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  • KPMG Global head of healthcare highlights digital opportunities for Barbados

    KPMG Global head of healthcare highlights digital opportunities for Barbados

    Barbados is emerging as a potential regional trailblazer in integrated digital healthcare, following a high-level visit last week from KPMG’s global healthcare leadership that brought together cross-sector stakeholders to map a collaborative path forward for the sector. Beccy Fenton, KPMG’s Global Head of Healthcare, traveled to Bridgetown to hold targeted discussions with policymakers, academic researchers, and public and private healthcare leaders, centered on unlocking the full potential of digital health innovations across Caribbean island nations.

    Fenton’s visit was hosted by KPMG Barbados and the firm’s specialized Global Centre of Excellence for Island Healthcare, a unique hub led by Dr. Edward Fitzgerald, Head of KPMG Islands Group Healthcare and Life Sciences. The center was designed to aggregate global insights and best practices from island healthcare systems around the world, creating space for cross-stakeholder networking and knowledge exchange — a core priority that framed all activities during Fenton’s trip.

    A central public engagement of the visit was Fenton’s keynote address at the University of the West Indies Digital Health Symposium, which carried the theme “From Innovation to Impact: Advancing Digital Health in the Caribbean.” In her remarks, Fenton challenged attendees to move beyond the fragmented, isolated digital health projects that currently characterize much of the region’s progress. Instead, she pushed for the development of fully governed, interoperable, data-centric systems that can turn existing investment into tangible gains in care access, cross-provider coordination, and patient health outcomes.

    “Barbados has a once-in-a-generation opportunity to build a more connected, resilient, and patient-first health system through intentional digital transformation,” Fenton told attendees. “The urgent priority right now is to move past the basic digitization of paper records that is the current status quo, and build integrated, interoperable systems that work across the entire continuum of care. These systems will expand access to care, reduce burdens on frontline clinicians, and deliver better results for patients. With strong cross-sector collaboration, clear governance frameworks, and a sustained focus on building public trust, Barbados is perfectly positioned to set a regional example for digital health adoption.”

    Alongside the symposium, KPMG’s island healthcare team led a hands-on workshop focused on one of the region’s most persistent operational challenges: reducing the rate of missed outpatient appointments. Using a fictional but contextually realistic case study, participants mapped existing clinic appointment workflows, identified targeted digital interventions that could cut no-show rates, and prioritized solutions that are both financially realistic and scalable across small island health systems.

    Workshop attendees represented a broad cross-section of the digital health ecosystem, including frontline clinicians, health system managers, digital health practitioners, policymakers, and implementation partners. Their collaborative problem-solving during the event underscored the core principle that multidisciplinary cooperation is non-negotiable for solving common systemic health challenges.

    Later in the week, Dr. Fitzgerald hosted an evening reception attended by senior Barbados Ministry of Health officials, academic leaders, public and private health provider representatives, and delegates from the Pan American Health Organization (PAHO). In remarks at the reception, Fitzgerald emphasized that any successful effort to scale digital health strategies must be rooted in three core foundations: digital inclusion, widespread health literacy, and public trust. These must be paired with strong privacy protections, transparent governance, and clear patient consent frameworks, he noted, to ensure communities feel confident that their personal health data remains secure.

    “By learning from the experiences of other island jurisdictions, we can adopt strategies that have already proven successful, and avoid costly missteps and fragmented system development that holds back progress,” Fitzgerald explained. “With the right foundational frameworks in place, Barbados can quickly build secure, integrated systems that eliminate redundant care, cut administrative burdens for providers and patients, and improve overall patient outcomes. The potential gains for the country are enormous: beyond addressing the growing burden of chronic disease, robust digital health can help build a healthier, happier, and more productive population for generations.”

    Closing out the week of engagements, Christopher Brome, Office Managing Partner for KPMG in Barbados and the Eastern Caribbean, emphasized the tangible quality-of-life benefits that well-implemented digital health strategies can deliver to ordinary Barbadians. “Thoughtfully rolled out digital healthcare can bring care closer to home for so many people in our country,” Brome said. “The ability to consult a clinician remotely, cut down on time spent traveling and waiting for appointments, and access continuous support through tools like remote patient monitoring can have a transformative positive impact on the lives of people across our community. We are excited to continue the important conversations we started last week as we work toward this shared goal.”

  • Update on Scotland District Road Rehabilitation Project

    Update on Scotland District Road Rehabilitation Project

    Following 14 months of intensive construction and rehabilitation work, a key rural roadway at Airy Hill Bottom in St Joseph has officially reopened to vehicle and pedestrian traffic, marking a major milestone in a government-led infrastructure upgrade initiative across the region. The completed project forms part of the Ministry of Transport and Works’ (MTW) $230 million Scotland District Road Rehabilitation Programme (SDRRP), delivered in a partnership between main contractor China National Complete Plant Import and Export Corporation (COMPLANT) and local sub-contractor Infra Construction Inc.

    Major upgrade works targeting improved road safety and long-term infrastructure resilience on Airy Hill kicked off in early 2023. At the project launch, George Holder, MTW’s official project representative for the SDRRP, outlined the full scope of work for the site, which included full realignment of the road’s path and complete replacement of an aging, failing culvert. Holder explained that the original road layout featured a notoriously dangerous curve that had long been a safety hazard for motorists, while the existing culvert had degraded beyond repair.

    “The old culvert could no longer handle peak water flow during heavy rain events, so we are increasing its overall capacity to prevent flooding and future structural damage,” Holder noted of the upgrade.

    Beyond the completed Airy Hill Bottom project, Holder provided an updated progress report on other active infrastructure projects across the Scotland District, confirming that three critical bridge structures are currently under active construction: Melvin Hill Bridge in St Joseph, and Dark Hole Bridge and Brucevale Bridge in St Andrew. Both Melvin Hill Bridge and Dark Hole Bridge were forced to close last year after suffering sudden structural failure, making their replacement a top priority for the ministry.

    Holder added that the project team initially faced significant access challenges when trying to reach the Dark Hole Bridge site, but those barriers have now been resolved. Construction is proceeding on schedule, with a full completion target set for August 2024.

    At the Brucevale Bridge site, the project team is on track to finish all foundation work by the end of June 2024. Once foundations are finalized, crews will move forward to construct the bridge’s superstructure and side abutments, followed by installation of the finished bridge deck. The full Brucevale Bridge replacement project is projected to wrap up in late August to early September 2024, at which point the connecting roadway will reopen to public traffic.

    Progress is also advancing on upgrade works along the Ermie Bourne Highway, where multiple aging culverts and structural components are being replaced after decades of wear and erosion. In the Cattlewash section of the highway, paving has already been completed, and construction crews have now moved north to continue upgrades along the stretch leading into Barclays Park.

    This report was provided via public notice from the Ministry of Transport and Works.

  • Mas’ wire craft push aims to revive ‘dying art’, create jobs

    Mas’ wire craft push aims to revive ‘dying art’, create jobs

    A transformative regional project aimed at breathing new life into the fading traditional craft of masquerade wire bending kicked off Thursday in Barbados, with organizers laying out a clear plan to turn this centuries-old cultural skill into accredited, income-generating livelihoods for creators across the Caribbean’s booming festival sector. The initiative was formally introduced during the Spirit Bond gathering in Bridgetown, with the launch of the Wire Sculpting for Masquerade Workshop, a collaborative effort between the Pinelands Creative Workshop (PCW), the National Cultural Foundation, Caribbean Yard Campus, and the Maria Holder Trust.

    Speaking at the launch, PCW Chief Executive Sophia Greaves emphasized that the programme extends far beyond a standard technical training course, framing it as a deliberate multi-pronged effort to protect at-risk cultural heritage, empower local creative communities, and drive intentional growth across the Caribbean’s creative economy. “Today marks a profound milestone as we officially opened this wire bending workshop,” Greaves said. “I don’t see tools and wire and workspaces. I see the living heartbeat of our heritage, the sparks of economic opportunity, and the incredible power of a shared regional vision.”

    Greaves explained that the programme is structured to convert existing informal cultural knowledge into long-term, sustainable professional careers, opening multiple pathways for participants. Graduates will be able to launch their own small creative businesses, pursue full-time roles in the regional creative industry, or take on commercial design contracts tied to the Caribbean’s world-famous carnival and festival circuit. “This workshop is about building economic agency,” Greaves said. “We are investing in your talent so that you can turn heritage into sustainable livelihoods.”

    A core component of the initiative is the push to formalize the craft through international-standard professional accreditation. Greaves revealed that PCW is already in active discussions with Caribbean Yard Campus to develop official Caribbean Vocational Qualification (CVQ) pathways for all participants, a move that will formalize skills that have long been passed down informally through community networks. “We are actively moving towards cementing these traditional skills into formal qualifications,” she said. “This will ensure that the skills you hone in community spaces are recognised globally, giving you formal accredited certification as professional artisans and cultural practitioners.”

    Val Jerry, the lead workshop facilitator, noted that as carnival costume design evolves to incorporate new synthetic materials and align with modern trends, preserving the foundational techniques of traditional wire bending has become increasingly urgent. He described the craft as a “dying art,” pushing back against the idea that newer materials can fully replace the structural benefits wire frameworks bring to large, elaborate masquerade costumes. “We know carnival is changing. It has always changed from the beginning and it will keep changing,” Jerry said. “But you have to draw the line somewhere. There’s no excuse for vulgarity.”

    He went on to highlight the unique structural advantages of hand-bent wire, noting that the material can hold rigid angles that modern alternatives like fiberglass cannot replicate. “Wire is probably the only material that could give you a 45-degree angle and not move. You can’t do that with fiberglass,” he explained. “So we look to see the strong points and we incorporate this into costume building.” Jerry added that the workshop is not focused on freezing the craft in the past, but rather on adapting traditional wire bending techniques to fit the evolving needs of modern Caribbean carnival design, balancing heritage preservation with contemporary creative demands.

  • Fiscal council re-established to strengthen public purse oversight

    Fiscal council re-established to strengthen public purse oversight

    Against a backdrop of escalating global economic volatility and years of ongoing fiscal reform after a major debt restructuring, the Government of Barbados has formally re-established an independent Fiscal Council, a move designed to embed greater transparency and accountability into the country’s long-term debt reduction strategy, the Ministry of Finance announced Thursday.

    The newly reconstituted five-member body, which draws together cross-sector expertise from economics, finance, banking, and organized labor both within Barbados and across the international community, carries a clear, public-focused mandate: to verify the credibility of the economic and financial projections that form the foundation of the national budget, assess whether the government is meeting its legally and politically binding fiscal responsibility commitments, and track emerging long-term fiscal risks ranging from underperformance at state-owned enterprises to unplanned contingent liabilities and climate-related financial exposures. To keep the public fully informed, the council will publish independent annual evaluations of four key government documents: the national Fiscal Framework, the Mid-Year fiscal review, the Pre-Election Economic and Fiscal Update, and the annual national budget. All reports will be made freely accessible to any Barbadian citizen who wishes to review them, the ministry confirmed.

    “The council’s only job is to examine the evidence and report its findings transparently to the people of Barbados,” the ministry stated in its official announcement.

    Leadership of the new council includes Ismail Momoniat, former acting director general of South Africa’s National Treasury, who will serve as chairman, and Winston Moore, a professor of economics and deputy principal at the University of the West Indies Cave Hill Campus, who takes on the role of deputy chairman. The remaining council members are Nlandu Mamingi, emeritus professor of economics; Donna Wellington, chief country management officer at CIBC Caribbean; and Cedric Murrell OBE, a veteran labor relations consultant and former president of the Congress of Trade Unions and Staff Associations (CTUSAB). The council has already convened its first meeting, formalized its operating mandate, and begun its core work, according to the government statement.

    The Fiscal Council was first launched in May 2023 as a core component of Barbados’ International Monetary Fund (IMF)-backed economic reform program, which was launched after the country completed a sweeping debt restructuring process to pull its public finances back from unsustainable levels. This reconstitution comes as the Mia Mottley administration works to sustain investor confidence and fiscal stability while navigating persistent global economic headwinds and working toward long-term debt reduction targets set under the ongoing reform initiative.

    Barbados entered the IMF’s Extended Fund Facility program in October 2018, when its public debt had surged to roughly 160% of the country’s gross domestic product (GDP). By June 2024, concerted reform efforts had cut that ratio to 117% of GDP, with projections showing the downward trend continuing and a long-term target of reducing debt to 60% of GDP by 2035.

    A defining feature of the new council is its full operational independence from government, the finance ministry emphasized: the body is non-statutory, not controlled by any executive branch ministry, and does not answer to political leaders. This autonomy is critical to its ability to deliver unbiased assessments, officials noted.

    Finance Minister Ryan Straughn framed the reconstituted council as a critical accountability mechanism at a moment of ongoing global economic instability. “Good governance is not just about making the right decisions, it is about being willing to be held accountable for them,” Straughn said. “No government gets everything right. Governing a small island nation in the middle of a turbulent global economy is serious work. What matters is that there are credible, independent people watching, ready to say so when we fall short and to confirm it when we do not. When they say we have fallen short, we listen, we adjust, and we act. That is how good governance actually works in practice.”

    Straughn also paid tribute to former council chairman Alejandro Werner, the former head of the IMF’s Western Hemisphere Department, who led the body during its initial setup phase. “Alejandro never treated this as a ceremonial role,” Straughn said. “He asked hard questions, he pushed for rigour, and he left the council in better shape than he found it.”

    The work of the Fiscal Council aligns with broader international recognition of Barbados’ commitment to sound fiscal management. A 2024 report from the United States Department of the Treasury, which evaluated IMF lending programs to Barbados and Suriname, noted the council was established to “further demonstrate commitment to sound fiscal management” and added that the body will hold the government accountable for transparent implementation of a fiscal strategy focused on cutting public expenditure, reforming state-owned enterprises, and embedding the Medium-Term Fiscal Strategy into permanent institutional practice.

    With the reconstitution complete, the Fiscal Council of Barbados is now fully operational, the government confirmed.

  • Veteran lawyer backs ‘McKenzie friend’ services amid bar association dispute

    Veteran lawyer backs ‘McKenzie friend’ services amid bar association dispute

    A heated public debate over the role of unlicensed legal supporters known as “McKenzie friends” has gripped Barbados, after the Barbados Bar Association (BBA) issued a rare public warning naming three community and political figures it says are not authorized to offer legal services. The BBA specifically called out Winston Clarke, Colin Roach and Quincy Jones, alerting residents that none of the three have been formally called to the island’s bar and are not entered on the official roll of licensed practicing attorneys. But the BBA’s public notice has sparked sharp pushback from senior legal figures and community leaders, who argue these unlicensed advisers fill a critical gap for low-income Barbadians locked out of the formal legal system.

    Leading the criticism is Alair Shepherd, one of the island’s most prominent senior constitutional counsels, who came forward to defend the work of the named McKenzie friends. In a press briefing held Thursday at the Belleville office of the Unity Workers’ Union (UWU), Shepherd argued that the services these practitioners provide are both lawful and desperately needed. “I just thought somebody from the Bar needed to say to the public that they are filling a badly needed void,” Shepherd told reporters. He emphasized that the work of McKenzie friends is not illegal under common law, and that at least one local court has explicitly endorsed their right to assist self-represented litigants, specifically allowing Clarke to speak on a client’s behalf in a past proceeding that ultimately ended in a successful outcome for the litigant.

    The concept of a McKenzie friend traces its roots to the 1970 English Court of Appeal case *McKenzie v McKenzie*, which established that self-represented litigants have a formal right to receive non-lawyer support and guidance during court proceedings. This principle has been widely adopted across Commonwealth common law jurisdictions, including Barbados, though specifics on allowed activities are left to the discretion of individual trial judges. Under the established framework, it is well within a judge’s power to permit a McKenzie friend to address the court directly, a long-standing precedent that the BBA’s notice failed to acknowledge, Shepherd said.

    Shepherd labeled the BBA’s public naming of the three practitioners “unfortunate”, arguing that the publication of their names in a public warning created the misleading implication that their work was inherently unlawful, when it is actually protected by established common law. For his part, Clarke – one of the three named in the notice – said the BBA failed to extend him even the basic courtesy of an opportunity to respond to prior complaints before going public with the warning. He told reporters that after a complaint was filed over his assistance to a self-represented litigant, BBA leaders never reached out to him for comment, instead publishing his name directly in local newspaper notices.

    Clarke, who has long made clear to all clients that he is not a licensed attorney, said the warning has already caused severe harm to his livelihood, with many community members now incorrectly believing he was misrepresenting himself as a lawyer and pulling away from his services. “Quite a few people have reached out to me saying that from reading that they believed that I was purporting to be an attorney and that they shouldn’t take advice from me about anything,” Clarke said. “I am very upset about this and the way it was done because they should have reached out to me.” He added that he intends to bring the matter before the courts, and will continue providing assistance to low-income residents who cannot afford the cost of a licensed attorney.

    The BBA’s move has also drawn criticism from Caswell Franklyn, leader of the Unity Workers’ Union and a former senator, who has himself provided informal legal guidance to community members for years. Franklyn threw his full support behind Clarke and the other named practitioners, noting that systemic gaps in access to justice leave low-income Barbadians with few affordable options for legal support. “The problem is if you are poor and cannot afford a lawyer you suffer in Barbados and as Mr Shepherd said, Winston and others are providing a need,” Franklyn said. “Almost on a weekly basis I have to see people who do not have the wherewithal to go to a lawyer and I have sent them to Winston.” The debate has shone a bright spotlight on longstanding unmet demand for affordable legal assistance across the island, with advocates pushing for clearer formal recognition of the role McKenzie friends play in expanding access to justice.

  • DLP links rising violence to lack of youth engagement

    DLP links rising violence to lack of youth engagement

    As violent crime continues its upward trajectory across the Caribbean island nation of Barbados, the main opposition Democratic Labour Party (DLP) is pressing the ruling government to revive targeted youth engagement initiatives, warning that disenfranchised young men are increasingly vulnerable to recruitment by criminal gangs and drawn into violent activity. The urgent call comes in the wake of a recent assault on a foreign tourist near popular Carlisle Bay, carried out by a group of young males, that left the visitor hospitalized and raised fresh alarms about crime spreading to key tourism areas.

    Speaking at a DLP headquarters press briefing Thursday, Senator Ryan Walters, chair of the party’s shadow spokesperson cabinet, outlined growing risks as the academic year draws to a close. With no structured summer activities in place for thousands of out-of-school teens, Walters warned that idle time will leave many 16 to 18-year-old young men with little positive outlet for their energy. Left with no organized programming, many will gather on neighborhood blocks, where they face heightened exposure to recruitment by gangs and groups engaged in harmful, illegal activity, he argued. “Government intervention is critical to reverse this trend,” Walters stressed.

    He added that the dual gaps of eliminated national summer programs and restricted access to public community and recreational facilities have exacerbated the island’s crime crisis. The DLP has proposed reviving two proven successful initiatives: the Barbados Defence Force (BDF) sports program, which draws young men into structured athletic activity and keeps them engaged away from criminal circles, and a revamped Advanced Youth Corps that expands opportunities for positive community participation. Walters noted that the country has not hosted full-scale national summer programs for at least two years, a gap that stirred widespread public frustration last year, and remains unaddressed by the current administration.

    Beyond the absence of seasonal programming, Walters pointed to systemic barriers to recreational access that push young people toward idle activity. During a recent community visit two weeks prior to the press conference, local residents told him that public recreational courts shut off their outdoor lighting as early as 6 or 7 p.m. each evening. This means even young people who want to play basketball or road tennis — two extremely popular pastimes for Barbadian youth — are locked out of safe, structured activity after work or school, leaving them with no positive alternative to gathering on neighborhood streets.

    Walters emphasized that violent crime is no longer confined to a small set of high-risk neighborhoods, but has become a pervasive threat across the entire country. “This reality is closer to home than ever before, and our communities are under direct threat,” he said. The island has seen repeated shooting incidents in residential areas dense with young families, including Deacons Farm and The Pine, and even violent attacks within close proximity to local nursery schools, he added. Citing seven years of consistent crime data, Walters noted that the island has posted near-record high murder rates in recent years: 49 murders were recorded in 2024, followed by 48 in 2025. As of mid-2026, the country has already seen 22 homicides, putting the island on pace to average one murder per week for the full year. In total, more than 240 young men have been murdered across Barbados over the past seven years, Walters confirmed.

    DLP’s tourism and international transport spokesperson Rasheed Belgrave added a separate layer of concern, noting that violent crime is now spilling over into the island’s top tourism zones, threatening Barbados’ decades-long brand as a safe, welcoming tropical destination for international visitors. Belgrave pointed to a string of high-profile violent incidents in prime tourism and entertainment districts over recent months: a fatal stabbing on First Street in Holetown, St. James; a triple homicide at Thunder Bay, also in St. James; and a fatal shooting during the popular annual Oistins Fish Festival, a major draw for both tourists and local residents. “These tragic events have planted fear in spaces that are supposed to be safe and welcoming for everyone,” Belgrave said.

    Beyond the immediate damage to public safety, Belgrave warned that persistent violent crime in tourism hubs will have severe cascading impacts on Barbados’ economy, which relies heavily on tourism and hospitality as its primary source of employment and foreign revenue. “These incidents do not just harm our national reputation as a peaceful destination, they undermine the hard work of thousands of law-abiding Barbadians who depend on tourism for their livelihoods,” he explained. If the current wave of violence goes unaddressed, Belgrave warned, it will eventually lead to declining visitor arrivals, eroded public confidence in public safety, and reduced patronage for tourism-linked businesses from both international visitors and local residents. The economic ripple effect would hit every sector tied to tourism, from large hotels and fine dining restaurants to taxi providers, street vendors, local attractions and small hospitality businesses across the island.

    The opposition’s joint call puts new pressure on the ruling administration to respond to rising crime rates and address the underlying socioeconomic drivers of violent gang activity, particularly among unemployed and out-of-school youth.

  • Envoy urges diaspora to invest early as credit union roadshow continues

    Envoy urges diaspora to invest early as credit union roadshow continues

    A collaborative government and credit union outreach effort is tapping into the Barbadian diaspora’s potential to drive domestic economic growth, with the island nation’s top diplomat to the U.S. encouraging overseas-based Barbadians to adopt consistent small-scale investing instead of holding out for large lump sums to put into local opportunities.

    Speaking at a kickoff event for the five-city roadshow hosted at the Barbados Consulate in New York on Tuesday, Ambassador Vic Fernandes told attendees gathered with representatives of Barbados’ three leading credit union entities that the foundational principle of lasting wealth building is shifting from working to earn money to putting existing capital to work to generate passive returns.

    Organized under the framework of the Mobile Knowledge Hub, the roadshow brings together the Barbados Co-operative and Credit Union League Ltd, Barbados Public Workers’ Co-operative Credit Union Limited, and the City of Bridgetown Credit Union (COB). It will travel across multiple U.S. cities to connect with members of the large Barbadian diaspora, with two core goals: encouraging overseas residents to invest through local Barbadian credit unions, and showcasing affordable home ownership opportunities at COB’s Deantown development located in St Silas, St James.

    For prospective home buyers, the residential project offers entry-level properties priced starting just above $350,000, with COB providing up to 100 percent financing for qualified buyers. Beyond real estate, the roadshow also highlights a range of other investment products offered through the island’s credit union network.

    Drawing from his own decades-long experience as an investor, Fernandes shared how early guidance from a late mentor shaped his approach to wealth building. The former Caribbean Broadcasting Corporation broadcaster and manager recalled advice from Ethelred Knight, a long-time senior accountant at the public media outlet, who encouraged him to start investing with just $500 decades ago. Knight pushed back against the common mindset of waiting to accumulate $10,000 or $15,000 before starting to invest, urging that even small sums should be put to work in solid assets rather than sitting idle.

    “He never put me wrong, and most of those investments I made were solid investments,” Fernandes said of his late mentor. Sharing an example of a successful real estate holding in neighboring Saint Lucia, he noted that patience and small early sacrifices compounded over time to generate consistent passive income. “I just sat back over the years, and every quarter I hear ‘cha-ching, cha-ching’. And I look and I see, ‘Whoa, there’s money coming into the account’,” he explained.

    Beyond personal wealth generation, Fernandes challenged attendees to view their investments as a legacy for future generations of Barbadians. “If we can build and make it better for the next generation, I think we will do ourselves a great favour,” he added.

    Following the opening presentations at the New York consulate, ceremonial honors were presented to credit union leadership by Barbados’ Permanent Representative to the United Nations Ambassador Francois Jackman, Ambassador Fernandes, and Deputy Consul General Dr. Lisa Jaggernauth, who organized the cross-country outreach event.

  • Mill disruptions, labour tensions extend difficult sugar season

    Mill disruptions, labour tensions extend difficult sugar season

    Barbados’ Ministry of Agriculture is advancing a second comprehensive restructuring of the country’s sugar cane sector in two years, with core goals centered on boosting crop yields, enhancing product quality, and securing the industry’s long-term economic viability, Agriculture Minister Dr. Shantal Munro-Knight confirmed in a public announcement Thursday.

    The planned strategic “right-sizing” initiative comes amid an unanticipated extension of the current harvesting season, triggered by repeated shutdowns at the Portvale sugar processing facility. While Dr. Munro-Knight noted it remains too premature to definitively state whether the sector will meet its original annual production targets, she emphasized that the government is leveraging this unplanned transition window to lay the groundwork for the industry’s future transformation.

    “I want to reiterate that we have spent considerable time strategically mapping out how to right-size sugar cane production in Barbados,” the minister stated, noting that the careful planning process has been underway for months.

    Following the conclusion of the extended harvest period, the government will convene a major cross-stakeholder forum to launch formal consultations for the restructuring. All discussions at the forum will be rooted in empirical data collected through a series of recent industry-wide assessments, designed to identify key pain points and growth opportunities across the supply chain.

    “Multiple independent and internal studies have been completed to map out current challenges across the sector,” Dr. Munro-Knight explained. “Once this harvest season wraps up, we will bring all relevant parties to the table to hold a deliberate, strategic conversation about the path forward for our sugar cane industry.”

    The core priorities of the upcoming stakeholder consultations will be tackling long-standing production inefficiencies and raising national agricultural standards across the sector. “At the top of our agenda is improving yields, and equally critical, raising the overall quality of our sugar cane crop,” the minister emphasized. “These two factors will define whether our industry can compete successfully in global markets over the long term.”

    Early collaborative action on the restructuring is already underway, Dr. Munro-Knight confirmed. The Barbados Sugar Industry Ltd (BSIL), the leading body representing the country’s traditional sugar cane planters, has already proactively reached out to the ministry to initiate preliminary talks, marking a coordinated joint effort between the public government and private industry stakeholders to modernize the aging sector. “BSIL has contacted me directly to request a meeting to kick off discussions, and we will be scheduling that in the very near term,” the minister said.

    The current harvest disruptions stem from earlier industrial action at the Portvale factory, which first halted grinding operations in mid-March for three full days. Multiple workers represented by the Unity Workers Union (UWU) walked off the job to protest unresolved issues around union recognition and substandard working conditions. While operations resumed after a tentative agreement was reached, intermittent halts have continued in subsequent weeks, driven by a combination of unresolved mechanical failures and lingering labour tensions between union representatives and factory management.

    Local BSIL farmers who supply sugar cane to the Portvale facility have already raised urgent concerns about the cascading effects of repeated shutdowns. Growers have reported significant delays in cane acceptance at the mill, which has disrupted their own harvesting and logistics schedules as the stalemate between the union and factory leadership drags on.

    This upcoming restructuring marks the second major industry shakeup in as many years, and comes just months after a major management transition that reshaped the sector’s operational structure. Since January 15, 2024, all core operations including cultivation, milling, and sales have been managed by two independent cooperatives — Agricultural Business Company Ltd (ABC) and BESCO — following a full transfer of responsibility from the previously state-owned Barbados Agricultural Management Company (BAMC).

  • New onion farmer scores big with first crop

    New onion farmer scores big with first crop

    Against a backdrop of persistent food security challenges and heavy reliance on imported produce across the Caribbean, a first-time onion cultivator in Barbados has delivered an encouraging early win, demonstrating how targeted public agricultural investment can unlock local production potential.

    Shamon O’Garro, founder of Greenhill Family Farms based in St. Lucy, has harvested a remarkably successful maiden crop from just under one acre of farmland, overcoming multiple rookie obstacles and erratic weather conditions that many new growers would struggle to navigate. His success comes directly on the back of a new state-backed post-harvest handling facility launched by the Barbados Agricultural Development and Marketing Corporation (BADMC) in Christ Church, a development built to address long-standing systemic barriers that have crippled local onion production for decades.

    Reflecting on his first four-month growing cycle in an interview with Barbados TODAY, O’Garro expressed surprise at how well his venture turned out, even when factoring in self-inflicted planting errors and industry-wide supply chain disruptions. “My introduction to onion farming has been nothing short of excellence,” he shared. “It came out pretty well, to be honest, especially given all the challenges I faced along the way — I planted the seeds a little too close together, and we dealt with widespread fertilizer shortages. But for a first attempt this year, we did really well.”

    O’Garro’s entry into commercial agriculture was not a random choice: he was driven by a desire to strengthen Barbados’ domestic food economy, inspired by a long-time veteran onion grower who lives next door. “My neighbour, who I really look up to, has grown onions for many years,” he explained. “Seeing the success he’s built, and the respect he’s earned across the farming and market communities, that pushed me to want to be part of this movement, to grow onions right here for Barbados.”

    When asked what the most critical lesson he learned from his first harvest was, O’Garro highlighted the non-technical traits that make a successful smallholder farmer. “Patience. Nothing but patience, and you also have to stay committed,” he said. “So many unexpected things can pop up over the four months it takes to grow an onion crop. You just have to stay steady and patient through it all.”

    For O’Garro, the BADMC’s new facility solves two of the most pressing risks small-scale growers face: post-harvest spoilage and crop loss to theft. “One of my biggest worries when I was growing the onions was leaving them in the field — what if we got hit by theft?” he said. “Now that this facility is here, I don’t have to stress about that anymore. I can just bring my onions here, drop them off, and get them cured properly under controlled conditions.”

    The facility’s long-term impact stretches far beyond providing safe, professional storage for current farmers. BADMC and local agricultural stakeholders expect the infrastructure to create a consistent, dependable supply chain for locally grown onions that will cut the island nation’s dependence on costly imported produce. By cutting post-harvest waste, the facility enables farmers to supply local supermarkets on a steady basis, and in the future, could open doors to selling to larger regional export markets, O’Garro noted.

    Already, O’Garro is planning his next growing cycle and is calling on other current and prospective local farmers to take advantage of this new public resource to expand domestic production. “I want to tell other farmers: get involved. This is really promising,” he urged. “When it’s time for my next harvest, I’ll be first in line to use this amazing new facility in Christ Church.”

  • Opposition Senator Walters denies dismissal from restaurant biz

    Opposition Senator Walters denies dismissal from restaurant biz

    Barbados TODAY has officially confirmed that opposition senator Ryan Walters has ended his professional relationship with Restaurant Associates (Barbados) Ltd, the regional operator of major international fast-food franchises. Walters, a sitting Democratic Labour Party (DLP) representative in Barbados’ Senate, has pushed back strongly against circulating rumors claiming he was dismissed from his post as general manager of the company’s Burger King chain in the country, dismissing the reports as intentionally harmful and malicious. In a statement pushing back on the narrative, the senator stressed that his exit from the role was the result of an amicable, mutual separation between both parties. “It was a voluntary mutual separation. People with a motive would want to interpret that [as a termination]. The malicious people would want to interpret it that way,” Walters said. Background on the regional quick-service restaurant operator shows that Restaurant Associates Limited first took full control of the Burger King franchise in Barbados back in 2013, when it completed a acquisition deal with Williams Industries Inc., which surrendered its license to operate the global fast-food brand in the market. Beyond its Barbados operations, the firm holds franchise rights for a portfolio of popular quick-service brands including Burger King, Popeyes, Little Caesars Pizza and Krispy Kreme across Jamaica and Trinidad as well. A family-owned enterprise with over four decades of industry experience, Restaurant Associates currently operates more than 95 locations across its three Caribbean markets, bringing leading international fast-food concepts to local consumers across the region.