A wave of brutal violence that left 47 residents dead and over 50 people abducted in a previously tranquil agricultural settlement on the outskirts of Haiti’s capital Port-au-Prince has ended with the partial release of captives, the United Nations Children’s Fund (UNICEF) has officially confirmed. Thirteen hostages, comprising six children and seven adult women, were freed from gang captivity late Friday in the nearby mountain town of Kenscoff, according to the agency. Among the released children are three toddlers under the age of 2, one 7-year-old minor, and two adolescent girls. Yannig Dussart, UNICEF’s deputy representative in Haiti, called the long-awaited release a “rare moment of hope” for a nation grappling with spiraling gang violence and humanitarian collapse. However, he emphasized that the mass abduction itself serves as a stark, urgent reminder of how widespread and frequent attacks on vulnerable children have become across the entire country. Once a quiet getaway for Port-au-Prince residents and a stable hub for small-scale farming, the targeted community has become the latest site of gang expansion, as armed groups extend their control beyond the capital’s crowded slums into outlying rural areas. Kidnapping for ransom has emerged as one of the Haiti gang’s most profitable criminal activities, with ordinary civilians, including children, increasingly targeted even in areas once considered safe from organized violence.
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WEATHER (6:00 AM, 30 August) A small craft warning and a high surf advisory are in effect
The northern portion of the Lesser Antilles island chain is currently facing disruptive and potentially dangerous weather conditions, driven by a powerful tropical wave that formed from the remains of former Tropical Storm Dolly. Meteorological assessments indicate that the system is highly unlikely to redevelop into an organized tropical cyclone, but its residual moisture and energy are set to trigger a range of hazardous conditions across the region starting from the end of Tuesday and continuing into the overnight hours and early Wednesday morning.
One of the most significant threats posed by the system is locally intense rainfall, which has the potential to quickly overwhelm drainage systems and trigger flash flooding in low-lying and vulnerable areas. Combined with the heavy rain, the region will see gusty winds and frequent thunderstorms that could further complicate conditions for residents and travelers. Dominica is among the areas that will bear the brunt of this weather event, according to the latest forecasts.
As of Tuesday morning, forecasters note that a formal flood watch or flood warning could be issued for parts of the region by midday if current rainfall projections hold. Officials are urging all residents who live in zones with a history of flooding, landslides and falling rock events to remain vigilant throughout the event, adjust daily plans to account for the hazards, and prepare for potential evacuation if conditions deteriorate rapidly.
Beyond inland weather hazards, marine conditions across the affected coastlines are already worsening and will remain dangerous through the day. Forecasters predict moderate to rough seas across the region, with significant wave height expected to climb to as much as 7 feet along western-facing coastlines and up to 10 feet on eastern coastlines. Strong breaking onshore waves will create particularly risky conditions for anyone in or near the water. Currently, a small craft advisory and a high surf warning are active for all northern and eastern coastlines of the affected island chain. Small vessel operators are instructed to take all necessary safety precautions, including avoiding open water until conditions improve, and recreational swimmers are strongly advised to stay out of the ocean to avoid the risk of being swept away by powerful surf.
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PNCR activates business arm
Guyana’s main historical opposition political party, the People’s National Congress Reform (PNCR), has launched a major overhaul of its operations following a historic defeat in last year’s general and regional elections, party leader Aubrey Norton announced Friday. Speaking at the unveiling of the PNCR’s new diaspora honour wall, Norton confirmed the party has activated a dedicated commercial arm to generate critical sustained revenue, ending the party’s long reliance on small-scale community fundraising events.
Multiple sources close to the party confirm Maikwak Ltd. has been registered as the official corporate vehicle to advance the PNCR’s business and investment agenda. The move comes nearly 12 months after former finance minister Winston Jordan, who served in the previous APNU+Alliance For Change government, publicly urged the party to move beyond low-yield fundraisers like community fish fries and corn house events, instead recommending that the party leverage its existing real estate holdings, launch formal commercial entities and pursue public and private sector contracting opportunities.
The announcement follows a devastating election result that saw PNCR, part of the A Partnership for National Unity (APNU) coalition, lose its decades-long position as Guyana’s official opposition. In last year’s vote, the new political movement We Invest in Nationhood (WIN) secured 16 parliamentary seats, becoming the second-largest party in parliament behind the incumbent People’s Progressive Party Civic (PPPC). Political analysts attribute WIN’s surprise rise in part to its substantial campaign funding and aggressive, well-executed social media strategy — gaps that the PNCR is now moving to address.
Norton, who also serves as chairman of the APNU coalition, acknowledged that the party’s traditional grassroots operating model is no longer sufficient to compete in modern Guyanese politics. He called on party members to bridge the gap between the PNCR’s historical grassroots organizing roots and cutting-edge digital tools, including artificial intelligence, to shape public narrative.
“Facts seem not to matter. Perception! and we have got to work on creating perceptions that we want created,” Norton told attendees, emphasizing that modern information technology has reshaped how political parties connect with voters. The long-term path to rebuilding, he added, centers on combining a reinvigorated on-the-ground volunteer leadership corps — a core structure from the party’s early years — with updated digital engagement strategies.
A longstanding advocate for youth leadership development, Norton has repeatedly pushed for investment in training and preparing young party members to take on senior leadership roles over the coming years. Most recently, the PNCR leader clarified his own political future: he intends to retain his position as head of PNCR, but will step aside to allow a new candidate to stand as the APNU coalition’s presidential nominee in the next election cycle. As of now, two names have emerged as early frontrunners for the nomination: Georgetown-based businessman Dr. Terrence Campbell and Dr. Dexter Todd.
The strategic shift marks one of the most significant internal reforms the PNCR has undertaken in decades, as the party works to rebuild its electoral support and relevance amid a shifting political landscape in Guyana.
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Olie-economie Guyana in nieuwe fase; groei 19,3 % en groter deel productie naar staat
Once a small economy reliant on gold, rice, sugar and bauxite, Guyana has cemented its position as one of the world’s fastest-growing economies following the start of commercial offshore oil production in late 2019. New data from the Inter-American Development Bank (IDB) confirms the country’s gross domestic product expanded by a staggering 19.3% in 2025, following an exceptional 43.8% expansion in 2024. But behind this headline-grabbing growth figure lies a far more consequential shift: the country’s non-oil sectors are also posting double-digit growth, and Guyana has entered a new, far more financially rewarding phase of oil development two years ahead of initial projections. For neighboring Suriname, which is preparing to launch its own first offshore oil production, these developments act as a living economic laboratory, offering clear insights into both the transformative opportunities and significant risks that come with a new oil-driven economy.
What makes Guyana’s recent performance particularly notable for resource-dependent economies is that its growth is no longer concentrated solely in the petroleum sector. The IDB estimates non-oil economic growth accelerated to roughly 15% in 2025, while official Guyanese budget data puts the figure at a still robust 14.3%. Both figures confirm a clear, encouraging trend: key non-oil sectors including agriculture, mining, construction and services are growing in lockstep with oil development. For a new oil-producing nation, this is a critical positive signal, as one of the most common and damaging risks of sudden oil windfalls is the crowding out or stagnation of non-resource sectors.
The expansion of overall oil output has also played a major role in increasing state revenues: monthly production has jumped from 3 million barrels to a peak of 12 million barrels as development of the Stabroek Block, the country’s core offshore oil asset, has progressed. But the most dramatic shift in state earnings comes from an accelerated timeline for cost recovery. When oil production first launched, the vast majority of produced oil was allocated to cost recovery for the billions of dollars in exploration, infrastructure and production investment made by lead operator ExxonMobil and its project partners. Under the original production sharing agreement, up to 75 of every 100 barrels produced could be used to recoup these upfront costs, leaving just 25 barrels as profit oil, half of which went to the Guyanese government – equaling just 12.5 barrels per 100 produced.
The Guyanese government confirms that approximately $55 billion in development costs have now been recouped, roughly two years earlier than initially forecast. This has reshaped the revenue split dramatically: today, only around 20 of every 100 barrels are allocated to cost recovery, leaving 80 barrels as profit oil. With Guyana retaining its 50% share of profit oil (a share set in the original agreement that remains unchanged), the country now claims roughly 39.8 barrels for every 100 produced. Adding a 2% royalty on total production, the country’s monthly entitlement to crude oil has surged from around 3 million barrels to 10 to 12 million barrels. Royalty revenues alone hit $306 million in the first half of 2026, according to the Ministry of Natural Resources.
These growing revenues are already accumulating in Guyana’s Natural Resource Fund (NRF), the sovereign wealth fund that holds all state oil earnings. As of the end of May 2026, the NRF held just under $4 billion in assets, after receiving $2.1 billion in profit oil and more than $330 million in royalty payments in 2025 alone, plus an additional $15 million signing bonus from a new production agreement.
But the rapid influx of oil wealth has also intensified long-simmering debates over transparency, oversight and how best to deploy these revenues for broad-based national development. Opposition leader Aubrey Norton recently called for stricter public and institutional oversight of the NRF, arguing that oversight frameworks must expand in lockstep with growing oil earnings. The national conversation has now shifted from how much oil Guyana holds to the far more challenging question of how to manage massive new wealth effectively.
Against this backdrop, the strong growth of non-oil sectors takes on even greater importance. Official budget data shows agriculture, forestry and fishing grew 11.5% in 2025, with rice production posting notable gains, while construction and services have benefited from the wave of investment sweeping the country. Even so, Guyana has not yet eliminated the risk of over-reliance on petroleum. The IDB warns the country remains vulnerable to “Dutch disease,” a common ailment for resource exporters where large inflows of foreign currency drive up wages, prices and real exchange rates, making non-oil export sectors less competitive globally. Remarkably for one of the world’s fastest-growing oil producers, Guyana also still relies on imported petroleum products for most of its domestic energy needs, leaving it exposed both as a producer and consumer to volatile global oil price swings.
For Suriname, these developments are far more than just regional economic news. Just six and a half years after Guyana launched commercial offshore production, the Stabroek Block produces around 900,000 barrels of oil per day, fundamentally transforming a once commodity-dependent small economy. Suriname is now at the starting line of a similar, albeit smaller-scale trajectory: energy firms TotalEnergies and APA took a final investment decision on the GranMorgu project in Block 59 in October 2024, with first oil production targeted for 2028. As Suriname prepares for large-scale investment, cost recovery, growing state revenues and the eventual challenge of spreading oil wealth across the broader economy, Guyana’s experience offers a direct, actionable case study.
The first clear lesson is that maximum benefit for the producing nation takes time: in the early years of development, nearly all earnings go toward recouping massive upfront investment to extract oil from the seabed. Only once those costs are recovered does the producing nation see a dramatic jump in its share of revenues. But the second, far more important lesson is that the true success of an oil economy is not measured by daily production volumes, but by the performance of non-oil sectors. If other sectors of the economy weaken as oil grows, a country can become technically richer on paper without building a sustainable, broad-based economy that benefits all citizens. That is why Guyana’s 15% non-oil growth may ultimately prove more significant than its 19.3% overall GDP expansion.
Even with Guyana’s stellar performance, the IDB continues to warn of outstanding risks: global oil prices are inherently volatile, government spending has risen sharply, and rapid inflows of oil dollars can trigger inflation and other macroeconomic imbalances. These are lessons Suriname can heed long before its first oil comes ashore. Unlike Guyana, which had to build institutional frameworks for oil management as billions of dollars already flowed in, Suriname has the luxury of time to put key policies in place before production begins: decisions on sovereign wealth fund governance, budget discipline, local content requirements, institutional capacity building, infrastructure investment and non-oil sector development can all be finalized years in advance.
In the end, while Guyana’s 19.3% overall growth is an impressive economic milestone, it is the strong performance of its non-oil sectors that offers the most important takeaway for Suriname. When GranMorgu begins producing oil in 2028, the most critical question will not be how much crude the project extracts – it will be how much of that new oil wealth lifts the rest of Suriname’s economy.
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Flash Flood Watch in Effect Until Midday Sunday
A regional flash flood watch is currently active across six Eastern Caribbean island nations, including Antigua and Barbuda, as post-tropical storm moisture brings the threat of dangerous flash flooding to vulnerable coastal and low-lying zones through midday Sunday.
The official alert was issued by the Antigua and Barbuda Meteorological Services at 7:34 p.m. local time on Saturday, covering not just the twin-island nation but also neighboring Montserrat, St. Kitts, Nevis and Anguilla. The watch will remain in place until 12 p.m. August 30, with meteorologists continuing to track the weather system’s progression across the region.
Forecasters confirm that the unsettled weather pattern driving this event is directly linked to the lingering remnants of Tropical Storm Dolly. The system is projected to push consistent heavy rainfall across the affected area through Sunday, with projected total accumulations ranging between 2 and 5 inches across most zones. In localized pockets, short intense downpours could push rainfall totals even higher, significantly amplifying the risk of sudden flash flooding.
Meteorological officials have highlighted the specific risks facing communities in the warning zone. Low-lying neighborhoods that are already prone to routine flooding face the greatest threat of inundation, while key regional roadways may also become impassable. Additionally, heavy rain is expected to cut visibility for motorists, creating hazardous driving conditions across the watch area through Sunday morning.
Local authorities have issued clear guidance for residents across all affected islands. The public is urged to stay updated on changing weather conditions, revisit and confirm their personal flash flood emergency response plans, and stand by to evacuate to higher ground immediately if flooding begins or a more urgent flash flood warning is issued. The Antigua and Barbuda Meteorological Services has committed to ongoing monitoring of the system, with regular updates to be released to the public as new weather data becomes available.
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Up to 200 Solar Panels Available for Distribution, Browne Says
Amid growing public pressure over skyrocketing household electricity bills, Antigua and Barbuda’s Prime Minister Gaston Browne has revealed that the country’s Department of Environment holds a small stock of roughly 150 to 200 solar panels earmarked for public distribution. Browne made the announcement during an appearance on the popular Browne and Browne Show, broadcast on local radio outlet Pointe FM this past Saturday, while fielding questions from listeners about government support for families struggling to pay rising energy costs.
In his comments, Browne acknowledged that the available stock of panels is far from sufficient to meet widespread demand. He initially put the total number of available units at approximately 150, noting that his own constituency had received an allocation of just nine to 10 panels for distribution to local residents. Based on the small allocations each parliamentary constituency has received, Browne revised his estimate, saying the total national stock is likely closer to 200 panels.
The prime minister was frank about the limitations of the current program, confirming that the quantity of panels available remains extremely limited. At this stage, he declined to share key details about the initiative, including eligibility criteria for households hoping to receive a panel, the formal application process, or an official timeline for when distribution will officially launch.
Browne also addressed questions about a separate, previously announced government program to distribute energy-efficient air conditioning units to residents, a policy designed to cut household energy consumption and lower long-term utility costs. He confirmed that a new director has recently taken leadership of the Department of Environment, which oversees both programs, but admitted he has no updated information on the status of the original air conditioning initiative.
Browne told listeners he suspects the program has encountered unforeseen implementation challenges, but emphasized that he cannot confirm these suspicions without gathering more detailed information. He pledged to launch a full review of the stalled initiative and committed to sharing a formal public update once the review is completed.
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Cooking Gas Prices to Remain Controlled Despite Pressure for Increase
The government of Antigua and Barbuda has made a firm commitment to retain price controls on cooking gas, turning down long-standing demands for a price increase from the West Indies Oil Company (WIOC), Prime Minister Gaston Browne confirmed over the weekend.
Speaking during a Saturday appearance on the popular Browne and Browne Show, broadcast via local station Pointe FM, Browne addressed growing public anxiety that upcoming adjustments to motor fuel prices would extend to liquefied petroleum gas, the household staple widely known as cooking gas. He clarified that the government’s planned price revisions will exclusively impact gasoline and diesel, with cooking gas remaining under strict regulatory oversight to keep costs low for residents.
“We continue to keep propane gas under price control and to deliberately keep the prices down,” Browne told listeners. He acknowledged that WIOC has lobbied for a cooking gas price hike for multiple years, and the administration recognizes that the regulated retail price of the product currently sits below its actual production and distribution cost, meaning the company is likely operating at a loss on cooking gas sales.
Even amid this recognition of industry financial strain, the prime minister stressed that protecting household budgets remains a top policy priority for his administration. The government will continue to absorb the economic impact of price controls to shield ordinary families from rising energy costs, he confirmed.
Browne’s announcement came ahead of the government’s planned rollout of an approximate 2 Eastern Caribbean dollar per gallon increase for both gasoline and diesel. The prime minister explained that the motor fuel price adjustment has become unavoidable, as the government can no longer sustain the large public subsidies that have kept gasoline and diesel prices artificially lower in recent months. What is clear, however, is that household cooking fuel will be spared from this round of price increases.
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Government Considers Purpose-Built Home for Second Chance Programme
In a public discussion aired Saturday on Pointe FM’s popular Browne and Browne Show, Prime Minister Gaston Browne has reignited plans to secure a permanent, custom-built headquarters for Antigua and Barbuda’s transformative Second Chance Programme, floating the disused Ottos School property as the leading candidate for the redevelopment project.
Speaking directly to a senior administrator of the education-focused initiative during the broadcast, Browne revisited a previously floated proposal to convert the abandoned school grounds into a dedicated base for the programme, outlining a bold vision to raze the site’s aging, outdated existing structures and construct a modern facility purpose-built to meet the programme’s growing student and operational needs.
“What we are considering is rebuilding the entire site into a facility that is purpose-built specifically for the needs of the Second Chance Programme,” Browne clarified during the on-air conversation, adding that no final decision on the location has been reached, and additional stakeholder discussions will be needed to solidify plans moving forward. “We need to sit down and work through all of the details, but it is clear that this important programme deserves a proper, permanent home,” he noted.
The Prime Minister emphasized that the Second Chance Programme fills a critical gap in Antigua and Barbuda’s education ecosystem, designed specifically to support adult learners and individuals who were unable to complete their secondary education or earn recognized academic credentials during their initial school years. The programme gives these learners a second opportunity to gain qualifications and pursue advanced academic and professional pathways.
Browne highlighted the programme’s proven track record of success, noting that dozens of its graduates have gone on to enroll in and complete full undergraduate degrees at the University of the West Indies Five Islands Campus. He called the initiative an invaluable feeder pipeline that has steadily expanded access to higher education for marginalized learners across the country.
During the broadcast conversation, programme leadership disclosed that the initiative currently serves more than 300 mathematics students alone, and that enrollment for the upcoming term will remain open through the end of September. As of the discussion, no details have been released regarding projected construction costs, facility design blueprints, or a potential timeline for breaking ground on the project. Government officials also confirmed that no final binding decision has been made to select the former Ottos School site, with all options remaining on the table as planning moves forward.
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PM Browne Says Public Must Be Consulted Before Antigua and Barbuda Becomes a Republic
Antigua and Barbuda’s Prime Minister Gaston Browne has made clear that any plan to transition the Caribbean nation from a constitutional monarchy to a republic will only move forward after extensive input from the general public. The country’s leader, who has repeatedly confirmed his personal support for removing the British monarch as head of state, laid out a deliberate, people-first roadmap for the potential constitutional shift during a recent appearance on the *Browne and Browne Show* broadcast on Pointe FM.
“I’m still very much a republican in my own thinking,” Browne told listeners during the Saturday interview. “But at the end of the day, this is a decision that has to be made by the entire Antigua and Barbuda people, not just the government.”
The conversation about republican status came as Browne revealed he has received a formal invitation to meet with King Charles III in the coming weeks. The upcoming audience prompted questions about a past comment from Browne, who previously suggested the country could complete its transition to a republic within a three-year timeline.
Browne emphasized that the government will not rush the process or push constitutional reform ahead of public opinion. Instead, he outlined a multi-stage approach: first open national discussions and broad consultations with communities across Antigua and Barbuda, then conduct independent public opinion polling to gauge widespread sentiment on the change. Only after those steps would a binding referendum be held, the required final step to approve any amendment to the nation’s constitution.
“Before you get to a referendum, you want to at least have discussions about it. Do some polling and see how the people think about it,” Browne explained. “If it is that the people are against it, why push it? I mean, it’s for the people to determine. If the majority does not back the change, the government will not force the issue onto the population.”
Browne drew a parallel between the republican transition debate and another long-proposed constitutional change: moving the Caribbean nation’s final court of appeal from the UK-based Privy Council to the Caribbean Court of Justice (CCJ). Browne confirmed he personally supports accession to the CCJ, but acknowledged that current public sentiment does not yet support the shift.
Neither the republican transition nor the move to the CCJ has been taken off the policy table, Browne clarified. Both initiatives remain on the government’s long-term agenda, but progress will only align with the will of the Antigua and Barbuda people. “We will proceed in step with the wishes of the population,” he said.
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PM Browne Proposes Rewards for Reporting Illegal Dumping
A new incentive-based plan to crack down on chronic illegal dumping and littering across Antigua and Barbuda has been put forward by Prime Minister Gaston Browne, who is pushing to reward community members who provide evidence that leads to successful convictions of offenders.
Browne first unveiled the proposal during a Saturday appearance on the popular *Browne and Browne Show* broadcast on Pointe FM, where he centered the conversation on ongoing challenges to address unregulated waste disposal and unsightly litter that have marred the country’s public spaces.
Under the drafted framework, local residents would be empowered to document illegal dumping activity by capturing photographs of vehicles engaged in improper waste disposal, with clear images of license plates required to validate submissions. Crucially, all reports could be filed anonymously, eliminating fears of retaliation for community members who choose to speak up.
The prime minister noted that the proposed fine for a single littering offense currently stands at Eastern Caribbean $3,000, though he conceded that there is uncertainty around whether this penalty has already been formally codified into national law. “I’m not too sure if we’d put this in law, but I’m going to ask the attorney general to address it,” Browne stated during the broadcast.
Per the reward structure, half of any collected fine – an amount equal to Eastern Caribbean $1,500 for a full conviction – would be disbursed directly to the individual whose tip and evidence resulted in enforcement action and a guilty verdict.
Browne used the platform to call out repeated bad behavior by residents who discard construction debris, household trash, and other types of waste in protected green spaces, rather than transporting the waste to the official, designated disposal facility located at Cooks. He emphasized that the national government already devotes a significant portion of public funds to annual cleaning and beautification projects across both islands of the nation, but persistent indiscriminate dumping continues to undermine these costly public investment efforts.
In addition to the reward program for major dumping offenses, the prime minister also called for tougher enforcement action against motorists who toss bottles, cans, and other small rubbish items out of moving or parked vehicles. He confirmed that municipal wardens working in the capital city of St. John’s have already received new instructions to step up compliance checks, including issuing penalty tickets to local commercial businesses that leave their waste containers and trash outside their storefronts during unapproved collection time windows.
Moving forward, Browne confirmed that the government will first conduct a formal review to confirm the legally mandated fine amount for littering offenses, before drafting concrete regulatory guidelines to outline how the new informant reward system will operate, moving the proposal from concept to potential policy implementation.