Category: CANA News

West Indies elected to bowl after winning the toss against Nepal in the third T20I of the Unity Cup here at the Sharjah Cricket Stadium on Tuesday.

WEST INDIES Playing XI:

Kyle Mayers, Karima Gore, Ackeem Auguste, Keacy Carty, Amir Jangoo (wk), Jason Holder, Fabian Allen, Akeal Hosein (Capt), Navin Bidaisee, Jediah Blades, Ramon Simmonds

Simmonds and Gore replace Zishan Motara and Jewel Andrew

Debuts: Karima Gore

NEPAL Playing XI:

Rohit Paudel (Capt), Kushal Bhurtel, Kushal Malla, Sundeep Jora, Aarif Sheikh, Gulsan Jha, Lokesh Bam (wk), Mohammad Aadil Alam, Sompal Kami, Karan KC, Shahab Alam

Umpires: Buddhi Pradhan, Vinay Kumar

TV Umpire: Akbat Ali

Reserve Umpire: Durga Subedi

Match Referee: Narayanan Kutty

In a scathing indictment of the current state of West Indies cricket, former Trinidad and Tobago Prime Minister and ex-CARICOM cricket committee head Dr Keith Rowley has called for a complete and immediate ‘reset,’ labelling the team’s historic 90-run capitulation to Nepal a ‘disaster’ that demands radical action.

Former Trinidad and Tobago Prime Minister and ex-CARICOM cricket committee head Dr Keith Rowley,

Taking to social media in the wake of the humiliating defeat, Dr Rowley expressed emotions shared by millions across the Caribbean: fear, anger, and profound sadness.

He stated that the loss, coming so soon after the team’s 27 all-out collapse against Australia in July, is a ‘gut punch’ from which the sport’s governing body cannot simply shrug off.

‘I fear that someone in Cricket West Indies will try to rationalise this and find ‘positives’!’ Rowley wrote, pre-empting the kind of post-match analysis that has often followed such failures.

His solution was blunt and immediate: ‘My God, keep the bowlers and fire ALL the batsmen, at least for now! We want COMMITMENT and guts and grit and, of course, some talent. We must START OVER!’

The former leader placed the blame squarely on the current administrative structure, identifying the controversial ‘one coach, one selector’ experiment as a primary cause of the team’s decline.

‘Clearly, it has failed spectacularly. It must end NOW!’ he declared, demanding a return to an ‘accountable development model which is based on performance, improvement and progress.’

Rowley warned that patience without tangible results is a ‘giant waste of time’ and that the situation is too dire for minor adjustments.

‘No scalpel will suffice here. A comprehensive RESET is called for,’ he asserted, insisting on the establishment of minimum performance standards.

In his most dramatic prescription for recovery, Dr Rowley issued a clarion call to Cricket West Indies to enlist the help of the region’s most revered legends.

‘Assemble a small team of successful individuals and assign them a role and some authority. Call in Lloyd, Lara, Roberts, Holding, and Ambrose to begin with and start a fishing program with a purpose,’ he urged, referencing icons Clive Lloyd, Brian Lara, Andy Roberts, Michael Holding, and Curtly Ambrose.

‘Given this disaster,’ he concluded, ‘Cricket West Indies needs to CALL IN THE CAVALRY!!!’

The post ended with a stark warning to the administrators, reminding them of their ultimate accountability: ‘You need to talk to Caribbean people; otherwise, they will reject and eject you eventually.’

The President of the Grenada Union of Teachers (GUT), Jude Bartholomew, is urging the government to resume the payment of allowances that were removed from principals of both primary and secondary schools after the government enforced the latest collective bargain for teachers.

‘The Grenada Union of Teachers in the last negotiating cycle, we negotiated a benefit for principals, nobody wanted to be principal because principals were the lowest paid, the pay was even lower than teachers who were in the system,’ Bartholomew told a news conference.

GUT president Jude Bartholomew

‘We successfully negotiated to bring up the pay and grade of principals, the primary schools principals from H to I and secondary schools principals from I to J and what the principals are saying, even while they receive payment of the new grade, somehow in the Ministry of Education have gotten rid of the allowances,’ he added.

‘The principals are saying it is unjust, it’s unfair,’ said Bartholomew who recommended that the government restore the allowances in recognition of World Teachers Day which will be commemorated globally on October 5.

He said besides resuming the payment of allowances to principals, the union also wants the teachers who are acting as principals to receive some form of payment for their service to the education system.

Bartholomew called on the government to pay the seniority allowance to teachers who complete teachers colleges. He said that payment has been in a collective agreement clause over the years and administrations have failed to make this payment to those who qualify for it.

‘Only one set of people who received that, once you finish college as a qualified teacher and you pass three appraisals you should be receiving the seniority allowance and it has not been paid across administrations.it should not stop until Government has a new pay and grade for teachers,’ he said.

The Belize government is moving ahead with the establishment of a gun and gang court with Home Affairs Minister, Kareem Musa, saying that the acts of gun violence that occurred over the last weekend ‘are unacceptable’.

‘First, I extend my sincere condolences to the families of those who lost their loved ones over the weekend. We grieve with you, and we are committed to holding those responsible accountable.

Home Affairs Minister, Kareen Musa

‘The events of this weekend reinforce what we already know. Belize needs a dedicated response to the crisis of gun and gang violence. That is why our government has advanced the amendment to create a specialized gun and gang court,’ Musa said.

He said that the court is designed to process gun-related and gang-related cases ‘swiftly, firmly, and within the law.

‘Once passed, we intend to increase the penalties for first-time offenders from five years to 10 years. And for second-time offenders, that penalty will extend from 15 to 20 years. The court will focus solely on these matters, removing them from an already overburdened magistracy,’ Musa said.

Police said among those killed over the last wekend were 25-year-old Gaston Barrow, who was killed in an ambush that left another man, Hance Card, seriously injured, while two women escaped unharmed. Forty-three-year-old Moses Almendarez was also gunned down and 34-year Keyon Cleland was stabbed during a dispute with a store owner

Acting Commissioner of Police, Bart Jones, told reporters that the preliminary investigations into the more than half a dozen shootings, including near a school, that led to multiple fatalities, were gang related.

Jones in offering his condolences to families that lost loved ones because of the violent acts, warned criminals that the law will come down hard and is assuring the public that officers will respect the rights of law-abiding citizens.

‘I want to express the departments concerns to the many family or Belizeans who may have been or still shaken by the level of violence that occurred within their respective communities. This is something that the department cannot countenance and we will put decisive action to address this situation,’ Jones told a news conference.

‘As we are meeting now, we have commanders in the next room. We are meeting to strategise on how we are going to arrest this situation. We are going to see in the coming days targeted intelligence-led operation combined with our efforts with the Leadership Intervention Unit to try and mitigate or immediate some of the actions or the causes of some of these violence in the streets.’

Jones said that the police will also be looking at the investigative files as it relates to the gang offenses to see if charges can be preferred against some of these gang leaders who law enforcement believe ‘are behind this senseless violence.

‘The department will not stand to and allow citizen security to be further eroded and we will certainly, as I said, take decisive actions to address the situation. We, aforehand, want to beg on the public’s patience and support because some of our actions may to some degree impact on the lives of law-abiding citizens in terms of our checkpoints, in terms of our searches, but we will at best try to minimize the lessening effects of the non-participating public in this kind of acts of violence.

‘To the criminals, we say that we will be decipher after you with maintaining the, within the confines of the law, of course. And so we want you to remember as well that these acts of violence does not also put your family at risk because the risk of retaliation. So if you think about taking up the gun, you have to remember as well that your families can be impacted by the violence in retaliation.’

But Jones said he does not think that time has come as yet for a sate of emergency (SoE) to be declared in Belize.

‘Well, the issue of SOE, while many may think that it is the, from the department, the department does not do SoE proclamations. And so we will continue to do what we are doing and improve where we can.

‘As it is often said, the greatest room is the room for improvement. So we’ll be improving where we can to address the situation. The matter of SOE, if and when that comes, then we will deal with that accordingly.’

Jones said that having spoken to the commanders and other stakeholders ‘I am firm of the view that we are not there yet in terms of an SOE. So we will try to see what we can do to arrest the situation’.

West Indies defeated Nepal by 10 wickets in the third and final T20I of the Unity Cup here at the Sharjah Cricket Stadium on Tuesday.

Scores

NEPAL 122 in 19.5 overs (Khushal Bhurtel 39, Sandeep Jora 14; Ramon Simmonds 4-15, Jediah Blades 2-20).

WEST INDIES 123-0 in 12.2 overs (Amir Jangoo 74 not out, Akeem Auguste 41 not out)

*Nepal won the 3-match series 2-1

The Dominica government says public servants including teachers are to receive millions of dollars (One EC dollar=US$0.37 cents) in backpay following the conclusion of salary negotiations.

Prime Minister Roosevelt Skerrit said the negotiations were concluded last month with the Dominica Public Service Union (DPSU) and the Dominica Association of Teachers(DAT) for the period 2021-2024 and 2024-2027.

He said that the agreed-upon salary measures have come info effect starting this September and that public officers will receive an eight per cent salary increase, three per cent in 2024/25, two per cent in 2025/26, and three per cent in 2026/27 over the 2024-2027 period. Skerrit said in addition, back pay totaling EC$2,974,064.23 will be disbursed by November 2025.

He said effective this month teachers will receive salary increases on the same schedule, along with new allowances to support their work.

Skerrit said that the government has committed to the payment of a new resource allowance, and they will receive back pay amounting to EC$1,051,589.57, scheduled for disbursement in October 2025.

He said effective July 2025, the Police Welfare Association (PWA) had also agreed to an eight per cent increase over the 2024-27 Triennium.

According to Prime Minister Skerrit, officers across the board are receiving a monthly risk allowance of EC$250 from July 2025 along with financial support to the PWA. He said back pay of EC$465,334 was also paid to the officers in May, 2025.

‘Our public officers and our teachers are the backbone of national development, and we are happy to have reached this agreement with both parties,’ Skerrit told reporters, adding ‘I thank the leadership of the DPSU and the DAT for their constructive engagement throughout this process, and I salute all public officers and teachers for their service to country’.

Meanwhile, trade unions here have launched a trade union congress (DTUC) under the theme ‘Consolidating Trade Union Power through Unity and Solidarity’

The TUC brings together the DPSU, the DAT, the Dominica Amalgamated Workers Union (DAWU) and Waterfront and Allied Workers Union (WAWU).

Director of the International Labour Organization (ILO), Joni T. Musabayana (DBL), said that the launch of the DTUC ‘is no small achievement,’ saying ‘it is the beginning of a new chapter for the workers of Dominica.

‘This step strengthens workers’ representation in the country. It also strengthens your voice in the Caribbean, and in the wider international labour movement.’.

‘Unity is not only about standing together. It is also about being effective. No single union, however strong, can on its own shape the national agenda. A united congress gives you a stronger seat at the table of social dialogue. It allows you to speak with one voice in defence of workers’ rights. It makes it possible to influence policy, to negotiate better conditions, and to stand firm against injustice.’

The DTUC is headed by Steve Michael Joseph of the DPSU.

With the highly anticipated Test series against India on the horizon, West Indies vice-captain Jomel Warrican has expressed a quiet confidence in his team’s preparations, emphasising a focus on the present moment and the hard work being put in on the training grounds in Ahmedabad.

West Indies vice-captain Jomel Warrican

The Caribbean squad has been acclimatising for the past couple of days, and Warrican, a left-arm spinner who could play a pivotal role in the subcontinental conditions, believes the intensive camp has been beneficial.

‘It’s given us a lot of confidence, me as a left-arm spinner,’ Warrican stated.

While he acknowledged the past success of left-arm spinners against the Indian batting line-up, he was quick to dismiss any notion of relying on history.

‘It’s impressive that left-arm spinners have done well against India, but at the same time, you can’t live too much in the past. You have to be in the present and just focus on the job at hand.’

The team’s preparation has been thorough, featuring two demanding all-day sessions designed to simulate the rigours of a Test match. According to Warrican, every department is being fine-tuned.

‘The batsmen have been doing a lot of drills, whether it be sweeping, playing off the back foot, for our defensive or lofty shot, just backing the game plan,’ he explained.

The bowlers, too, are leaving no stone unturned. ‘The spinners or the pacers, or should I say the bowlers, have been hitting their lengths on target very consistently, doing a lot of spot bowling as well, and then taking that into bowling against the batsmen.’

Underpinning the intense physical work is a clear mental philosophy instilled by the coaching staff. The message is to play with freedom and enjoyment.

‘The coaches have really instilled in us to be free and back your game plans and enjoy your cricket,’ Warrican shared. ‘Any time you step on a field, don’t be tense. Don’t put too much pressure on yourself. Just try and enjoy the moment and live in the moment. Just have some fun while you’re playing, but still be aware of what’s happening around you.’

The Central Bank of the Bahamas (CBB) says preliminary indicators are that the domestic economy grew at a moderated paced up through the month August, relative to the year earlier, as performance indicators continued to trend closer to their expected medium-term potential.

‘Notably, tourism output rose at a slower pace, as a result of more constrained activity in the high value-added stopover segment, although the cruise sector earning growth remained buoyant,’ the CBB said in the publication of its Monthly Economic and Financial Developments (MEFD) August 2025 report.

It said the unemployment rate increased for the first quarter of 2025, vis-à-vis the final quarter of 2024, owing in part to a decrease in employed persons, and a rise in the labour force participation rate.

The CBB said that monetary trends for August were marked by a contraction in banking sector liquidity, as the growth in domestic credit outpaced the rise in the deposit base. Further, external reserves decreased, underpinned by net foreign currency outflows through both the public and private sectors.

The Central Bank said that indications are that growth in tourism sector earnings slowed in comparison to 2024, owing to accommodation capacity constraints in the stopover segment. ‘Nonetheless, the cruise segment continued to register year-to-date robust gains and attract foreign investments in the development of onshore private destinations, despite a slowdown in the month of July.’

Official data provided by the Ministry of Tourism showed that for the month of July, total arrivals decreased by 3.3 per cent to 1.1 million visitors, vis-à-vis the same 2024 period. Specifically, sea passengers reduced by 3.8 per cent to 0.9 million. In addition, air traffic declined by 0.9 per cent to 0.2 million.

The CBB said that recent data from the Nassau Airport Development Company Limited (NAD) revealed that total departures, reduced by three per cent to 150,366 in August, relative to the same period last year.

In particular, US departures declined by 5.1 per cent to 130,911. In an offset, non-US departures rose by 14.5 per cent to 19,455.

The CBB said that in the short-term vacation rental market, data provided by AirDNA indicated that in August, total room nights sold rose by one per cent to 55,790.

‘However, given increased inventories, the occupancy rates for both entire place and hotel comparable listings declined to 36.9 per cent and 37. per cent, respectively, from 38.8 per cent and 42.1 per cent in the previous year.

‘The average daily room rate (ADR) for entire place listings increased by 11.8 per cent to US$510.78, compared to the prior year. Likewise, the average daily room rate (ADR) for hotel comparable listings moved higher by 1.1 per cen to US$173.47, relative to the comparative 2024 period.’

The CBB said that based on provisional quarterly estimates compiled by the Bahamas National Statistical Institute, labour market conditions deteriorated over the first quarter of 2025 as against the final quarter of 2024, owing in part to a rise in the number of unemployed persons, and a hike in the labour force participation rate.

In particular, the number of employed persons decreased to 214,725 in the first three months of 2025, relative to 218,240 in previous quarter, although marginally higher than the 213,585 persons recorded in the first quarter of 2024.

‘Correspondingly, the unemployment rate rose to 10.8 per cent in the first quarter from nine per cent in the prior quarter, and 8.7 per cent in the comparable period of 2024. Further, the youth unemployment rate increased by 2.9 percentage points to 20.9 per cent in the review quarter, as compared to same quarter of the preceding year.’

In August, the reduction in external reserves moderated to US$74.7 million from the US$92.4 million in the previous year, for an ending balance of US$2,888 million.

The CBB said underlying this outturn, the Central Bank’s net sale to commercial banks tapered to US$52.3 million, from US$75.4 million a year earlier. Similarly, commercial banks’ net foreign currency outflow to their customers declined to US$53.9 million, from US$85.8 million in the same period of 2024.

Meanwhile, the Central Bank’s net foreign currency outflow to the public sector widened to US$31.4 million, from US$23.9 million in the preceding year.

The Central Bank said that as economic indicators converge closer to their medium-term growth potential, the domestic economy is forecasted to expand at a slower pace in 2025, compared to 2024, mainly in line with tourism sector performance.

‘Notably, performance in the stopover segment-which is partially linked to movements in the US-sourced market-is expected to register moderated gains, against the backdrop of accommodation constraints and more subdued consumer confidence in the US. However, the cruise sector is expected to sustain robust growth-albeit a less dominant weight in earnings estimates.

‘Further, new and ongoing foreign investment projects, with a significant focus on onshore cruise attractions, are expected to provide impetus to the construction sector. Notwithstanding this, downside risks to the outlook have risen, due to increased tariffs on international trade, and uncertainties related to the major economies’ trade policies, which have the potential to slow tourism demand, and constrain global growth.’

The CBB said that other exogenous risks to the outlook remain relevant, including the direct and indirect effects of heightened geopolitical tensions and elevated global oil prices.

The President of the Barbados-based Caribbean Development Bank (CDB), Daniel Bet, Tuesday, called for a region where education is a launchpad for innovation, resilience, and global leadership.

Addressing the 2025 Regional Symposium and Policy Dialogue on Transforming Education,’ Best recalled the vision of the late St. Lucian Nobel Laureate, Sir Arthur Lewis, Nobel Laureate, that the fundamental cure for poverty is not money but knowledge.

Best told the three-day symposium being held under the theme ‘Stronger Together: Empowering Parents as Partners in Caribbean Education,’ that Sir Arthur was right then, as he is now.

‘Sir Arthur recognised that education is the deciding factor between a Caribbean that lingers on the margins of the global economy and a Caribbean that leads, as innovators, creators, and builders of prosperity,’ Best told delegates attending the symposium that has brought together key regional stakeholders to underscore the vital role of parents and guardians in the education system.

The symposium is organised by the CDB in collaboration with the Barbados Ministry of Education Transformation and other partners, and Best said that over the last four decades, global gross domestic product per capita has nearly doubled, and the share of humanity living in extreme poverty has decreased from 44 per cent in 1981 to just nine per cent in 2022.

He said research shows that education accounted for half of global economic growth since 1980, and two-thirds of income gains among the world’s poorest people.

‘The takeaway is unmistakable; education is the most powerful driver of inclusive growth known to humanity,’ best said, adding that for generations, Caribbean parents and grandparents sacrificed, stretched scarce resources, walked miles, and leaned on their communities to ensure their children could enter a classroom.

‘Many of us here today are direct beneficiaries of their determination. Our region’s progress rests squarely on their belief in the power of learning. Now, it is our turn to honor their sacrifices by transforming our systems to meet the challenges of our time. Because, colleagues, the reality is sobering’.

The CDB president said that fewer than one in five adults in the Caribbean hold a university degree with girls dominating tertiary education even as this success is not matched in leadership roles or pay equity.

He said boys were exiting the education pipeline too early, with lasting effects on their well -being and society.

Best said that this year, 44 per cent of the candidates who sat the Caribbean Examination Council’s (CXC) Caribbean Secondary Education Certificate (CSEC) passed five or more subjects, including Mathematics and English, ‘still very much below what we can consider satisfactory.

‘While we continue to produce brilliant minds, too many migrate in search of opportunity, with some countries losing more than 70 per cent of their university graduates. My friends, weak outcomes block the dreams of families and constrain our region’s growth. They erode social cohesion and deepen cycles of inequality.’

Best said he was envisioning a transformed Caribbean region where education is a launchpad for innovation, resilience, and global leadership.

‘A Caribbean where lifelong learning is guaranteed through skills certificates and reskilling pathways. young innovators harness AI and robotics to design platforms that transform the way the world learns, heals, trades, and connects, universities and TVET institutions fuel breakthroughs in renewable energy, climate resilience, and digital entrepreneurship.

‘Our hubs of trade are models of sustainability, and our scientists lead in marine biotechnology and clean energy. Tourism is redefined as sustainable, agriculture is transformed by agro-tech, and our blue economy becomes the Silicon Valley of the Seas, (and) most importantly, where our brightest young people no longer feel they must leave the Caribbean to succeed.’

He said that this is transformation needed urgently and it begins with how investments are made in education development today.

Best also urged parents and first teachers to instill values and build resilience in the transformation, noting that ‘education is a journey that begins long before the first school bell.

‘Parents are the first teachers, the ones who instill values, build resilience, and sustain learning at home. Every child’s success story is a testament to the unseen labor of a mother or guardian, the faith of a father, and the resilience of grandparents who held onto the promise of education against all odds.

‘Policymakers can craft a vision and strategy, but it is parents who bring these principles to life, making them an indispensable part of the education system. One cannot succeed without the other.

‘In our region, it has always taken a village to succeed. It will take the whole Caribbean village, including parents, teachers, communities, policymakers, and the diaspora, to raise this generation into prosperity. That is why parents must have a seat at the table of transformation.’

Best said that through stronger Parent-Teacher Associations, regional alliances, and community networks, ‘we are embedding parents’ voices alongside policymakers in decisions that will shape Caribbean education for decades to come.

‘At this critical juncture, we have a unique opportunity to strengthen the entire education ecosystem by vigorously advancing the participation of parents. Over the next few days, I invite us to rethink how we engage, empower, parents as partners with formal roles, clear access points, and enshrined rights in shaping the future of education.’

He said to guide the conversations, he is proposing what he termed ‘The Big Four Agenda for Parents’ which focuses on parents as partners, protecting every child’s right to learn, preparing children for the future, and passing on a legacy of opportunity.

The CDB president said that the region’s premier financial institution ‘will be right there alongside you, our policymakers, parents, students, educators, and partners.

‘Under our Rebirth Vision, we are designing a new education policy and strategy that will bolster the education ecosystem and further strengthen parent-teacher partnerships, building on our track record to ensure the basics, so that by Grade 3, every Caribbean child can read, count, think critically, and navigate the digital world with confidence, cultivate future skills for renewable energy, resilient construction, agro-tech, health tech, the creative economy, and the digital frontier.’

He said the project will also allow for linking education to jobs and lifelong learning through micro-credentials, modular qualifications, and demand-driven competency-based skills.

A 16-year-old boy will re-appear in court on December 10 after he had been charged on Monday with the deaths of two men and injury to five other people during a mass shooting in August.

The teenager appeared before Chief Magistrate Roberto Reckley on two counts of murder and five counts of attempted murder following the August 9 shooting in New Providence resulting in the deaths of Eden Louis and Markentash Saintil and injuries to Hayden Breus, Trish Louis, Widny Saintil, Karib Rodgers and Gregory Jean-Charles.

Polic said that the victims were outside a home when two gunmen emerged from a vehicle and shot them.

The accused was not required to enter pleas to the charges and was remanded into custody. He will return to court in December for the presentation of a voluntary bill of indictment.