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Providence schools launch inaugural career showcase

Diara Springer
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Providence schools launch inaugural career showcase

Students at Providence Elementary and Secondary Schools were treated to an eye-opening glimpse into the world of work yesterday, as the institution held an Inaugural Career Showcase, an event designed to broaden horizons and ignite ambition among its young learners.

Held at the school in St George, the showcase brought together representatives from a diverse range of industries, giving students the chance to interact directly with professionals and explore career paths they may never have previously considered.

Camila de Wit, chair of the board of management at Providence School, said the event was about far more than simply pointing students toward traditional professions. 

“We have all kinds of careers here, from health care to construction to the canine division to vets, optometrists – all kinds,” she said. “We’re exposing our students to different ways of working; some things are tactile, some things are business.”

De Wit said entrepreneurship also featured prominently. 

“We’re exposing them to being their own boss, having their own company and teaching them what they should be studying here at Providence but also what they could be studying once they leave our classrooms.”

The event drew a strong turnout of organisations and businesses. The Barbados Defence Force and the Barbados Police Service had a significant presence, bringing with them the Drone Unit, the Police Band and the Canine Section. The Republic Bank and the Inter-American Development Bank were also represented, alongside professionals from psychology and the beauty industry.

Perhaps the most headline-grabbing attendee was Zane Maloney, Barbadian Formula E driver, who spoke to students about his journey to the top of motorsport.

Students were given career passports to collect information at each booth, encouraging them to engage with presenters even when unsure what questions to ask. The strategy proved a hit, with smiles visible on students across the school grounds. (DDS)

Poet Yearwood steals the show

Nationnews Desk
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Poet Yearwood steals the show

by John Sealy

Twenty-eight-year-old spoken word poet Mark Yearwood emerged standing tall when the curtain came down on the second annual PoeTree Barbados Bus Ah Rhyme competition held at the Bean N Bagel 2.0, Rockley, Christ Church recently.

Yearwood was among ten artistes challenged to perform a piece under the theme Folklore, in three minutes as celebrated throughout Barbados or the Caribbean: steel donkey, heartman, Bacoo etc.

The criteria were originality, use of voice, narrative development, use of language and crowd response. Each carried 20 points.

However, it was Yearwood’s night. He won a $500 cash prize and a trophy with a score of 90 points.

Timon Howard and defending champion Malachi Hope tied for second place with 77 points. Next was Ebonee Carter with 76.33 points.

“Hard ears yuh won’t hear,” Yearwood warned the large crowd in his opening salvo.

They responded with a lament: “Ownway yuh does feel.”

This was the start of word mastery by Yearwood. In the three minutes allotted he reincarnated the profile of the notorious Heartman. The mere mention of the name which caused the fainthearted and even the self-proclaimed fearless to take flight in past times.

Yearwood teased: “You are looking at the person that coined that phrase.

“Well I emerged from the plantation time. In my prime my name was used to keep disobedient children in line. If you stayed out too late your heart was mine… I own the ghostly horse head and the steel donkey…

“If Freddy Krueger came to Barbados he would have nightmares with me…when I left my bed untidy it became the Chase vault mystery…I am not afraid of the dark, the dark is afraid of me.”

There was a crescendo of applause with each performative expression for Yearwood who was tightly dressed in all black and sporting a red tie.

“I am the infamous Heartman the horror story passed down from our ancestry warning us that danger can sometimes dress respectably; perhaps you’ve heard me; but what you haven’t heard is that “I do poetry,” he noted with a sinister chuckle adding “that’s why I steal the hearts of so many”.

Yearwood, a church person, credited his “God-sent friends” for encouraging him and said he had done a lot of research.

He praised PoeTree Barbados team of founder La Shawna Griffith and co-chair Akeem Chandler-Prescod for staging the production and said he was a fan of fellow poet Chandler-Prescod, who is also known as StonedwithCupid.

Co-chair Griffith said the projects create opportunities for the poets to grow and shine.

Overall it was a credit to the actors for bringing to life early 20th century old folklore in Bus Ah Rhyme. 

Some fragments of 20th century folklore might still be lurking in the gaps and alleys of their abodes but hardly part of their fully lived experiences given their young ages. This made it critical for them to connect – through research – with the audience via voice and stage even allowing themselves to be vulnerable emotionally. 

Mother and doctors found guilty of killing newborn in South Korea

Nationnews Desk
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Mother and doctors found guilty of killing newborn in South Korea

A South Korean court has convicted a woman and her two doctors of murder for killing the baby she had delivered.

The woman wanted to terminate the pregnancy at 36 weeks – but prosecutors said the baby was born alive and later killed.

The surgeon who operated on her and the director of the hospital were sentenced to four and six years in prison respectively, while the woman received a three-year suspended jail sentence.

The case has gripped South Korea, where abortions are not regulated properly. The procedure was decriminalised in 2019, there is no clear regulation on how far into pregnancy it can be carried out.

The trial against the woman, in her 20s and identified by her surname Kwon, and her doctors marks the first time that murder charges have been pressed against women seeking a late-stage termination of their pregnancy, and the doctors involved in the procedure.

Prosecutors in Kwon’s case said the baby was born alive through a Caesarean section and placed in a freezer until it died.

She argued that she did not know the procedure would be carried out that way.

In 2024, Kwon posted a YouTube video about how she terminated her pregnancy at 36 weeks. The video triggered public uproar and a criminal complaint from the health ministry. Police then launched an investigation into her and her doctor.

Prosecutors said that after the woman’s baby was born alive, the hospital’s director and the surgeon put it into a freezer, where it died.

The hospital staff then falsified Kwon’s medical records to make it look like she had a stillbirth, prosecutors said.

During the trial, the hospital director and surgeon admitted to killing the baby. They were taken into custody immediately after the judge read out the verdict.

The hospital had allegedly received a total of 1.4 billion won to perform abortions on more than 500 patients, prosecutors said. Their patients, like Kwon, had been introduced to the hospital through brokers.

In January, prosecutors sought a ten-year prison sentence for the hospital’s director, and six years in prison for Kwon and the surgeon who operated on her.

Kwon’s lawyer argued that she did not know that the baby would be killed after being removed from her womb.

Kwon told the court that she had only learned of her pregnancy seven months in, and sought abortion because she had no stable income. She also feared the baby would be born with defects as she had drunk alcohol and smoked throughout her pregnancy, she said.

On Wednesday, the judge found that Kwon had been informed by medical staff that her baby was healthy, and she had also heard its heartbeat via ultrasound. The judge also found that she knew the baby would be born alive through Caesarean section.

However, the legal vacuum surrounding abortions in South Korea was taken into consideration during Kwon’s sentencing, as she could not receive support to navigate her late-stage pregnancy, the judge added.

The judge said that although this was a crime that deserved a harsh penalty, they were exercising leniency considering the lack of society’s support for mothers in situations like this.

In 2019, South Korea’s Constitutional Court removed a long-standing ban on abortion and gave lawmakers until the end of 2020 to revise the laws. The court recommended that the parliament amend the law to allow abortions up to 22 weeks of pregnancy.

In 2020, the government drafted legislation that permitted abortion up to 14 weeks – or up to 24 weeks in special cases, such as health reasons or if the pregnancy was a result of rape.

However, that bill was held by a gridlock in parliament, due to opposition from conservative lawmakers on religious grounds. By the time the ban’s removal took effect in 2021, the country had no legislation in place to regulate abortion. (BBC)

Guyanese extradited to US on fraud related charges

Nationnews Desk
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Guyanese extradited to US on fraud related charges

GEORGETOWN – The Director of Public Prosecutions (DPP), Shalimar Ali-Hack, SC, says Guyanese-born, Ronley Floyd Bynoe, has been extradited to the United States on various fraud related charges dating back to 2023.

The DPP said that Bynoe, was taken from the Georgetown Camp Street Prison where he was held on remand and escorted under security to the Cheddi Jagan International Airport (CJIA) where he was handed over to two US Marshalls and placed on an outgoing American Airlines flight bound for the United States during the early hours on Wednesday.

The DPP said Bynoe allegedly committed the offences of Misuse of a Social Security Number, Aggravated Identity Theft and Bank Fraud; in September 2023, and that a criminal indictment was filed in the District Court of the Northern District of Ohio for him to stand trial by a grand jury.

“Based on the charges, an arrest warrant was issued, but could not be served on the accused because he had fled the USA; Investigations conducted by the US Authorities, revealed that Bynoe had travelled to Guyana.”

The DPP said that in November last year, the US government made a request for Bynoe’s extradition to the Guyana government through the Ministry of Home Affairs which sought and obtained legal advice from the DPP’s Office on how to proceed with the extradition request from US government.

On February 16, 2026, pursuant to the Fugitive Offenders Act, the Minister of Home Affairs, Oneidge Walrond signed and issued the Authority to Proceed with the extradition and two days later Bynoe was arrested by police and taken before Acting Chief Magistrate Faith McGusty at the Georgetown Magistrates’ Court on February 19.

He was informed of the extradition request made by the US authorities and consented to be extradited to the United States without Court proceedings to face multiple fraud charges allegedly committed there. the DPP statement added. (CMC)

Businessman awarded default judgment in vaccine case

Maria Bradshaw
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Businessman awarded default judgment in vaccine case

The international lawsuit involving US$10 million fraud against Barbadian businessman Mark Maloney has finally come to a close.

On February 27, the United States District Court for the Central District of California awarded a default judgment to Maloney and his company, Radical Investments Ltd, against the final defendant, Moniladae Coley and her company Prestige Pegasus LLC.

Maloney was awarded US$2 million (BDS$4 million) – the exact amount Coley received five years ago to procure COVID-19 vaccines for Barbados, a transaction that was never completed.

When contacted recently, Maloney said: “We have maintained our position from the beginning and continue to pursue all available avenues to ensure justice is done.”

According to court documents, Coley, known as “Millionaire Babe” on social media, was contracted by Alex Moore and his company, Good Vibrations Ltd (GVE), as the “authorised supplier” to secure two million doses of the AstraZeneca vaccine.

The Second Amended Complaint detailed how the funds were handled. Instead of procuring the vaccines, the court found that Coley used the money for personal luxury purchases, items she subsequently posted about on her social media accounts in 2021.

It noted that there was no dispute regarding the facts: “Coley/Prestige received $2 million into their Wells Fargo bank account, failed to deliver the vaccines, yet kept the money anyway.”

While Maloney secured a default judgment against Moore and GVE last year, finalising the case against Coley proved difficult. Although the matter was before the court for three years, Coley never responded to filings or made an appearance.

The court reserved judgment without prejudice initially, granting Maloney additional time to serve Coley with the Second Amended Complaint. She was finally served in November last year. However, despite this and having counsel for the plaintiff confirm they spoke with her multiple times by phone, Coley failed to mount a defence.

In awarding the judgment, District Judge Monica Ramirez Almadani applied the seven factors required for a default judgment, finding that all factors favoured Maloney. She emphasised that Maloney had “diligently litigated this case for years” and that the defendants’ failure to participate left him with “no other recourse”.

The judgment provided a detailed breakdown of the legal claims Maloney successfully proved:

• Civil conspiracy: The court found that Coley entered into an agreement with Moore and GVE to unlawfully obtain the funds. By receiving the money and failing to procure the vaccines, she committed an “overt act in furtherance of the agreement”.

• Fraud and negligent misrepresentation: The court found that Coley conspired to misrepresent her ability to deliver the vaccines to induce Maloney’s reliance. It stated the defendants had
“no reasonable ground to believe they could produce or deliver the vaccine”.

• Conversion: It was ruled that Coley disposed of the money in a manner inconsistent with Maloney’s property rights. “Rather than procure the vaccines, Coley used the money to purchase personal items,” the judgment read.

• Unjust enrichment: The court found it inequitable for Coley to retain the benefit of the US$2 million after failing to uphold her end of the agreement.

• Unfair competition: The court found that the fraudulent business practices triggered liability under California’s Unfair Competition Law.

In its analysis of the financial stakes, the court stated: “Unlike in cases where the value of the remedies sought is subject to debate, here, the value is clear: Plaintiff was defrauded out of a specific amount of money ($2 million) and now requests that the court ensure this money is returned.”

It further noted that the lawsuit was filed in September 2021 and the defendants had ample opportunity to defend themselves. Because the defendants failed to participate, the court found
that a judgment on the merits was “impractical, if not impossible”.

With the granting of the motion for default judgment, the court has officially entered judgment against Coley and Prestige Pegasus LLC, bringing the protracted legal battle over the failed vaccine procurement deal to a definitive end.

Minister: Plan to curb violence in schools

Gercine Carter
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Minister: Plan to curb violence in schools

The Ministry of Education Transformation has outlined comprehensive plans to address violence and deviance among schoolchildren.

They were shared by Minister of Education Transformation Chad Blackman and his team at the ministry yesterday in the Well of the House of Assembly, while fielding questions from fellow parliamentarians on the second day of debate on the Appropriation Bill, 2026.

Member of Parliament for The City of Bridgetown, Michael Lashley, and St Michael Central MP Tyra Trotman each raised questions related to the need to stem student violence and parent-on-teacher violence on the school compound, as well as security issues and the need for interventions to save schoolchildren at risk.

Blackman contended what was happening at schools was “a broader societal issue” which must be confronted by the entire country.

He conceded children manifest behaviours “in many respects in ways that we don’t want them to” but said “there are broader societal issues that we must confront”.

He advised Government was already taking a “zero tolerance stance” on the issues, but said “equally, parents and guardians have to take a level of responsibility with respect to the behaviour of their children and wards.

“Whilst the ministry will work assiduously to make sure there are programmes and early interventions to treat to the behaviours of our students in the minority who are acting in a deviant way, the message has to go out that parents have a responsibility to work with the ministry in ensuring that when their children come to school, they are there to learn, they are there to study, they are there to get an education,” Blackman said.

He also announced that secondary students would in the future be required to join a “uniformed organisation” such as a service club or sporting group.

He added he was prepared to have a conversation with the country, students and parents on the issues of school security and violence.

Also responding to questions were Chief Education Officer Dr Ramona Archer-Bradshaw and her deputy Julia Beckles.

Archer-Bradshaw said the ministry was working “assiduously to get to the bottom of the problem of student violence”.

“We have identified a four-tier system that will help us get to the root of the problem.”

She explained that the matter of student suspension would also be examined and announced that a code of conduct was being considered to support the Code of Discipline set out in the Education Act. She confirmed there was a proposal for the Act to increase the fine of $500 for people going on school premises and committing violence on teachers to $5 000 as a deterrent.

Backbencher Tyra Trotman aired concerns surrounding school security, and drug use by students and the “lethal weapons” some are taking to school.

Responding, Beckles said principals and their teams had stepped up student searches, conducted several times of the day, though she disclosed there were students escaping that net by stashing the forbidden items outside the school compound.

Beckles said while walk-in detectors had not yet been installed at schools, other detection methods were being used. She also advised on installation of cameras around the school plant and of plans to have cameras installed in the guard’s hut.

The Deputy Chief Education Officer reported a decline in the number of acts of violence perpetrated by students, with only two recorded so far this year, as compared with 12 last year. There was also only one reported act of violence on a teacher, Beckles said.

She, however, suggested there needed to be more education of students, parents and guardians “on what is written in the Education Act”.

Trading declines

Shawn Cumberbatch
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Trading declines

The trading of shares on the Barbados Stock Exchange (BSE) has declined.

As it prepares to let investors trade using their mobile devices from the second quarter of this year, the BSE reported that in 2025 total trading volume and value on the local stock market decreased by 76 per cent and 49 per cent respectively.

A 12 per cent increase in the average share price, from $5.53 in 2024 to $6.18 at the close of 2025, was not enough to stall the decrease in value.

In its Market Activity Report for 2025, the BSE said that 2 989 262 shares were traded in 2025 for a market value of $5.78 million. This was down from the 12 545 454 shares traded in 2024 for $11.28 million.

“There was an eight per cent decrease in the total number of trades occurring in 2025 when compared to 2024. There were 518 trades in 2025 as compared to 566 trades in 2024,” it stated.

To make it easier for investors to trade, the BSE announced that it would be improving direct market access through the introduction of a new mobile trading application.

“While the platform will continue to require investors – both existing and prospective – to maintain a formal relationship with a registered broker of the BSE, it will enable greater investor engagement by allowing users to place orders and execute trades directly from their mobile devices,”
it explained.

“The mobile application is currently operational and undergoing testing in collaboration with brokerages, with a targeted rollout scheduled for quarter two 2026.”

The BSE also said that it would expanding investor awareness through an enhanced and broader social media presence, reinforcing the message that participation in investing is accessible at any point in one’s financial journey.”

Several listed entities recorded share price increases while others suffered declines.

“Emera Deposit Receipt recorded the greatest share price appreciation for 2025, climbing
31.57 per cent from $18.50 at the close of 2024 to $24.34 at the close of 2025,” BSE reported.

“Cave Shepherd and Company Limited (30.67 per cent), West India Biscuit Company Limited (9.38 per cent), CIBC Caribbean Bank Limited (3.00 per cent) and Insurance Corporation of Barbados Limited (1.03 per cent) were the four remaining securities to experience share price appreciation over their corresponding positions at the close of 2024.”

It added: “Three companies experienced declines of more than ten per cent in 2025. Barbados Farms Limited, BICO Limited and Goddard Enterprises Limited declined by 46.67 per cent, 19.35 per cent and 18.64 per cent respectively.

“Eppley Caribbean Property Fund SCC – Value Fund (3.85 per cent) and One Caribbean Media Limited (1.97 per cent) were the remaining two securities to suffer declines by the end of 2025.”

Goddard Enterprises Limited (GEL), CIBC Caribbean Bank Limited and Eppley Caribbean Property Fund SCC – Value Fund were the top three performers in terms of volume traded, accounting for 27 per cent, 20 per cent and 18 per cent of the total volume traded.

In terms of value traded, GEL (40 per cent), CIBC Caribbean Bank Limited (21 per cent), and Banks Holdings Limited (17 per cent) were the top three performers in 2025.

The report said that at December 31, two Government of Barbados Series Bonds (Series B and Series I) traded on the board of the BSE.

“There were seven trades occurring on the bond market resulting in a face value of $41.05 million trading in 2025 as compared to 42 trades occurring on the bond market resulting in a face value of  $547.25 million trading as of December 31, 2024,” it outlined.

There was no trading on the International Securities Market (ISM) during the year. At December 31, there were seven securities listed on the board of the ISM, with total market capitalisation of US$136.51 million.

The BSE said market performance for 2025 on the BSE was not as challenging as the reported
data suggests.

“The replacement of unprecedented trading data – attributed to Eppley’s Caribbean Property Fund SCC – Value Fund – in the third quarter of 2024 with instead a figure derived from the average of the trading data from quarters one, two and four would show only a nominal decrease in value traded (6.61 per cent) and shares traded (18.82 per cent),” it stated. “It should be noted, however, that the
12 per cent increase in average share price and the improvement in the advance/decline ratio – despite adverse local and international market conditions – shows there is notable resilience within the investing public.”

It expects that this year “regular market performance [will] mirror that of 2025 but with greater share price appreciation to improve overall trading value activity”.

Bajans in Middle East ‘safe’

Antoinette Connell
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Bajans in Middle East ‘safe’

As conflict breaks out in the Middle East, Senior Minister of Foreign Affairs and Foreign Trade Chris Sinckler is reporting that Barbadians in missions in that region are safe.

He was responding to questions yesterday in the Well of the House of Assembly as the Estimates Debate continued into its second day.

“Our very first priority in this entire exercise as it unfolds with the high degree of uncertainty that abounds, is to ensure that our staff at the mission in the United Arab Emirates, headed by our Ambassador Annalee Babb, also members of staff, and equally as well, the wider Barbadian population who are either visiting or residents across the Middle East, are actually safe, are sheltering in place, and are in connection with us,” Sinckler said in response to a question from Member of Parliament Dr William Duguid.

He stated that the Barbados Government Information Service had not only put out a statement on the conflict, but also on the individuals.

“That is our first priority, to ensure the safety of personnel, Barbadians over there, and, of course, assets,” he stated.

The minister said that as the situation unfolded and the length of time it continued would determine whether Barbados entered into negotiations – once the airspace is open – for those who want to be repatriated back to Barbados.

“My understanding is that there’s some movement there. We cannot speak to it now because it’s still in its very embryonic stages, but we are working on that specifically,” he said.

On the broader issue of the other immediate and significant impacts, the remit was to gather the necessary intelligence as to “what is happening, how it is happening, and when it is likely to begin to seep through to Barbados and, of course, the rest of the Caribbean”.

“In doing so, we will build strategic relationships, as I said, under team Barbados with the specific ministries here at home domestically to begin to analyse how we respond, how we advise the Cabinet and the Government to respond to those issues.

“The early issues are, of course, in energy. We can see that there’s movement in the price of oil.

“We know that there are supply chain issues because a significant part of the cargo on commodities and other supplies comes through the Strait of Hormuz. So we know that there will be effects of that coming down.

“We do not know how significant those will be, but we are beginning to have those conversations. Both papers and other instruments are being prepared to be shared once approved by Cabinet, of course with the wider Government, and then of course for those parts which can be notified to the public,” Sinckler said.

Government was also looking to engage trade unions and the private sector along with others in the wider society to alert them as to the challenges which could occur and to mitigate them, he explained.

“Of course, central to a lot of that – is if it becomes as difficult as we anticipate it will be with a prolongation of the conflict – is, of course, would be the Ministry of Finance and how the Government, the administration, then responds to assisting Barbadians.

“But for the moment, monitoring, intelligence gathering, consultation, and of course a drafting of a first medium and a longer-term reaction depending on how the conflict unfolds,” he said.

CDB targets US$65.2 billion in financing by 2033

Shawn Cumberbatch
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CDB targets US$65.2 billion in financing by 2033

With Barbados and the Caribbean together needing at least US$65.2 billion in financing by 2033 to prevent stagnation, Caribbean Development Bank (CDB) president Daniel Best says the bank is making major progress in securing new funding.

The CDB will also be launching a euro medium-term note programme, enabling it to raise up to US$1 billion over three years to “lower the cost of capital and unlock the private investment our region needs to grow”.

He announced this while detailing the approval of a new ten year CDB strategic plan for regional development, one focused on building social, economic and environmental resilience.

This came as director of projects O’Reilly Lewis reported that in 2025, the bank significantly expanded its financing to borrowing member countries, approving US$464 million, a 50 per cent increase over 2024, and disbursing US$429 million, 30 per cent more than in 2024.

Subscribe now to our eNATION edition for the full story.

For the latest stories and breaking news updates download the Nationnews apps for iOS and Android.

Grand Stand sold out for Gold Cup

Stefan Walker
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Grand Stand sold out for Gold Cup

There won’t be a grand entry for horse racing fans seeking to buy tickets at the last minute for the Sandy Lane Barbados Gold Cup Raceday.

That’s because all the tickets for seats in the popular Grand Stand at the historic Garrison Savannah have already been snapped up.

That confirmation came yesterday from the Barbados Turf Club’s (BTC) liaison officer Mohamed Mohammad, as he promised an action-paced 43rd running of the Caribbean’s most prestigious horse race over 1 800 metres, which carries an overall purse of $316 500.

“Trust me, it got sold out from October, believe it or not. People booked from then, and when I came back from vacation, it was flooded with emails as people waited for seats,” Mohammad said during an interview with MIDWEEK SPORT.

Subscribe now to our eNATION edition for the full story.

For the latest stories and breaking news updates download the Nationnews apps for iOS and Android.

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