Belize

Belize – Where’s the Data?

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A lack of official data and opposing positions have made it difficult to ascertain the level of fish stock in Belize. In February, the Belize government, through the Ministry of Blue Economy and Fisheries Department, said that recent stock assessments indicate strong fish recruitment, stable populations, and consistent catches. 

This, according to the government, proves that fisheries resources are sustainable. However, fishermen and non-governmental organisations such as the Belize Federation of Fishers (BFF) have raised an alarm. 

The concerns raised by the BFF were highlighted during a recent workshop conducted in collaboration with scientists and local fisherfolk. These workshops revealed a significant decline in fish stocks, particularly conch, corroborating scientific findings with fisherfolk experiences. 

The topics of discussion during this workshop included the overharvesting of juvenile fish and conch, hindering population recovery, adequate enforcement of fishing regulations, and illegal fishing by Guatemalan and Honduran fishers. https://youtu.be/ryIaMAvsRyQ
Nigel Martinez, Executive Director, BFF speaking of lack of fish data

The Fisheries Department said these statements were irresponsible and baseless and accused the BFF of ulterior motives.

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Barbados

Barbados – Heeding the Warnings

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From coast to coast across Barbados the cry remains constant on the lips of fisherfolk:  fish landings are down but just who or what is to blame and with less fish available and would this now mean that fishermen must find alternative employment? What is of greater concern even now is the damage to the southern and northern coasts which were damaged by the wrath of Hurricane Beryl which unleashed her fury on July 1st 2024. https://youtu.be/LdSA86–ns0

One hundred percent of the fishing vessels at the Bridgetown Fisheries were damaged while on the south coast there was a mass haul for inspection of all boats. 


Damage to the Six Men’s Fishing community by Hurricane Beryl

Parliamentary Representative for St Peter Colin Jordan reported to CIJN that the wrath of Beryl is testament to the ongoing climate crisis. “It is affecting our public spaces where people gather, it is affecting the housing [stock] and commercial activity- we need mitigation intervention and our beaches need to be protected,” he reported recently during a damage assessment tour. 

In Sixmen’s St Peter, ambitious spear fisher Davian Bailey who was found preparing fish said that his catch has not been the same as it was ten years ago and he admits that he’s feeling hollow much like the fish he deguts because of the reduced fish landings. 

Spearfisher Davian Bailey speaking with the CIJN’s Michron Robinson

While the fish are looking for cooler temperatures with warmer waters present because of climate change-Bailey too is considering new opportunities outside of fishing. “To me the demand for money using fish (isn’t making sense) I find that I would have to find a different source of income so fishing then becomes a part time thing more so than a Monday to Friday source of income.

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Climate

St Vincent and the Grenadines – Riding Challenging Tides 

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Depending on who is doing the speaking, St Vincent and the Grenadines is anywhere between experiencing a boom in fisheries and the reality of gradual, despairing decline. Local fishermen interviewed for this story all claimed there has been a serious reduction in catches. But, in a speech to open the 47th Annual Fisherman’s Day competition on May 27, Finance Minister Camillo Gonsalves noted: “The fish stock in St. Vincent and the Grenadines has doubled in comparison to that of other years.”

A 2021 study by the United Nations Food and Agriculture Organisation (FAO) however suggests that there are several important variables to be considered before a final verdict is considered. For example, its research spanning 28 different landing sites suggests that depending on species, locations, and timing the indicators may point in different directions. 

The data indicate that some fish species are particularly susceptible to overfishing because of poor growth rates or limited ability to reproduce, which puts them at risk of population depletion.

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Antigua & Barbuda

Mounting Challenges to Caribbean Fisheries

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There are mixed official and industry messages in a selection of Caribbean countries, but CIJN investigations have unearthed, at minimum, signs that the regional fisheries sector is currently confronting a variety of potentially disastrous challenges – both natural and human. Over recent months, our team – comprising correspondents in Antigua and Barbuda, Barbados, Belize, St Vincent and the Grenadines, and Trinidad and Tobago – has scanned the regional seascape in search of data-supported evidence of a growing claim of perilous times ahead for the industry. In most instances, there has been a notable absence of available indigenous, official, statistics and an apparent unwillingness by authorities to publicly engage negative speculation regarding the fate of the fisheries sector. There have also been mixed verdicts from key stakeholders including fisherfolk and others involved in the value chain.

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Climate

Guyana’s US$1.7B Gas-to-Energy Project: A Pathway to Prosperity or Pandora’s Box? 

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Like many small-to-medium scale agro processors, 63-year-old Sandra Craig is eager for a solution to Guyana’s unstable power supply. Since moving from a small “snackette” in Orange Walk, one of the bustling streets in Georgetown, Guyana’s capital, to having her own agro-processing facility in Norton Street, Craig said major expansion could have been on the horizon were it not for the challenges posed by the country’s unreliable grid. 

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Barbados

Barbados’ Forgotten Few

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There is evidence that the ageing population of Barbados is being disproportionately affected by climate-related illnesses such as dengue fever, respiratory infections, asthma, and heat exhaustion. 

Informed, strategic interventions are however stymied by the fact that there has been little systematic employment of data and targeted research.

According to the experts interviewed for this investigation, an increase in adverse climate events is both worsening health conditions and affecting the delivery of care.

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Agriculture

Dominica Confronts Food Challenges Post Maria

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After the devastation Hurricane Maria left behind on Dominica and the ensuing food shortages, officials and residents pledged not only to restore the island’s agricultural system but also to make it more self-reliant. 

But since 2017 food imports have soared. The Eastern Caribbean Central Bank (ECCB) in its data report showed that over the last six years since the storm, Dominica has imported more food in each of those years. In 2017, the country imported US$40 million worth of food, since then the number has ballooned to US$56 million – with meat, cereals, fruits and vegetables accounting for a large percentage of the bill. https://youtu.be/Xz96xHNu39M
Erica Burnett Biscombe speaking on wanting to give up (Video by Laila Langford)

Hurricane Maria damaged or destroyed much of the agricultural infrastructure, including buildings, animal husbandry facilities, agricultural roads and croplands. In a preliminary report by the government of Dominica, the agriculture sector reported US$ 179.6M (EC$ 485M) in loss and damage, impacting all aspects of agricultural production from crops, infrastructure, equipment to croplands. 

“Livestock damage includes 45 percent of cattle, 65 percent pigs and over 90 percent chickens with an estimated value of EC$ 8.68M (US$3.21M),” the government reported.

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Antigua & Barbuda

Barbuda’s Unending Disaster

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The case of Hurricane Irma’s impact on Barbuda provides a significant example of what is often termed “disaster capitalism.” It is defined as the exploitation of natural disasters by governments and corporations to push through policies or projects that would otherwise face resistance, typically for economic or political gain. Residents of the island of Barbuda say that is what is happening to them. Irma, a catastrophic category 5 hurricane caused more than USD$220 million damage to homes and infrastructure on the island of Barbuda.  It also left a path of extreme environmental destruction on the island. The storm ripped the roofs off many homes and buildings, power poles were toppled and debris was scattered across the landscape.  The police station was largely destroyed, medical services halted.  Official estimates indicated 95% of structures on the island were damaged or destroyed. 

What surrounded the approximately 1,500 inhabitants as they abandoned their tiny island on September 6, 2017 was utter destruction.

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Climate

Did Dominica Build Back Better?

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The night of September 18, 2017, forever altered the development trajectory of the Commonwealth of Dominica. Hurricane Maria’s 160 mph winds decimated the island, stripping vegetation, flattening homes, and crippling infrastructure. The devastation was catastrophic: 31 lives lost, thousands homeless, and damages amounting to USD $1.3 billion dollars – over twice the nation’s GDP. Dominica’s government, under Prime Minister Roosevelt Skerrit, vowed to rebuild as the world’s first climate-resilient nation, creating the Climate Resilience Execution Agency for Dominica (CREAD) to lead this ambitious mission. This documentary looks at the first few days of having been on the ground after Maria hit and now – seven years later – to find stories of resilience amidst ongoing challenges.

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