Category: CANA News

The Press Association of Jamaica (PAJ) Monday called for an account after Radio Jamaica News correspondent Henry Shirley was excluded from a St Thomas Municipal Corporation committee meeting on October 7.

In a statement, the PAJ described the situation as a direct blow to public transparency, adding that it is ‘particularly troubled by the ultra-aggressive conduct of the Jamaica Labour Party’s John Lee during the exchange and the decision by committee chairman and Deputy Mayor, the JLP’s Michael McLeod, to order Mr Shirley to leave.’

A 10-minute recording of the exchange was captured by the journalist, with the PAJ describing the conduct of Lee, who is the Councillor for the Yallahs Division, as ‘well below the standard of civility and professionalism expected of an elected representative’.

PAJ president Tyrone Reid said that while he recognises that the committee chairpersons must maintain order and that legitimate concerns about confidentiality and privacy deserve consideration, objections must be addressed through ‘lawful, proportionate procedures, not by resorting to conduct that intimidates journalists or arbitrarily restricts access to public proceedings.

‘Disagreement with media coverage cannot justify hostility towards a journalist performing his professional duties,’ he added.

The PAJ also called for urgent clarification from the Ministry of Local Government and Community Development on the rules governing media access to municipal council and committee meetings.

‘We also call on the Ministry to issue clear written guidance to all municipal corporations and on the St Thomas Municipal Corporation to explain the legal and procedural basis for Mr. Shirley’s removal.’

The PAJ said that public institutions exist to serve the people and that ‘their proceedings must not be shielded from scrutiny merely because an official is uncomfortable with the presence of the press.

‘We expect the Ministry and the corporation to investigate this incident, address any conduct found to be inappropriate and take steps to prevent a recurrence,’ the PAJ said, adding press freedom is not a privilege granted at the discretion of public officials. It is an essential safeguard of democratic accountability.’

The PAJ said it was releasing the audio recording in the interest of transparency and accountability ‘so that the public can hear the exchange and make its own assessment of whether the conduct of the elected representatives and public officials involved meets the standards expected of those entrusted with public office.

‘Where a recording exists, the public should not be left to rely solely on competing accounts. Let the evidence speak for itself,’ Reid said.

The heavy lift vessel of the Netherlands-based Heerema Marine Contractors has commenced a significant offshore installation campaign offshore Trinidad, involving the transportation and installation of two offshore platform jackets and topsides for two separate energy operators.

The Energy Chamber of Trinidad and Tobago said that having already started offshore operations on the first platform, he vessel, Sleipnir, will execute both installation campaigns consecutively, maximising efficiency through a seamless back-to-back schedule.

It said completion of the overall campaign is anticipated around the beginning of November.

‘As one of the world’s most capable heavy lift vessels, Sleipnir brings unparalleled lifting capacity and advanced installation capabilities to the region, supporting the safe and efficient development of Trinidad’s offshore energy infrastructure,’ the Energy Chamber said.

It said that a key contributor to the success of both projects has been local fabrication specialist TOFCO, which played an instrumental role in the fabrication and loadout of the jackets.

‘The collaboration highlights the strength of local industry participation and the value of combining international offshore construction expertise with Trinidad and Tobago’s established fabrication capabilities.’

The Energy Chamber said that the campaign underscores continued investment in the country’s offshore sector while demonstrating Heerema Marine Contractors’ commitment to delivering complex offshore construction projects safely, efficiently, and in close partnership with local stakeholders.

Meanwhile, EnerMech has announced a contract award from Subsea7 to deliver pre-commissioning services for the Ginger subsea development project in Trinidad and Tobago. The Energy Chamber said EnerMech is providing pipeline and subsea pre-commissioning activities to support the development’s offshore infrastructure.

It said drawing on its established presence in Trinidad and Tobago, EnerMech is executing the scope through a combination of local expertise, experienced personnel and equipment already positioned within the Caribbean region.

This approach supports efficient delivery, maximizes local participation and provides a responsive delivery model for the customer.

Under the contract, EnerMech is delivering a comprehensive pre-commissioning package covering pipeline and subsea testing, flushing, hydrotesting, water filling, leak testing and commissioning support activities required to prepare the field’s subsea production system for safe operation. The scope supports both installation and commissioning phases of the development.

‘As offshore developments become increasingly sophisticated, the ability to provide integrated pre-commissioning and commissioning services is critical to maintaining schedules, reducing interfaces and supporting successful project delivery. Our teams continue to demonstrate that capability on major developments around the world,’ said Charles ‘Chuck’ Davison, Jr., EnerMech chief executive officer.

‘We are proud to support Subsea7 on the Ginger subsea development project and look forward to contributing to its successful execution.’

Vice President, Caribbean at EnerMech, Darrel Sookdeo, said, the company’s established presence in Trinidad and Tobago brings significant advantages to projects of this scale.

‘By combining local knowledge and experienced personnel with equipment already available within the region, we can support our customers with a responsive and efficient delivery model.

‘This contract highlights the strength of the capability we have built in-country and our commitment to supporting local content wherever possible. Working alongside our global pipeline and subsea specialists, our Caribbean team is helping deliver a critical phase of the development.

‘We are proud to be supporting a project that showcases the expertise available within the region while creating opportunities for local participation and in-country delivery,’ added Sookdeo

The inaugural Farmers’ Conference began here on Monday with President Irfaan Ali indicating that an estimated 30 per cent of the applications submitted to the Guyana Development Bank (GDB) since its launch last week, are related to the agricultural sector.

‘If there is one indication as to how the policy direction is leading to a new wave of excitement, a new wave in agriculture, is this fact, that almost 30 per cent of all of the applications so far in the Development Bank is in the agriculture sector, almost 30 per cent,’ Ali said, adding that the percentage is a reflection of the growing interest in the agriculture sector, which accounts for six per cent of the country’s Gross Domestic Product (GDP), and one-fifth of the non-oil GDP.

Ali said that the agriculture sector had seen a decline in private investments in the past, with many large and medium sized farmers scaling back their operations. But now he believes there is a change.

‘Today, not only have we brought back production and instilled confidence in the system, but we are nurturing a new generation of young Guyanese who see a future in agriculture, who see a future in investing in agriculture.’

President Ali said to attract further investment to the agriculture sector; the government will be working with the local commercial banks to make additional concessions available to those in the sector.

‘We have brought all of the commercial banks together and we are currently negotiating with them to offer the same type of incentives that we offer for low-income housing to the banks for loans to agriculture so that those who want to go into more medium, large-scale production can get those loans at afford rates.’

President said Republic Bank has already agreed to set aside resources for agricultural loans at preferential rates.

‘Already, we have the commitment from Republic Bank that they are going to set aside resources for agricultural loans at a preferential rate, and we are negotiating that rate, which I hope can be announced even before the end of the conference, at the end of this week,’ President Ali said.

Demerara Bank is also offering special loans to poultry farms, and the Government is in talks with the financial institution to offer additional incentives to farmers.

‘That is what we do every single day for farmers. We work hard. We try to bring the private sector along. We improve the financial sector so that we can tackle the challenges farmers face in a multidimensional way,’ he said.

President Ali also pointed to the International Monetary Fund’s (IMF) latest report on Guyana. It found that agriculture has grown by an average of 10 per cent a year since 2022 and now accounts for six per cent of GDP, or one-fifth of non-oil GDP. He said that growth is a direct result of government investment, subsidies and policies to support farmers.

‘Once we have people interested in the production of goods, especially in the agricultural sector, then what the IMF report is saying about us today will continue to expand and continue to grow,’ President Ali said.

The conference forms part of Agriculture Month being held under the theme ‘Innovate, Nourish, Grow: Building a Strong and Sustainable Guyana.’

Agriculture Minister Zulfikar Mustapha said the agriculture sector remains critical to the country’s economy, and remains on par with the country’s rapid growth and development.

He urged the farmers to network and capitalize on the existing opportunities to further advance the sector.

‘Today is about something bigger. Today is about contributing to a national action plan. Today is about helping to shape the policies and programmes that will help to support thousands of farmers, create opportunities for future generations, and strengthen Guyana’s role as a leader in regional food security,’ he said.

Mustapha explained that on the regional stage, Guyana is leading CARICOM’s push towards food security through the expansion of the agriculture sector with the intention of reducing the import bill

The Antigua and Barbuda government is reiterating that funding and support arrangements must be put in place even as several Caribbean Community (CARICOM) countries have agreed to accept third-country national (TCN) deportees from the United States.

Antigua and Barbuda is among several CARICOM countries that have either signed or are still in the process of negotiating with Washington on the migration policy and speaking on his weekly radio programme, Prime Minister Gaston Browne said that negotiations were nearing completion, but compensation and arrangements with an international organisation would be addressed separately. ‘The issue of compensation, they asked us to negotiate a separate agreement with them rather than put it in the TCN itself,’ he told radio listeners, adding that the government wanted to avoid accepting people before securing the resources needed to support them.

‘My understanding is that some countries may have accepted individuals before making arrangements … and may not have gotten the support funding. We want to make sure that we don’t make that mistake.’

Most of the CARICOM countries have publicly indicated that they have reached agreements with the International Organization for Migration (IOM) to manage and collaborate on these services, which include offering transferees choices between voluntary repatriation to their home countries or local integration

Listeners were told that no first transfer would occur until the necessary arrangement with an agreed international organisation had been concluded and become operational.

Under the text, the United States would be expected to fund a competent international organisation, mutually acceptable to both governments, to provide and coordinate services for transferred individuals.

The organisation’s participation would depend on its own mandate, policies and risk assessment, along with a separate arrangement with Antigua and Barbuda.

Suriname has completed the country’s first conversion of external debt into Surinamese dollars, transforming an estimated US$150 million Inter-American Development Bank (IDB) floating-rate loan into a fixed-rate loan in Surinamese dollars.

The IDB said that the transaction will help Suriname shield its debt-service payments from foreign exchange rate and interest rate volatility through 2044.

Under the IDB’s Flexible Financing Facility, borrowers can change the currency or interest-rate basis of a loan after approval, depending on market conditions. These options can apply to outstanding balances or future disbursements.

The IDB said that as part of the operation, the government activated the currency and interest-rate conversion options available under the IDB’s Flexible Financing Facility. To support the conversion, the currency exchange fund (TCX) provided the IDB with an 18-year non-deliverable cross-currency swap, a long-term financial hedge that protects the transaction from future exchange-rate movements, allowing the loan to remain effectively denominated in Surinamese dollars through 2044.

‘Completing our first external debt conversion into Surinamese dollars, and our first currency conversion in nearly three decades, represents a major strategic milestone for Suriname,’ said Charlene Soentik, Administrator-General of the Suriname Debt Management Office,

Minister of Finance and Planning of Suriname, Adelien Wijnerman, said converting US$150 million of foreign debt into fixed Surinamese dollars allows Suriname to shield its public finances from exchange rate and interest rate volatility through 2044.

‘This transaction stabilizes our debt-service obligations and ensures greater fiscal predictability as we manage our national budget and pursue sustainable economic growth’, said Wijnerman.

IDB Vice President for Finance and Administration, Gabriel Yorio, said Suriname has taken an important step to better protect its public finances from foreign-exchange fluctuations while fostering the development of its local-currency market.

‘Through the Client Financial Hub, the IDB is bringing together its financial capabilities to help countries make fuller use of the conversion and risk-management options available in their loan agreements, and develop solutions that respond to their broader financial needs.

‘This is how we can strengthen debt sustainability and increase the impact of development financing,’ Yorio added.

The IDB said that the transaction is part of is efforts to help member countries strengthen public debt management through access to sophisticated risk-management instruments.

‘In Suriname’s case, the operation enabled access to a long-term local-currency hedge that private markets cannot currently provide. The country’s financial market lacks both long-term local-currency benchmarks and hedging instruments to manage fluctuations between the US dollar and the Surinamese dollar, making the transaction a significant step toward reducing debt-service volatility’ the IDB added.

The Director General o the Organisation of Eastern Caribbean States (OECS), Dr. Didacus Jules, Monday said that while the tourism sector remains one of the single largest earner in most Caribbean economies, ‘we must be honest about how much of its promise remains unrealised’.

In a congratulatory message to Antigua and Barbuda’s Tourism Minister, Charles ‘Max’ Fernandez, on his election as chair of the Barbados-based Caribbean Tourism Organization (CTO) Council of Ministers and Commissioners of Tourism, Jules noted that ‘too large a share of every visitor dollar leaves our shores.

Antigua and Barbuda’s Tourism Minister, Charles ‘Max’ Fernandez.

‘Too few of our farmers, fishers, artisans, creatives and small entrepreneurs are woven into the tourism value chain. And too many of our communities live beside the industry without sharing fully in its rewards’ said Jules.

Fernandez was elected at the CTO’s annual general meeting n Guyana last week and succeeds the Barbados Tourism Minister Ian Gooding-Edghill, while Colin James, the chief executive officer of the Antigua and Barbuda Tourism Authority, assumes the chairmanship of the CTO Board of Directors.

‘This is a proud moment for Antigua and Barbuda and for the entire OECS family. Minister Fernandez brings to the chair long experience at the helm of one of the region’s most dynamic tourism economies, and a record of steady, practical leadership. The confidence that his Caribbean colleagues have placed in him is well deserved.’

Jules said that Fernandez was assuming the position at a demanding time for the industry pointing aso to the scale of the challenges ahead:

He said that the climate crisis threatens the reefs, beaches and coastal infrastructure on which the Caribbean product rests, while stronger storms, sargassum influxes and rising insurance and energy costs test the resilience of every destination.

In addition, the benefits of tourism must reach further into societies, through local ownership, stronger linkages with agriculture and the creative industries, decent work, and real opportunity for our young people.

Jules said that the region must earn more from each visitor, not simply count more arrivals, adding that this requires reliable and affordable air and sea connectivity, especially within the Caribbean, greater retention of earnings, and better data to guide policy and investment.

‘These are immense challenges, and none of our countries can meet them alone. They demand a Caribbean that negotiates together, markets together and plans together. That is precisely the purpose of the CTO, and it is why the quality of its leadership matters so much at this moment.’

‘I am confident that under Minister Fernandez’s leadership the CTO will be equal to the challenges of these times. The OECS Commission stands ready to work with him, with Secretary-General Dona Regis-Prosper and with the CTO membership to build a tourism industry that is more sustainable, more inclusive and more rewarding for the people of our region,’ Jules added.

Jules also congratulated St. Kitts and Nevis on being elected a vice chair for the CARICOM countries, the British Virgin Islands, as the ice chair for the British Overseas Territories, and Saint-Martin, elected vice chair for the French-speaking territories.

He said Saint-Martin’s election paves the way for a more dynamic engagement with the Francophone Associate Members of the OECS in the shared work of building Caribbean tourism.

The OECS groups the islands of Antigua and Barbuda, Dominica, Grenada, St. Lucia, St. Vincent and the Grenadines, St. Kitts and Nevis, Montserrat, Anguilla and the British Virgin Islands.

The Pan American Health Organization (PAHO) is urging countries to strengthen vaccination and outbreak preparedness ahead of religious mass gatherings, warning that increased travel could accelerate measles transmission across the Americas.

In a regional risk assessment released Friday, PAHO said the risk of spread remains very high amid continuing outbreaks, vaccination gaps.

The Pan American Health Organization (PAHO) is urging countries to strengthen vaccination and outbreak preparedness ahead of religious mass gatherings, warning that increased travel could accelerate measles transmission across the Americas.

In a regional risk assessment released Friday, PAHO said the risk of spread remains very high amid continuing outbreaks, vaccination gaps and cases appearing in new geographic areas.

The agency reported 55,792 confirmed cases and 77 deaths across 17 countries and territories between January 4 and October 3, 2026 – 4.8 times the number of cases recorded during the corresponding period last year.

Guatemala recorded the most cases, followed by Mexico, the United States, Peru and Canada. Together, the five countries accounted for 99.5 per cent of confirmed infections.

Cases were also reported in Argentina, Belize, Bolivia, Bonaire, Brazil, Chile, Colombia, Costa Rica, El Salvador, Honduras, Panama and Uruguay.

‘Measles is highly contagious, and we are seeing the consequences of gaps in vaccination coverage across the Americas,’ PAHO Director Dr Jarbas Barbosa said.

He urged parents to protect their children with the measles, mumps and rubella (MMR) vaccine and called on governments to close immunity gaps, strengthen surveillance and respond rapidly to infections.

PAHO said rising global cases increase the likelihood of infected travellers introducing the virus into communities with low immunity. People can transmit measles before its characteristic rash appears, potentially exposing others unknowingly.

Large gatherings and travel between countries and communities can further facilitate transmission, the agency warned.

‘Anyone planning to attend a large gathering should check that they are protected against measles,’ said Dr Daniel Salas, PAHO’s executive manager of Comprehensive Immunization.

He said domestic travellers could also face exposure when people from different regions gather. People aged six months and older without evidence of vaccination should receive a measles-rubella vaccine dose before travelling or attending a gathering, preferably at least two weeks beforehand, he added.

Regional vaccination coverage in 2025 reached 88 per cent for the first MMR dose and 85 per cent for the second, below the 95 per cent level PAHO said is needed to prevent outbreaks.

An estimated 1.6 million children in the Americas received no measles vaccine dose last year.

PAHO attributed the gaps to setbacks accumulated during the COVID-19 pandemic, vaccine hesitancy, difficulties delivering immunisation services and barriers to healthcare access, particularly among Indigenous peoples, migrants and displaced populations.

The agency said it is helping countries strengthen vaccination, laboratory surveillance, genomic monitoring, contact tracing and outbreak response.

With outbreaks continuing and major gatherings approaching, PAHO urged governments to expand access to vaccination while maintaining the capacity to detect and respond rapidly to cases.

The following is the CANANews and SPORTS Schedule for Sunday , October 11, 2026

GEORGETOWN – Guyana’s accommodation capacity is projected to reach nearly 6,000 rooms by the end of 2026, with another 15 hotels expected to open in subsequent years as investment expands the country’s tourism sector.

KINGSTON – Medical specialists are urging Jamaicans to learn their sickle cell status before starting families, with nearly 20,000 people estimated to be living with the inherited blood disorder and about one in 10 carrying the sickle cell trait.

GEORGETOWN – Veteran politician, educator and Working People’s Alliance (WPA) co-founder Eusi Kwayana has died at the age of 101, the party announced in a statement issued on Sunday, jointly with his family.

TORTOLA – Premier Dr Natalio Wheatley has defended increased charter fees that have drawn complaints from operators in the neighbouring US Virgin Islands, saying the charges apply to commercial activity and are not aimed specifically at USVI vessels.

SPORTS

INDORE – India were dismissed for 223 in 20 overs after being sent in by West Indies in the third T20I at the Holkar Cricket Stadium here on Sunday.

Scoreboard of the third T20I between India and West Indies at the Holkar Cricket Stadium here on Sunday.

INDIA

+Sanju Samson c Pooran b Joseph 3

Abhishek Sharma c and b Springer 69

Ishan Kishan st+Hope b Chase 37

*Shreyas Iyer lbw b Chase 1

Tilak Varma run out 28

Naman Dhir c Springer b Motie 10

Nitish Kumar Reddy c +Hope b Paul 21

Axar Patel run out 20

Arshdeep Singh lbw b Springer 11

Prince Yadav not out 13

Mayank Yadav b Joseph 0

Extras (b5, lb1, w4) 10

TOTAL (all out; 20 overs) 223

Fall of wickets: 1-7, 2-115, 3-117, 4-124, 5-135, 6-169, 7-194, 8-202, 9-210, 10-223.

Bowling: Chase 4-0-38-2, Joseph 4-0-54-2, Paul 4-0-38-1, Springer 4-0-50-2, Motie 4-0-37-1.

WEST INDIES

*+Shai Hope b Singh 5

Kamil Pooran c Singh b Dhir 42

Shimron Hetmyer b Dhir 43

Rovman Powell c Kishan b Patel 5

Sherfane Rutherford b Singh 32

Quentin Sampson c Varma b Reddy 21

Keemo Paul c Varma b Singh 10

Shamar Springer not out 35

Roston Chase not out 5

Extras (b1, lb2, nb1, w7) 11

TOTAL (seven wickets; 20 overs) 209

Did not bat: Shamar Joseph, Gudakesh Motie.

Fall of wickets: 1-7, 2-67, 3-82, 4-105, 5-151, 6-169, 7-174.

Bowling: M Yadav 4-0-34-0, Singh 4-0-44-3, P Yadav 4-0-37-0, Dhir 3-0-39-2, Patel 3-0-33-1, Reddy 2-0-19-1.

Toss: West Indies elected to field.

Result: India won by 14 runs to lead the five-match series 2-1.

Player-of-the-Match: Arshdeep Singh.

Umpires: Jayaraman Madanagopal, Virender Sharma.

TV Umpire: Nitin Menon

Reserve Umpire: Rohan Pandit.

Match Referee: Prakash Bhatt.