TCI News
TCI: Hon. Vaden Delroy Williams attends International Labour Organisation meeting in Barbados
#Providenciales, May 29, 2019 – Turks and Caicos – Hon. Vaden Williams, Minister for Immigration, Citizenship, Labour and Employment Services attended the 11th International Labour Organization (ILO) meeting of Caribbean Ministers of Labour, which was held in Bridgetown, Barbados from May 14th to 15th, 2019, under the theme “Shaping a Brighter Future of Work for the Caribbean”.
Hon. Williams said the meeting of ministers and other senior officials from governments in the English and Dutch-speaking Caribbean was an enlightening experience that provided his delegation which included Deputy Permanent Secretary Ms. Althea Been, Labour Commissioner, Mr. Edwin Taylor and Executive Administrator, Ms. Karen Higgs, with a wealth of knowledge that can assist in developing and improving labour-related systems in the Turks and Caicos Islands.
“It is extremely important for the Turks and Caicos Islands as a developing country to keep pace with the latest trends, the various laws, issues, challenges and recommendations that relate to labour and work, so that we can strengthen our systems and institutions. While the dynamics in the Turks and Caicos Islands are in many ways different from our Caribbean countries, the reality is that all over the world, labour issues are contentious and complex by nature and how they are managed will ultimately have a significant impact on the performance of the economy,” Hon. Williams stated.
While in Barbados, Labour Commissioner Mr. Taylor and Deputy Permanent Secretary Ms. Been visited the offices of the Barbados Labour Department and National Insurance Board to view their operations. Commenting on the conference, Labour Commissioner Mr. Edwin Taylor said “This meeting gave us food for thought as we seek to revise our laws and work on the restructuring of the Employment Services Department. The meeting gave us a chance to compare laws, policies and gain a better understand of how those laws and policies work together for the benefit of the government and the bajan people.
We look forward to a good working relationship with the Labour Department of Barbados as we seek to find regional partners that would give our staff the necessary exposure to a wide range of Industrial Relations issues that can only enhance their overall Knowledge and add in the growth of the department.”
During the meeting, Hon. Williams and other ministers shared their experiences with new forms of employment and best Institutions of work that can adapt to it; adapting institutions for a brighter future of work, emerging of work (Telework, Platform work and Zero hours contract).
Topics covered during the two-day session were:
* Exploring new job opportunities for the Caribbean and how to support transitions. Focus on the areas of job creation, digital economy, care economy, and green/blue economy.
* Future of job creation and decent work in the digital economy, challenges, opportunities, job loss, job creation, retraining and cultural shifts.
* Care work and care jobs for future of decent work, health workers, teachers, domestic workers.
* Investment in care policies, jobs make sense, better education, health, gender equality and economic outcomes.
* The care economy, opportunities for a brighter future for work in the Caribbean.
* New and better quality jobs for care workers.
* Formalize existing care services through training and standards.
* Job creation and transitions towards a green and blue economy.
There was also a Ministerial Roundtable discussion session on the topic: “What government, social dialogue and existing tripartite bodies can do to articulate a renewed social contract?
Discussions were also held regarding and adopting an agenda for the 108thLabour Conference scheduled for June 10thto 20th, 2019 in Geneva, Switzerland.
There were also presentations from the ILO and topics including new labour standards on violence and harassment in the world of work.
The conference’s opening ceremony was chaired by Mrs. Claudette Hope-Greenidge, Deputy Chief Labour Officer, Labour Department in Barbados, while remarks were brought by Hon. Colin Jordon, Minister of Labour and Social Partnership Relations, Barbados and Mr. Guy Ryder, Director General International Labour Organization.
Regional institutions, organisations and observers attending the meeting included: Caribbean Community Secretarial (CARICOM, Organization of Eastern Caribbean States (OECS), Caribbean Congress of Labour (CCL), Caribbean Employers’ Confederation (CEC),Ministry of Labour and Social Partnership Relations Barbados, International Organization of Employees (IOE) International Labour Organization (ILO) from Headquarters Geneva, Regional Office in Lima, Country office for Mexico and Cuba and ILO Decent Work team and office for Caribbean, Port of Spain.
In addition to Turks and Caicos Islands, there were introductory statements at the conference from officials from Antigua and Barbuda, Anguilla, The Bahamas, Barbados, Belize, Cayman Islands, Curacao, Grenada, Guyana, Jamaica, Montserrat, St. Kitts and Nevis, Saint Lucia, St. Vincent and the Grenadines, and Trinidad and Tobago.
Release: TCIG
Almost two million visitors recorded in 2025
PROVIDENCIALES, TURKS AND CAICOS ISLANDS – The Turks and Caicos Islands saw an increase in stayover arrivals in December, seven percent higher than the corresponding period in 2024.
Preliminary data suggests that stay over arrivals by air for the month of December was 66,427 in comparison to 62,610 in December 2024.
From January to December 2025, preliminary visitor arrival numbers totalled 640,754; on par with the number recorded for the same period of 2024.
Stay Over Arrivals YTD December 2024/2025
The first quarter of the calendar year attracted the largest number of arrivals with visitor arrivals three percent higher than the first quarter of 2024. Reduced airlift from the United Kingdom and the United States, most notably the Virgin Atlantic and JetBlue services, was however felt from the second quarter (April to June). As a result, visitor arrivals dropped three percent in the second quarter.
By the third quarter of this year (July to September), geopolitical and economic conditions in the key source markets, namely the United States, led to further contraction of arrivals. In the last quarter of 2025, arrivals were impacted in October due to the passage of Hurricane Melissa but additional airlift from the USA and Canada resulted in an increase in arrivals in November and December.
Mr. Paul Pennicook, Interim CEO Consultant of Experience Turks and Caicos, said December’s increase in stayover arrivals is an encouraging indicator of the sustained interest in the Turks and Caicos Islands as a premier destination.
“While we note and continue to monitor geopolitical shifts that affect us, Experience Turks and Caicos is focused on increasing marketing initiatives in our primary source markets. We have spent the last two years investing in groundwork such as crucial travel advisor training to assist them in selling the destination more effectively. In the next fiscal, we will be building on those initiatives with co-op activities with partners as well as out of home advertising to increase visitation to our destination,” he said.
In Cruise, the preliminary count of passenger arrivals for the month of December 2025 was 129,346, a 22 percent increase over last December. This growth follows the berthing of 11 additional ships in Grand Turk this month.
From January to December, the cruise sector continued to outperform the same period last year, as the 1.3 million total cruise passengers recorded, marks a five percent Year-on-Year increase. 
The cruise sector experienced significant growth in the first quarter of 2025, with passenger arrivals surpassing last quarter by 53 percent. In the second and third quarter however, several cruise lines adjusted their itineraries as vessels were pulled from the fleet or from the Caribbean region, which resulted in fewer passengers.
Arrivals dropped seven percent and 10 percent in the second and third quarters, respectively. Double digit growth was recorded in the last two months of Quarter 4. This growth however, was not sufficient to outweigh the drop in arrivals experienced in October, following the cancellation of cruise calls due to the passage of Hurricane Melissa. Despite the late-quarter rebound, arrivals for the final quarter of 2025 closed six percent below the same period in 2024.
News
The Department of Trade, Industry & Fair Competition to Host Export Readiness Workshop Under the theme “Empowering TCI Businesses for Local Growth and Global Markets.”
Providenciales, Turks and Caicos Islands – Wednesday, 11 February 2026: The Informal Settlements Unit (ISU) coordinated a multi-agency enforcement operation on Thursday, 29 January 2026, led by the Planning Department, with support from the Crown Land
Unit, the Turks and Caicos Islands Border Force, and security provided by the Royal Turks and Caicos Islands Police Force. The operation, carried out at three different locations in Providenciales, formed part of ongoing government efforts to address unauthorised development and illegal occupation of land in accordance with governing legislation.
The operation commenced in Blue Hills, where five Section 58 Enforcement Notices were issued on unauthorised structures identified on Block and Parcel 60502/48.
Enforcement activity then moved to a second location off the Leeward Highway near Caicos Lodge, where six Section 58 Enforcement Notices were issued on additional unauthorised structures on Block and Parcel 60802/66.
The final phase of the operation took place in The Bight, where three unauthorised structures were removed, with all debris cleared from the site in keeping with established safety and environmental protocols.
The Informal Settlements Unit remains committed to working alongside its partner agencies to support lawful development, protect public and private land, and ensure that planning regulations are enforced in a coordinated and transparent manner across the Turks and Caicos Islands. Similar joint operations will continue as part of the Government’s wider strategy to address unauthorised development and informal settlement activity.
-
TCI News7 days agoExperience Turks and Caicos and Aquila Host Product Development Workshops to Strengthen Sister Islands Tourism
-
News5 days agoThe Department of Trade, Industry & Fair Competition to Host Export Readiness Workshop Under the theme “Empowering TCI Businesses for Local Growth and Global Markets.”
-
Bahamas News2 days agoTens of Millions Announced – Where is the Development?
-
News4 days agoStrong December Performance Signals Continued Demand for the Turks and Caicos Islands
-
Bahamas News1 day agoGroundbreaking for Grand Bahama Aquatic Centre
-
News6 days agoMulti-Agency Planning Enforcement Operation Conducted at multiple locations in Providenciales
-
Caribbean News5 days agoMottley Sworn in After Historic Clean Sweep in Barbados Election
-
Health24 hours agoWhat to Look for with Self-Checks at Home