A Linden teen girl died on Monday afternoon after her boyfriend reportedly shot her and then allegedly turned the weapon on himself.
The young woman has been identified as Toisha Andrews. Police Headquarters, in a release, revealed that Andrews was 17 years old and from Block 22 Squatting Area, Wismar, Linden. The incident occurred at about 16:30hrs. Preliminary investigations revealed that Andrews had just returned home from school when her 21-year-old boyfriend, Anthony Kellon Malachi Cato, approached her with a firearm and allegedly discharged a round, striking her to the forehead.
Cato subsequently sustained what is suspected to be a self-inflicted gunshot wound and died at the scene.
Andrews was taken to the Linden Hospital Complex, where she was pronounced dead.
A .32 pistol was found near Cato’s body, while Police ranks are currently conducting investigations at the scene.
A 17-year-old student of the Linden Technical Institute was shot dead on Monday by her boyfriend, who later turned the gun on himself at Block 22 Squatting Area, Wismar, Linden.
Dead are Toisha Andrew of Block 22 squatting Area Wismar Linden and 21-year-old Anthony Kellon Malachi Cato, a ten-day worker of Phase 3 Murphy Street Amelia Ward Linden.
Dead: Toisha Andrews
Based on information received, the now-dead teenager returned home from school at about 16:30 hrs when Cato walked up to her with a gun in his hands and discharged one round in her direction, hitting her to the forehead.
She reportedly fell onto the ground. After committing the act, Cato turned the gun on himself.
Dead: Anthony Cato
Andrew was taken to the Linden Hospital complex, where she was pronounced dead.
A .32 pistol suspected to be the murder weapon was found next to Cato’s body.
Detectives are continuing their investigations.
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(Kaieteur News) – A 17-year-old student of the Linden Technical Institute and her 21-year-old boyfriend were found dead following a suspected murder-suicide at Block 22 Squatting Area, Wismar, Linden, on Monday afternoon.
The deceased have been identified as Toisha Andrews, who resided at Block 22 Squatting Area, and Anthony Kellon Malachi Cato, a 10-day worker of Phase Three, Murphy Street, Amelia’s Ward, Linden.
DEAD: Toisha Andrews
Dead: Anthony Kellon Malachi Cato
According to a police report, the incident occurred at about 16:30hrs on October 12, 2026, shortly after Andrews returned home from school.
The report stated that Cato, who was armed with a handgun, approached Andrews and discharged a round, striking her in the forehead and causing her to fall to the ground.
Cato then reportedly shot himself and fell to the ground, where he became motionless.
Andrews was subsequently taken to the Linden Hospital Complex, where she was pronounced dead on arrival.
Cato’s body remained at the scene, with a handgun found next to it, according to the report.
Police ranks were at the scene processing it as investigations continued.
Farmers looking to move into medium- and large-scale production will soon be able to get bank loans at preferential rates.
President Dr Mohamed Irfaan Ali made the announcement on Monday at the inaugural Farmers’ Conference held at the Arthur Chung Conference Centre (ACCC) in Liliendaal, Greater Georgetown.
The president said the government has brought the commercial banks together.
It is negotiating agricultural loans to attract the same incentives as the low-income housing loans. One bank has already signed on.
President Dr Mohamed Irfaan Ali delivers the keynote address
“Already, we have the commitment from Republic Bank that they are going to set aside resources for agricultural loans at a preferential rate, and we are negotiating that rate, which I hope can be announced even before the end of the conference, at the end of this week,”President Ali said.
Demerara Bank already offers poultry loans at 5 per cent. The president said the government is working to bring those loans under the new incentive arrangement as well.
Demerara Bank already offers poultry loans at five per cent
“That is what we do every single day for farmers. We work hard. We try to bring the private sector along. We improve the financial sector so that we can tackle the challenges farmers face in a multidimensional way,”he said.
The financing push comes as demand for credit in the sector grows. Almost 30 per cent of the applications the Guyana Development Bank (GDB) has received since it launched just over a week ago come from agriculture.
A section of farmers attending the inaugural Farmers’ Conference held at the Arthur Chung Conference Centre (ACCC)
“If there is one indication as to how the policy direction is leading to a new wave of excitement, a new wave in agriculture, it is this fact, that almost 30 per cent of all the applications so far in the development bank is in the agricultural sector,” the president said.
He contrasted this with 2020. Then, large farmers and producers were scaling back their investments, and many medium-sized operators, especially in rice and poultry, were leaving the sector. Today, he said, production has recovered and young people are forming consortiums to invest in poultry and other agricultural businesses.
President Ali also pointed to the International Monetary Fund’s (IMF) latest report on Guyana. It found that agriculture has grown by an average of 10 per cent a year since 2022 and now accounts for six per cent of GDP, or one-fifth of non-oil GDP. He said that growth is a direct result of government investment, subsidies and policies to support farmers.
Students of the Guyana School of Agriculture (GSA) at the Farmers’ Conference
He added that more people investing in production will keep that growth going.
“Once we have people interested in the production of goods, especially in the agricultural sector, then what the IMF report is saying about us today will continue to expand and continue to grow,”President Ali said.
The Conference forms part of Agriculture Month of activities held under the theme “Innovate, Nourish, Grow: Building a Strong and Sustainable Guyana.”
Farmers across Guyana now have a direct role in shaping the next phase of the country’s agricultural transformation as recommendations from the inaugural Farmers’ Conference will feed into a national action plan for the sector.
Minister of Agriculture Zulfikar Mustapha made this clear on Monday at the Arthur Chung Conference Centre (ACCC) in Liliendaal, Greater Georgetown, when the Conference opened.
He told farmers that the government alone cannot transform agriculture, and that the sector’s progress depends on the people who work in it
Minister of Agriculture, Zuflikar Mustapha delivers his address at the Farmers’ Conference on Monday
“This is not a forum where government comes to tell you what we intend to do. It’s a forum to ensure that you have a direct voice in the implementation, refinement, and execution of those policies,” he said.
The conference itself was birthed by farmers.
Minister Mustapha recalled that during an outreach exercise, a group of farmers told him there was no national space where they could meet, talk to each other, and share ideas.
“That conversation sowed a seed. Today, we are witnessing the harvest of that seed… This inaugural farmers’ conference was created because we listened,” he said.
A section of the audience
The government’s direction for agriculture is set out in its 2025 Manifesto, the National Development Strategy and the Low Carbon Development Strategy (LCDS) 2030.
However, Minister Mustapha noted that those plans succeed only with the practical knowledge of people who work the land, raise livestock, fish Guyana’s waters, and build agribusinesses.
“The most effective policies are those shaped by the people who live the realities of farming every day,” Minister Mustapha said.
Participants were placed in breakout groups according to their area of farming. Technical officers from the Ministry of Agriculture are supporting the discussions.
The minister asked farmers to keep the sessions focused on sector-wide solutions rather than personal requests, since other channels already exist for individual matters.
“Every suggestion you make, every idea you share, and every recommendation that emerges from these discussions have the potential to influence how we move forward as a sector and as a nation,” he said.
The Guyana Development Bank is also part of the programme. The minister said its involvement reflects the government’s commitment to giving farmers the financing they need to grow their businesses.
Minister Mustapha also pointed to the range of expertise in the room. Attendees included large-scale producers, emerging entrepreneurs and leaders of farming organisations, some of whom have decades of experience. He encouraged them to use the conference to build connections with each other.
He said farmers’ work also supports Guyana’s role in the CARICOM’s agriculture and food security agenda under President Dr Mohamed Irfaan Ali, including the CARICOM ’25 by 2025 + 5′ initiative to cut the region’s food import bill.
“The work taking place in our fields and our farms and throughout the agricultural communities contributes to Guyana’s development and strengthens our ability to contribute to the Caribbean,” the minister said.
The conference is a flagship activity of Agriculture Month 2026, held under the theme ‘Innovate, Nourish, Grow: Building a Strong and Sustainable Guyana’. President Ali delivered the feature address.
Ahead of the commencement of substantive hearings on Wednesday, the Commission of Inquiry into the sinking of the MV Barima visited Mabaruma on Monday to hear firsthand from survivors and encourage them to give evidence before the commission.
During the community engagement at the Narie Extension Centre, commissioners assured survivors that appropriate arrangements would be made for those who choose to testify at the hearings in Georgetown.
While the meeting was not a formal hearing or a session for taking testimony, it allowed survivors and bereaved families to meet the five commissioners, discuss the inquiry’s objectives and raise questions about the investigation.
About 36 people from Mabaruma and surrounding communities in Barima-Waini, Region One, attended, some travelling long distances.
The COI members listen attentively to the concerns of Region One families
Among them was Andre Cox, Toshao of White Water, who raised questions on behalf of families he said were unable to attend.
They wanted to know how long the investigation would take and when the sunken vessel would be raised.
Commission chairman Justice Godfrey P. Smith said the team anticipated taking about six months to complete its findings and submit a report to President Dr Mohamed Irfaan Ali.
Raising the Barima, however, was outside the commission’s responsibility, he explained.
Another resident shared her thoughts on the sinking of the MV Barima
That matter rested with the government.
Cox also asked what was planned for those who had been aboard the vessel and remained unaccounted for.
Justice Smith acknowledged the question but said he did not have an answer.
The Toshao told commissioners that a psychologist visits White Water every Monday to provide support to survivors and affected families.
Alongside questions about the investigation came deeply personal accounts of survival and loss.
Although the meeting was not convened to receive formal testimony, several people spoke about what they had endured.
Leon Murray recounted his struggle to survive that night. He pointed to his son, seated at the back of the room, who had also survived. His wife and other children did not.
His voice cracked as he spoke, and many in the room could not hold back their tears.
Commissioners listened attentively, took notes and asked questions to clarify details.
Asked afterwards about the visit, Murray said he “thanked God they came to investigate what happened and how it happened,” adding that he “was pleased that they came.”
For fellow survivor Ormon Cox, the memories were of long hours in the water, surrounded by pitch darkness.
He described removing his belt and using it to strap empty plastic bottles together to help him stay afloat.
After the meeting, Cox said recounting the ordeal often brought on intense headaches.
Even so, he felt it was important to meet the commissioners. He said he had much more to tell them and looked forward to giving testimony before the inquiry.
Leroy Jerome’s visit coincided with a painful milestone: his son, who died when the Barima sank, would have turned three on Monday.
Jerome travelled from Barima to paint his son’s tomb and meet the commissioners. He said he was “happy that the commissioners came to meet the survivors and families.”
Maria Bowring and her husband, Albert Wells, lost their daughter and her children. They said their daughter, who had lived in Georgetown for years, was coming to visit them. She never made it home.
At the close of the engagement, many stayed behind to personally thank the commissioners for undertaking the investigation.
Several pledged to attend the hearings in the coming weeks, if not to give testimony, then to show their support.
For Mabaruma and neighbouring communities, the grief remains palpable. Survivors continue to grapple with memories of the ordeal, while relatives mourn those they lost and seek answers about those still missing.
The number of residents who died or remain unaccounted for has not yet been established.
Appointed by President Ali, the commission is tasked with investigating what went wrong and recommending measures to prevent a similar tragedy.
Its community engagements and facility visits form part of its work to better understand the circumstances surrounding the sinking and its impact.
During the Mabaruma visit, commissioners also conducted a walkthrough of the wharf and cargo area before returning to Georgetown.
The MV Barima departed Georgetown on July 18, bound for Mabaruma before continuing to Port Kaituma.
The journey from Georgetown to Mabaruma usually takes between 14 and 24 hours. The vessel sank late that night.
Justice Smith, of Belize, a former Justice of Appeal, chairs the five-member inquiry. Serving alongside him are Captain Hamada Fouda, an Egyptian residing in Jamaica and a maritime surveyor and safety specialist; Nyree Dawn Alfonso of Trinidad and Tobago, an attorney specialising in maritime law; Dr Andrzej Jasionowski of Poland, a naval architect and marine engineer; and retired Rear Admiral Hayden Pritchard of Trinidad and Tobago, an expert in maritime operations and security.
The commission is scheduled to visit Port Kaituma on Tuesday.
Guyanese shoppers have welcomed the government’s Farmers’ Market initiative, held today at the Arthur Chung Conference Centre alongside the Farmers’ Conference, highlighting the reasonable prices, variety of locally produced goods and direct access to farmers and agro-processors, while expressing hope that the initiative will continue regularly.
Speaking with theDepartment of Public Information (DPI) on Monday, shopper, Christopher Singh described the initiative as a good collaboration between the government and the Ministry of Agriculture, noting that the prices offered were significantly lower.
Christopher Singh, shopper at the Farmers Market
“The prices are exceedingly low, and we thank you (the Government) for this, and we continue to support this initiative,” he said.
First-time visitor Rohan Khani also found the prices reasonable, while Zaheeda Hack said the market provided a valuable opportunity for farmers.
Zaheeda Hack
“I think it should be done more often, because it’s farmers directly to the consumers. And so it’s probably going to be easier for them to get their produce off, and easier for us to access it,” she said.
Minister of Agriculture, Zulfikar Mustapha engaging vendors at Monday’s farmer market at the Convention Centre
Zaheeda Hack also welcomed the variety of locally produced and agro-processed goods available, including different flavours of achar and seasonings, and recommended that the initiative be held monthly, with more farmers and other producers encouraged to participate.
Janice Miller, a non-national, similarly praised the convenience and variety, noting that she discovered products she had not previously considered purchasing.
Janice Miller after purchasing her items at the farmers market
“I thought the prices were very reasonable. Also, I like the variety of stuff that they had here. It was not just vegetables; they had different manufactured goods,” she said, expressing hope that the market would be held more often.
Shoppers during the Farmers market
Meanwhile, Hashim Alli encouraged Guyanese to support future markets, noting that the initiative provides an opportunity to promote local agriculture while giving consumers access to reasonably priced goods.
Hashim Alli
Adding his contribution, Chris Persaud also welcomed the range of products available, specifically the prices of eggs and other items as part of a positive shopping experience.
The Farmers’ Market brings farmers, agro-processors and consumers together, providing an avenue for locally produced goods to reach the public while giving shoppers access to a variety of products at competitive prices.
The Ministry of Education’s Distance Education Unit (DEU) has launched the EDPal Plus Learning App and the Media Mentorship Programme aimed at widening education access and promoting the integration of technology into teaching and learning across Guyana and the wider Caribbean.
The app is an improved version of the EDPal App launched in September 2023.
Speaking at the launch at the Ramada Georgetown Princess Hotel, EDYOU FM’s Head Phillip Williams said the unit operates on the philosophy that a person’s physical address should not determine access to educational resources.
Unveiling the app’s QR codes
“The platform takes EDPal to the next step to EDPal Plus. It features smoother operation and more access to information from the Ministry of Education. We are particularly proud…Now, for the first time, anybody with the app can access the seven channels right in the palm of your hands; that’s big,” Williams remarked.
He said the unit listened to the feedback after launching the first version.
“EDPal is a cornerstone of the Ministry of Education’s digital transformation in Guyana; that’s how important it is. We are proud of what we are launching today; we are happy about the foundation we have set, and that will be built upon even long after we are gone,” Williams stated.
Meanwhile, the Media Mentorship Programme brings together students from various secondary schools across Guyana for two weeks for mentorship in photography, videography, pre-production, video editing and audio production.
The programme will be supervised by various DEU team members.
Production Manager Jonathan Jacobus explained, “We wanted to take that talent and provide an avenue for younger individuals to benefit from the experience and knowledge that our creatives have to offer.”
The media mentorship programme will include a theoretical framework for various creative skills, as well as provide mentees with hands-on sessions with seasoned media professionals.
Students were taken from various secondary schools, including New Campbellville, Charity, St Ignatious, Brickdam, Bladen Hall, JC Chandisingh, Fort Wellington and West Demerara Secondary Schools.
The Ministry of Agriculture is working with the Guyana Lands and Surveys Commission (GLSC) and farmers’ organisations to identify new lands to expand production and advance Guyana’s agricultural ambition.
Minister of Agriculture Zulfikar Mustapha
Minister of Agriculture Zulfikar Mustapha made the announcement on Monday while closing the ministry’s farmers’ conference at the Arthur Chung Conference Centre (ACCC) in Liliendaal.
The minister outlined further measures to raise agricultural output, including the importation of 1,000 pregnant heifers from Brazil, artificial insemination and embryo transplantation.
Farmers were also encouraged to partner with the Guyana Livestock Development Authority (GLDA) to strengthen swine production.
The government will continue to provide free planting materials and seedlings, while advancing investments in aquaculture, shade-house cultivation and youth entrepreneurship.
He also announced plans to make the conference an annual event to give farmers a direct voice in shaping agricultural policies.
Farmers’ Conference 2026
“The future of agriculture in Guyana cannot only be built by the government. It has to be built by all stakeholders, the entire population who are farmers,” the minister stated.
Construction work to transform the Parika Ferry Stelling into a modern port is advancing, while the river defence area is now fully sealed to protect against flooding.
Minister within the Ministry of Public Works, Madanlall Ramraj, and his technical team, along with Minister within the Ministry of Agriculture, Vickash Ramkissoon, recently inspected the project.
Minister within the Ministry of Public Works Madanlall Ramraj inspects the project
“With respect to the stelling works, we have now advanced. The work is approximately 15 per cent complete. We are still in the process of doing pile caps, after which the precast beams are going to be installed,” Senior District Engineer Seenarine Nandram reported.
Construction teams are currently working on pile caps, which will support the installation of precast beams and decking.
Precast beams and decking will be transported to the site over the next two weeks to be installed on the pile caps.
Nandram also confirmed that the diversion route is complete.
“We are now back to a stage where we are allowing in excess of 20 tonnes of cargo to traverse to the various locations that the Transport and Harbour Department is servicing,” he explained.
Ongoing works on the Parika port project
The project forms part of the government’s continued efforts to modernise transport infrastructure and strengthen connections between regions, while improving the movement of passengers and goods.
