Category: CANA News

Both the West Indies men’s and women’s senior teams will be busy at home in 2026 as Cricket West Indies (CWI) on Wednesday revealed packed home series for both teams.

Speaking during CWI’s quarterly press conference, Director of Cricket, Miles Bascombe announced that the men will be hosting Sri Lanka, New Zealand and Pakistan.

‘We start the home series for the men with Sri Lanka and a full tour of all three formats: three ODIs, three T20s, and two Test matches.

West Indies Women will play a historic Test match against Australia at home in 2026

‘Then we move on to New Zealand which is a white-ball series of three ODIs and three T20 internationals, and then Pakistan, which is a Test series consisting of two Test matches,’ Bascombe revealed.

He said among the West Indies Women’s matches at home was a historic Test match against Australia Women.

‘The women will have Sri Lanka for six white ball matches: three ODIs and three T20Is.

‘They will also have Australia for a full format series including one Test match and we finish the year with Pakistan, which is a white ball series with three ODIs and three T20Is,’ Bascombe said.

The Guyana government Wednesday welcomed the United States Department of State 2025 Trafficking in Persons Report that placed the Caribbean Community (CARICOM) country in Tier 1 as a result of the government fully meeting the Trafficking Victims Protection Act’s (TVPA) minimum standards for the elimination of trafficking.

‘Guyana continues to demonstrate serious and sustained efforts to combat Trafficking in Persons,’ said Home Affairs Minister, Oneidge Walrond, describing the Tier 1 ranking as evidence of the country’s ‘unwavering dedication and effective action in fighting human trafficking’.

Home Affairs Minister, Oneidge Walrond

She said that Guyana remains steadfast in its commitment to eradicating human trafficking within its borders and across the wider region.

She said that this commitment is amplified by the tireless efforts of members of the Ministerial Taskforce on Trafficking in Persons, non-governmental organizations, civil society stakeholders, and other partners.

‘Our comprehensive approach includes safeguarding vulnerable populations, increasing training and awareness, intensifying spot inspections and anti-trafficking operations, and through the Ministry of Human Services and Social Security, providing robust support and protection to victims and survivors, pursuing relentless prosecution of offenders, and fostering strong partnerships both locally and internationally,’ Walrond said.

The government said that the Tier 1 placement marks the ninth consecutive year that Guyana has demonstrated serious and sustained efforts to combat this insidious crime.

The US report also highlights several notable advancements in Guyana’s anti-trafficking framework, including an increased prosecution rate, the successful conviction of a sex trafficker with an ordered restitution payment, and enhanced collaboration with foreign governments to investigate trafficking cases effectively and increasing funding for the protection and prevention efforts.

It further outlines 12 critical recommendations for Guyana to continue strengthening its anti-trafficking efforts.

These include increasing prosecutions and convictions, especially in cases involving child victims; eliminating recruitment fees charged to workers; expanding labour and spot inspections in sectors vulnerable to trafficking such as mining and logging; enforcing restitution orders promptly; proactively screening vulnerable populations, including migrants, for signs of trafficking; and ensuring that convicted traffickers and any complicit officials face adequate penalties.

Walrond said Georgetown ‘is firmly committed to addressing these recommendations with urgency, deploying advanced policies, rigorous monitoring, and strengthened partnerships to disrupt trafficking networks and safeguard victims’.

West Indies stand in T20I captain, Akeal Hosein has urged fans not to lose hope in the regional team following their shocking 2-1 loss to Nepal in their just concluded T20I series.

His plea came after the sixth-ranked West Indies demolished Nepal by 10 wickets in the third and final T20I on Tuesday to earn a consolation win after they were thoroughly outplayed by their 18th-ranked opponents in the first two matches.

Hosein, who captained the side in the absence of regular skipper Shai Hope, acknowledged that while their supporters had all rights to be discouraged after the loss, he said the team would get its act together leading up to the 2026 Men’s T20 World Cup, slated to bowl off in early February’I mean we owe everything to them. We’ve been disappointing them for a while now and hopefully we can sort of give them a positive message with such a clinical performance.

‘But as I’ve said in the past, we’ve really disappointed them and hopefully we can make that turn leading up to the World Cup,’ Hosein said.

Despite the embarrassing series loss, Hosein said he was very impressed with the way in which the Windies outplayed Nepal in the final T20I.

He also gave Nepal credit for preparing pitches which suited their strengths in the opening two matches of the series.

‘I’m happy to see them come out and give that sort of performance, the last game in the end of the series, losing two games up front, I think it was an excellent effort and clinical as well.

‘But I thought Nepal ticked all the boxes in this series. They batted well, they bowled well, and they fielded well and if I can go one step further, in winning a series I believe you have to do everything possible in your power, especially when it’s your home series,’ Hosein said.

‘And if you can look over the past three games, the first two games were definitely their home conditions, a surface that they are accustomed to, it was slow and low. And if you can see, once they secured that series, they came and they played on a green top, probably for experience or to get accustomed and it was a totally different match.

‘So, kudos to them, they used their home advantage pretty well and that’s why they are the winners here today,’ he added.

Health authorities from across the Americas, including the Caribbean, Wednesday approved a new 2025-2030 Action Plan for the Prevention and Control of Noncommunicable Diseases (NCDs) marking a critical step toward addressing the leading cause of death and disability in the region.

The initiative, approved at the ongoing 62nd Directing Council of the Pan American Health Organization (PAHO), aims to accelerate the implementation of measures to reduce the burden of NCDs and improve the quality of life for millions of people affected by cardiovascular diseases, cancer, diabetes, and chronic respiratory diseases-through the strengthening of primary health care systems.

‘The adoption of this plan is a key step toward transforming how we tackle NCDs in the Americas,’ said Dr. Anselm Hennis, Director of PAHO’s Department of Noncommunicable Diseases and Mental Health.

‘Its implementation will enable us to move toward more resilient health systems that are centered on people and their communities.’

The plan proposes three strategic lines of action, namely reducing NCD risk factors, integrating NCD management into primary health care and strengthening surveillance systems.

PAHO said that these lines of action are designed to reverse a concerning trend where NCDs account for an estimated six million deaths annually in the region, with nearly 40 per cent of those deaths occurring prematurely, before the age of 70.

The UN health agency said that NCDs affect approximately 240 million people in the Americas and that while the last decade has seen progress in reducing the number of tobacco users, tobacco use remains a major risk factor, alongside harmful alcohol consumption, poor diet, physical inactivity, and obesity.

‘For example, over 35 per cent of adults are physically inactive, and one in three adults lives with obesity. Access to diagnosis and treatment also remains limited: only 36 per cent of people with hypertension have their blood pressure under control, and more than 40 million people with diabetes lack access to adequate treatment.’

PAHO said that the action plan emphasises the need for a whole-of-government and whole-of-society approach, and highlights key measures such as fiscal policies to reduce the consumption of tobacco, alcohol, and sugar-sweetened beverages, front-of-package warning labels on ultra-processed foods and restrictions on marketing as well as integration of NCD prevention and treatment into primary care to improve diagnosis, treatment, and control rates.

In addition the human papillomavirus (HPV) vaccination and screening for early detection of cervical cancer and the use of digital solutions and innovative tools to strengthen data surveillance, improve monitoring, and support evidence-based policymaking are among the key highlights.

‘Progress under the action plan will be monitored through biennial review mechanisms, with a midterm review in 2028 and a final report in 2031. PAHO will also support countries in mobilizing resources to implement priority actions.

‘Through this plan, countries of the Americas reaffirm their commitment to public health and sustainable development, at a critical time to reduce the burden of NCDs in the region,’ PAHO added.

United States authorities have concluded a long-term investigation with the unsealing of an indictment in the District of South Carolina charging two foreign nationals, including a Guyanese national, with conspiring to illegally divert US funded global health commodities.

The authorities said that Eric Ndungu Mwangi, 40, a Kenyan national, and Davendra Rampersaud, 42, a Guyanese national, and their associated businesses were charged in a 2021 superseding indictment brought by a federal grand jury in the District of South Carolina. They say the superseding indictment was originally filed under seal to protect the ongoing investigation.

The investigation, led by the Office of the Inspector General for the U.S. Agency for International Development (USAID), focused on the approximately US$650 million USAID-funded KEMSA Medical Commodities Programme (MCP).

The purpose of KEMSA MCP was to establish and operate a safe, secure, reliable, and sustainable supply chain management system for HIV/AIDS commodities needed to provide care and treatment of persons with HIV/AIDS in Kenya, and to support the warehousing and distribution of select family planning, nutrition, and malaria commodities.

Beginning in 2014, Mwangi and his company, Linear Diagnostics (LD), systematically stole HIV test kits and other commodities intended for KEMSA. The stolen goods found a buyer in Rampersaud and his Guyanese company, Caribbean Medical Supplies, Inc. (CMS).

In 2015, Rampersaud fraudulently secured a ‘Letter of Authority’ to operate as an authorized distributor, allowing him to secure a lucrative, sole-source contract with the Guyana Ministry of Health for the products he was acquiring illegally.

Between 2015 and 2019, Rampersaud paid Mwangi over US$177,000 for the diverted medical supplies, including the stolen, USAID-funded HIV test kits meant for Kenya. Rampersaud then profited again by selling these stolen health commodities to the Guyanese government. He and his company also acquired and sold test kits stolen from another separate USAID programme.

‘This was an incredibly complicated investigation, spanning years and an ocean,’ said U.S. Attorney Bryan Stirling for the District of South Carolina, adding ‘these defendants jeopardized a vital public health mission and caused a significant loss to the American taxpayers’.

In February 2021, Kenyan authorities arrested Mwangi on charges relating to theft and fraud. He is currently awaiting trial in Kenya. On the American charges, Mwangi faces up to 20 years on various counts, fines, and a term of supervised release.

In January 2023, Rampersaud was arrested on charges arising out of the superseding indictment when he flew into Miami in the United States during a flight layover, while attempting to travel back to Guyana.

He was transported to Charleston, South Carolina, and pleaded guilty to conspiracy and to stealing or converting health commodities that USAID paid for as part of a health care benefit. He was sentenced by United States District Judge Richard M. Gergel and received credit for time served and was additionally sentenced to three years of supervised release and ordered to pay an US$84,000 fine.

The Investment Migration Agency (IMA) says a significant number of foreign nationals granted citizenship of Grenada under the Citizenship by Investment (CBI) progrmme during the second quarter of this year, has come from the United States.

Data released by the IMA said that American accounted for 12 per cent of the 402 people approved as new citizens followed by persons from China and Nigeria, each accounting for 10 per cent.

The figures show that during the first three months of this year, one per cent of the 632 applicants approved for new citizenship were US nationals, making it the first time that Nigeria and China were not the top ranked countries.

The IMA said that other nationalities approved as citizens for the period came from Pakistan, the United Kingdom, The Philippines; Uganda, Uzbekistan, Ukraine, Egypt, France, Germany, India, Kuwait, Lebanon, Republic Of Congo, Saudi Arabia, South Africa, Spain, Syria, Turkey, Bangladesh, Vietnam, Zambia, Democratic Republic of the Congo and Haiti.

As of the end of the second quarter of 2025, a total of 893 new citizens were approved through the IMA bringing a total of EC$103.2 million (One EC dollar=US$0.37 cents) according to the June 2025 monthly fiscal report from the Ministry of Finance.

IMA chief executive officer, Thomas Anthony, in August announced that Grenada will be focusing on marketing the CBI programme to Africa and that a delegation would be visiting West Africa in October this year.

‘We have been exploring more African countries, more recently we were in Kenya in collaboration with the Nairobi Chamber of Commerce and at that event we have more than 100 individuals attending and we believe that we will see some fruit from that event,’ said Anthony.

Under the CBI programme, foreign investors are granted citizenship of Grenada in return for making a substantial investment in the socio-economic development of the country.

Former prime minister Stuart Young Wednesday described as an ‘irony’ the announcement by the United States government that it would support the Trinidad and Tobago government’s Dragon gas proposal with Venezuela as Washington acknowledge the importance of energy security to the twin island republic.

A statement issued following talks between Prime Minister Kamla Persad Bissessar and United States Secretary of State, Marco Rubio, on Tuesday said that Washington had ‘outlined US support for the government’s Dragon gas proposal and steps to ensure it will not provide significant benefit to the Maduro regime’.

But speaking at a news conference here, Young, who had also served as minister of energy in two previous People’s National Movement (PNM) administrations, recalled the announcement by Prime Minister Persad Bissessar, soon after being sworn into office that the Dragon gas deal was dead.

He said ‘she announced to the world at large that Dragon was dead with glee and that they would pursue gas in Grenada, Guyana, Suriname and .we fid ourselves right back here today’.

He said it was the PNM administration that did the hard work and the leg work from 2016.with resect to the pursuit of the Dragon gas.and it is obvious that the government will mislead you and the government will be akin to snake oil salesmen.

‘The Dragon gas field is completely within the maritime borders of Venezuela. The Dragon gas field is completely owned by the people of Venezuela and it is the PNM government that negotiated through very difficult and trying times and managed in December 2023 .to obtain a 30 years exploration, production and export of gas from the Dragon field to Trinidad and Tobago waters’.

Young told reporters that the licence, which was published by the Venezuelan government, outlined the terms for the 30 year licence.

‘the first point is that the Dragon gas is owned by Venezuela and the field is completely situated in Venezuela and they have the rights to the gas,’ Young said adding that the development between Rubio and Persad Bissessar ‘is absolutely no different to the conversations that he had with me and the PNM administration when I was prime minister’.

Young said that during their talks in Jamaica earlier this year, ‘we had good conversations’ and after that the Office of Foreign Assets Control (OFAC) did cancel the licences that existed for Dragon gas .

In April, the United States government revoked the OFAC license granted to Trinidad and Tobago to allow Shell, the National Gas Company (NGC), and contractors to explore, produce, and export natural gas from the Venezuelan Dragon Gas Field.

The license was valid until October 31, 2025, and enabled Trinidad and Tobago to pay for gas in various currencies and through humanitarian measures. On December 21, 2023, Trinidad and Tobago also secured a 30-year exploration and production license from the government of Venezuela for the Dragon gas field.

Washington had also revoked the Cocuina-Manakin license granted to Port of Spain on May 31, 2024.

Port of Spain had been planning to request an extension from Washington for a license granted to Shell and the NGC to develop the Dragon gas project in Venezuela.

The license, issued in early 2023, allows the companies to plan the project. The project aims to supply gas to Trinidad by 2027. The Dragon Field is located in Venezuelan waters near the maritime border with Trinidad.

Young said following the revocation of the licence, Rubio held talks with him and in a statement made it clear ‘he will work with us on our energy security and our energy deals and in the world of diplomacy and diplomatic language that is what we were talking about’.

Young said that the present government has been making pre-mature statements ‘that they have obtained something is completely false.

‘We had obtained an initial OFAC licence in January 2023 where they spelt out the terms of that they would allow and in that licence they had said you could not pay Venezuela and the people of Venezuela in fiat currency, it had to be in kind.’

He said it would be interesting to see what the government does now because while the FAC licence had been given to the previous administration, he had to make several trips to Caracas to meet with the Venezuelan authorities and their technocrats ‘to negotiate the terms upon which they will be prepared for the Dragon gas to be sold to Trinidad and Tobago and they would not do it for in kind.

‘Look at the language very carefully from Secretary Rubio’s office that talks about what they are prepared to look at. Secondly, you now have to go through applying to OFAC an waiting on the terms of the licence and it is only then you will know the landscape and playing field that you can now go to Venezuela and attempt to negotiate’.

Young said that it is no hidden secret of the ‘position and stance of this government and in particular the voice of the prime minister towards our closest neighbour and the government of Venezuela and .the vice president of Venezuela is also the minister of Energy and the person in charge of these resources.’

Last month, Prime Minister Persad Bissessar told her junior minister, Phillip Alexander, that he was ‘totally out of line’ after he became embroiled in a war of words with the Venezuelan Vice President, Delcy Rodríguez.

Alexander, the Minister in the Ministry of Housing, had earlier suggested that India might ‘nuke’ Venezuela to protect the Caribbean island after Port of Spain publicly endorsed the move by President Donald Trump to send military warships into the Caribbean Sea with the intent of preventing drug dealers from illegally carrying out their trade. .

But in a Facebook post, Rodríguez mocked Alexander’s remarks, saying, ‘the only nuclear bomb dropped was into the brain of this official’s newly-taken government.’ urging Trinidad and Tobago to focus on its own people and to distance itself from the Washington’s alleged plans to exploit Venezuela’s resources..

Young said that the current minister of Energy here, Dr. Roodal Moonil, had when in opposition written to the United States urging Washington to impose sanctions on then prime minister Dr. Keith Rowley and himself for meeting with the Venezuelan vice president to negotiate the oil deal.

Young said that while the PNM would always welcome any initiative that would benefit Trinidad and Tobago ‘we will not stand by quietly whilst this government continues in its attempts to mislead the population of Trinidad and Tobago.

‘They have a long road ahead of them and on this occasion.it is three hands that have to clap not two and it is the same Delcy Rodriquez that every week I went to Parliament I had to be hearing from them.about our interactions with the Vice President of Venezuela’.

Young urged Trinidad and Tobago not to be duped by ‘snake oil salesmen .and challenge the prime minister, challenge minister Moonilal and show us the OFAC licence that you receive, because it is literally a licence you receive with the terms and conditions that set out the parameters upon which you can negotiate and that is the starting document.

‘So please Trinidad and Tobago do not allow them to fool you and ask yourself of the irony of coming back straight to Dragon which we had been saying all along.’

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’.