BRIDGETOWN, Barbados– CARICOM leaders who attended the XXIII Summit of Bolivarian Alliance for the Peoples of Our America – Trade Agreement for the People (ALBA-TCP) in Venezuela have renewed their call for the lifting of the United States trade and economic embargo against Cuba.

PORT AU PRINCE, Haiti – The United Nations Integrated Office in Haiti (BINUH) says more than 2,500 people have been killed or injured in gang violence in Haiti during the first three months of this year.

BELMOPAN, Belize – The Director General of the Statistical Institute of Belize (SIB), Diana Castillo-Trejo, says the country’s population has been growing at a “slower rate than was previously estimated,” after the preliminary results of the 2022 census showed that the population had increased by 23 per cent since 2010.

UNITED NATIONS – The United Nations says that following the installation of a transitional council in Haiti, seven countries officially notified the UN Secretary-General on Friday of their intention to contribute personnel to the Security Council-backed support mission for the crisis-wracked Caribbean nation. 

ATHENS, Greece – Caribbean Community (CARICOM) countries on Tuesday called for a multi-lateral approach to the transition to a “Blue economy” so as to harness the advantages of a new balance between economic development, social cohesion, and sustainability.

CASTRIES, St. Lucia – The United nations Children Fund (UNICEF) has signed a partnership agreement with the Organisation of Eastern Caribbean States (OECS) that will directly impact the lives of children and young people across the nine-member sub-regional grouping.

UNITED NATIONS – A senior United Nations aid official is calling for a comprehensive response to the crisis in Haiti, saying it is having a “massive” and “devastating” impact, with over half the population acutely food insecure and more than one million staring at emergency levels of hunger.

GENEVA -Guyana is supporting calls or a second International Decade for People of African Descent.

GEORGETOWN, Guyana –  The Caribbean Community (CARICOM) Monday criticised Venezuela for the “unacceptable escalation of tensions” with Guyana over the border dispute regarding the ownership of the Essequibo, an oil-rich region that makes up about two-thirds of Guyana and is home to 125,000 of its 800,000 citizens.

UNITED NATIONS – The United Nations Special Representative for Haiti is urging the international community to continue standing in solidarity with the Haitian people, as gang violence increases in Haiti.

NASSAU, Bahamas – A new survey has found that a significant number of women in The Bahamas suffered physical or sexual violence during their lifetime and have had challenges accessing healthcare, law enforcement and social services.

UNITED NATIONS – The United Nations Wednesday condemned the ongoing political and socio-economic situation in Haiti questioning also the motivation for the criminal acts by gangs bent on overthrowing the government of Prime Minister Dr. Ariel Henry.