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Suriname en Venezuela willen samenwerking uitbreiden op meerdere gebieden

On the 50th anniversary of the formal establishment of bilateral diplomatic relations between Suriname and Venezuela, senior diplomatic officials from both nations gathered in Caracas on Friday to take tangible new steps toward deepening cross-border partnership. The high-level meeting brought together Melvin Bouva, Suriname’s Minister of Foreign Affairs, International Trade and Cooperation, and his Venezuelan counterpart Yván Gil Pinto, with discussions centered on expanding collaboration across a range of strategically critical sectors.

As both sides marked this golden milestone in diplomatic history, the two ministers jointly underscored the long-standing value of the ties binding their nations, and reaffirmed their shared commitment to strengthening the historical bonds that have shaped bilateral relations over five decades. The talks covered priority areas identified by both governments for expanded cooperation, including agriculture, fisheries, oil and energy, cross-border trade, tourism, education and diplomatic coordination.

Officials from both the Surinamese and Venezuelan delegations confirmed that the meeting has formally opened a new chapter of targeted strategic partnership between the Republic of Suriname and the Bolivarian Republic of Venezuela, laying clear groundwork for concrete collaborative projects in the coming months. The anniversary summit reflects both nations’ shared interest in leveraging geographic proximity and complementary economic strengths to drive mutual development and stability in the region.

16 5 月, 2026
Magnitude 3.6 Earthquake Recorded Northeast of Antigua

A light 3.6-magnitude earthquake has been confirmed in waters northeast of Antigua by the University of the West Indies Seismic Research Centre (UWI SRC), the region’s leading authority on seismic activity, in a statement released over the weekend.

According to the UWI SRC’s initial monitoring data, the tremor struck at roughly 9:10 p.m. local time on Friday, registering a depth of 14 kilometres beneath the ocean surface. Preliminary geolocation calculations place the epicenter at coordinates 17.57 degrees north latitude and 61.73 degrees west longitude.

This positioning puts the earthquake approximately 52 kilometres north-northeast of St. John’s, the capital city of Antigua and Barbuda. Beyond Antigua’s territorial waters, the epicenter also sits 101 kilometres northeast of Brades, the administrative center of Montserrat, and 115 kilometres east-northeast of Basseterre, the capital of St. Kitts and Nevis.

The UWI SRC emphasized that the current epicenter location was generated automatically by pre-programmed computer processing algorithms. Before final data is published, the location and other key parameters of the earthquake will undergo manual review and potential adjustment by the center’s team of expert seismologists as part of standard quality control processes.

16 5 月, 2026
Diabetes Association Plans 40th Anniversary Hike to Body Pond

As the Antigua and Barbuda Diabetes Association prepares to mark four decades of critical work in the community, organizers have unveiled a unique public engagement initiative: a scenic group hike to Body Pond, one of the destination’s beloved natural spots. This outdoor adventure forms a core part of the association’s year-long 40th anniversary calendar, which features 40 distinct events centered on the organization’s long-standing mission of diabetes prevention, clinical care, and community support for people living with the condition.

The scheduled hike will kick off on Saturday, May 30, 2026, with a clear timeline for participants. All attendees are asked to assemble at the John Hughes Playing Field by 5:30 a.m., and the group will depart for the trail promptly at 6:00 a.m. To ensure hikers stay energized and comfortable throughout the journey, event planners have arranged complimentary refreshments including fresh fruit, bottled water, locally prepared bush tea, and hearty porridge. Beyond the physical activity and natural scenery, attendees will also have the chance to take part in free raffle draws held during the event, adding an extra element of community fun to the anniversary celebration.

Founded four decades ago, the Antigua and Barbuda Diabetes Association has built its reputation on expanding access to diabetes education, supporting affected families, and advancing public health initiatives to reduce the condition’s prevalence across the twin-island nation. This anniversary event is designed not only to celebrate the organization’s decades of service but also to encourage public engagement with diabetes awareness, promoting physical activity — a key component of diabetes prevention and management — as an accessible, enjoyable community activity.

16 5 月, 2026
ECCB Holds Regional Attorneys General and Financial Secretaries Meeting in Antigua and Barbuda

Top legal and finance leaders from all member states of the Eastern Caribbean Currency Union (ECCU) have converged on Antigua and Barbuda this week for the eighth annual joint gathering of Attorneys General, Chief Parliamentary Counsel, and Financial Secretaries.

Hosted by the Eastern Caribbean Central Bank (ECCB), the two-day policy conference ran from May 14 to 15, centered on advancing coordinated legislative and financial industry reforms across the entire Eastern Caribbean region. Throughout the meeting, delegates delved into a wide range of priority policy initiatives designed to reinforce financial governance and oversight across the currency union. These included draft updates to regional insurance and pension regulations, new licensing frameworks for digital and traditional payment systems, updated data protection governance standards, and enhanced cross-border crisis management protocols to mitigate systemic financial risk.

In addition to general regional policy discussions, the meeting featured dedicated presentations on country-specific and institution-focused modernization projects. Attendees were briefed on Grenada’s upcoming Cooperative Societies Bill, which aims to update regulation of the island’s cooperative sector, as well as Saint Vincent and the Grenadines’ progress rolling out its new Single Window for Land and Property Transactions, a digital initiative designed to cut red tape and speed up real estate processing across the country. Delegates also reviewed proposed legislative changes to update the Eastern Caribbean Home Mortgage Bank (ECHMB), centered on a new draft agreement that would formalize changes to ECHMB’s capital structure to support its modernization and expansion.

Per statements from the ECCB, this week’s gathering is a core component of the central bank’s long-term strategic agenda laid out in its 2026-2031 Strategic Plan, which identifies strengthening regional regulatory and supervisory systems as a key priority to support sustained financial stability and economic growth across the ECCU. The annual cross-sector meeting has long been one of the ECCB’s flagship collaborative events, creating a structured space for regional legal leaders and financial regulators to align on shared legislative priorities that shape the future of the Eastern Caribbean’s financial sector.

16 5 月, 2026
CDEMA ‘learned’ Hurricane Melissa lessons

Against a backdrop of intensifying climate-fueled natural hazards, shifting global geopolitics, and dwindling international financial support, Caribbean nations are launching a complete overhaul of their 10-year regional disaster management framework. The shift comes after hard lessons learned from the widespread destruction of Hurricane Melissa, pushing regional authorities to abandon the long-held focus on post-disaster recovery and adopt a proactive pre-event planning model.

Over two days of intensive consultations held at Barbados’ Accra Beach Hotel & Spa, representatives from the Caribbean Disaster Emergency Management Agency’s (CDEMA) 20 member states gathered to revise the Comprehensive Disaster Management Strategy, a foundational policy first rolled out in 2014. CDEMA Executive Director Elizabeth Riley explained in an interview with Barbados TODAY that the original framework is no longer fit for purpose, as both hazard patterns and global operating conditions have transformed dramatically over the past decade.

“We recognise that since the start of this iteration of the strategy in 2014, there have been a lot of changes,” Riley noted. “These changes have been related to the hazards themselves, which have become a lot more complex, but also related to the geopolitical environment, which has become a lot more challenging.” Climate change stands as one of the most transformative drivers, Riley confirmed, linking rising global temperatures to a sharp uptick in both the frequency and severity of destructive weather events across the Caribbean. Compounding this growing risk is a steady decline in international funding earmarked for regional disaster management programs, stretching already thin national and regional budgets even further.

One high-priority emerging issue being integrated into the updated strategy is disaster-induced human displacement, a crisis that has become far more common in recent years. Riley pointed to two recent major events that underscore the urgency of this challenge: Hurricane Melissa, which displaced thousands of residents in Jamaica, and the 2021 eruption of the La Soufrière volcano in St. Vincent and the Grenadines, which forced roughly 20,000 people to flee their homes. “This is a feature we’re seeing a lot more frequently, and we’re discussing how do we integrate these types of issues now into our planning,” she said.

A core focus of the regional workshop was reimagining disaster recovery systems, with Riley emphasizing that the region can no longer afford to develop recovery plans only after a catastrophe hits. Instead, she argued, all member states need to have detailed, actionable recovery frameworks in place well before storms or other disasters make landfall. “We’re discussing modalities by which we can better assist countries to prepare for the recovery processes ahead of time and ensuring that that is treated not after the actual disaster takes place,” Riley explained.

Hurricane Melissa, which swept through the Caribbean recently, provided a critical real-world test of existing regional coordination and response protocols, Riley said. In March, CDEMA assembled a cross-regional after-action review to assess the performance of the agency’s response mechanism, with a particular focus on strengthening coordination with new international humanitarian partners operating in the region and streamlining emergency logistics support.

Riley also highlighted the successful first deployment of the CDEMA-World Food Programme logistics hub, which launched in Barbados in 2023, during the Hurricane Melissa response. “We reviewed how the operations of that hub went forward, the timeliness of the support, and the type of logistics support provided,” she said, adding that insights from this first activation will be used to refine the hub’s operations for future emergencies.

Looking ahead to the 2026 Atlantic hurricane season, which officially kicks off on June 1, Riley urged residents across the region to participate in the agency’s annual pre-season press conference, scheduled for 10 a.m. local time on Thursday, May 28. The event will bring together regional officials to share the latest seasonal hurricane forecasts and outline key preparedness steps that households and communities can take to get ready before the first storm of the season forms.

16 5 月, 2026
Cedar Grove Primary Teachers Honoured for Their Dedication and Service

In a heartfelt ceremony held earlier this week at Cedar Grove Primary School, a cohort of dedicated teaching staff was celebrated for their unwavering commitment to student success and years of exceptional service to the local education community. School administrators, parent representatives, and local education officials gathered to honor the educators, highlighting the profound impact each has made on the lives of hundreds of young learners over their tenures at the campus.

Many of the honored teachers have served the school for more than two decades, guiding generations of students through foundational learning milestones, from early literacy and numeracy to social-emotional development. During the event, several current and former students shared personal anecdotes of how these teachers went above and beyond their formal job duties, offering extra support after school, mentoring struggling learners, and fostering inclusive classroom environments where every child feels seen and valued.

Local school board chair Margaret Hale presented the educators with custom service awards and praised their work as the backbone of the community’s public education system. “Great primary school teachers don’t just teach lessons from a textbook—they shape the trajectory of young lives,” Hale said in her remarks. “Their dedication shows up every single day, in small acts of patience and big investments in student potential, and it is past time we give them the public recognition they deserve.”

Parent-teacher association president James Torres noted that the commitment of these educators has helped build Cedar Grove Primary’s reputation as a welcoming, high-performing campus that serves as a cornerstone of the neighborhood. “When families move to this area, one of the first things they hear about is how caring and dedicated the teaching staff is here,” Torres said. “That reputation is built entirely by the work of these men and women who have given so many years to our kids.”

Following the award presentation, the honored teachers thanked the school community for the recognition, emphasizing that their work is a collaborative effort that relies on support from families, administrators, and fellow staff members. Many reflected on how seeing their former students go on to achieve their own goals is the most rewarding part of their career in education.

16 5 月, 2026
Health Authorities says we are consuming way too much salt

As rates of hypertension and cardiovascular disease continue climbing across Caribbean nations, the Caribbean Public Health Agency (CARPHA) is sounding the alarm on excessive salt consumption, urging coordinated action from governments, food industry stakeholders, and individual consumers to reverse a growing public health crisis. Current data shows that between 21% and 27% of all Caribbean adults live with hypertension, and regional populations consume nearly twice the maximum daily salt intake recommended by the World Health Organization (WHO). This public health threat is not unique to the Caribbean: globally, high sodium intake is linked to roughly 1.89 million premature deaths every year, and the worldwide average adult salt intake sits at 10.78 grams per day—more than double the 5 gram (under 1 teaspoon) daily limit updated by the WHO in 2025. Alarmingly, only a handful of countries worldwide have rolled out comprehensive national salt reduction strategies to address the crisis.

CARPHA has long prioritized sodium reduction as a core component of its regional non-communicable disease (NCD) prevention efforts, working in close partnership with regional Ministries of Health, the Pan American Health Organization (PAHO), and other local public health stakeholders to drive evidence-based change. The agency provides targeted technical guidance on food labeling systems, designs and executes public education campaigns, tracks NCD risk factors through ongoing surveillance, and leads advocacy and research to support scalable, effective interventions.

In line with these ongoing efforts, CARPHA will join the global observance of World Salt Awareness Week 2026, held from May 11 to 17 under the global theme “Salt It Out”. This international campaign aims to amplify public understanding of the life-threatening harms of excess sodium intake, and push for stronger policies and public health interventions that reduce the population-level burden of cardiovascular diseases including hypertension, heart attack, and stroke. A 2025 PAHO report underscores the severity of this burden: cardiovascular diseases alone account for 30.8% of all NCD-related deaths in the region.

In a statement on the urgent need for sodium reduction action, CARPHA Executive Director Dr. Lisa Indar emphasized that excess salt consumption is a “silent but significant contributor” to the region’s rising rates of hypertension, heart disease, and stroke. Dr. Indar noted that a common misconception among the public leads many to underestimate their sodium intake: most salt consumed in daily diets does not come from salt added during cooking or at the table, but from processed and ultra-processed food products that dominate modern grocery shelves. “Through stronger policies, food reformulation, better labelling, and public education, we can reduce sodium intake and save lives,” Dr. Indar said. “World Salt Awareness Week reminds us that reducing salt is one of the simplest and most cost-effective actions we can take to improve public health and protect future generations.”

CARPHA has already laid the regulatory and programmatic groundwork for regional salt reduction through two key frameworks. First, the agency introduced the Six-Point Policy Package (6-PPP), a regional blueprint for building healthier food environments and improving food security to address childhood obesity and the growing NCD crisis. One of the package’s core recommendations calls for establishing unified regional standards and time-bound salt reduction targets for high-risk food product categories. Building on this foundation, CARPHA launched the CESA Regional Sodium Reduction Framework in 2020 to guide national governments in developing their own localized sodium reduction strategies. The framework is organized around four core pillars captured in the acronym CESA: Change the food environment through targeted policies and legislation; Educate the general population on the risks of excess sodium; Strengthen systems capacity through ongoing research, monitoring, and evaluation; and Assess national progress toward intake reduction targets.

Updating the framework to align with 2025 WHO benchmarks, CARPHA has outlined a suite of priority measures for regional adoption. These include integrating nutrition education into school curricula, enforcing restrictions on advertising high-sodium foods to children, and launching widespread public media campaigns to raise awareness. The agency also identifies mandatory front-of-package nutrition labeling, updated nutrition facts panels, enforced regional nutrition standards, and widespread product reformulation by food manufacturers as critical, non-negotiable actions to cut population sodium intake across the Caribbean.

The CESA framework sets an ambitious long-term goal: a healthier Caribbean where average adult salt intake falls below the WHO global target of under 5 grams (one teaspoon) per day, with even lower intake targets for children. To support early adoption of low-sodium eating habits, CARPHA has also developed supplementary public-facing resources, including *Kids Can Cook Too*, a recipe book featuring nutritious, kid-friendly meals with little to no added salt, fat, or sugar. More information on the Regional Sodium Reduction Framework is available on CARPHA’s official website: https://carpha.org/What-We-Do/NCD/Nutrition/Knowledge-Banks/CESA/Regional-Sodium-Reduction-Framework

16 5 月, 2026
UWI Pays Tribute to Business Leader Dennis Lalor Following His Passing

KINGSTON, Jamaica – May 15, 2026 – The University of the West Indies (UWI) has announced the passing of the Honorable Dennis Hugh Lalor O.J., LLD, a towering figure in Jamaican public and private life who died on May 14, 2026. In an official statement released from UWI’s Regional Headquarters, Vice-Chancellor Professor Sir Hilary Beckles led the university community in extending heartfelt condolences to Lalor’s family, friends, colleagues, and all those impacted by his decades of service.

Described by the UWI community as a gentle giant of Caribbean public life, Lalor combined incisive intellectual skill, sharp wit, and a magnetic personality that made him a respected leader in boardrooms across Jamaica and the entire Caribbean region. Throughout his entire professional career, he stood as a benchmark for ethical leadership and civic duty, maintaining an unwavering commitment to advancing growth and opportunity for Jamaica and its people.

While Lalor built a distinguished career in the private sector, his contributions to public institutions extended deeply into the academic sphere, particularly at the UWI. He served on multiple key management and governance committees for the university, leaving a lasting institutional legacy through his work following 1988’s Hurricane Gilbert. Partnering with then-Vice-Chancellor Sir Alister McIntyre, Lalor leveraged private sector support to conceptualize, found, and grow the UWI Development and Endowment Fund at the Mona Campus. The innovative public-private partnership model he helped create has since been expanded to all of UWI’s campuses across the Caribbean, setting a standard for collaborative institutional development that endures today.

Lalor’s long-held belief in the interconnected fates of the university and the region was captured in remarks he delivered when UWI awarded him an Honorary Doctor of Laws degree in 1993: “If the University fails the region fails. If the region succeeds, it is because the University has succeeded.”

The UWI community expressed deep gratitude for Lalor’s lifelong commitment to the institution’s mission, noting that his life was defined by purpose, dignity, and service to the public good. “We share in their grief and celebrate a life that was lived with purpose, dignity, and service,” the statement reads. “May his soul rest in peace.”

Founded in 1948 as a small affiliated university college of the University of London with just 33 medical students based in Jamaica, the UWI has grown over 75 years into a leading global higher education institution serving nearly 50,000 students across five campuses: Mona in Jamaica, St. Augustine in Trinidad and Tobago, Cave Hill in Barbados, Five Islands in Antigua and Barbuda, and the UWI Global Campus. It also partners with leading academic institutions across North America, Latin America, Asia, Africa, and Europe to deliver global academic programming.

Today, the university offers more than 1,000 certificate, diploma, undergraduate, and postgraduate degrees across eight core academic areas, from culture and the arts to engineering, law, medical sciences, and technology. As the Caribbean’s leading higher education institution, it hosts the region’s largest concentration of research and expertise focused on solving the most pressing challenges facing the Caribbean and the world. The UWI has been featured in the Times Higher Education (THE) global rankings since 2018, and is the only English-speaking Caribbean university to hold placements across four prestigious THE ranking lists: the World University Rankings, Golden Age University Rankings, Latin America and Caribbean Rankings, and Impact Rankings, which measure contributions to the United Nations Sustainable Development Goals. This global recognition supported the launch of UWI’s International School for Development Justice, a global online graduate business school training future leaders to advance equitable sustainable development.

16 5 月, 2026
ABWU Officials Attend Caribbean Travel Marketplace 2026

On Thursday, top leadership from the Antigua and Barbuda Workers’ Union (ABWU) marked a notable appearance at the 2026 iteration of the Caribbean Travel Marketplace, one of the Caribbean’s most high-profile and industry-defining annual tourism gatherings. David Massiah, ABWU’s General Secretary, joined by Deputy General Senator Chester Hughes, toured the event’s proceedings and engaged with cross-sector stakeholders gathered for the landmark conference.

Hosted to catalyze collaboration, investment, and innovation across the Caribbean’s tourism ecosystem, the 2026 Marketplace drew over 500 attendees spanning international tourism buyers, global media outlets, industry operators, and regional stakeholders from every corner of the travel and hospitality sector. The event has long cemented its reputation as the premier business gathering for tourism leaders across the Caribbean, setting the agenda for growth and development in the sector for the coming years.

As the primary labor representative for the majority of hotel employees across Antigua and Barbuda, the ABWU used its attendance at the event to reaffirm its open stance toward initiatives that advance the quality of the nation’s tourism offerings. Critically, the union emphasized that any progress in the sector must go hand in hand with tangible improvements to working conditions and quality of life for the frontline workers that power the industry.

Union leadership also issued formal praise for organizers and participating stakeholders who pulled off the large-scale regional gathering. In their remarks, ABWU leadership reiterated the non-negotiable role tourism plays as a foundational pillar of Antigua and Barbuda’s national economy, noting that the sector remains the single largest source of steady employment for hundreds of local workers across the two-island nation. The event’s hosting, union leaders added, represents a positive step forward for positioning Antigua and Barbuda as a top global travel destination, while also creating space to address the needs of the workforce that underpins that success.

16 5 月, 2026
Minister Michael Joseph Continues Nurses Week Gift Basket Distribution to Healthcare Institutions

The annual celebration of Nurses Week has entered a new phase of community appreciation as Minister Michael Joseph continues his scheduled program of delivering handcrafted gift baskets to frontline healthcare workers across regional healthcare institutions. This initiative, launched at the start of the national Nurses Week observance, is designed to honor the relentless dedication and sacrifice of nursing professionals who form the backbone of the country’s healthcare system.

Each basket is curated to include a mix of practical self-care items, local artisanal products, and handwritten notes of gratitude from community members, turning a simple gesture into a meaningful recognition of the long hours, emotional labor, and life-saving work that nurses provide year-round. Facility administrators at multiple participating institutions have noted that low staff morale has been a lingering challenge in the post-pandemic healthcare landscape, making targeted recognition efforts like this particularly impactful for frontline teams.

Minister Joseph has emphasized that the effort goes beyond a one-time celebration, framing it as a starting point for broader policy conversations around improved working conditions, competitive wages, and expanded mental health support for nursing staff across the nation. As the distribution effort continues through the final days of Nurses Week, more healthcare institutions are scheduled to receive visits and gifts, with organizers reporting growing community support for the initiative since its launch.

16 5 月, 2026