Caribbean News

$650 Million for Project to Boost Agriculture and Tourism in Rural Areas

Published

7 months ago

February 21, 2025

Kingston, Jamaica, February 21, 2025 – Approximately $650 million will be spent in the new fiscal year for the continued development of infrastructure and facilities to boost agricultural and tourism activities in rural communities across the island.

The initiatives will be undertaken under the Rural Economic Development Initiative (REDI) II, which aims to enhance access to markets and climate-resilient approaches for targeted beneficiaries in the tourism and agricultural sectors.

As stated in the 2025/26 Estimates of Expenditure, tabled recently in the House of Representatives, activities under the project for the new fiscal year will include the continued provision of agricultural inputs to women and youth as well as the procurement and installation of equipment for the All-Island Banana Growers Association and Red Ridge Bank Community Benevolent Society.

The funds will also be used to complete the redevelopment of a tilapia fish hatchery as well as complete construction of a cold storage facility at Windalco, Kirkvine.

Other targets for the 2025/26 fiscal year include commencing and completing greenhouse nursery construction in Watermount; provide drip-irrigation facilities to farmers involved in the Amity Hall Farmers’ Cooperative and the Ebony Park Agro Cooperative Society, and provide relief support for persons affected by Hurricane Beryl.

Up to December 2024, income-generating small grants were provided to 2,723 farmers, including women and youth and 413 fisherfolk; 698 beneficiaries received agronomic support through Coffee Traders Limited in the form of training and inputs; and business development facilitators were engaged to prepare business plans. The Hanover Bee Bottling Facility was also expanded and equipped.

In addition, a photovoltaic (PV) solar system was installed at the Plumwood pumping station in Manchester; rehabilitation of the St. Mary multipurpose cold storage and PV system was undertaken; and climate-resilient integrated disaster risk reduction training content was developed, inclusive of the training curriculum.

A coffee marketing strategy was also developed and a market demand study for community tourism was conducted.

The Rural Economic Development Initiative II Project is slated to run until September 2025 and is being implemented by the Jamaica Social Investment Fund (JSIF), with funding from the Government of Jamaica and the International Bank for Reconstruction and Development.

Meanwhile, $215.8 million has been earmarked in the 2025/26 Estimates of Expenditure to complete integrated infrastructure projects in Norwood, Salt Spring and Anchovy in St. James and conduct project close-out audit.

The works will be undertaken through the Integrated Community Development Project II, which aims to enhance access to basic urban infrastructure and services and contribute towards increased community safety in selected economically vulnerable and socially volatile communities in Jamaica.

CONTACT: CHRIS PATTERSON

Photo Caption: Minister of Agriculture, Fisheries and Mining, Hon. Floyd Green ( right), and State Minister, Hon. Franklin Witter (centre), look at solar panels during the official handover of the Plumwood Pumping Station photovoltaics (PV) Solar System in New Forest, Manchester, in June 2023. Highlighting the features is Energy Engineer, National Irrigation Commission (NIC), Emile Mayers. The system was installed under the Rural Economic Development Initiative (REDI-II).

Caribbean News

Bermuda Shaken by Targeted Murder as Crime Returns After a Decade of Calm

Published

6 days ago

September 21, 2025

Deandrea Hamilton

Deandrea Hamilton | Editor

Bermuda is reeling after the brazen murder of 37-year-old Janae Minors, a mother of two, who was gunned down in her own beauty supply store on Court Street, Pembroke. The attack, which police describe as “targeted,” has rattled the island, not only for its brutality but for what it says about the state of law and order in a country that less than a decade ago was celebrating a dramatic fall in violent crime.

The Attack on Court Street

According to police, at approximately 4:45 p.m. on Tuesday, September 16, a lone gunman pulled up on a stolen black motorcycle, walked into the Beauty Monster shop Minors owned, and shot her multiple times. Despite the rapid response of emergency services, she succumbed to her injuries shortly after being transported to hospital.

Detectives say the killer was thin, tall, dressed in dark clothing with a full-face helmet, and wearing bright gloves. CCTV shows him fleeing north on Court Street, down Tills Hill toward TCD, before turning onto Marsh Folly Road. Investigators are pursuing all leads, with a focus on recovering evidence from nearby cameras and eyewitness accounts.

Police Commissioner Darrin Simons confirmed the attack bore the hallmarks of gang-related violence, a chilling indicator that Bermuda’s gang rivalries — long simmering beneath the surface — may once again be spilling into broad daylight.

A Vibrant Life Cut Short

Minors, remembered as a hardworking entrepreneur with “a vibrant, beautiful personality,” leaves behind two children, ages 16 and 18. Her murder has ignited outrage across Bermuda, not just for its senselessness but for its timing: the island had once prided itself on virtually stamping out gun violence.

Then: Near-Zero Murders

Back in 2014, Bermuda made international headlines for reporting zero firearm murders — a remarkable achievement given the small island had endured a spate of gang-related shootings in the early 2010s. Police credited intelligence-led operations, tighter firearms interdictions, and aggressive prosecutions of gang leaders. Community programs and mentoring initiatives also played a role, giving at-risk youth alternatives to gang life.

By 2015 and 2016, gun crime was at historic lows. That period was hailed as proof Bermuda could beat back the tide of violence with coordinated policing, social investment, and political will.

Now: Alarming Resurgence

Fast forward nine years, and the picture looks starkly different. In 2024 and 2025, Bermuda has recorded a rise in gun-related deaths. Rival gangs such as Parkside and 42 have resurged, fueled by a new generation of recruits. Economic pressures, high youth unemployment, and the easy flow of smuggled firearms through maritime routes have undermined earlier gains.

Community trust in the police has also eroded, making investigations harder and retaliations more likely. Opposition MPs and neighborhood leaders warn that without sustained focus, Bermuda risks sliding back into the violent cycles of the early 2010s.

Public Alarm and Political Pressure

Premier David Burt condemned Minors’ killing as “an escalation of community violence that cannot be tolerated,” promising stronger enforcement and deeper engagement with residents. The Bermuda Police Service has appealed for CCTV, dashcam, and doorbell footage from the area, urging residents that even the smallest detail could break the case.

Yet among the public, frustration is growing. People remember the calm of 2014 — when zero murders were recorded — and cannot understand how the island has returned to headlines dominated by gun violence. The contrast is stark: from celebrating the elimination of gun murders to confronting the targeted execution of a businesswoman in broad daylight.

A Test for Bermuda’s Future

The murder of Janae Minors has become more than a single case; it is now a symbol of Bermuda’s struggle to hold on to the progress it once made. The question facing the island is whether the successes of a decade ago can be replicated and sustained in today’s harsher climate of economic pressure and gang rivalries.

For Minors’ family, nothing can erase the tragedy of losing a mother and daughter so violently. But for Bermuda at large, her death is a wake-up call — that the island cannot afford complacency when it comes to crime.

As one community leader put it: “Nine years ago, we had beaten this. Now, we’re back to fearing what happens when the sun goes down. That is not the Bermuda we want to live in.”

Caribbean News

CARICOM-Africa Summit Yields Draft Pact on Trade, Travel and Reparations

Published

1 week ago

September 19, 2025

Deandrea Hamilton

Imagine an Atlantic Bridge connecting the Caribbean Region to the African Continent

Deandrea Hamilton | Editor

Addis Ababa, Ethiopia — When CARICOM leaders convened with African counterparts and Afreximbank officials in Ethiopia, the outcomes were savory and exactly what many Caribbean people want to see materialise as the islands become uniquely reconnected to the African continent.

At the Second CARICOM-Africa Summit, held at the African Union headquarters, leaders moved beyond symbolic language to agree on a draft communiqué that, if finalized, would anchor this partnership in practical action. While not yet officially published by the AU or CARICOM, the document points to an agenda that blends history with urgent twenty-first century priorities.

The draft outlines commitments to improve air and sea transport links, including the pursuit of a multilateral air services agreement to break down the barriers that still keep the Caribbean and Africa physically apart. It also calls for visa facilitation and simplified entry regimes, making it easier for citizens of both regions to travel, study, and work across the Atlantic.

Equally significant are pledges to advance double taxation treaties that could remove one of the most stubborn obstacles to investment. With Afreximbank’s Caribbean headquarters already established in Barbados and the AfriCaribbean Trade and Investment Forum (ACTIF) gaining momentum, leaders now want to lock in the financial and legal frameworks that will drive new business.

Reparatory justice also featured prominently, with the draft communiqué sharpening a joint call for coordinated advocacy. CARICOM’s long-standing Reparations Commission is expected to work more closely with African institutions to demand global recognition and redress for the shared traumas of slavery and colonial exploitation.

CARICOM’s incoming chair, Prime Minister Dr. Terrance Drew of St. Kitts and Nevis, captured the spirit of the gathering when he urged that the Atlantic Slave Trade be reimagined as an “Atlantic Bridge — a bridge of hope, a bridge of advancement, a bridge that will ensure our people take their rightful place in this world.”

For Secretary-General Dr. Carla Barnett, the meeting was a “homecoming,” but also a reminder that concrete steps like the Health Development Partnership for Africa and the Caribbean (HeDPAC) and improved transportation links are needed to transform rhetoric into results.

For citizens back home, wrestling with inflation and economic uncertainty, the Addis outcomes — transport, visas, investment, health, and reparations — are precisely the kinds of measures that can validate leaders’ journeys and rekindle faith in South-South cooperation. What was once only rhetoric now hints at the beams of an Atlantic Bridge, connecting the Caribbean and Africa in ways that could finally turn history’s tragedy into tomorrow’s advantage.

Caribbean News

Hundreds Apply for 2025/26 RYEEP Builder

Published

2 weeks ago

September 16, 2025

Deandrea Hamilton

Kingston, Jamaica, September 16, 2025 – Business and Entrepreneurship Development Manager for the Jamaica 4-H Clubs, Amanda McKenzie, has indicated that close to 300 applications have been received, so far, for the 2025/2026 Rural Youth Economic Empowerment Programme (RYEEP) Builder.

She said that this figure is expected to be exceeded, as the deadline for applications is set for Friday (September 12) at midday.

During an interview with JIS News on Thursday (September 11), Ms. McKenzie said that the volume of applications reflects a shift in the youth’s interest in agriculture.

“We definitely see a growing interest of youth in agriculture. They bring a new energy to the sector, in the sense that they are not only interested in the traditional approach in terms of how agriculture is done but their interest is also aligned to technology,” she explained.

Ms. McKenzie added that agri-processing has also become a viable option for youth as they look at services that can be offered across the agricultural sector, so as not to limit themselves to the traditional approaches.

The RYEEP Builder is open to individuals aged 18 to 35 who are already involved in agriculture and are not formally employed outside of this venture.

Participants of RYEEP Builder will receive mentorship; coaching, which will take on a one-on-one approach with trainers from specialised sectors of agriculture.

Training will also be provided in areas such as livestock production, broiler production, apiculture, goat production, piggery, fisheries, crop production, and agri-processing.

“All the participants will also benefit from training in financial management, business management, record keeping, good agricultural practices, climate smart agriculture and marketing,” Ms. McKenzie noted.

Additionally, participants will have the opportunity to receive levels one and two National Council on Technical and Vocational Education and Training (NCTVET) certification through HEART/NSTA Trust.

Other benefits include study tours and field visits to private and public organisations that are producing on a commercial scale.

“They can have a better appreciation of where it is that they can aspire to in terms of their business development. They can see some of the cutting-edge technologies that are being incorporated into production for efficiency,” Ms. McKenzie said.

There is also a financial aspect where tangible material and equipment worth $100,000 will be given to approximately 100 participants of the initiative to support their agriculture business.

Formal training for the RYEEP Builder will begin in November, once the interview process for shortlisted applicants across the 14 parishes in Jamaica are completed, and the selected members of the 2025/2026 cohort are notified.

Reflecting on the success of the programme last year, Ms. McKenzie said: “We do have participants who would have indicated that their enterprises have now improved in terms of the income generated; they’re seeing increase in income.”

“They’re [also] able to expand. We had one person who is involved in apiculture… he’s added additional hives to his venture. [And another person] was able to turn her crop production enterprise into a thriving operation that now employs young people from her community,” she added.

Ms. McKenzie said that the benefits of the RYEEP Builder initiative is expected to go beyond the participants and the owners of the entities, as “we also want to see that transition into generational employment opportunities for other persons, particularly within rural spaces”.

RYEEP Builder is organised by the Jamaica 4-H Clubs, in partnership with the Ministry of Agriculture, Fisheries and Mining and HEART/NSTA Trust.

Contact: Vanessa James

Release: JIS

Photo Caption: Minister of Agriculture, Fisheries and Mining, Hon. Floyd Green (left), engages with participants in the Rural Youth Economic Empowerment Programme (RYEEP) Builder, during the closing ceremony of the 2024/2025 cohort of the programme, on Friday (June 13), at the Jamaica Conference Centre in downtown Kingston.

File Photo: Mark Bell