Caribbean News
Fleming Fund projects launched with CARPHA, UKHSA and PAHO to fortify the Caribbean’s fight against Antimicrobial Resistance
Bridgetown, Barbados. 6 May 2025 – On Monday, 5 May 2025, health leaders, development partners and regional stakeholders gathered at the Hilton Barbados Resort to launch two synergistic, landmark, regional projects under the United Kingdom (UK) Government’s Fleming Fund and jointly implemented by the Caribbean Public Health Agency (CARPHA), the Pan American Health Organization (PAHO), and the UK Health Security Agency (UKHSA). The goal is to strengthen the Caribbean’s ability to combat the global crisis of antimicrobial resistance (AMR).
Helen Royer – CARICOM
AMR occurs when microbes evolve to resist treatment, making infections harder to cure. In 2019, AMR caused 1.27 million deaths and contributed to nearly five million more—surpassing HIV/AIDS and malaria. Caribbean small island and developing states face added risks due to limited lab infrastructure, transport delays, and uneven access to antibiotics. The project, ‘Strengthening Antimicrobial Resistance Response in the Caribbean’, led by PAHO is designed to upgrade microbiology laboratories in ten countries (Belize, Dominica, Grenada, Guyana, Haiti, Jamaica, Saint Lucia, Saint Vincent and the Grenadines, Suriname, and Montserrat). It will also enhance capacity at the Best-dos-Santos Public Health Laboratory in Barbados.
The Caribbean Antimicrobial Resistance Alliance (CARA), a partnership between UKHSA and CARPHA, forms part of CARPHA’s wider integrated AMR Programme aimed at enhancing the region’s capacity to detect and respond to antimicrobial resistance. Through this initiative, CARPHA is strengthening its regional laboratory network, expanding diagnostic capabilities, and improving the collection and use of AMR data. The project will support Member States by expanding reference laboratory services in Trinidad and Tobago, Jamaica, and Saint Lucia, and establishing a digital, region-wide surveillance platform. CARA also promotes regional coordination and best practice sharing, helping to align national efforts and policies to ensure timely, data-informed responses to antimicrobial resistance.
Speaking in support of the launch, Professor Dame Sally Davies, UK Special Envoy on Antimicrobial Resistance noted that AMR is a global emergency that demands urgent action. “The collaboration between UKHSA and CARPHA, supported by the Fleming Fund, is a powerful testament to our shared commitment to tackling this crisis head-on. By enhancing lab capabilities, improving surveillance, and building workforce expertise, we are taking decisive steps to protect the health of Caribbean communities and beyond. Together, we can make a lasting impact in the fight against AMR.”
Ashley Dalton, Minister of State for Public Health and Prevention (UK Department of Health and Social Care) highlighted “Antimicrobial resistance is one of the most serious and complex health challenges facing our world. The government is combating AMR through the Fleming Fund and advancing our national action plan, development models and surveillance systems. Our partnerships with the Caribbean Public.
Health Agency and Pan American Health Organisation are a vital for safeguarding public health and ensuring the effectiveness of life-saving treatments for future generations.”
Dr. Rhonda Sealey-Thomas, Assistant Director of the Pan American Health Organization noted the strong history of collaboration to address pressing public health challenges. “AMR remains a top priority for PAHO. We are actively working with an organization-wide approach on several important initiatives in this area, from surveillance to infection prevention and control, water and sanitation, food safety, access to and the appropriate use of antimicrobials and supporting our Member States in the implementation AMR National Action Plans under a One Health approach.”
“Through CARA, we are strengthening our laboratory systems, expanding regional surveillance, and building a coordinated One Health approach to ensure that Caribbean countries are better equipped to detect, monitor, and respond to resistant infections, highlighted Dr. Lisa Indar, Executive Director of CARPHA. She stressed that AMR is one of the most serious and complex health challenges facing our region. “This collaboration reflects our shared commitment to safeguarding public health and securing the effectiveness of life-saving treatments for future generations,” Dr Indar outlined.
PAHO ED Lisa Indar
Dr Natalie Wright, Head of UK Overseas Territories Programme and CARA project lead at UKHSA said: “AMR is an urgent global public health and development threat, affecting all countries and regions. Sustained action is required to curb inappropriate use of antibiotics, the main driver of AMR. “Through this programme our goal is to build sustainable systems that promote data sharing, support clinical decision-making, and create lasting resilience to the threat of AMR. The work we do today will lay the foundation for a healthier, more secure future.”
Bringing remarks on behalf of the Prime Minister of Barbados, H. E. Mia Amor Mottley, who chairs the Global Leaders Group on Antimicrobial Resistance, Chief Medical Officer of Barbados, Dr Kenneth George thanked the Fleming Fund Project for supporting national and regional efforts on AMR. “Barbados has made strides in AMR Surveillance working towards full reporting to the Quadripartite Global Integrated System for surveillance of antimicrobial resistance and antimicrobial use. As some of you may be aware of the WHO/PAHO Designation of the Best-Dos Santos Public Health Laboratory as a Regional Influenza Centre, reflecting our commitment to global health standards and enhancing our capacity to respond to infectious diseases. In the next few months, we will be working with PAHO to have a similar type of designation on AMR to ensure the Best Dos Santos Public Health Laboratory can indeed be a leader in AMR within the region.” Dr George noted.
The UKHSA plays a critical role in the CARA project, sharing best practices, aligning laboratory protocols, and coordinating the roll-out of training programmes designed to strengthen laboratory capacity, antimicrobial stewardship, and AMR data analysis across the Caribbean. By bridging national and regional efforts, the projects jointly reflect a unified Caribbean commitment to protecting public health, ensuring responsible antimicrobial use, and building long-term resilience against future infectious threats.
By Deandrea Hamilton | Magnetic Media
October 14, 2025 – It’s being called political theatre — but for citizens, constitutional watchdogs, and democracy advocates across the Caribbean, it feels far more serious. Within a single week, two national parliaments — in Trinidad and Tobago and St. Kitts and Nevis — descended into turmoil as opposition members stormed out in protest, accusing their Speakers of bias, overreach, and abuse of parliamentary procedure.
For observers, the walkouts signal a deeper problem: erosion of trust in the very institutions meant to safeguard democracy. When Speakers are viewed as political enforcers instead of neutral referees, parliaments stop functioning as chambers of debate and start performing as stages for power and spectacle — with citizens left wondering who, if anyone, is still accountable.
October 6: St. Kitts Parliament Erupts
The first walkout erupted in Basseterre on October 6, 2025, when Dr. Timothy Harris, former Prime Minister and now Opposition Leader,
led his team out of the St. Kitts and Nevis National Assembly in a protest that stunned the chamber.
The flashpoint came as the Speaker moved to approve more than three years’ worth of unratified parliamentary minutes in one sitting — covering 27 meetings and three national budgets — without individual review or debate.
Dr. Harris called the move “a flagrant breach of the Constitution and parliamentary tradition,” warning that the practice undermines transparency and accountability. “No serious parliament can go years without approving a single set of minutes,” he said after exiting the chamber.
The Speaker defended the decision as administrative housekeeping, but critics were unconvinced, branding the move a “world record disgrace.” The opposition’s walkout triggered renewed calls for the Speaker’s resignation and sparked a wider public discussion about record-keeping, accountability, and respect for parliamentary norms in St. Kitts and Nevis.
October 10: Trinidad Opposition Follows Suit
Four days later, on October 10, 2025, the Opposition United National Congress (UNC) in Trinidad and Tobago staged its own walkout from the House of Representatives in Port of Spain.
The UNC accused the Speaker of partisan bias, claiming she had repeatedly blocked urgent questions, ignored points of order, and allowed government members to breach standing orders without consequence.
“The Speaker has failed in her duty to act impartially,” the Opposition declared in a statement. “Parliament is not the property of any political party or Presiding Officer.”
The dramatic exit was seen as a culmination of months of rising tension and frustration, with opposition MPs arguing that parliamentary rules were being selectively applied to silence dissenting voices.
Political analyst Dr. Marcia Ferdinand described the twin walkouts as “a warning sign that parliamentary democracy in the Caribbean is teetering on the edge of performative politics.”
“When chairs become political shields rather than constitutional referees,” she said, “democracy becomes theatre, not governance.”
A Pattern Emerging
While St. Kitts and Trinidad are very different political environments, both incidents point to the same regional fault line: the perception that Speakers — the guardians of parliamentary order — are no longer impartial.
In Westminster-style systems like those across the Caribbean, the Speaker’s authority depends not on power but on public confidence in fairness. Once that credibility erodes, parliamentary control collapses into confrontation.
Governance experts say the implications are serious: eroded trust between government and opposition, declining public confidence in state institutions, and growing voter cynicism that “rules” are flexible tools of political advantage.
Why It Matters
Parliamentary walkouts are not new in the Caribbean, but what makes these recent events different is their frequency and intensity — and
the regional echo they’ve created. Social media has amplified images of lawmakers storming out, with citizens from Barbados to Belize questioning whether the same erosion of decorum could be happening in their own legislatures.
Analysts warn that if this perception takes hold, it risks diminishing the moral authority of parliamentary democracy itself.
“Once opposition MPs believe the rules are rigged, and once citizens believe Parliament is just performance,” said one Caribbean governance researcher, “you’ve lost the most valuable currency in democracy — trust.”
Restoring Balance
Political reformers across the region are calling for tighter Standing Order enforcement, independent parliamentary service commissions, and training to strengthen Speaker neutrality. Civil society leaders say the public must also play its part by demanding transparency and refusing to normalize partisan manipulation of parliamentary procedure.
Whether these twin walkouts become catalysts for reform — or simply another episode of Caribbean political theatre — will depend on what happens next inside those chambers.
For now, democracy watchers agree on one thing: when opposition leaders feel the only way to be heard is to walk out, the entire democratic house — not just its Speaker — is in danger of collapse.
Angle by Deandrea Hamilton. Built with ChatGPT (AI). Magnetic Media — CAPTURING LIFE.
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