Category: CANA News

Dominica Tuesday called for a new financing mechanisms that allow countries Dominica to move faster as well as developing partnerships that allow the energy transition to become an engine of economic development and growth.

Addressing the 81st session of the United Nations General Assembly (UNGA), President Sylvanie Burton said Dominica’s ambition is not merely to generate clean electricity, but to use clean energy to transform its economy, adding that the international community has become very good at recognising vulnerability.

‘We have become less successful at financing the transformation that vulnerability requires. Too often, the cycle is predictable. A disaster occurs, infrastructure is destroyed, and economic activity collapses.

‘We then mobilise resources to rebuild what was lost, often through borrowing that substantially increases debt to rebuild what we could have made more resilient from the outset.’

Burton said that this is not an efficient financial model insisting that the best time to build resilience is before disaster.

‘The best time to finance transformation is before crisis and the value of resilience should be measured not only by what we build, but by what we prevent from being destroyed,’ Burton said, telling the UNGA that Dominica does not come to the United Nations asking to be treated as a victim of vulnerability.

‘We come asking to be recognised as a partner in transformation. We must finance potential, not merely manage vulnerability. And this is not only about Dominica. It is about whether the global financial system is capable of recognising a different development model.

‘A model in which resilience is an investment. Nature is an asset. Connectivity is productive infrastructure. Clean energy is economic opportunity and prevention is financially smarter than reconstruction.

‘That is the proposition we place before this assembly. It is time that the international financial architecture evolves,’ Burton said, as Dominica on Tuesday observed the ninth anniversary of the passage of Hurricane Maria that destroyed more than 200 per cent of the her country’s gross domestic product (GDP) when it slammed into the country with winds in excess of 160 miles per hour.

Burton said ghat Dominica joins its voice with those countries that continue to advocate for the use of multidimensional vulnerability index (MDI) ‘as a practical and fair basis in determining access to development finance.

The MDI is a United Nations tool that measures a country’s structural vulnerability and lack of resilience to external shocks across economic, environmental, and social dimensions.

‘We call for greater and easier access to concessional financing and grants for adaptation. We call for stronger disaster clauses in sovereign debt instruments. We call for financing mechanisms that can be activated rapidly when disasters strike and we call for a fundamental shift in the way the international community views investment in resilience.’

Burton said that every dollar spent preventing the destruction of a road, a hospital, a school, or a water system is an investment in future development.

‘Dominica is prepared to serve as a demonstration country for this approach. We are prepared to work with international partners to show what happens when finance is designed around transformation rather than vulnerability.’

She said Dominica has long spoken of becoming the world’s first climate resilient nation and that the island is now taking this ambition further.

‘We invite the international community to partner with us in making Dominica a living laboratory for climate resilience and sustainable development. Bring us the technology. Bring us the research. Bring us the investment. Bring us the innovation and together, let us demonstrate what a resilient small island economy can look like.’

She said resilient housing, smart and renewable energy systems, climate smart agriculture, modern water management, digital public services, resilient infrastructure, nature based adaptation, and new industries powered by clean energy.

‘This should not be a relationship based simply on donor and recipient. It should be a relationship based on partnership, innovation, and shared learning. Dominica has lessons to learn from the world, but we also have lessons to offer the world.’

Burton said that transformation is ultimately about people and that a resilient economy must create opportunity for young people.

‘Young people want to inherit a country that is not merely protected from disasters, but one in which they can build businesses, work in new industries, participate in the global economy, and build meaningful lives at home.

‘That is why our investment in energy, connectivity, digital transformation, tourism, agriculture, and resilience must ultimately converge around one objective, creating opportunities.’

But she said that the challenges extend beyond climate and finance, noting that the UNGA was taking place at a time when war continues to devastate communities and ruin lives. ‘When humanitarian crises are multiplying. When international law is under pressure. When trust between nations is strained. We cannot speak about development without speaking about peace.

‘Without peace, development is tenuous. We believe in the principles of the United Nations Charter. We believe in respecting the sovereignty and territorial integrity of states. We believe in the peaceful settlement of international disputes.

‘We believe in dialogue and we believe that international law must apply equally to all nations and must be applied consistently,’ Burton said, adding that small states must never become collateral damage in the competition among larger powers.

She said that the security of a small nation is no less important than the security of a large one.

‘The credibility of multilateralism depends on fairness, but it also depends on delivery. The true test of multilateralism is not whether we can agree in this room. It is whether our agreements can transform lives outside of this room,’ she said, adding that this is why she challenged this UNGA.

The Dominica Head of State said that the world does not need another generation of promises that remain unfulfilled, adding ‘it needs delivery, it needs institutions that respond faster.

‘It needs financing that reaches vulnerable countries more efficiently. It needs partnerships that produce measurable results and it needs a multilateral system that people can believe in again.’

Burton said that for Dominica, restoring trust means closing the gap between international commitments and the lived experience of Dominicans.

‘It means ensuring that when the world says it supports climate resilience, resources actually reach the communities that need them. It means ensuring that when we call for sustainable development, financing mechanisms do not make sustainability harder to achieve.

‘And it means recognising that the challenges confronting small island states are not marginal issues. They are an early warning of the challenges that the wider world will increasingly face.’

Burton said that the United Nations must remain a place where every country, large or small, can believe that its voice matters.

‘But the United Nations must also remain a place where ambition can become action,’ she said, adding ‘we must also confront the serious challenges facing the sustainable development goals (SDGs).

‘The SDGs represented a promise that by 2030, we would make meaningful progress in ending poverty and hunger, improving health and education, advancing equality, protecting our planet, and building more peaceful and inclusive societies.

‘Today, that promise is at risk. Conflict, climate change, debt distress, inflation, and persistent inequality have pushed the goals further out of reach for many developing countries. But this is not the time to abandon the 2030 agenda. It is the time to renew our commitment and concentrate on delivering results that people can see and feel in their daily lives. ‘

She said Dominica has incorporated the SDGs as priorities in its national resilience development strategy 2030, climate resilience and recovery plan, and the wider development agenda.

The St, Vincent and the Grenadines government has issued a warning to school students who engage in public brawls and other criminal behaviour.

National Security Minister, St. Clair Leacock, said disorderly students will face firm police action and that there will be no tolerance for street violence involving schoolchildren.

Leacock, who is also the Acting Prime Minister, told a Church service marking the 118th anniversary of the St. Vincent Grammar School on Monday made reference to a recent viral video of schoolgirls fighting in the streets of the capital, Kingstown.

He said such behaviour would be treated as a matter for law enforcement, not just school discipline.

‘If you are a student and you’re on the streets and you’re fighting, I’ll ask the police to go to the school, get your names, and you’ll be disciplined. It will not happen under my watch.

‘Let me be emphatic about it, because I know the ears of the media houses are cocked. If you are a school student, behave like a school student. You go on the streets and your behaviour is criminal, the police will be advised to deal firmly and swiftly with you. I’m not second-guessing that; not second-guessing that,’ Leacock added.

He said that the state could not afford to be lenient in the face of rising concerns about youth involvement in crime noting that the issue had become part of a wider national security and social order agenda.

Leacock said that St. Vincent and the Grenadines had invested too much in its young people for them to be allowed to squander their opportunities through violent or criminal conduct.

‘Your parents, your grandparents, have invested far too much in you, and the expectations of this nation-state are as such that we have no room for criminal behaviour, bullying in our schools,’ said Leacock urging schools to ‘take a lead role in setting the examples for our St. Vincent and the Grenadines.’

Leacock said that, in his capacity as minister of national security, the Commissioner of Police briefed him last week on a group of students arrested in connection with serious offences and that at least seven students had been held ‘for firearms and for burglaries and for assaults’.

The minister said that while the students were allowed to sit their exams before being prosecuted, he suggested that this represented a measure of leniency that may not always be repeated.

He said that those students should ‘consider themselves lucky’ and insisted that, in principle, they ‘should have been prosecuted summarily for breaking the law’.

Leacock drew a clear line between the expectations placed on students within the school system and the standards of behaviour required of them when they step into public spaces.

‘If you are a school student, behave like a school student. You go on the streets, and your behaviour is criminal. The police will be advised to deal firmly and swiftly with you’.

St. Vincent and the Grenadines saw an upsurge in crime and delinquency in schools last year, with some students identifying themselves as members of the 6ixx and 7even gangs.

The United Nations Committee on Enforced Disappearances says more than 10 years after Belize acceded to the International Convention on the Protection of All Persons from Enforced Disappearance , it has not placed it within domestic legislation.

The Committee last weekend ended its consideration of additional information on the report of Belize with Committee experts while welcoming that there was no waiting period before a missing-person report could be filed, questions were being raised on when Belize planned to domesticate the Convention.

The experts said that there was also indication as to when training for law enforcement officials on enforced disappearance would take place.

Committee Chairperson and Country Rapporteur, Juan Pablo Albán Alencastro, welcomed the fact that there was no waiting period before a missing-person report could be filed, saying this was very good and was not the case in all parts of the world.

But Committee member, Albán Alencastro noted that Belize had acceded to the Convention in 2015 but, more than 10 years later, the Convention had still not been domesticated and enforced disappearance had not been incorporated as an autonomous offence into domestic legislation.

He asked what concrete national plan was currently in place for the full domestication and implementation of the Convention?

Alencastro also said Belize had acknowledged that the human rights training provided so far included neither enforced disappearance specifically nor the Convention.

He asked the Belize delegation to indicate whether a concrete programme had now been developed to remedy this gap, with a timetable for implementation and would such training be mandatory and recurrent, and cover all persons who may be involved in the custody or treatment of persons deprived of liberty?

Introducing the report, Harold Young, Belize’s Permanent Representative of Belize to the United Nations Office here, said Belize was a small, multicultural and multilingual country of approximately 440,000 people and the only English-speaking country in Central America.

He said although Belize had no recorded cases of enforced disappearance, there were clear procedures for responding to cases of missing persons.

Responding to questions, the delegation said the Cabinet had approved the domestication of the Convention in June 2025 and tasked the Attorney General’s Ministry with drafting the relevant legislative provisions and conducting a review of all other legislation which would have an impact on the Convention’s implementation. This process would commence in June next year.

On training, the delegation said human rights formed part of the training given to police officers, including new cadets. However, there was scope to provide additional training on enforced disappearance and the Convention.

The domestication procedure was an opportunity to provide this training to all persons exercising authority over persons deprived of their liberty. This training would be an important preventative tool.

Young concluded by expressing sincere gratitude for the dialogue and that as the country celebrates its 45th year of political independence from Britain it remains committed to strengthening existing safeguards and measures required to give full effect to the Convention and looked forward to receiving the Committee’s concluding observations.

A Guyanese national, who was deported from the United States last weekend, appeared in a Magistrate’s Court on Monday charged with the murder of a sex male worker 1 years ago.

A police statement said that Kanand Ojha had been charged with the murder of Noel ‘Nephi’ Luther on July 22, 2015.

He was detained by US authorities on September 8, 2025 and arrested by local police on his arrival at the Eugene F. Correia ‘Ogle’ International Airport last Friday.

Ojha was not required to enter a plea to the charge after it had been read out to him by Chief Magistrate Judy Latchman at the Georgetown Magistrates’ Court. He has since been remanded into custody until October 12, 2026.9.22

Ojha was arrested in Queens, New York as a result of continuous collaboration and cooperation between the Guyana government through the Guyana Police Force, the Ministry of Home Affairs and the Attorney General’s Chambers and authorities in the U.S. under the Hemispheric Network for Legal Cooperation n Criminal Matters.

A wanted bulletin had been issued for Ojha in July 2019 in relation to the killing of Luther, who was shot once to his chest during a confrontation with the accused and his friend Ron ‘Andel’ Forde on July 22, 2015

Forde was sentenced to 20 years in prison in June, 2017 after pleading guilty to the lesser count of manslaughter for the killing of Luther.

Guyana is advancing plans for its first gas-focused development in the Stabroek Block, with the government reviewing the Longtail Project’s Field Development Plan and production licence application, according to the recently released 2026 Mid-Year Report.

It said unlike the Gas-to-Energy (GTE) project in Wales, Longtail would involve development of a new offshore petroleum field centred heavily on gas production. The GTE project uses associated gas already produced alongside crude oil from existing Liza developments and transports it to Wales for processing and electricity generation.

Longtail, however, is proposed as the first Stabroek Block development in which natural gas would form a central part of the offshore development itself. While the project is also expected to produce oil, it represents a shift toward the commercial development of Guyana’s larger gas resources.

According to the Mid-Year Report, Longtail’s Field Development Plan was submitted in March and is being assessed alongside its application for a production licence. It said startup is planned for 2030, and Longtail is expected to become the first development in the Stabroek Block centred primarily on natural gas.

Longtail has previously been identified as the proposed eighth development in the offshore Stabroek Block. During the budget presentation the government said that the project was undergoing regulatory review and, once approved, would form part of the next phase of offshore production.

A second gas-rich development, Haimara, is also advancing through the regulatory processes. It is the ninth development in the Stabroek Block.

An application for environmental authorisation for the Haimara project was submitted during the first half of 2026, and public scoping meetings were completed as part of the environmental review process.

Like Longtail, the Haimara development is expected to focus heavily on natural gas and condensate resources. Production is envisaged for the early 2030s.

Guyana’s existing offshore developments have largely been designed around oil production, although associated gas is also produced and managed as part of those operations. Longtail would represent a different phase, with natural gas forming a central part of the proposed development.

The government has also been pursuing the use of natural gas through the GTE project. The first gas turbine under that project is expected to come online by the end of 2026, with the remaining generating units scheduled to follow under the project’s implementation timetable.

Meanwhile, petroleum development in the Stabroek Block has expanded rapidly. The Hammerhead project became the seventh offshore development after its Field Development Plan and production licence were approved in September 2025.

The following is the CANANews and SPOTS Schedule for Tuesday, September 22, 2026.

UNITED NATIONS- Leaders from Dominica, Suriname and Trinidad and Tobago to address the United Nations General Assembly (UNGA).

NEW YORK – Barbados Prime MInister Mia Mottley says Caribbean and African countries have a duty to create their own trade routes, to be able to ensure that they have the credit ratings that are credible, independent, and fair, as opposed to ones that are going to rate countries with similar circumstances but different geographies.

CASTRIES – The main opposition United Workers Party (UWP) has called for an independent investigation into the operations of the St. Lucia Social Development Fund (SSDF) and has submitted to Prime Minister Phillip J Pierre draft terms of reference (ToR) to guide and direct the proposed independent investigation.

KINGSTOWN – The St, Vincent and the Grenadines government has issued a warning to school students who engage in public brawls and other criminal behaviour.

GEORGETOWN – Guyana is advancing plans for its first gas-focused development in the Stabroek Block, with the government reviewing the Longtail Project’s Field Development Plan and production licence application, according to the recently released 2026 Mid-Year Report.

SPORTS:

BRIDGETOWN – Despite falling agonisingly short in their bid to capture their first Caribbean Premier League (CPL) title, captain of the Jamaica Kingsmen Rovman Powell said he is still proud of the team’s performance.

The Provisional Electoral Council (CEP) says as of Monday, it has achieved several key milestones marking significant progress in preparation for the December 13 elections in the French-speaking Caribbean Community (CARICOM) country.

It said that voter registration operations, which had been launched in stages on July 20 in nine of the country’s departments are continuing across Haiti and that as of Monday 1,285 Registration and Polling Centers (CIVs) were operational nationwide.

The CEP said that certain departments have over 95 per cent of their CIVs functioning, including Grand’Anse (117 CIVs), South-East (132), South (168), Nippes (105), and North-East (104) departments. In the West Department 148 CIVs are receiving voters daily to complete registration formalities for the electoral roll.

The CEP also said that since September 22, more than 628,755 voters had already been entered into the electoral roll, two months after the registration process began, representing over 10 per cent of the potential electorate, namely citizens holding a National Identification Card.

The South-East, Grand’Anse, and Nippes departments recorded the highest rates of voter registration, reaching 16, 15, and 14.5 per cent of their voting-age populations, respectively.

The first round of long-awaited presidential and legislative elections, alongside a constitutional referendum are scheduled for December 13, marking the first time Haitians will be casting ballots since 2016 when President Jovenel Moise was elected. Moise was later assassinated on July 7,2021.

The preliminary results are expected to be published December 19, with final results for the first round scheduled for January 9, 2027. A second round of presidential and legislative elections, along with local elections, is scheduled for February 21, 2027 with final results for the second round of presidential and legislative elections scheduled for March 7, with final local election results expected March 12.

The CEP said that the registration of political parties and groups-followed by the assignment of campaign numbers to all approved political entities via a public draw-marks a pivotal stage and that to date, 30 authorised political entities, comprising 18 parties and 12 political groupings, have submitted lists of their members, adherents, or supporters via the candidate registration platform.

Regarding candidates, the platform records seven candidacies for the presidency, 162 for the Senate, 419 for the Chamber of Deputies, 162 for municipal councils, 180 for CASEC, and 89 for ASEC.

The online registration and document submission process for candidates, which began on August 20, 2026, continues until October 9, 2026.

The CEP said that the recruiting, training, and mobilisation of temporary staff are continuing and that these efforts have enabled it thus far, to recruit and train 2,853 Electoral Registry Agents (ADRE) and 4,643 Electoral Security Agents (ASE).

The state-owned Caribbean Airlines (CAL) Tuesday said it has completed its audited financial statements for a three year period beginning in 2017 ‘marking a significant step in strengthening transparency, financial accountability and governance across the organisation.

‘Bringing the airline’s audited financial statements up to date, following an inherited nine-year backlog, ‘is an essential part of our focus on rebuilding, growing and positioning Caribbean Airlines for lasting success,’ said CAL chairman, Reyna Kowlessar, told the airline’s ninth annual general meeting.

‘We thank our employees for the work completed to date and for their continued dedication as we rebuild the airline. Our focus remains on creating a stronger organisation that can grow responsibly, deliver reliable service and achieve long-term operational and financial success,’ Kowlessar added.

The airline said it is also progressing the completion of its remaining outstanding audits. The audited financial statements for 2020 are targeted for completion by the end of October 2026, while those for the financial years 2021 to 2025 are on schedule to be completed.

CAL said that the audit presented ‘represents a major milestone in the board’s oversight and commitment to the airline’s long-term sustainability’ and that it also reinforces the airline’s transparency and accountability to its shareholders, stakeholders and the public.

‘The progress on the outstanding audits forms part of a wider programme to strengthen the airline’s viability and operational performance and this work is taking place within a challenging global aviation environment, where increases in fuel prices continue to exert significant pressure on airline operating costs.’

The airline said that as fuel represents one of the industry’s largest expenses, Caribbean Airlines continues to exercise greater financial and operational discipline to manage these external pressures while maintaining essential connectivity.

It said key measures include the route rationalisation programme introduced in 2025, through which the airline continues to assess its network to ensure that route operations are aligned with market demand and commercial realities.

Caribbean Airlines said it is also advancing its fleet optimisation strategy, including the sale of two ATR aircraft. One of these aircraft has already been delivered to its new owner.

‘These initiatives are being supported by critical policy reforms, strengthened financial compliance and oversight. Together, these initiatives will improve organisational discipline and ensure that the airline’s resources are deployed responsibly,’ the airline added.

Police Commissioner Everton Jeffers, Tuesday described as ‘ a deeply disturbing and reprehensible act’ the murder of 20-year-old Saquania Anthony pregnant mother who was gunned down on Monday night in an incident that left two others, including a 13-year-old boy, nursing gunshot wounds.

Jeffers in condemning what he also described as a ‘senseless and brutal act of violence’ said the incident at Bathlodge, a village and residential area located in the parish of Saint John has robbed a young mother of her life and plunged her family and loved ones into grief.

‘I am deeply disgusted and disturbed by this senseless act of violence that has taken the life of an innocent young mother. There can be absolutely no justification for this level of brutality and disregard for human life. Those responsible must be held accountable for their actions.’

Jeffers said that the police force is treating the investigation with the utmost seriousness and has committed the necessary investigative, forensic, intelligence, and operational resources to pursue every available lead and bring closure to the matter.

He warned that anyone responsible for such a heinous crime should not expect to be sheltered or protected from prosecution.

‘ Anyone who commits an act of this nature must understand that the police will relentlessly pursue every lawful avenue to identify them and bring them before the courts. Equally, anyone who knowingly shelters, conceals, or assists those responsible must understand the seriousness of their actions. There must be no safe haven for persons who perpetrate this type of violence within our communities.’

Commissioner Jeffers said this latest act of violence should strengthen the resolve of the entire nation to stand together against violent crime and support the efforts of law enforcement.

‘This wicked act should be enough to stir the conscience of our nation. A young woman has lost her life, a family has been devastated, and a community has been left to deal with the trauma of another senseless act of violence. This cannot become acceptable or normal in our society.’

The top cop is appealing to anyone who knows what happened, who may have witnessed suspicious activity, or who has information concerning the persons involved to come forward and assist the investigation.

‘The police cannot do this alone. We need our citizens to stand with us. If you know something, say something. Do not allow fear, friendship, family ties, or misplaced loyalty to shield persons who are prepared to take another person’s life. Our collective responsibility must be to justice, to the safety of our communities, and to the protection of innocent lives.’

Jeffers has sought to assure Anthony’s family and the wider public that the Royal Police Force of Antigua and Barbuda will remain resolute in its efforts to establish the full circumstances surrounding the shooting and bring those responsible to justice.

He also extended sincere condolences to the family and loved ones of the deceased and wished the injured persons a full recovery.

West Indies Women’s head coach Shane Deitz believes the upcoming Zimbabwe white-ball tour will present a valuable opportunity for the team’s younger players to make their mark.

Cricket West Indies recently named a 15-player squad for the tour, which will see the West Indies Women play three ODIs between September 24 and 30 before the three-match T20I series begins from October 3 to 7.

Veteran Deandre Dottin and opener Qiana Joseph have not been named in the squad, paving the way for younger players to prove their worth on the tour.

Deitz said he expects a challenge from the home side and is looking forward to some of the more inexperienced players making a strong case for themselves to become regulars in the team

‘We are looking forward to this tour of Zimbabwe.

‘They are a side we haven’t played much, and, in their conditions, there will be some challenges. We have a young squad, so this is a great opportunity for some players to step up and take their opportunity at this level,’ Deitz said.

Additionally, he said the tour would also provide the West Indies with an opportunity to build on the progress made across their recent assignments, while giving a number of younger players the chance to gain further experience at international level.

Zimbabwe currently sit 10th in the Women’s Championship standings, having lost all six of their matches in the current cycle, while the West Indies occupy fifth position with four wins from nine matches and arrive in Zimbabwe after a 3-0 ODI series sweep against Ireland.

The tour will mark the first bilateral series between the two teams across formats.