Category: CANA News

A Jamaican parliamentary committee is to examine the potential benefits and challenges of flexible work arrangements, including remote work and flexible hours, as the country responds to mounting global economic pressures.

Chairman of the committee, Alando Terrelonge, said the review comes at a time of increasing global economic uncertainty, geopolitical instability and rising fuel prices, which are affecting businesses, workers and economies worldwide.

‘Jamaica must remain responsive to the changing realities of the global economy. As fuel and transportation costs continue to affect households and businesses, it is important that we examine innovative and practical approaches that can support productivity while improving the everyday lives of our people,’ Terrelonge said in a statement.

He said the review forms part of broader efforts to identify practical measures to enhance productivity, strengthen economic resilience and improve the quality of life of Jamaicans.

According to Terrelonge, the committee intends to engage stakeholders in evidence-based discussions on the opportunities and challenges associated with flexible work arrangements and their potential application in Jamaica.

He said the examination will consider a range of workplace models that have been adopted internationally to improve organisational performance, employee well-being and operational efficiency.

The committee will also seek input from representatives of the public and private sectors, labour organisations, academia and government agencies to ensure that any recommendations are practical, sustainable and informed by local realities.

Terrelonge noted that the COVID-19 pandemic demonstrated that many organisations were able to adapt successfully to alternative work arrangements and said the current economic environment presents an opportunity to assess whether elements of those approaches can continue to provide benefits.

‘The objective is not simply to revisit practices introduced during the pandemic but to determine whether there are sustainable approaches that can help Jamaica become more productive, more competitive, and better prepared for future economic challenges,’ he said.

Terrelonge said the review is ultimately focused on productivity and national competitiveness.

‘If there are ways to help workers spend less time in traffic, reduce transportation costs, improve work-life balance, and simultaneously increase efficiency and output, then it is a discussion worth having,’ he said.

‘Jamaica cannot afford to ignore technological advancements and innovations that may strengthen our economy and improve the daily lives of our citizens.’

The committee is expected to begin consultations in the coming weeks before submitting its findings and recommendations to Parliament.

Guyana has launched a 31-month initiative aimed at developing a sustainable and internationally aligned organ donation and transplantation system as part of efforts to strengthen healthcare services and improve patient outcomes.

The programme, which will run from April 2026 to October 2028, was formally launched during a meeting between Health Minister Dr Frank Anthony and a delegation from the Donation and Transplantation Institute (DTI Foundation), the Human Organ and Tissue Transplant Agency (HOTTA), the Georgetown Public Hospital Corporation (GPHC), and other senior health officials.

Funded by the European Union and coordinated by Expertise France under the Guyana NextHealth programme, the initiative is intended to strengthen institutional, clinical, regulatory and laboratory capacities while improving protocols for living kidney donation.

The project will support the development of an internationally aligned framework for organ donation and transplantation and move Guyana from isolated, ad hoc procedures to a fully integrated and ethically governed national system under local leadership.

The ministry said the initiative is expected to improve access to life-saving transplant services, reduce mortality associated with end-stage organ failure and lessen the need for patients to travel overseas for treatment.

It will also facilitate the transfer of knowledge and international best practices to local healthcare professionals, helping to build the expertise required to manage organ donation and transplantation services independently and sustainably.

The programme forms part of the government’s wider efforts to modernise the healthcare sector and expand access to specialised medical services within Guyana.

Executive Director of Jamaica’s Integrity Commission, Craig Beresford, is urging Caribbean countries to strengthen collaboration and align their anti-corruption laws, warning that fragmented approaches undermine efforts to tackle corruption.

Addressing a press conference at the 12th Annual Commonwealth Caribbean Association of Integrity Commissions and Anti-Corruption Bodies (CCAICAB) Conference here this week, Beresford argued that corruption should be treated as a regional crisis requiring a coordinated response from governments and oversight agencies.

‘The time has come to treat anti-corruption as a regional public good,’ he said, noting that a cohesive approach would strengthen the fight against corruption throughout the region.

Beresford said differences in anti-corruption laws and enforcement mechanisms among Caribbean states can hamper regional efforts, making it more difficult for agencies to combat increasingly sophisticated forms of corruption.

He outlined the Integrity Commission’s approach, which focuses on prevention, detection, investigation and prosecution, and highlighted efforts to advance Jamaica’s National Anti-Corruption Strategy through greater stakeholder engagement and public education.

The Commission is also investing in technology to strengthen its detection capabilities, including big-data analytics, forensic tools and enhanced case-management systems aimed at identifying and investigating suspicious activities more effectively.

He stressed the importance of partnerships with agencies such as Jamaica’s Major Organised Crime and Anti-Corruption Agency (MOCA), saying joint investigations and information-sharing arrangements have helped bolster the country’s anti-corruption efforts.

Meanwhile, MOCA Director-General Colonel Desmond Edwards said advances in technology have transformed the corruption landscape, with fraud, money laundering and other illicit activities increasingly shifting into cyberspace.

He said the trend accelerated during the COVID-19 pandemic as businesses and consumers relied more heavily on digital platforms, prompting MOCA to expand its cyber-forensics capabilities and establish specialised cyber-investigation and data-analysis teams.

Edwards revealed that one investigation required analysts to examine approximately 17 terabytes of data, illustrating the growing complexity and scale of modern corruption probes.

West Indies won the toss and elected to field against Sri Lanka in the second One Day International at Sabina Park here on Saturday.

West Indies have made one change with Amir Jangoo replacing Matthew Forde, while Sri Lanka has also made one change with Eshan Malinga coming in for Asitha Fernando.

WEST INDIES: Shai Hope (captain), John Campbell, Keacy Carty, Amir Jangoo, Sherfane Rutherford, Roston Chase, Justin Greaves, Gudakesh Motie, Alzarri Joseph, Shamar Joseph, Jayden Seales.

SRI LANKA: Kusal Mendis (captain), Pathum Nissanka, Kamindu Mendis, Pavan Rathnayake, Charith Asalanka, Janith Liyanage, Wanindu Hasaranga, Milan Rathnayake, Maheesh Theekshana, Dushmantha Chameera, Eshan Malinga.

Umpires: Allahuddien Paleker, Christopher Taylor.

TV Umpire: Wayne Knights.

Reserve Umpire: Leslie Reifer.

Match Referee: Richie Richardson.

Shania Hayles scored a superb free kick to lead Jamaica’s Reggae Girlz to a 1-0 lead over Panama in their international friendly on Friday.

Playing at the Estadio Rommel Fernandez, Hayles continued her impressive scoring form by netting the game’s lone goal in the 25th minute, her fourth goal in national colours and third in this calendar year.

Jamaica dominated the game in the first half and came close to scoring on a few occasions, the first chance coming in the eighth minute when Kayla McKenna swiveled on the top of the six-yard box but fired just wide of the left post.

They eventually took the lead when they were awarded a free kick from about 22 yards out and Hayles found the far-left corner of the goal, beating goalkeeper Yenith Bailey.

Jody Brown missed an opportunity to double the lead in the 50th minute, when her shot hit the left upright on its way out.

Panama should have equalised in the 87th minute, but goalkeeper Liya Brooks produced a brilliant save to turn a header from Katherine Castillo around the post for a corner.

Jamaica and Ghana have agreed on a series of measures covering health, defence, trade, air services, culture, sports and education following the third session of the Jamaica-Ghana Permanent Joint Commission for Cooperation, the first such meeting between the two countries in 21 years.

Foreign Affairs and Foreign Trade Minister Kamina Johnson Smith said the formal meetings, held in Accra on May 25 and 26, resulted in the signing of cooperation agreements in health and defence, as well as the modernisation of an existing agreement on sports and culture.

‘The visit provided an excellent opportunity to advance and re-energise our cooperation in the areas of health, in the areas of defence, trade, air services, culture, sports and education,’ Johnson Smith said during a post-Cabinet press briefing.

The newly signed health agreement establishes a framework for the recruitment of Ghanaian healthcare workers to Jamaica. It also provides for bilateral cooperation in hospital management, specialised care, digital health, telemedicine, emergency preparedness, research and health surveillance.

On defence cooperation, Johnson Smith said the agreement builds on Ghana’s recent solidarity mission to Jamaica in the aftermath of Hurricane Melissa.

‘The agreement provides for a framework for joint training for maritime security, cyber defence, and cooperation against transnational threats,’ she said.

The minister noted that the model utilised by the Ghana Armed Forces engineering corps during its mission to Jamaica will now serve as a blueprint for the country’s future humanitarian responses.

‘Normally, they donate food or other in kind, or even cash, but this was the first time they had members of their engineering corps on the ground, and… because of its excellent success, it now will serve as a model for their unfolding of this model in other humanitarian responses where required,’ Johnson Smith said.

The two countries also updated and modernised a 2005 agreement on sports and culture, expanding its scope to better reflect contemporary creative industries.

In addition, the Joint Commission agreed to pursue joint ventures in agro-processing, financial technology, logistics, manufacturing, energy and the creative industries as part of efforts to translate South-South cooperation into economic outcomes.

Johnson Smith said Industry, Investment and Commerce Minister Aubyn Hill will lead a Jamaican business delegation to Ghana in July to help advance those objectives. The mission, being organised in partnership with JAMPRO, already has 38 registered Jamaican companies seeking to expand exports and investments.

The countries also pledged to fast-track implementation of the bilateral Air Services Agreement signed in 2018.

‘Ghana, on their side, is working on their airlift, and there will be more to say about that in due course. And we are ultimately examining the opportunity for establishing direct air links and, by extension, increased people-to-people ties between Kingston and Accra, both gateways to our respective regions,’ Johnson Smith said.

Both countries agreed to utilise biennial political consultations and technical implementation teams to monitor progress on the initiatives.

The next meeting of the Permanent Joint Commission will be held in Kingston as Jamaica and Ghana move towards the 50th anniversary of diplomatic relations in 2028.

With the 2026 Atlantic hurricane season now underway, the Pan American Health Organisation (PAHO) is urging countries to review contingency plans and strengthen preparedness measures to safeguard health systems from hurricanes, floods, landslides, and other extreme weather events.

While forecasts suggest the 2026 season, which started June 1, may be less active than in recent years, PAHO warned on Friday that even a single powerful storm can significantly disrupt health services and pose serious risks to public health.

‘Extreme hydrometeorological events remain a constant threat across the Americas,’ said Leonardo Hernández, Head of PAHO’s Emergency Operations Unit. ‘Preparing health systems before an emergency occurs is essential to protect lives, maintain access to critical services, and reduce the impact on the most vulnerable populations.’

Beyond infrastructure damage and disruptions to essential services, PAHO said hurricanes and flooding can increase the risk of waterborne diseases, vector-borne diseases, respiratory illnesses, injuries, and mental health impacts.

It said health emergencies caused by extreme weather events can also place additional pressure on already stretched health systems.

PAHO is encouraging Caribbean and other countries to ensure that health facilities have updated contingency plans, trained personnel, and coordination mechanisms that can support the continuity and rapid recovery of essential health services following an emergency.

The organisation also recommends strengthening surveillance systems and community-based monitoring to facilitate the early detection of health risks associated with hydrometeorological events.

PAHO pointed to forecasts from the US National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration (NOAA), which states that the 2026 Atlantic hurricane season is expected to be below normal, partly due to the development of El Niño conditions.

‘El Niño, characterized by warmer-than-average sea surface temperatures in the Pacific Ocean, typically suppresses tropical cyclone formation in the Atlantic basin,’ PAHO said.

However, it said El Niño can also alter rainfall and temperature patterns across the Americas, including the Caribbean, increasing the likelihood of droughts, heavy rainfall, flooding, and landslides in different subregions.

PAHO said that the need for preparedness is particularly important given the current epidemiological situation in the Americas, including ongoing outbreaks of measles and yellow fever, as well as the need to maintain readiness for emerging and re-emerging public health threats.

It said simultaneous emergencies can strain health systems and reduce their ability to respond effectively to sudden increases in demand during and after extreme weather events.

To support countries in their preparedness efforts, PAHO said it will convene a virtual regional readiness meeting on June 11 with representatives from ministries of health and national disaster risk management agencies across the Americas.

PAHO said the meeting will focus on strengthening protocols and procedures related to health service management, epidemiological surveillance, and emergency operations, while incorporating lessons learned from previous emergencies.

The meeting will also support implementation of the World Health Organisation (WHO) National Health Emergency Preparedness, Alert and Response Framework (2025), ‘which promotes a multi-hazard approach based on five core systems: collaborative surveillance, community protection, safe and scalable care, access to countermeasures, and emergency coordination’, PAHO said.

Guyana says it is confident the International Court of Justice (ICJ) will uphold the validity of the 1899 Arbitral Award and the country’s border with Venezuela after the completion of all submissions in the historic case, leaving only the court’s final judgement outstanding.

Prime Minister Brigadier (Ret’d) Mark Phillips, delivering a statement in the National Assembly on Friday, said all submissions in the case had now been completed, bringing to an end eight years of proceedings before the world’s highest judicial body.

‘Guyana is more confident than ever that the Court will uphold the legal validity of the 1899 Arbitral Award and the finality and permanence of the international boundary between Guyana and Venezuela,’ Phillips told legislators.

The prime minister said the oral hearings concluded on May 11 in The Hague, leaving only the court’s deliberations and final judgement to be issued.

While no date has yet been announced for the ruling, Phillips said ICJ judgements are typically delivered within six to eight months of the conclusion of oral hearings, suggesting a decision could come between November 2026 and January 2027.

He stressed that the court’s ruling will be legally binding on both Guyana and Venezuela under the United Nations Charter and the Statute of the International Court of Justice.

‘The very fact that this case reached the ICJ and that the written and oral phases of the proceedings were carried out to their completion represents a triumph for the rule of law and the rules-based international order,’ he said.

Phillips reiterated Guyana’s longstanding position that disputes between states should be resolved peacefully and in accordance with international law, rather than through threats or the use of force.

The prime minister said Guyana’s legal team presented compelling arguments during the recent hearings, exposing what he described as the lack of merit in Venezuela’s claims.

Phillips noted that the court’s final ruling is expected to bring closure to a controversy that began in 1962 when Venezuela challenged the validity of the 1899 Arbitral Award after more than six decades of recognising and respecting the established boundary.

‘The oral hearings established that Venezuela made this very belated protest precisely at the time Guyana was nearing its independence and when British troops would be departing,’ he said.

Since then, Guyana has successfully defended the court’s jurisdiction against repeated challenges by Venezuela.

The Donald Trump administration has imposed additional sanctions on Cuban military instrumentalities and other actors responsible for what it described as ‘subversive anti-American activities.’

‘Today, pursuant to President Trump’s Executive Order (E.O.) 14404 of May 1, 2026, ‘Imposing Sanctions on Those Responsible for Repression in Cuba and for Threats to United States National Security and Foreign Policy’, I am designating five Cuban entities and five individuals who sustain the regime’s malicious campaign to subvert and destabilise US national security,’ said US Secretary of State Marco Rubio in a statement on Thursday. ‘These sanctions target the Cuban regime’s wide-ranging and violent radical action network and the actors who implement and fund it.

‘Beginning with Fidel Castro’s programme to globalise the so-called Marxist revolution, Havana has served as a forward operating base for global irregular warfare against US interests, recruiting, training, and equipping violent left-wing militants across our region – including Marxist terrorist groups in the United States – with the ultimate goal of undermining US national security,’ added Rubio, the son of Cuban immigrants residing in Miami.

He claimed that the entities and individuals he designated on Thursday ‘direct or fund the regime and its efforts to mobilise its radical revolutionary movements in the United States and around the world’.

Rubio said these ‘targets’ include President of Cuba Miguel Díaz-Canel Bermudez, Castro family member and representative Alejandro Castro Espín, and ‘members of their networks who advance the regime’s threats to US national security.’

The US Secretary of State said he is also ‘continuing to crack down on the military cartel that has consolidated all economic power in Cuba for the benefit of a small circle of regime elites and their overseas hidden bank accounts.’

He said while he has already designated Grupo de Administración Empresarial (GAESA), ‘the primary holding company for the military’s strangle-hold on the economy’, he is sanctioning the Ministry of the Revolutionary Armed Forces of Cuba (MINFAR).

As a result, Rubio said MINFAR’s majority holdings and subsidiaries, many of which are identified on the US Department of State’s Cuba Restricted List (CRL), are ‘considered blocked’.

‘Anyone dealing with entities owned 50 percent or more by GAESA, MINFAR, or the previously designated Ministry of the Interior risk exposure to potential US sanctions action,’ he warned.

Additionally, Rubio designated a Cuban government gold mining joint venture that, he claimed, ‘continues to enrich the Cuban military and elite at the expense of its people’.

He said the designees are ‘associated with developing, implementing, and funding the Cuban regime’s violent revolutionary network.

They comprise Ministry of the Revolutionary Armed Forces of Cuba  (MINFAR), the government ministry in charge of the Cuban military; Cuban Institute of Friendship with the Peoples (ICAP), ‘a political subdivision, agency, or instrumentality of the Government of Cuba’; Amistur Cuba SA, which is ‘owned, controlled, or directed by, or having acted or purported to act for or on behalf of, directly or indirectly, ICAP’; and Committees for the Defense of the Revolution (CDR), which is ‘owned, controlled, or directed by, or having acted or purported to act for or on behalf of, directly or indirectly, the Government of Cuba’.

In addition, Rubio designed Cuban Government-aligned elites and family members.

They are President Miguel Diaz-Canel Bermudez for ‘being or having been a leader, official, senior executive officer, or member of the board of directors of the Government of Cuba’; Lis Cuesta Peraza for ‘being an adult family member of a person designated pursuant to this order’; Manuel Anido Cuesta for ‘being an adult family member of a person designated pursuant to this order’; Alejandro Castro Espin for ‘being owned, controlled, or directed by, or having acted or purported to act for or on behalf of, directly or indirectly, the Government of Cuba; and Raul Alejandro Castro Calis, the son Alejandro Castro Espin, for ‘being an adult family member of a person designated pursuant to this order’.

Rubio also said that Minera la Victoria SA, a Cuban gold mining joint venture created by Australia-based entity Antilles Gold Ltd and Cuban SOE Geominera SA, is designated for ‘operating in or having operated in the metals and mining sector of the Cuban economy’.

He said the State Department’s actions are being taken pursuant to Executive Order (E.O.) 14404, which authorizes sweeping sanctions on Cuba, including persons who support the ‘Cuban regime’s security apparatus and those responsible for repression in Cuba and threats to US national security’.

Rubio said these actions also further both E.O. 14380, ‘Addressing Threats to the United States by the Government of Cuba’ and National Security Presidential Memorandum 5 (NSPM-5), ‘which direct the Executive Branch to improve human rights, encourage the rule of law, foster free markets and free enterprise, and promote democracy in Cuba’.

Three Jamaicans are among 19 persons who have been arrested and charged in a major United States drug trafficking investigation targeting two alleged multi-state drug trafficking organisations. They have been identified by the US Department of Justice as Rohan Lamante Broadie, also known as ‘Glama G’, 53, Marvin A. Taaff, 39, and Traci-Ann Simone Ward, 41.

US authorities said the defendants are accused of participating in conspiracies to distribute controlled substances, including cocaine, fentanyl, and methamphetamine.

Federal prosecutors said the investigation focused on alleged drug trafficking operations spanning several states, including Maryland, West Virginia, and South Carolina.

The charges were announced earlier this week by the US Attorney’s Office for the Northern District of West Virginia following a joint law enforcement operation involving multiple federal, state, and local agencies.

Pointing to two filed indictments, US authorities allege that two drug trafficking operations were selling large quantities of cocaine and cocaine base in Berkeley and Jefferson counties over two years.

It is further alleged that Jamaicans Rohan Broadie and Marvin Taaff, along with others, led one of the operations, which involved 15 defendants and used multiple residences to store and distribute drugs.

US authorities further allege that members of the group possessed firearms to support their trafficking activities and handled large amounts of cash in drug proceeds.

It is also being alleged that the other organisation worked together to distribute more than 500 grams of cocaine and quantities of cocaine base in and around Jefferson County, West Virginia.

US authorities reported that during the investigation, law enforcement searched multiple homes and storage units, seizing tens of thousands of dollars, cocaine, and luxury items believed to have been purchased with drug proceeds.

Meanwhile, court records show that Taaff has a previous federal drug trafficking conviction.

In 2016, he was sentenced to more than 11 years in prison after pleading guilty to conspiracy to distribute cocaine, crack cocaine, and marijuana.

Federal authorities at the time described him as a leader of a drug trafficking organisation operating in Maryland.