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In 2016, Antigua and Barbuda championed the regional and global call for a ban on plastic bags, achieving early reductions in landfill waste on the island, but a new report has suggested that this early momentum has lacked the systematic monitoring needed to measure its long-term effectiveness.

The Caribbean Policy Research Institute (CAPRI) launched its report “The Bag Ban Theory: Unpacking Evidence and Capacity Gaps in Caribbean Plastic Policies” last week, revealing that while Antigua and Barbuda led the region with its 2016 ban…

The Caribbean Policy Research Institute (CAPRI) has expressed concern that Jamaica’s plastic ban is not being adequately enforced.

CAPRI Lead Researcher Dominique Augustine, said the follow-through has been fragmented and enforcement fatigue is setting in.

She was speaking last evening at the launch of CAPRI’s new report: “The Bag Ban Theory: Unpacking Evidence and Capacity Gaps In Caribbean Plastic Policies.”

Jamaica began phasing in the ban on single-use plastics on January 1, 2019.

Ms. Augustine argued…

With the general election out of the way the Jamaica Teachers’ Association (JTA) is seeking a speedy resumption of wage talks which were stalled in the final days of the previous Dr Andrew Holness-led Administration.

On Friday, JTA President Mark Malabver told the Jamaica Observer that he has already written to the returned Minister of Finance Fayval Williams to indicate the body is ready to resume negotiations.

“We are anticipating that we will get some movement on some key items, based on the last discussion we had, and we…

Stakeholders in the country’s education sector are being called on the take the necessary steps to ensure that the nation’s children learn and reach their full potential.

The call was made on Wednesday, by Caribbean Policy Research Institute, (Capri) during the release of its latest report, “Education scorecard 2025 assessing the present guiding the future”.

The scorecard evaluates the education system across key dimensions: learning outcomes, coverage, staying in school, equity, standards and evaluation, school authority…

Director of research at the Caribbean Policy Research Institute (Capri) Dr Diana Thorburn is challenging the widely believed view that lower voter turnout in an election signals democratic weakness, arguing instead that Jamaica’s shrinking participation at the polls reflects an evolving and improving democracy.

Pointing to the results of the 2025 General Election, which the Electoral Office of Jamaica (EOJ) said saw a voter turnout of 39.5 per cent, the Capri director noted that the outcome does not only highlight shifting political…

For almost four decades, Jamaica has ranked among the countries with the highest homicide rates in the world. But since 2022, thanks to concerted government efforts, its murder rate has been falling: first by nearly 8 percent from 2022 to 2023, followed by an …