标签： Antigua and Barbuda

As the political landscape in Haiti remains fluid and uncertain, the CARICOM Eminent Persons Group (EPG) is maintaining close, real-time monitoring of developments through continuous virtual dialogue with a broad cross-section of Haitian stakeholders. These conversations span across government leadership, opposition political blocs, and grassroots civil society organizations, giving the group a grounded, multi-faceted understanding of the crisis unfolding on the ground.

Recognizing that digital engagements cannot replace the nuance and trust-building of face-to-face interactions, the EPG has made clear its intention to deploy an on-the-ground delegation to Haiti as soon as logistical and security conditions allow. Once in the country, the group plans to hold direct talks with all major stakeholders to facilitate dialogue and support Haitian-led efforts to resolve ongoing political divisions.

To provide context, the Caribbean Community (CARICOM) – the regional bloc that convened the EPG – was founded in 1973 following the signing of the Treaty of Chaguaramas, with a major 2001 revision of the accord that paved the way for a single integrated market and economy across the Caribbean. Today, the bloc counts 15 full member states and six associate members, representing a combined population of roughly 16 million people, 60 percent of whom are under the age of 30.

CARICOM structures its work around four core pillars: deepening economic integration across member states, coordinating collective foreign policy, advancing inclusive human and social development, and strengthening cross-border security cooperation. The bloc’s overarching mission is to build an integrated, inclusive, and resilient regional community powered by innovation, knowledge, and shared productivity. It aims to position the Caribbean as a unified competitive force on the global stage, where every resident has equal access to opportunity, guaranteed human rights, and social justice, and can share in the region’s collective economic, social, and cultural prosperity.

Widely recognized as one of the most successful regional integration projects among developing nations, CARICOM carries out its day-to-day operations through its central administrative body, the CARICOM Secretariat, which is permanently based in Georgetown, Guyana.

On a Thursday marked by high political energy, Dominica’s main opposition United Workers Party (UWP) took a decisive step forward in its bid to unseat the long-governing Dominica Labour Party, introducing two fresh candidates and formally locking in former parliamentarian Danny Lugay as its nominee for the widely anticipated Roseau North by-election. Party leaders framed the event as proof of building momentum ahead of what could be the end of nearly three decades of continuous Labour Party control.

Dubbed the launch of “Team Dominica”, the event brought forward Juliet Schillingford, a seasoned urban planner, as the UWP’s candidate for the Roseau Central constituency, alongside local businessman Delbert Paris, who will stand for the party in Marigot. Lugay, who has previously held the Roseau North parliamentary seat, was confirmed as the opposition’s official representative for the upcoming by-election, which political observers widely expect to be called within the next 90 days.

Already, this single-seat contest has emerged as a critical early barometer of national sentiment: it will be the first chance for Dominican voters to deliver a formal public judgment on the Labour administration’s performance, and a test of widespread appetite for systemic political change after 27 years in power.

UWP leader Dr. Thompson Fontaine positioned the upcoming Roseau North vote as the opening salvo of a national campaign to replace the sitting government, urging local constituents to rally behind Lugay’s candidacy. “As we face a potential by-election in the Roseau North constituency, I call upon the constituents to send a strong message to this government,” Fontaine declared to a crowd of cheering supporters. He added, “Twenty-seven years is a long time for this generation of youth to be in the valley of economic depression”—a comment that drew resounding applause from party backers.

The candidate launch was intentionally structured to showcase the UWP’s vision for a new generation of governance, blending the experience of veteran political hands with fresh perspectives from young professionals and established community leaders. Schillingford, a Roseau native and widely respected urban planning expert, delivered one of the event’s sharpest rejections of the incumbent government’s track record in the capital. “Roseau Central has been neglected. Roseau Central has not been a priority, and the people of Roseau Central deserve better,” she said.

She outlined a litany of unaddressed issues facing the constituency: crumbling public infrastructure, chronic traffic congestion that has crippled movement, small businesses struggling to stay afloat, and a string of long-promised development projects that have never broken ground. After decades of unfulfilled pledges from the ruling party, she argued, Roseau Central residents have been forced to accept steadily declining quality of life.

For his part, Paris earned unanimous backing from local UWP supporters in Marigot, framing himself as part of a new wave of leaders committed to upholding the constituency’s long-standing tradition of independent political thought. He called on all Dominicans to reject complacency in the nation’s political life and step up as active participants in building the country’s future.

The event also put on display a newly consolidated unity within opposition ranks. Fontaine confirmed that veteran Dominican political figures, including former Prime Minister Edison James and former Opposition Leader Lennox Linton, will take on active, prominent roles in upcoming campaign efforts, as opposition factions align to challenge the governing Labour Party.

Throughout the launch event, speakers repeatedly drew a clear line between the UWP’s policy vision and what they described as a culture of political dependency fostered by the Labour Party. The UWP, by contrast, pledged to deliver sustainable jobs, broad economic opportunity, and national self-reliance.

Fontaine specifically criticized the incumbent government’s reliance on political patronage and one-off handouts, arguing that Dominicans deserve long-term, stable employment rather than periodic, temporary assistance. “We’ll work to dismantle this red clinic so that the people of Dominica will not expect handouts from us, but they will expect jobs,” he said.

The party also used the launch to pull back the curtain on its formal policy platform, the “10 Pillars to Shared Prosperity”. The agenda includes commitments to raise national wages, overhaul the country’s tax code, expand support for the agricultural and manufacturing sectors, boost youth entrepreneurship, strengthen government accountability, and gradually reduce Dominica’s heavy economic reliance on its controversial Citizenship by Investment programme.

The Roseau North by-election is set to pit Lugay against Labour Party candidate Ashma McDougall, and has grown far beyond a race for a single parliamentary seat. For a UWP that has rebuilt its strength after years of internal divides and electoral losses, the contest is a critical opportunity to prove that Dominica’s political landscape is shifting, and that the Labour Party’s decades-long grip on power is no longer unassailable.

After years on the back foot following internal rifts and poor election results, Thursday’s candidate launch was crafted to deliver one unambiguous message: the United Workers Party is back as a competitive political force, and it intends to contest every parliamentary seat in upcoming elections with the explicit goal of forming the next national government.

Facing ongoing global economic uncertainty, the Government of Antigua and Barbuda has given formal approval to a sweeping package of infrastructure and consumer protection measures focused on upgrading the nation’s water supply and telecommunications systems while shielding households and businesses from volatile international market shifts.

During a recent cabinet meeting, senior officials received detailed progress updates on joint infrastructure projects led by the national government and the Antigua Public Utilities Authority (APUA), with water infrastructure expansion topping the priority list. Currently, the country produces roughly 11 million imperial gallons of water daily, and this output is projected to rise steadily as newly built infrastructure is brought online in the coming months.

To address longstanding storage gaps, a broad rehabilitation program is already underway for multiple existing water storage tanks, with most set to resume operations within this year. The plan also includes major upgrades to six tanks located at the country’s Air Force Base: four will undergo full rehabilitation, while two will receive comprehensive modernization, a change that will significantly boost the nation’s total water storage capacity.

In a move to protect consumer purchasing power, cabinet has reaffirmed its longstanding commitment to maintaining a federal subsidy for gasoline prices. Officials confirmed that this policy remains a critical buffer that insulates domestic consumers from sharp swings in global crude oil prices, which have remained highly unpredictable amid ongoing international economic turbulence.

Turning to telecommunications upgrades, the cabinet received updates on multiple ongoing initiatives designed to improve service quality across the country. A key project in the pipeline is the construction of an additional network sub-station, which is expected to substantially boost both mobile network reliability and fixed-line internet speeds for residential and commercial users.

APUA is also moving forward with plans for a bond issuance, a financing mechanism that would provide the capital needed to fund large-scale infrastructure upgrades across both water and telecommunications sectors, with discussions on the structure and launch of the initiative still ongoing.

Significant progress has already been recorded on the national subsea communications cable project, an infrastructure investment that is slated to dramatically strengthen Antigua and Barbuda’s entire communications network by boosting both overall capacity and resilience to outages.

In a long-term planning update, APUA told cabinet that the implementation of mobile number portability is on track to launch by July 2026. Once the policy goes into effect, telecommunications customers across the country will gain the ability to switch providers while retaining their existing phone numbers, giving consumers greater flexibility and fostering increased competition in the domestic market.

Moving forward, government officials emphasized that they will maintain close, ongoing monitoring of global oil market trends, and stand ready to implement additional targeted measures if needed to limit the impact of rising energy costs on local households and business operations.

Antigua and Barbuda’s Prime Minister Gaston Browne has laid out an ambitious infrastructure target for his administration: delivering upgrades to at least 75 percent of the country’s entire national road network within the next four years. The bold commitment was announced during a weekly Cabinet meeting held on Wednesday, where Browne pressed his ministerial team to speed up infrastructure delivery across both islands, reminding them of the promises the government made to voters ahead of taking office. The prime minister stressed that the remaining term of the current administration must be focused on delivering tangible, visible results that directly benefit local communities.

Speaking at a post-Cabinet media briefing on Thursday, Director General of Communications Maurice Merchant outlined that Browne has centered the government’s remaining policy agenda on people-centric infrastructure projects that directly lift quality of life for residents. The massive national roadworks program sits at the core of a broader infrastructure push that extends far beyond pavement repairs. The wider agenda also includes expanding street lighting coverage, nationwide environmental beautification projects, upgrading public recreational and community spaces, and finalizing preparations for Antigua and Barbuda’s high-profile hosting of the Commonwealth Heads of Government Meeting (CHOGM) scheduled for later this year.

Alongside the road network target, Cabinet has given formal approval to a suite of additional community enhancement initiatives, all funded through the national Tourism Fund. These projects include the installation of new directional markers, road signage and traffic signs across every part of the country. Officials also confirmed that existing faded road markings will be repainted, and public bus stops will receive comprehensive upgrades as part of the push to improve both the functionality and visual appeal of local public infrastructure.

Browne has demanded immediate action on all components of the infrastructure program, rejecting any delays on what he frames as basic quality-of-life improvements. Merchant noted that the prime minister has framed this accelerated rollout as non-negotiable, pointing out that the government cannot claim to be driving national renewal while core public amenities remain in a state of disrepair. “Because we cannot speak about renaissance and have simple amenities like these in disrepair,” Merchant quoted Browne as saying.

Virtually all community improvement projects, including the signage and bus stop upgrades, will draw funding primarily from the Tourism Fund, with additional logistical and operational support provided by multiple government ministries and agencies – most notably the national Transport Board and the Ministry of Tourism. Cabinet also used Wednesday’s meeting to reaffirm its ongoing commitment to removing derelict and abandoned vehicles from residential and public areas, a key measure to clean up community spaces and improve overall neighborhood aesthetics.

In closing remarks to his ministerial team, Browne reiterated that the entire administration must remain focused on delivering measurable, trackable improvements across every region of Antigua and Barbuda. He emphasized that the electorate holds the government accountable for delivering on the development commitments it campaigned on, and that tangible results are the top priority for the remainder of the term.