America

The long-awaited construction of a 27 km road linking Port-de-Paix to Anse-à-Foleur officially began after three years of planning and land expropriation issues; it is entirely financed by a donation from the Inter-American Development Bank

Iconic Salcedo ice cream is facing collapse as daily power outages up to 14 hours are shutting down factories, forcing businesses like Polar Bear to slash production, lay off staff, and rely on family labor, threatening a cultural and economic staple

Diplomatic relations with 16 new countries will be established in 2025, including opening an embassy in Egypt; the plan aims to boost trade, attract foreign investment, and enhance international cooperation on security

The San Francisco Javier Human Development Center in Tegucigalpa, Honduras, has been inaugurated by Spain; this €300.000 project will provide education, psychosocial support, and basic services to 350 youth and 120 families from marginalized communities

The FAO warned of severe soil degradation in Guatemala due to climate change, with record heat causing major crop losses, and highlighted local efforts like the Guatemalan Alliance for Soil Management to promote conservation

The SWM Programme has launched a biodiversity monitoring initiative in Rupununi area, integrating indigenous knowledge and advanced tools like eDNA analysis and camera traps for wildlife, with EU funding and global scalability to track biodiversity trends

President-elect Trump, on his first trip overseas since winning the election, met in Paris with French President Macron and Ukraine's leader Zelenskiy for talks on 7 December, before the ceremony for the reopening of the Notre-Dame Cathedral

Congress has approved creating the Ministry of Public Security, set to begin operations by June 1, 2025, to oversee public order, crime prevention, and police forces, marking a milestone in reorganizing the nation's security structure

A ransomware cyberattack on Costa Rica's state oil refinery RECOPE forced a switch to manual operations, marking the second major government-targeted cyber incident in the past month

Colombia melted over 23.000 illegal weapons, including rifles and grenades, into construction materials like steel and rebar to build homes, schools, and bridges, marking a symbolic step toward peace despite ongoing conflicts with armed groups

The government has denied claims that the island will be one of the jurisdictions the incoming Donald Trump administration has identified to send deportation flights for its mass deportation programme promised for next year

The Caribbean Community Climate Change Centre CCCCC, in collaboration with the Government of St. Vincent and the Grenadines launched a US$3M project to fast-track climate action in the CARICOM area

Yerba mate producers have begun an indefinite strike over low prices and delayed payments, but experts assure no shortages will occur due to high stock levels, despite producers halting the harvest until fair pricing and payment terms are established