables near-instant uploading of both catch volume and fishing effort data from coastal and offshore operations.

    This near real-time data access is a game-changer for fisheries regulators, according to department officials. Faster access to actionable information means management teams can make more timely, evidence-based decisions to address overfishing risks, adjust catch limits, and protect vulnerable marine ecosystems. Beyond speed, the digital transition is projected to cut down on common errors that plague handwritten records and repeated manual data entry, streamlining the entire reporting workflow for both fishers and regulatory staff.

    The long-term vision for this initiative is full end-to-end automation of fisheries data collection across all of Belize’s fishing zones. Officials emphasize that this digital upgrade is not just an administrative overhaul: it is a core investment in the long-term sustainability of Belize’s Blue Economy, ensuring marine resources remain productive for future generations while supporting the livelihoods of coastal communities that depend on fishing.

    The project is a collaborative effort between Belize’s Fisheries Department and the Wildlife Conservation Society, with specialized technical support from veteran fisheries expert Julio Maaz, who led the facilitation of the recent SMART system training workshop. As rollout continues across coastal regions, stakeholders are monitoring how the real-time tracking system will reshape sustainable fishing practices in one of the Caribbean’s most biodiverse marine territories.

  • Big things are happening. Come paint your future with us!!

    Big things are happening. Come paint your future with us!!

    Ansa Coatings Grenada Limited (ACGL), a member of the ANSA McAL group, has launched an open recruitment drive for an experienced, relationship-focused Project Sales Lead to join its team at Frequente Industrial Park in Frequente, St. George, Grenada. Targeting driven field sales professionals who prioritize client connections over transactional interactions, the role offers dynamic daily responsibilities and clear performance expectations for candidates ready to take ownership of their work.

    Unlike standard sales positions that focus solely on closing deals, the Project Sales Lead role at ACGL demands end-to-end ownership of the entire sales lifecycle and client relationship management. A core priority of the position is cultivating long-term, personalized connections with clients that extend beyond individual transactions, fostering sustained loyalty that drives repeat business.

    Key responsibilities include meeting monthly sales performance targets, conducting on-site visits with a diverse stakeholder base that includes homeowners, general contractors and architects, and expanding market awareness of ACGL’s growing product line. The role also requires a commitment to exceptional post-purchase support: the successful candidate will deliver responsive, high-quality after-sales service to reinforce customer confidence and encourage future engagement. Additional duties include overseeing accounts receivable management to ensure timely payment collection in full compliance with company financial policies, monitoring and resolving customer complaints related to sales projects within mandated turnaround times, and submitting accurate, up-to-date sales reports according to required deadlines.

    ACGL has outlined clear qualifications for interested candidates. Applicants must hold an associate’s degree or diploma in business, sales or a related discipline, and bring a minimum of three years of professional sales experience to the role. Prior experience working in hardware field sales is considered a significant competitive advantage for candidates. Required core skills include proficiency in the full Microsoft Office Suite, strong analytical, organizational and time management capabilities with a proven ability to prioritize tasks and meet performance targets, and exceptional communication and interpersonal skills to build and maintain productive client relationships. The ideal candidate is self-motivated, results-oriented, and comfortable working independently in the field, with confident negotiation and persuasion abilities, a professional demeanor, and a persistent customer-first mindset.

    Non-negotiable requirements for the role include a valid driver’s license, access to a personal vehicle for field visits, and a clean police record.

    Candidates who meet the criteria and are interested in joining the ACGL team are invited to submit their professional resume to [email protected], with the subject line formatted as “ACGL – PROJECT SALES LEAD”. The application window will close on 30 May 2026.

    This recruitment posting is hosted by NOW Grenada, which notes that it is not responsible for the opinions, statements or content included in contributor-provided postings, and provides a reporting channel for any abuse related to posted content.

  • Belize’s Young Creatives Are Having Their Moment This Week

    Belize’s Young Creatives Are Having Their Moment This Week

    A new wave of young creative energy is sweeping across Belize this week, as the country’s annual Primary School Festival of Arts kicked off on Monday at Belize City’s iconic Bliss Centre for the Performing Arts. The week-long celebration of youth creativity opened with a packed showcase of talent from the Belize District, featuring a continuous line-up of dynamic live performances alongside the official launch of a national student visual arts exhibition.

    The exhibition draws together 50 original artworks created by students from every corner of the country, giving young visual artists a rare national platform to share their work with audiences from across the nation. Kim Vasquez, director of Belize’s Institute of Creative Arts, emphasized that the event was built from the ground up to center inclusivity across every artistic practice. “We want to have broad participation in the performing arts, but it is just as critical that we elevate the work of young visual artists alongside their peers,” Vasquez explained.

    Monday also marked a key milestone for the festival’s literary arts segment, with the launch of a new student literary publication. This release is only the second literary collection published since the discipline was brought back to the festival last year, after being absent from the event for nearly three decades. The collection showcases original short stories and poetry written by student writers across Belize, and will be available for free digital download via the 501 Academy platform to expand access to the work.

    While daily live performances will continue at the Bliss Centre throughout this week, parallel showcase events are also being held in the popular coastal communities of San Pedro and Caye Caulker to make the festival accessible to young creators and audiences outside of Belize City. For community members who cannot attend daytime events, festival organizers have planned a special series of highlight events that will kick off early next week.

    Organizers are bringing back the fan-favorite Golden Nights series this year, a set of evening showcase events that feature only the top-rated gold-award winning works from across the festival. “The best of the best will take the stage for a Golden Night in your own city or town, so there is something for everyone to look forward to,” Vasquez shared. The first Golden Nights events are scheduled to launch as early as next week, wrapping up the week-long festival with a celebration of the country’s most outstanding young creative talent.

  • Entertainer Jesse Fyah Found Guilty of Indecent Assault and Serious Indecency

    Entertainer Jesse Fyah Found Guilty of Indecent Assault and Serious Indecency

    A well-known Antiguan entertainer Harrison Horsford, who performs under the stage name Jesse Fyah, has been found guilty of two criminal charges — indecent assault and serious indecency — after a full trial before the nation’s High Court.

    The case dates back to October 2020, when prosecutors laid out the details of the incident to the court. According to the prosecution’s narrative, the victim, a local woman, had agreed to accept a car ride from Horsford, a decision that would lead to an unsettling and harmful encounter. Once the woman was in the vehicle, Horsford initiated a series of unwanted sexual advances. He proceeded to touch her body without any form of consent from her, the court confirmed. The woman ultimately managed to exit the vehicle, leaving the scene visibly distressed and shaken by the experience.

    Throughout the legal proceedings, Horsford firmly denied all the allegations brought against him, maintaining his innocence against the charges. Despite his claims, the jury of his peers reached a guilty verdict after only an hour of closed-door deliberations.

    Following the guilty verdict, Judge remanded Horsford into official custody immediately. Sentencing for the two convictions has been scheduled for July 1. Legal guidelines note that each of the charges carries a maximum penalty of five years of imprisonment, meaning Horsford could face substantial time behind bars if the court issues consecutive sentences. The outcome marks a significant legal proceeding.

  • Belize Made Its Pitch to Investors and Diplomats in Washington

    Belize Made Its Pitch to Investors and Diplomats in Washington

    On May 19, 2026, the capital of the United States played host to a unique trade and investment promotion event that put Central American nation Belize in the global spotlight. Organized by the Belize Trade and Investment Development Service (BELTRAIDE) in collaboration with Belize’s Washington-based embassy, the gathering was integrated into Passport DC, the city’s month-long annual cultural celebration that brings international communities to the forefront of the district’s public life.

    The event drew a diverse cross-section of attendees, from high-ranking foreign diplomats and C-suite business leaders to cross-border investment specialists and members of the large Belizean diaspora based in the U.S. Unlike traditional promotional events that focus almost exclusively on Belize’s well-established reputation as a top Caribbean tourism destination, this gathering was designed to showcase the country’s untapped potential across a wide range of emerging commercial sectors.

    Opening the event, Belize’s Ambassador to the U.S. Nestor Mendez framed the showcase as a critical step in deepening bilateral economic and diplomatic ties between Belize and the United States. He emphasized that expanded trade and mutual investment would create shared benefits for both nations, strengthening people-to-people connections while driving inclusive economic growth in Belize.

    Following Mendez’s opening remarks, BELTRAIDE Executive Director Ishmael Quiroz delivered a detailed presentation outlining Belize’s competitive advantages for international investors. He positioned the small nation as a forward-thinking destination that balances strategic opportunity with sustainable development, telling the assembled audience that “Belize continues to position itself as a country of opportunity, innovation, sustainability, and authentic experiences.”

    The event concluded with a interactive networking reception that gave attendees the chance to hold one-on-one conversations with BELTRAIDE’s investment promotion teams, asking detailed questions about regulatory frameworks, export incentives and high-potential projects across multiple industries. Guests also got a taste of Belize’s thriving local manufacturing sector during the reception, sampling premium rums from two of the country’s leading distilleries: Copalli and Traveller’s Liquors Ltd.