Grenada adopts roadmap for implementing the Escazú Agreement; Environmental organisation wins challenge over access to information

This update covers developments relating to the freedoms of expression, association and assembly in Grenada from November 2025 to August 2026.

Context

Grenada-US deportation agreement raises human rights concerns

On 30th January 2026, Grenada and the United States signed a non-binding memorandum of understanding (MOU) providing for the potential transfer to Grenada of third-country nationals subject to removal from the United States. Grenada had initially declined the US proposal, but agreed to the arrangement following repeated requests from the US government. Under the MOU, the United States may propose persons for transfer, while Grenada retains discretion to accept or reject them on a case-by-case basis. Grenada may give preference to people whose skills or competencies could contribute to the country’s development. Prime Minister Dickon Mitchell presented the arrangement as a potential means of addressing labour shortages, particularly in the construction, agriculture and hospitality sectors.

The MOU includes assurances that people transferred to Grenada will not be subjected to persecution or torture there or subsequently transferred to a country where they would face such treatment. However, the Third Country Deportation Watch, a joint initiative of Human Rights First and Refugees International, has raised concerns about the risks associated with the agreement.

Grenada is not a party to the 1951 Refugee Convention or its 1967 Protocol and has no dedicated national legislation or formal procedure for refugee status determination. Any refugee or asylum request goes through immigration regulations. Although the principle of non-refoulement remains binding on all states as a norm of customary international law, the absence of a domestic framework raises questions about how Grenada would identify and protect transferred people who fear persecution or torture. As of 11th August 2026, no transfers to Grenada were known to have taken place under the agreement.

These concerns increased in July 2026, when leaders of the Caribbean Community (CARICOM), including Grenada, said the proposed arrangements would facilitate the transit of third-country nationals to their countries of origin rather than their settlement in Caribbean states. Third Country Deportation Watch warned that onward removals could result in successive transfers that ultimately return a person to a country where they face persecution, torture or other serious harm. Between January 2025 and mid-August 2026, the United States forcibly transferred over 23,000 people to 26 third countries, with some subjected to arbitrary detention, family separation, and other harms.

Association

Grenada adopts roadmap for implementing the Escazú Agreement

On 25th February 2026, Grenada and the UN Economic Commission for Latin America and the Caribbean (ECLAC) published a national roadmap for implementing the Escazú Agreement, the regional treaty that protects access to environmental information, participation in environmental decision-making, and environmental justice.

The roadmap follows a legal assessment and consultations with public officials and other stakeholders, and identifies priority actions to address remaining gaps, strengthen inter-agency coordination, and develop systems for public information and participation.

New collective bargaining agreements and decent work programme advance trade union rights

On 5th August 2026, the Government of Grenada and the Grenada Public Workers’ Union (GPWU) concluded a three-year collective bargaining agreement covering 2026 to 2028. Following months of negotiations, the agreement provides salary increases of four per cent in 2026, four per cent in 2027 and five per cent in 2028, alongside improvements to travelling and commuting allowances, study leave, employee wellness, occupational safety and other employment conditions. The government described the settlement as the result of sustained dialogue and compromise between the union and the Government Negotiating Team.

The agreement formed part of a broader period of collective bargaining involving several unions and public-sector bargaining units. On 24th December 2025, GUT and T.A. Marryshow Community College (TAMCC) concluded the college’s first collective bargaining agreement with the union. Covering 2026 to 2028, it established for the first time a separate and formalised bargaining framework specifically for lecturers, including provisions on wages, fringe benefits and other conditions of employment.

On 17th February 2026, the government concluded a separate three-year agreement with representatives of the Royal Grenada Police Force and His Majesty’s Prisons Officer Welfare Association. It provides salary increases of four per cent in each year from 2026 to 2028, alongside annual increments for eligible officers and changes to allowances and employment benefits.

On 11th March 2026, the government and the Grenada Union of Teachers (GUT) signed a three-year collective bargaining agreement covering January 2026 to December 2028. According to the government, the agreement followed negotiations with the Government Negotiating Team and provides compounded salary increases of four per cent in 2026, four per cent in 2027 and five per cent in 2028. Eligible teachers will also continue to receive their regular annual salary increments each January. The agreement also provides a $500 annual allowance for classroom materials, expanded opportunities for study leave and scholarships, additional staffing support for special education and early-childhood institutions, and recognition of technical and vocational qualifications.

However, concerns later emerged over the timely payment of teachers. In June 2026, GUT accused the Ministry of Education of failing to adequately address long-standing payment delays affecting some teachers. The union had submitted a list of 17 teachers who experienced missed or partial payments between September 2025 and April 2026, with some reportedly waiting several months for money owed to them. The ministry said all teachers concerned were receiving their regular salaries and that most outstanding cases had been resolved, while the remaining cases were being processed.

Alongside these developments, Grenada also moved to strengthen the national framework for collective bargaining and employment policy. On 19th May 2026, the government, employers’ representatives and trade unions signed and launched Grenada’s first Decent Work Country oadmap for implementing the Escazú Agreement; Environmental organisation wins challenge over access to informationProgramme (DWCP) for 2026 to 2031, developed with support from the International Labour Organisation (ILO). It places freedom of association, collective bargaining and tripartism at the centre of its implementation.

The framework moved into practical implementation in June 2026. The ILO carried out its first technical-assistance mission under the DWCP, supporting government officials to “strengthen dispute resolution and collective bargaining capacity.”

Peaceful Assembly

Workers stage protests over working conditions

During the reporting period, workers and trade unions held several protests and industrial actions over working conditions and collective bargaining disputes. Some of the main actions were as follows:

• On 30th June 2026, workers at the National Water and Sewerage Authority (NAWASA) protested as negotiations over wages and working conditions continued. The action came amid ongoing disagreements between the unions and NAWASA over wages, working conditions, and other collective bargaining issues. In an update issued the same day, NAWASA said negotiations with the GPWU remained ongoing. The authority said it had to consult relevant government ministries and obtain approval before formally responding to the union’s proposals.
• On 25th June 2026, employees of the Grenada Airports Authority staged industrial action that disrupted airport operations. According to MTV News GD, workers protested over unresolved occupational health and safety concerns raised by their trade union.
• On 13th December 2025, operations at Maurice Bishop International Airport (MBIA) were disrupted after a number of employees of Aviation Services of Grenada Ltd (ASG), the airport’s main ground-handling company, reported sick. The disruption occurred amid negotiations between the union and ASG over a fringe-benefits package, including a Christmas bonus. According to media reports, negotiations had progressed substantially before disagreement emerged over the terms governing bonus payments in profitable and non-profitable years. The following day, ASG described the action as a coordinated sick-out and said it breached the existing collective bargaining agreement.
• On 10th December 2025, workers at T.A. Marryshow Community College (TAMCC) continued industrial action over wages, with employees supported by the PWU gathering outside the college with placards ahead of conciliation with Labour Commissioner Sparkle Grenade-Courtney. A separate bargaining process involving lecturers subsequently produced an agreement (see Association).

Silent demonstrations call for stronger protection of women after student’s killing

On 12th February 2026, civil society organisation Empower Her Caribbean organised a silent vigil in St George’s, with participants marching from the Botanical Gardens and calling for stronger protection of women and girls from gender-based violence. Participants marched from the Botanical Gardens as part of the action, which followed the killing of 22-year-old nursing student Aleandra Lett-Hypolite, whose body was found in Café, St Andrew, in early February 2026. A man was charged with rape and capital murder in connection with her death and was remanded in custody. Separately, the Ministry of Social and Community Development organised a candlelight vigil in Crochu, where residents and supporters gathered to mourn Lett-Hypolite.

The Grenada National Organisation of Women (GNOW) expressed outrage at Lett-Hypolite’s death and called for stronger prevention and safety mechanisms, thorough investigations and effective accountability for violence against women and girls.

Environmental organisation wins challenge over access to information

On 27th January 2026, the High Court of Grenada ruled that the Planning and Development Authority (PADA), the statutory body responsible for planning approvals, had failed adequately to maintain and make accessible the public planning register as required under section 69 of the Physical Planning and Development Control Act (Act No. 23 of 2016). The ruling followed a 2021 legal challenge brought by Grenada Land Actors Inc. (GLA), an environmental civil society organisation, against planning decisions concerning three tourism-related projects in natural landmarks (La Sagesse, Levera, and Mount Harman), raising issues relating to access to information, public participation, and environmental assessment.

The decision found that PADA’s planning register contained insufficient information to allow the public to understand and scrutinise the developments effectively. The Court ultimately accepted that the register had not been adequately maintained and made accessible as required by law and granted the remedies sought by GLA in relation to it. These included orders requiring PADA to update and maintain the register in respect of the three developments and, subject to payment of the prescribed fees, provide GLA with planning applications, plans, environmental impact assessments and other material falling within section 69.

GLA also succeeded in relation to two specific planning decisions. Regarding the Levera development, the Court rejected the contention that the proposed golf course was legally required to undergo a separate environmental impact assessment (EIA), since it was not itself a project for which an EIA was mandatory under Schedule III of the Act. However, it found that the environmental material relied upon by PADA dealt inadequately with the potential impacts of the golf course, despite its proposed location in an environmentally sensitive area near a beach used by nesting endangered turtles. It found that the material before PADA contained only scant consideration of these impacts and concluded that a reasonable planning authority would have required further scrutiny and investigation. The Court therefore set aside PADA’s 25th May 2022 approval for the golf course and remitted the application for reconsideration. The Court reached a related but distinct conclusion regarding the La Sagesse lagoon.

However, the Court rejected GLA’s broader contention that the planning legislation imposed a general statutory duty on PADA to conduct public consultations. Justice Glasgow held that, in the absence of regulations prescribing a consultation process, PADA was under no statutory duty to consult the public in a specified manner. He nevertheless recognised that where public consultations were undertaken, principles of procedural fairness could require them to be conducted properly and thoroughly. The Court also declined to treat either the Gunning consultation principles or the Escazú Agreement as prescribing the particular domestic consultation procedure that PADA was required to follow, describing them in this context as guidance rather than statutory procedural requirements.

The judgment also acknowledged GLA’s environmental expertise and involvement in the affected areas and accepted that it had a sufficient interest to challenge failures relating to access to planning information and the lawfulness of environmental decision-making.

By July 2026, consultation on the Levera golf course environmental assessment had resumed. GLA nevertheless alleged that aspects of implementation remained deficient and questioned whether development activity had fully complied with regulatory orders.

Media association disputes Prime Minister's claims over journalists’ access to press briefings

On 5th January 2026, Prime Minister Dickon Mitchell criticised journalists for frequently attending government press conferences virtually rather than in person. During an interview with the Grenada Broadcasting Network (GBN), a broadcaster jointly owned by One Caribbean Media and the government, Mitchell was questioned about the lack of regular press conferences involving himself and government officials. He said he remained willing to hold press briefings but claimed that journalists often participated remotely, leaving meeting rooms occupied principally by cameras rather than reporters. He also said journalists had previously complained about receiving too much information during government briefings.

Four days later, the Media Workers Association of Grenada (MWAG) rejected these claims, noting that it has long called for more frequent engagement with the Prime Minister and government. MWAG affirmed that the concern raised by media workers relates to the structure and format of many government news conferences. These engagements prioritise sequential presentations over interactive exchange, resulting in insufficient time for journalists to question, clarify, and scrutinise issues on behalf of the public.

Additionally, MWAG said that media workers are routinely advised that questions would be restricted strictly to the content presented. It said that this practice undermined the core purpose of a press conference, which is not merely to transmit information but to allow for questioning, clarification, scrutiny, and accountability on behalf of the public.

“The suggestion that journalists chose not to attend or disengaged because they were overwhelmed by information is therefore misleading. The issue was never the media’s capacity to digest information, but rather the lack of focus, coherence, and adequate space for questioning within these engagements.”

Domestic violence legislation expanded to cover technology-facilitated abuse

On 27th March 2026, the Domestic Violence (Amendment) Act 2026 (Act No. 5 of 2026) was enacted, “to expand the scope of domestic violence to include forms of abuse inflicted through electronic or digital means.”

The legislation expanded the definition of domestic violence under the Domestic Violence Act to expressly include online harassment, cyberstalking and cyberbullying, and broadened the definition of emotional, verbal and psychological abuse to cover repeated unwelcome or intimidating contact through electronic or digital means and the dissemination of intimate images, including images that have been digitally manipulated or altered.

The Act defines online harassment to include repeated abusive, threatening or humiliating communications, online impersonation or the creation of false digital content intended to damage a person’s reputation, monitoring or tracking a person’s digital activity without her consent; and publishing or threatening to publish private or sensitive information.

Prime Minister calls for laws to regulate harmful social media content

On 3rd December 2025, Prime Minister Dickon Mitchell called for Grenada and other Caribbean countries to consider laws and regulations to address the harmful effects of social media, including misinformation, disinformation, defamation, bullying, and abuse. Speaking on Spice Morning, a programme of the government-run Government Information Service (GIS), Mitchell said governments needed to “push back” against the risks associated with what he described as an “uncontrolled, unfiltered social media internet space.” He also expressed concern about the effects of unrestricted exposure to negative online content on mental health and social cohesion. Nevertheless, he did not announce a specific bill or set out proposed offences, sanctions or safeguards, and no related legislation was identified during the reported period.

Cannabis reform recognises Rastafari sacramental use

On 13th February 2026, the Drug Abuse (Prevention and Control) (Amendment) Act 2026 (Act No. 1 of 2026) received assent, substantially reforming Grenada’s cannabis laws. The Act, published in the Gazette on 20th February 2026, introduced specific statutory protections for the religious use of cannabis by members of the Rastafari community, while also decriminalising possession of small quantities of cannabis.

The law empowers the Minister to authorise Rastafarian faith adherents, groups and organisations that are comprised of such persons, to cultivate cannabis on designated land, subject to applicable regulations, for use as a religious sacrament. It also protects possession and use at registered Rastafari places of worship and at specifically exempted religious events. These provisions give formal legal recognition to Rastafari sacramental practice, although the Act leaves important aspects of the framework to ministerial authorisations, orders and regulations (Sections 13A(2)-(6)).

Other developments

Legal reforms raise marriage age and abolish discrimination against children

On 4th November 2025, the House of Representatives passed legislation raising the minimum legal age of marriage from 16 to 18 without exceptions. The Marriage (Amendment) Act 2025 was passed by the Senate on 6th November, received assent on 24th November and entered into force on 28th November 2025. The reform removed provisions allowing 16- and 17-year-olds to marry with parental or guardian consent and provides that no marriage may be solemnised where either party is under 18. The reform implemented recommendations accepted by Grenada during its 2025 Universal Periodic Review to establish 18 as the minimum age of marriage without exceptions (see recommendations 131.72 and 131.73).

The Status of Children Act 2025, which followed the same legislative timetable and also entered into force on 28th November 2025, abolished the legal distinction between children born within and outside marriage and established their equal legal status. The Act also reformed rules governing parentage, including presumptions of paternity, declarations and testing of parentage and assisted conception, and made consequential amendments removing discriminatory references to “legitimate” and “illegitimate” children from other legislation.