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  • Barbados defeat Saint Lucia in netball thriller

    Barbados defeat Saint Lucia in netball thriller

    The Sydney Netball World Cup Americas Regional Qualifiers delivered one of the tournament’s most gripping matches on Tuesday, as hosts Barbados pulled off a stunning late turnaround to secure a 42-40 nail-biting win over Saint Lucia, keeping their unbeaten streak alive after two matchdays.

    Hosted at Bridgetown’s Garfield Sobers Gymnasium, the contest got off to a rocky start for the Bajan Gems. Visibly flustered by the pressure of playing in front of a home crowd, the side struggled for rhythm in the opening quarter, allowing Saint Lucia to sneak a 10-8 lead by the first break. Saint Lucia, bronze medal winners over Barbados at the 2024 Central American and Caribbean Games in the Dominican Republic, carried that momentum into the second quarter. By halftime, they had stretched their advantage to 22-18, sending nervous ripples through the packed stands of vocal Barbadian supporters.

    Saint Lucia extended their dominance through the third quarter, star shooters Naija Ferdinand and Shem Maxwell carving open Barbados’ defense to build a commanding 35-27 lead. But the tide of the match shifted dramatically when a concerning injury forced Maxwell out of the game, disrupting Saint Lucia’s offensive flow and sapping their momentum.

    Buoyed by roars from the home crowd in the final 15 minutes, Barbados flipped the script. The side stepped up its defensive pressure, forcing a string of uncharacteristic careless turnovers from Saint Lucia, while sharpshooter Fay Agard found her range in the shooting circle. With less than two minutes left on the clock, the Bajan Gems claimed their first lead of the entire match, sending the crowd surging to their feet. They held firm in the closing seconds to close out a two-point victory, sparking jubilant celebrations among singing, dancing home fans.

    Agard delivered a masterclass of clutch shooting, finishing the match with 28 goals from 31 attempts, while 19-year-old Ferdinand led all Saint Lucia scorers with 25 goals from 29 attempts.

    In a post-match interview, Bajan Gems head coach Julie Phillips revealed she never doubted her side’s ability to win, even as they trailed for nearly the entire contest. “At the end of the day, the win is what matters most, but we made this a lot harder than we needed to,” Phillips said. “We had early kinks we needed to work out – the biggest issue was a lack of belief early on. I reminded them to trust the process we’ve built. When I spotted what was going wrong and saw the clock ticking down, I made the adjustments I needed. I always have confidence in these girls, and I’m so proud of what they pulled off. Now we’ll review the match tape, iron out the mistakes, rest up, and get ready for tomorrow’s game.”

    For Saint Lucia, the devastating late loss was a difficult result to process, but manager Jo Ann Anderson said she remained proud of her team’s performance. “This was such a hard-fought game, and losing it like this is incredibly emotional,” Anderson noted. “We went back to regroup after our first match, and my girls came out and played out of their skins today. After our starting shooter got injured, I could see the momentum shift away from us, but I’m still so proud of how they fought. There’s no update on the extent of Maxwell’s injury right now, but we’re going to regroup and get ready for our next outing.”

    Three other qualifying matches wrapped up Tuesday’s play: Trinidad and Tobago earned a comfortable 73-41 win over St Vincent and the Grenadines, the United States defeated Grenada 61-42, and Canada claimed a 60-27 victory against the US Virgin Islands.

  • Nearly half of children overweight or obese

    Nearly half of children overweight or obese

    Barbados is grappling with a rapidly growing public health crisis that threatens the country’s long-term development trajectory, as new data reveals that nearly half of all children in the nation are now overweight or living with obesity. Minister of Education Transformation Chad Blackman has described the sharp upward trend in childhood obesity rates as both “scary and staggering”, pointing to a dramatic increase from 31% of children classified as overweight or obese in 2017 to 42% projected in 2026.

    Blackman emphasized that even the country’s most impressive academic and infrastructural gains will not translate to sustained national progress if underlying public health challenges like expanding childhood obesity are left unaddressed. His remarks came during the official media launch of the Barbados School Nutrition Policy Recognition Awards, hosted at the Ministry of Education Transformation’s conference room on Wednesday, where he framed student health and wellness as an equal priority alongside ongoing modern education reforms.

    Opening up about the cultural drivers of poor dietary habits across Barbadian communities, Blackman shared a personal perspective, noting that his own awareness of the national obesity crisis prompted him to embark on a personal weight loss journey. “I can’t be saying to the nation that we have an obesity issue while being obese myself — that’s a fact,” he told attendees. “If we want to keep advancing development for our people, and give Barbados the best chance to compete globally and lead across countless sectors, we have to lay the right foundation for our young people and children.”

    While Blackman expressed gratitude for existing corporate partnership support for school nutrition initiatives, he issued a clear call for stricter guardrails on corporate activity within school spaces. Specifically, he urged food and beverage companies to remove all branding for ultra-processed foods from school environments, even on non-consumable promotional items. “You really ought not to be running activities that directly contradict our national school nutrition policy,” he explained. “Even if you are not distributing products for students to consume on school grounds right away, your branding on items like pencil cases, sharpeners and other school supplies sends a visual and psychological message that completely undermines the healthy habits we are working to build.”

    Closing his remarks, Blackman called for a coordinated, nationwide collective effort to protect the long-term health of Barbados’ future generations. He urged individuals, family households and local communities alike to embrace a fundamental shift in mindset and cultural attitudes toward diet and wellness to reverse the dangerous upward trend in childhood obesity.

  • School nutrition policy awards launched

    School nutrition policy awards launched

    Barbados has launched a new initiative to foster healthier learning environments and curb the rising tide of childhood obesity and non-communicable diseases (NCDs) across the island: the Barbados School Nutrition Policy Recognition Awards. This award program is designed to honor innovative approaches, sustained commitment, and tangible positive shifts in youth health behaviors, while shining a light on the hard work of educators, civil society partners, and international health organizations dedicated to protecting the well-being of Barbadian young people.

    At the official launch event held Wednesday, Dr. Taraleem Malcolm, Non-Communicable Diseases Advisor for the Pan American Health Organization (PAHO), highlighted the regional and global significance of Barbados’ new initiative. As a front-runner in public health action addressing youth nutrition, Dr. Malcolm emphasized that Barbados’ multi-sectoral collaborative approach sets a powerful example for other nations working toward similar goals.

    “The work being done here, including the implementation of the nutrition policy, demonstrates the type of practical action that the WHO acceleration plan is intended to support,” Dr. Malcolm stated. He went on to explain why prioritizing childhood nutrition is such a critical investment for long-term public health: addressing gaps in early nutrition is key to reducing the lifelong burden of diabetes, cardiovascular disease, and hypertension, three of the most prevalent NCDs globally.

    Francine Charles, Programme Manager for Childhood Obesity Prevention at the Heart and Stroke Foundation of Barbados, outlined the core framework and objectives of the new awards. She emphasized that unlike restrictive, penalty-focused policies that often create pushback, this initiative centers on encouragement and celebration of meaningful progress.

    “These awards represent the true intent of the school nutrition policy, not primarily as a restriction or penalty-driven process, but as an encouragement towards true change and transformation in the health of our youngsters,” Charles explained. Beyond improving school food environments, the initiative also prioritizes expanding opportunities for physical activity that go beyond traditional competitive sports, making wellness accessible to all students regardless of athletic ability.

    The awards are structured across multiple categories that cover key areas of school nutrition policy implementation: compliance with nutrition standards, development of healthy alternative fundraising methods, initiatives to increase water consumption, and promotion of overall healthy lifestyles. Five distinct stakeholder groups are eligible for recognition: schools, teachers, canteen vendors, civil society organizations, and private sector companies.

    Nicole Elliot, Education Officer responsible for the School Nutrition Policy within the Ministry of Education Transformation, detailed the evaluation process and criteria that judges will use, noting that the policy has already driven meaningful change across the commercial food sector.

    “We had about 3,000 products that we evaluated the nutritional value of … We have multiple companies that have reformulated products that we would have considered unhealthy in years past, and they are now leading in innovation, with products that have limited sugar and sodium content,” Elliot reported.

    Elliot also outlined the incentives available to participating stakeholders to encourage broad participation. Successful award recipients will receive essential school supplies and specialized equipment tailored to their institutional needs. For top award winners in key categories, financial vouchers of up to $1,200 will be awarded to provide additional resources to continue expanding health-promoting efforts and improve campus wellness infrastructure.

    All interested parties including schools, parent-teacher associations, and vendors have been invited to submit entries and supporting documentation by November 11. The official awards ceremony is scheduled to take place on December 7 at the Hilton Barbados.

  • ICAB: VAT delay leaves businesses in limbo

    ICAB: VAT delay leaves businesses in limbo

    The Institute of Chartered Accountants of Barbados (ICAB) has issued a formal warning that ongoing delays to a planned increase in the country’s value-added tax (VAT) registration threshold have created crippling uncertainty for local businesses, complicating long-term financial and operational planning that many firms have already locked in ahead of the scheduled policy rollout.

    The policy adjustment, which would raise the mandatory VAT registration threshold from an annual turnover of BBD $200,000 to BBD $350,000, was first announced by Minister of Finance Ryan Straughn during his March 16 budget address to the House of Assembly, with an original implementation date set for October 1 this year. To date, however, the core legislation required to put the change into effect remains unfinished, Straughn confirmed to local media outlet Barbados TODAY.

    In a written statement responding to queries from Barbados TODAY, ICAB Chief Executive Officer Lisa Padmore explained that the delay comes at a particularly vulnerable moment for Barbadian enterprises, many of which are already grappling with skyrocketing operational costs. “The delay creates uncertainty at a time when many businesses are already facing significant operating pressures,” Padmore said. Without confirmation of when the threshold will rise, she added, business leaders are “left unable to determine whether anticipated benefits should be incorporated into pricing, investment decisions, staffing plans or cash-flow forecasts.”

    Padmore emphasized that while most businesses are capable of adapting to clear, planned policy changes, unresolvable uncertainty presents a far greater challenge. “Businesses can generally adapt to change. What is more challenging is adapting to uncertainty,” she noted.

    While ICAB cannot provide an exact count of how many businesses falling in the turnover gap between $200,000 and $350,000 have already taken steps to prepare for the policy shift, the institute confirmed that it would have been entirely reasonable for these firms to conduct full impact assessments following the March announcement. The core issue, Padmore said, is that these businesses currently lack the clarity needed to make high-stakes strategic decisions with confidence.

    The uncertainty hits especially hard for businesses weighing whether to pursue voluntary VAT deregistration once the new threshold takes effect. Deregistration would bring small firms relief from VAT reporting requirements, but it would also eliminate their ability to reclaim input VAT on eligible business expenses, meaning owners must carefully weigh costs against benefits to make the right choice. To do that, Padmore argued, businesses need clear official guidance on multiple key details that are currently unavailable.

    “Businesses should assess the commercial implications carefully and not focus solely on the opportunity to deregister. However, there is an equally important policy consideration. For businesses to properly evaluate whether deregistration is beneficial, they need clear guidance on timing, transitional arrangements, administrative processes and the treatment of input VAT. Without that information, it is difficult to make informed decisions,” Padmore explained.

    ICAB has formally called on the Barbados government to provide urgent clarity on three core areas: the current status of the draft legislation, a confirmed final implementation date for the threshold increase, and clear rules governing the transitional process for affected businesses. While Straughn has previously indicated that the legislation would be completed by the end of the current financial year, ICAB notes that this timeline is ambiguous – it remains unclear whether the minister is referencing the end of the 2024 fiscal year or March 31, 2027. The accounting institute is also seeking answers on when the legislation will be tabled for parliamentary debate, when the Barbados Revenue Authority (BRA)’s Tax Administration Management Information (TAMIS) system will be updated to reflect the new threshold, whether BRA will require a full audit of a business before approving deregistration, and whether businesses with outstanding VAT liabilities will be eligible to deregister.

    The organization warned that prolonged gaps between policy announcements and implementation carry tangible costs for the private sector: affected businesses may already have spent time and resources preparing for a change that is not yet law, while holding off on other critical strategic decisions that could support growth. In the interim, ICAB has advised all businesses to continue adhering to existing VAT regulations until the new threshold is formally enacted into law.

    For the immediate future, Straughn confirmed that existing rules remain in full force: any business with an annual turnover above the current $200,000 threshold is still required to register for VAT, regardless of the planned future change. “So long as your income is above a certain threshold, it is mandatory,” he said.

  • Long waits, few buses frustrate St John commuters

    Long waits, few buses frustrate St John commuters

    For residents of rural eastern Barbados’ St John parish, a functional public bus system has remained out of reach, with long-standing gaps in service turning routine daily commutes into frustrating, hours-long ordeals that have pushed some to take costly steps just to get to work and back. Barbados TODAY traveled to the parish to document these long-held grievances, speaking to dozens of residents who shared consistent accounts of erratic scheduling, incomplete routes, and waits that can stretch to three or more hours for a single ride.

    One young local worker, who asked to remain anonymous, explained that the unreliable service forced him to purchase his own vehicle – a significant financial burden – to accommodate his non-traditional work shift running from 6 p.m. to 6 a.m. He noted that while buses departing the capital city run roughly every 30 minutes for most of the day, service heading into St John is far less consistent, with scheduled buses sometimes failing to show up entirely, especially during late-night hours.

    Another resident, who identified himself only as Nurse, echoed these frustrations, noting that long wait times for buses traveling from the capital to St John have been an issue for decades. While he acknowledged a minor improvement following the recent addition of new coaches to the route, he pointed out that understaffing and overcrowding still lead many buses to cut their routes short. Instead of completing their full trip to Sherbourne as scheduled, overloaded buses often turn back early at Villa Nova, leaving passengers stranded far from their intended destinations.

    Karen, a lifelong St John resident, told reporters that multi-hour waits are a regular part of life for local commuters. “It’s not good, gotta wait too long. Sometimes two, sometimes three hours,” she explained. Like many locals, Karen relies on public transit to get to her job, waking early to catch a 5:30 a.m. bus to arrive at work by 7 a.m., and not arriving home until after 6 p.m. She added that the problem is particularly acute during school terms, when most buses are reallocated to student routes, leading to even longer gaps between civilian services, though the inconsistency varies day to day. To fix the crisis, Karen proposed expanding the overall route network and adding more buses to the region to meet unmet demand.

    The shortcomings of the current system also impact workers who travel into St John from other parishes. A staff member at Mount Tabor Primary School, who commutes from St Philip, explained that no existing public route runs directly to the secluded school location. Her bus only drops her off at a Four Roads gas station, leaving her with a lengthy walk to the campus – a trek she only avoids when she can catch an informal ride from another local. She added that occasionally, school buses heading to Grantley Adams Secondary School in nearby St Joseph or local routes serving St John’s students will give her a lift, but there is no formal, consistent service for non-student commuters heading to the area.

    Getting home is equally unpredictable. The worker can sometimes catch an afternoon school bus leaving the area, but if she misses that connection and cannot find another ride, she faces an extremely long walk on an isolated road. She confirmed that during school hours, most buses are prioritized for student transport, leading to gaps of two hours or more between regular public buses. On some mornings, nearly all available buses are reassigned to drop students off at schools, and in the afternoons, the schedule is just as spotty: if a commuter misses the 12 p.m. bus, the next available run is not until 2 p.m., and the one after that at 4 p.m. – if that last bus even shows up. Wait times for the popular Martins Bay route can stretch even longer, hitting three to four hours on bad days, she said.

    In response to these widespread complaints, Barbados TODAY has reached out to the Barbados Transport Board to request an update on the agency’s previously promised review of the Six Roads bus route, one of the main routes serving the St John area. As of publication, no response has been issued.

  • Cummins: No child should fall through the cracks

    Cummins: No child should fall through the cracks

    BARBADOS – In a push to strengthen support for the island nation’s most vulnerable young people, Minister of Health and Wellness Senator Lisa Cummins has issued a urgent call for tighter collaboration across Barbados’ social support systems. Speaking at the opening of a two-day United Nations Population Fund (UNFPA) Capacity Building Workshop focused on Adolescent-Friendly Health Services this Wednesday, held at UN House in Hastings, Christ Church, Cummins warned that disjointed communication between key service providers leaves children and adolescents at risk of falling through the cracks of existing support networks.

    Cummins illustrated the risks of fragmented care with a common example: A young person showing falling grades, skipped classes, or shifting behaviour may be categorized by school staff as solely a school problem. The same child might seek care from a clinician for symptoms of anxiety or depression, while a social worker could identify underlying financial strain or family conflict. Without aligned communication, each provider only sees a piece of the puzzle, leaving the young person without comprehensive, coordinated support.

    “Universal access to services is one thing… but the next stage of our development must be about focusing on ensuring interconnectivity in the interest of the people who benefit from the universal services,” Cummins told attendees. Beyond cross-system collaboration, the minister also challenged policymakers and health providers to adopt a broader, more holistic understanding of women’s and children’s health that accounts for the full spectrum of social, emotional, and developmental factors that shape lifelong well-being.

    For women’s health, Cummins argued that the conversation cannot be limited to pregnancy and childbirth. While acknowledging the persistent importance of maternal health, she emphasized that it must be framed alongside other critical priorities including adolescent health, reproductive care, mental health support, and the prevention and long-term management of non-communicable diseases. For children, health needs stretch far beyond treating acute childhood illnesses: holistic care must address nutrition, emotional development, the impact of learning environments, and family context.

    Cummins specifically highlighted the high prevalence of single-parent households led by women across Barbados, noting that policymakers need to center the unique challenges these families face when designing health and social policy. Under her leadership, the Ministry of Health and Wellness will place growing focus on gender-specific health needs, recognizing that girls and boys face distinct barriers to wellness across adolescence and into adulthood.

    For adolescent girls, targeted guidance and tailored support during their formative teenage years helps build long-term confidence, improves decision-making, lays the foundation for lifelong health, and expands future economic and personal opportunities. Boys, however, are often failed by cultural norms that discourage them from discussing their emotions and seeking help. “We’re particularly conscious about how, culturally, men and boys are not encouraged to talk about how they feel. It’s not manly, it’s not cultural, but this is so important as part of our conversation going forward,” Cummins explained.

    Closing her remarks, the minister emphasized that investing in adolescent health today is an investment in the long-term health of Barbados’ future adult population, arguing that coordinated, holistic care will yield widespread public health and social benefits for generations to come.

  • Two remanded on aggravated burglary charge

    Two remanded on aggravated burglary charge

    Two residents of Dodds Land in St Philip have been placed behind bars pending their next court appearance after facing aggravated burglary charges at the District ‘A’ Traffic Court this Wednesday.

    Jason Kevin Marshall, 41, and Makeda Aja Latasha Kirton, 38, appeared before Acting Magistrate Jared Richards for their initial hearing. Under standard procedures for indictable offenses, the pair were not required to enter a formal plea during this first court appearance.

    Prosecutors allege the criminal incident took place on October 13, 2026, with stolen property totaling an estimated value of $14,600.76. Following the brief hearing, Acting Magistrate Richards ordered both defendants to be remanded into prison custody. They are scheduled to make their next appearance before the court on November 18, 2026, as the legal process moves forward.

  • “Wanted man” now in police custody

    “Wanted man” now in police custody

    Weeks after law enforcement issued a public appeal for information on his whereabouts, a high-profile wanted man has turned himself in to authorities in Barbados. Chidi Uzomba, who was named in an official ‘Wanted Man’ bulletin released on October 8, 2026, linked to an ongoing serious criminal investigation, is now firmly in police custody.

    According to official statements from the Barbados Police Service, Uzomba walked into the Black Rock Police Station voluntarily on Wednesday to surrender to law enforcement. Since being taken into custody, he has been cooperating with investigating officers as they work through the details of the case connected to his earlier warrant.

    In the wake of Uzomba’s surrender, the Barbados Police Service has issued a public statement of gratitude, acknowledging the critical role played by both ordinary members of the public and local media outlets in advancing the case. The department noted that public tips, media coverage of the warrant, and widespread community awareness helped create the conditions that led to Uzomba’s decision to turn himself in, streamlining the investigative process for law enforcement. As of the latest update, the investigation into the underlying criminal matter remains active and ongoing.

  • Magistrates’ Court reforms target delays, repeat trials

    Magistrates’ Court reforms target delays, repeat trials

    On Tuesday, sweeping legislative reforms targeting long-standing case backlogs in the lower judiciary were tabled before Barbados’ Parliament, centered on two transformative changes: the introduction of virtual court hearings and provisions to allow ongoing trials to continue when a presiding magistrate leaves office. Legal Affairs and Criminal Justice Minister Michael Lashley presented the Magistrates’ Court Amendment Bill for its second reading before the House of Assembly, framing the proposed updates as a radical overhaul of what he calls “the people’s court” — the magistrate court system that handles the majority of summary criminal matters, domestic violence cases, and lower-value civil disputes for ordinary citizens.

    The core amendments directly address two long-standing systemic flaws that have slowed judicial proceedings for decades. First, they embed new institutional flexibility around judicial continuity. Under existing rules, if a sitting magistrate was promoted to the High Court, retired, or left the bench temporarily for any reason, all active cases overseen by that magistrate had to be restarted from scratch, wasting thousands of hours of scarce judicial resources and stretching out case timelines for years. The new legislation grants authority to the Chief Justice or Chief Magistrate to reassign unfinished matters to another sitting judicial officer, allowing proceedings to continue seamlessly without a full restart.

    Second, the bill formalizes the adoption of virtual hearings, a shift intended to eliminate long-standing delays caused by physical courtroom constraints. For decades, limited shared court facilities — most notably at District ‘C’ Magistrates Court — have created persistent scheduling backlogs, transport logjams for prison transfer buses, and extended wait times for litigants. Lashley noted that virtual proceedings will eliminate the need for high-risk, costly physical transfers of prisoners for routine bail applications and preliminary case management, cutting down on both security risks and scheduling delays.

    The legislative package also paves the way for broader digital modernization of the court system. Among the planned digital upgrades is an automated system to generate immediate audiovisual transcripts of court proceedings, a change that will dramatically reduce waiting times for criminal appeals that have historically faced months of delays just to obtain trial records. Infrastructure preparation for the shift to virtual hearings is already well advanced: Lashley confirmed that District ‘A’ Magistrates Court is approximately 95% outfitted for remote proceedings, and will begin hearing virtual cases within a matter of weeks.

    To further reduce the burden on overcrowded court dockets, the government is rolling out an electronic traffic ticketing system to replace traditional court summonses for minor driving offenses. Under the new system, a police officer who catches a motorist speeding or committing another minor infraction will issue an immediate ticket directly to the driver, who can resolve the matter by paying the fine without ever appearing in court. “Matter closed. So the traffic court is no longer clogged up with traffic matters,” Lashley explained, noting this change alone will clear hundreds of low-stakes cases from the court schedule annually.

    While the full modernization push carries an estimated price tag of around $400,000 for infrastructure and equipment upgrades, the minister emphasized that access to justice will not be limited by socioeconomic status. To ensure low-income citizens without access to personal digital devices can still participate in virtual proceedings, the government plans to partner with local community centres to set up secure, private virtual access rooms for vulnerable witnesses, complainants, and defendants.

    Lashley added that key stakeholders, including senior criminal defence attorneys and sitting magistrates, have already been consulted on the reforms, and the proposals have earned broad support from the justice community. The overarching goal of the package, he stressed, is to address the long-standing injustice of delayed justice: “This is what we are seeking to do: to alleviate the delay of justice.”

  • Barbados better placed to withstand economic risks, says Greenidge

    Barbados better placed to withstand economic risks, says Greenidge

    Against a backdrop of shifting global economic tides, the head of Barbados’ central bank has moved to reassure stakeholders that the island nation is well-equipped to navigate ongoing international headwinds, even as its breakneck post-pandemic expansion settles into a steadier, more sustainable growth trajectory. On Tuesday, Central Bank Governor Dr. Kevin Greenidge pushed back against growing market anxiety over Barbados’ economic outlook, aligning the institution’s assessment with a recent analysis from the African Export-Import Bank (Afreximbank) that paints a picture of steady, if modest, expansion in the coming years.

    In an interview with local outlet Barbados TODAY, Greenidge emphasized that both Afreximbank and the Central Bank share a core consensus: the Barbadian economy has retained its resilience, built up robust macroeconomic buffers, and stands on a solid foundation of ongoing structural reform. The rapid bounceback that followed COVID-19 lockdowns has run its course, he confirmed, and the country has now entered a phase of normalized, long-term growth.

    Afreximbank’s projection of 1.9% GDP growth for 2026 aligns almost exactly with the Central Bank’s own forecast of roughly 2%, Greenidge noted. The central bank’s mid-year assessment found the economy expanded by 1.4% in the first half of 2026, with domestic sectors—including business services, other professional services, and wholesale and retail trade—leading the expansion. While tourism remains a foundational pillar of the national economy, performance has come in below initial projections, dragged down by shorter average visitor stays, elevated airfares, and reduced airline capacity in key source markets.

    On the fiscal side, Greenidge said the two institutions’ assessments are also broadly aligned, noting that Barbados has consistently maintained strong primary budget surpluses and that total public debt continues to trend downward. The minor discrepancy between the two reports’ debt-to-GDP figures stems only from differing data cut-off dates: Afreximbank’s cited 96% ratio reflects data through the end of March, while the central bank’s updated June estimate puts gross public sector debt at 93.7% of GDP.

    Greenidge also clarified the government’s long-term fiscal targets, explaining that the program mandates a 3.5% primary surplus as a share of GDP for fiscal years 2026/27 and 2027/28, with a current baseline projection of a 4.1% surplus in subsequent years. This trajectory is designed to put Barbados on track to hit its target of reducing debt to 60% of GDP by fiscal year 2035/36.

    This fiscal framework sets the context for the new 257 million U.S. dollar Stand-By Arrangement with the International Monetary Fund (IMF), Greenidge explained. The original IMF-backed Barbados Economic Recovery and Transformation (BERT) programme launched in 2022 concluded successfully, and the new BERT 2026 initiative is now a fully domestically led transformation effort. The new Stand-By Arrangement is a precautionary measure, he stressed, providing an extra safety net against unforeseen external shocks to support the next phase of structural reform, rather than emergency financing that Barbados currently needs to draw down on.

    While acknowledging that significant risks remain, Greenidge pointed out that Barbados’ status as a small open economy leaves it inherently exposed to a range of external pressures: global geopolitical tensions, persistent trade uncertainty, elevated freight and energy costs, high international interest rates, and slowing demand in core tourism markets. Climate-related shocks and natural disasters also continue to pose a constant threat to the island’s economy. Domestically, policymakers face pressing challenges including speeding up the execution of planned infrastructure investments, boosting labor productivity, addressing skills gaps and demographic headwinds, and improving the competitiveness of Barbadian exports in global markets.

    “What is important, however, is that Barbados is approaching those risks from a much stronger position than in the past,” Greenidge noted. He highlighted that international reserves remain stable at around 3.1 billion U.S. dollars, the domestic financial system is well-capitalized and liquid, fiscal accounts remain robust, and public debt is firmly on a downward path.

    Looking ahead, Greenidge identified new growth drivers beyond the traditional tourism sector. A robust pipeline of investments, including tourism-related real estate and hospitality development as well as major infrastructure projects targeting roads, water access, renewable energy, and housing, is expected to become an increasingly important engine of expansion. “Faster execution of those projects, together with stronger construction activity, improved productivity and more competitive exports, will be important to sustaining growth and broadening its base,” he said.

    Greenidge framed Afreximbank’s modest growth projections as a sign of a maturing economic cycle, not weakness. “I would interpret the Afreximbank projections as showing an economy that is no longer relying on post-COVID rebound growth, but is entering the harder phase of generating sustained growth through investment, productivity and diversification,” he explained. “Growth of around two per cent should not be read as economic weakness or contraction. The real test now is whether we can use the stability and buffers we have rebuilt to lift Barbados’ medium-term growth potential and ensure that the gains are broad-based and durable.”

    Last Friday, University of the West Indies economist Dr. Ankie Scott Joseph echoed Greenidge’s assessment, noting that Afreximbank’s latest Barbados Country Brief closely matches the Central Bank’s projections, with both institutions forecasting modest growth, stable public finances, and falling debt. The only notable discrepancy between the two reports relates to tourism performance, which stems again from differing data cut-offs: Afreximbank’s analysis only includes data through the end of March, while the Central Bank’s assessment extends to June. In the first quarter of 2026, tourism earnings were 3.7% higher year-on-year, but earnings from April to June fell below 2025 levels, pulling the first half’s total year-on-year increase to just 10.9 million dollars and marking a sharp slowdown in the sector’s expansion.