Island Press Box

01/10/2026

The choice of the next secretary-general will take place within a system in which 193 countries are represented in the General Assembly, but five countries retain permanent seats and veto power on the Security Council.

At the same time, calls for reform are coming from countries seeking greater representation, stronger multilateralism and a Security Council that they argue better reflects today's international system.

St. John's, Antigua - As the United Nations prepares to choose its next secretary-general, calls for a restructuring of the world body are putting a spotlight on an institution whose decision-making architecture was created after World War II and still gives disproportionate power to its five perman...

26/09/2026

Executives from OpenAI, Anthropic and Hugging Face briefed the UN Security Council as warnings continue about how increasingly powerful AI technologies could soon improve themselves, slip ‌beyond human control and threaten international security.

St. John’s, Antigua - The United States, a major trading partner for much of the Caribbean and a critical source of financial and other services for the region, shows no sign of slowing its drive to develop artificial intelligence, even as Caribbean countries race to keep pace with the technology....

17/09/2026

FSRC flags SteadyLend as unlicensed money services provider

Antigua and Barbuda's financial services regulator has warned the public against conducting business with SteadyLend, saying the entity is not licensed to provide money services in the country.

The Financial Services Regulatory Commission (FSRC) said SteadyLend, which advertises through the website www.steadylendoman.com and the email address [email protected], is operating in contravention of sections 4(1) and 13 of the Money Services Business Act 2011, as amended.

Information reviewed by the Commission indicates that SteadyLend is offering money services and advertising loan products.

The FSRC advised the public not to conduct business with money services providers that are not licensed by the Commission.
The regulator said a list of licensed money services providers is available on its website.

16/09/2026

Alex Saab was made a citizen of Antigua and Barbuda through the country’s Citizenship by Investment Programme and given Antigua and Barbuda diplomatic credentials. He also had a government-backed contract to build a factory in Antigua to manufacture housing panels, but the factory never opened. The relationship came under scrutiny following revelations in the FinCEN Files, published by the International Consortium of Investigative Journalists in 2020.

Saab served under Maduro as Venezuela's minister of industry, before being removed by acting President Delcy Rodriguez in January soon after Maduro's seizure by U.S. ⁠Special Forces in Caracas. Venezuela's new government detained Saab the following month.

Former Venezuelan government envoy to Antigua and Barbuda Alex Saab has pleaded guilty in the United States to conspiring to launder proceeds from a bribery and fraud scheme linked to Venezuela’s food and medicine programme. Saab, a former Minister of Industry in the regime of former Venezuelan Pr...

14/09/2026

ST. JOHN'S, ANTIGUA AND BARBUDA — September 14, 2026 — The Blue Dragonfly Foundation Inc. has received a US$50,000 grant from the Global Environment Facility (GEF) Small Grants Program (SGP), implemented by the United Nations Development Programme (UNDP), to create a unique social enterprise hyd...

10/09/2026

Antigua and Barbuda currently supports an international moratorium on commercial deep-sea mining. Yet, government officials say that position does not eliminate the need to prepare. Officials have therefore begun to establish laws, scientific expertise and governance systems now so that any future decision is based on evidence. READ THE FULL STORY HERE:

St. John’s, Antigua - The Deep Sea Conservation Coalition places Antigua and Barbuda among 46 countries calling for a precautionary pause on commercial deep-sea mining (DSM) or the extraction of minerals from the ocean floor. On September 26, 2025, Prime Minister Gaston Browne stated during Antigu...

07/09/2026

https://islandpressbox.com/the-high-price-of-clean-energy-in-antigua-and-barbuda/

Authors: Philana Johnson & Thersea Goodwin Despite its small size, Antigua and Barbuda has taken a proactive stance on climate change, focusing heavily on renewable energy. This effort is especially vital for Small Island Developing States (SIDS) like Antigua and Barbuda, which are highly vulnerable...

02/09/2026

WIOC sees potential for partnership as Venezuela seeks to rebuild its oil industry, Guyana expands its offshore production and the United States increases its involvement in regional energy supply.

Antigua and Barbuda could potentially benefit from renewed oil production in Venezuela, despite not having imported petroleum products from the South American country for more than eight years. That possibility was raised by West Indies Oil Company Chief Executive Officer Gregory Georges, as he disc...

01/09/2026

While motorists are now paying more at the pump, gas station operators say the XCD $1.08 they receive from each sale is no longer enough to keep their businesses viable.

Antigua’s fuel market was hit by a double blow Tuesday as motorists were forced to pay more per gallon for gasoline and diesel, while most gas stations remained closed in a dispute over dealer profit margins. Effective Tuesday, the price of gasoline increased by $2 per gallon, from $14.40 to $16.5...

14/08/2026

A story to revisit amidst current conditions

St. John's, Antigua - Livestock provides us with a source of food that is easily accessible and ordinarily low cost to produce, but the practicality of rearing livestock for farmers in Antigua and Barbuda is gradually becoming out of reach with every year there in insufficient rains. Climate change....