Category: CANA News

An emotional Acting President Delcy Rodríguez has publicly thanked Caribbean Community (CARICOM) countries for their humanitarian aid to the South American country following the June 24 double earthquake that killed thousands of people and left several others homeless.

CARICOM member states, including Trinidad and Tobago, Guyana, and Haiti, have dispatched 88 containers of emergency supplies, medical specialists, and equipment. The joint effort was loaded and shipped from Guyana

Rodriguez says the regional response reflects the strong bonds of friendship shared across the Caribbean and as she inspected the relief supplies on Tuesday, Rodriquez, speaking through an interpreter said she was deeply moved by the assistance provided through CARICOM.

‘I am moved because I am among CARICOM countries, countries of our Caribbean, who with great effort coordinated by Guyana have all sent aid to Venezuela. I want to thank the prime ministers, President Irfan Ali, the Prime Minister of Barbados, the President of Suriname, the Prime Minister of Trinidad and Tobago, of St. Kitts and Nevis, of St. Vincent and the Grenadines, the Prime Minister of Belize.

The Guyana government says it has injected more than GUY$2.76 billion (One Guyana dollar = US$0.004 cents) into the rice industry and providing direct financial assistance to more than 5,000 farmers across the country as part of its First Crop 2026 Support Programme.

Agriculture Minister Zulfikar Mustapha described the initiative as another demonstration of the government’s commitment to safeguarding the sector during a period of lower global rice prices. ‘To date, we have paid out to 5,106 farmers, a total of GUY$2,763,249,165. That gives us a total acreage of 234,919.96 acres that were cultivated for the first crop,’ Mustapha said, noting that the financial support was provided to farmers based on acreage cultivated, with those farming 50 acres or less receiving GUY$15,000 per acre, while farmers cultivating more than 50 acres received GUY$10,000 per acre.

The largest allocation was made in Region Five, where 1,387 farmers cultivating 104,519.12 acres received GUY$1,182,326,700.

Mustapha said the cash grant forms part of a broader package of measures introduced by the government to shield farmers from the impact of depressed international rice prices while ensuring the industry’s continued growth.

‘The price of paddy right now and the price of rice have been influenced by the world market. The price is a bit low internationally, and over the last two to three years we have been subsidising the rice industry heavily,’ he added.

Beyond the direct financial support, the government said it has reduced land rental and drainage and irrigation charges, removed taxes on agricultural chemicals and machinery, and is working to make fertiliser and seed paddy more affordable.

Mustapha also pointed to transformative investments that will further reduce production costs, including the construction of Guyana’s fertiliser plant and the expansion of agricultural lands through new drainage and irrigation infrastructure.

He said that approximately 55,000 acres will become available in Region Five and 35,000 acres in Region Six, with additional lands expected to be opened in Region Three, giving farmers greater opportunities to expand production and diversify into high value crops and aquaculture.

Mustapha said Guyana’s rice production has increased from approximately 550,000 tonnes in 2020 to 825,000 tonnes in 2025, with production expected to reach about 827,000 tonnes this year.

The ministry is also actively pursuing new export opportunities, including expanding markets in Mexico and the Caribbean Community (CARICOM), to secure better prices for farmers and reduce reliance on government support.

‘The rice industry is very resilient right now. It is strong and robust. What we are looking at now is to find more lucrative markets. If we can secure those markets, the industry will become even stronger and farmers will depend less on government subsidies,’ Mustapha said.

The Bermuda government said it has reported to the owners of the social media platform, TikTok, an unauthorised account impersonating the Attorney General and Minister of Justice, Kim Wilkerson.

Fake Tik Tok account

It said that the account, named ‘Hon. Kim Wilkerson, JP’ and using the handle ‘@hon..kim.wilkerso’, has no connection with the Attorney General and ‘has not been created, authorised or managed by her or the Government of Bermuda’.

The authorities here said that the account was identified last week and members of the public are advised ‘not to follow, engage with, respond to or share content from the account.

‘Members of the public should also avoid providing any personal or financial information in response to messages or requests associated with it,’ the government said, publishing also a screenshot of the ‘unauthorised account’.

Guyana has received the first shipment of 300 pregnant heifers from Brazil under the government’s national herd expansion programme, a major initiative aimed at increasing the country’s cattle population and strengthening the livestock industry.

The programme provides for the procurement of 1,000 pregnant heifers to enhance the national breeding herd and support increased beef and dairy production.

The Ministry of Agriculture said that the procurement was executed through the national tendering process and that a total of four bids were received including three international bidders.

It said that following the evaluation process, the National Procurement and Tender Administration Board (NPTAB) awarded the contract to Coopera of Brazil at a price of GU$245,000 (One Guyana dollar=US$0.004 cents)per pregnant heifer.

The ministry said that the animals have successfully completed all required veterinary health inspections, testing and quarantine procedures prior to export and satisfy Guyana’s animal health import requirements.

The first consignment is currently being transported to the Ministry of Agriculture’s Breeding and Research Centre at Ebini, Berbice River, where the animals will become part of the national breeding programme designed to improve the country’s genetic stock and expand cattle production.

‘This investment reflects the Government’s continued commitment to building a modern and resilient livestock industry. By expanding the national herd with quality breeding animals, the initiative will support increased livestock production, improve opportunities for farmers, reduce dependence on imported breeding stock, and contribute to Guyana’s food security objectives.’

The ministry said that the remaining shipments will arrive in keeping with the contractual schedule until the full complement of 1,000 pregnant heifers has been delivered.

The Court of Appeal Tuesday reserved its ruling to Friday on whether prominent businessman Dominic Hadeed and his wife, Genevieve, will be released from prison while they continue their legal challenge to the preventive detention orders issued against them under the State of Emergency (SoE).

The Hadeeds and a 69-year-old relative, Star Sabga, were detained late last month as police officers executed search warrants at their homes and offices.

The Court heard submissions from the parties involved and Justices of Appeal Peter Rajkumar, Mira Dean-Armorer and Joan Charles, said they would deliver a ruling no later than 8.00 am (local time) on Friday, hinting also that they could do so earlier if possible.

Senior Counsel Douglas Mendes, who is heading the legal team of the founding owner of Blue Waters Products Limited and his wife, argued that Homeland Security Minister Roger Alexander had failed to place affidavit evidence before the court explaining why he concluded they posed a threat to public safety, except for stating it was based on ‘intelligence’.

The Hadeeds are alleged to have engaged in a conspiracy to murder Prime Minister Kamla Persad-Bissessar, Attorney General John Jeremie and other members of the government.

But Mendes said the State has provided no evidence to support the allegations.

‘The only information before the court is the detention order itself and the particulars that the minister provided,’ Mendes said, noting that in that there was intelligence received but which Alexander has not disclosed,

Mendes said that the minister could not rely on undisclosed intelligence without first asking the court to withhold it on recognised legal grounds. He also asked the court to release the couple on strict conditions, including house arrest, saying it would allow Hadeed to continue his medical treatment and reunite the couple with their children.

‘There are third parties who are suffering as well. The children are suffering,’ he said.

In the appeal, the Hadeeds are claiming that High Court Judge Frank Seepersad made numerous errors when he refused to order their interim release pending the outcome of their case alleging that they are being targeted by the government based on their ethnicity and an ongoing legal dispute over the termination of leases for State land.

But in his response, King’s Counsel James Eadie said that Alexander was not required to provide the details which could be prejudicial to national security. He argued that Alexander would be responsible if they were released and the plot they are accused of eventually materialises.

Eadie said that Justice Seepersad’s reasoning for refusing the interim relief was correct.

Nathan Smith has been drafted into the Desert Vipers squad for the ExxonMobil Guyana Global Super League, replacing the withdrawn Kyle Jamieson.

Currently in the Caribbean for the ongoing ODI series against the West Indies alongside teammate Daryl Mitchell, the fast-bowling all-rounder is already scouting conditions for the Vipers ahead of the tournament’s start next week. Speaking on the Vipers Voices podcast, Smith noted soft, slow wickets and rain impact, predicting spin will play a major role.

‘Hopefully any information I pick up here will come in handy,’ he said, stressing that quick adaptation will be key in the short-format event.

Fresh off a Player-of-the-Series performance against England, where he took 16 Test wickets, Smith hinted he may deploy the same tactic of having the keeper stand up to the stumps in Guyana’s slower conditions.

‘I think in Guyana the pitches will not bounce as much either, and they will be a bit on the slower side, so it is definitely something we could think about if players are using their feet. It worked really well for us in the Test, so it is definitely something we could think about if guys are looking to use their feet and move around quite a bit.’

The tournament marks Smith’s first franchise cricket experience.

‘I think it is such a short tournament, so whichever teams adapt and adjust to the conditions and make the most of those conditions will, along with a little bit of individual brilliance, have the best results.

‘Hopefully we can get off to a flyer and win those first couple of games and get ahead of the pack.’

The St. Vincent and the Grenadines governments says it has signed a Memorandum of Understanding (MOU) with India underscoring both countries’ commitment to advancing public health through shared expertise and regulatory alignment.

The MOU allows for the recognition of the Indian Pharmacopoeia as a reference standard for medicines and Kingstown said that the agreement follows a series of productive discussions aimed at enhancing collaboration in the health sector.

‘The signing of this MoU further presents an opportunity to replicate India’s Pradhan Mantri Bhartiya Janaushadhi Pariyojana (PMBJP)-like scheme in St. Vincent and the Grenadines, providing affordable medicines to the people of the country through dedicated outlets,’ according to an official statement released here.

It said the initiative aligns with the Indian philosophy of Vasudhaiva Kutumbakam – ‘the world is one family’ – fostering global unity in health and well-being and catering to Sustainable Development Goals.

Health, Wellness, Environmental Health and Energy Minister, Daniel Cummings and India’s High Commissioner to St. Gincent and the Grenadines, Subhash Prasad Gupta, signed the agreement.

‘The MOU is expected to strengthen bilateral cooperation in healthcare and support ongoing efforts to improve access to safe, high-quality medicines, while fostering collaboration in other areas of mutual interest,’ the statement said.

A High Court judge has sentenced a man to just over six and a half years in jail after he admitted to sexually abusing his stepdaughter more than two decades ago.

Justice Christopher Birch said the man’s conduct was ‘systematic, degrading and humiliating’ and that he had abandoned his fundamental duty to protect the child in his care.

‘It cannot be denied that the now convicted man, in this case, embarked on a course of action against the complainant that was systematic, degrading and humiliating.

‘He not only failed in his duty as a parent to provide safety and security, but he deliberately set out to seek gratification for his own desires regardless of her feelings or the damage he caused,’ Justice Birch added. The court heard that the child was subjected to multiple forms of penetration.

The man, whose name was withheld to protect the child’s identity, pleaded guilty to a charge of buggery committed between June 1 and June 30, 2001.

Justice Birch said the aggravating features of the case as ‘very disturbing’ and that the child had been placed ‘at the literal mercy of the man’.

‘She had the right to be protected by him, not from him,’ the judge said, noting that the abuse occurred over an extended period and found no mitigating circumstances relating to the offence itself, concluding that an 18-year starting point was appropriate.

Justice Birch said the man acknowledged that the victim ‘had not deserved it’ and admitted that ‘no one deserves that kind of evil being visited on them’. T

he stepfather also told the court he continued to experience inner turmoil stemming from his own childhood trauma.

The judge further noted that the offender had not attempted to minimise or excuse his conduct, had no previous convictions, and had received favourable character references.

Those factors, together with the pre-sentence report, resulted in a two-year reduction from the starting sentence. A one-third reduction was applied for the guilty plea, with additional deductions for the lengthy delay and the 158 days the offender had already spent on remand.

After all deductions, Justice Birch ordered the man to serve the remaining 2 460 days in prison.

The chief investigator with the Aircraft Accident Investigation Authority (AAIA), Kendall I. Dorsett Jr. Tuesday said that they are still gathering data regarding last Friday’s plane crash that claimed the lives of all 10 people on board.

‘It is very, it is very, too much early in the investigation. You’re looking at just four days after the accident. So the only thing that we have done, we call this the on-scene gathering of information phase.

‘And so basically we are just gathering data at this time. Like I said in the beginning, at this time, we cannot provide any findings, conclusion, analysis of probable cause. That’s at the end of the process, we are able to present that within the 12 month time,’ Dorsett told a news briefing.

Police had earlier said that preliminary investigations had so far revealed that the Cessna Flamingo Air aircraft with registration number C6-FLX had crashed in the pine yard near North Andros Airport.

They said that a 24-year-old person, who had survived the crash and found with ‘extensive burns covering his body’ had ‘regrettably…succumbed to his injuries’.

In a historic first for the Confederation, Concacaf match officials have been appointed to both FIFA World Cup 2026 semifinals, with Salvadoran referee Iván Barton and American Ismail Elfath set to take charge of the high-stakes clashes.

Barton will officiate the semifinal between France and Spain at Dallas Stadium on July 14, while Elfath has been assigned to the England-Argentina showdown at Atlanta Stadium on July 15. Both appointments mark the fourth match of the tournament for each referee.

The 35-year-old Barton will achieve two significant personal milestones: he becomes the first Central American referee to officiate a World Cup semifinal and the youngest Concacaf referee ever appointed to a semifinal at 35 years, 5 months, and 17 days.

Barton will be joined by fellow Salvadoran David Morán and Nicaraguan Antonio Pupiro as assistant referees, while Elfath will work alongside U.S. officials Corey Parker and Kyle Atkins.

Concacaf President Victor Montagliani hailed the achievement: ‘The appointment of Concacaf match officials to both FIFA World Cup 2026 semifinals is a historic moment and a source of immense pride for our Confederation.

‘It reflects the exceptional quality, professionalism, and dedication our referees have demonstrated throughout their preparation and the tournament. It also highlights the significant progress we have made in referee development across our region under the leadership of our reorganised Refereeing Department.

‘To be entrusted with two of the most important matches in world football is an extraordinary honour and a testament to the world-class standard our match officials have achieved.

‘On behalf of the entire Concacaf football family, I congratulate Iván, Ismail, and their assistant referees on this remarkable achievement, and I wish them every success. Their appointments are a source of inspiration for referees across our 41 Member Associations and further demonstrate the important contribution Concacaf continues to make to the global game.’